Lauren K
- Research Program Mentor
MS candidate at University of Pennsylvania (UPenn)
Expertise
Gene editing, Disease Biology, Translational Science, Sensory Neuroscience, molecular biology, Python, Java, cell biology
Bio
I am currently in biomedical research field with a focus on translational biology, gene therapy, and rare disease research. I'm passionate about developing novel therapeutics for diseases, particularly within the rare genetic disease population. I also am a graduate student in Computer Science, and have a particular interest in data science and analytics, and the applications of this field within the pharmaceutical sector. I am passionate about interdisciplinary learning and research. Outside the classroom, I enjoy hiking, camping and cooking. I have camped on top of mountains, isolated beaches, tropical forests, and red rock deserts! At home, I love to learn about and cook cuisines from various cultures, and particularly enjoy Thai and Italian cooking.Project ideas
Barriers to Rare Disease Research
Rare diseases, collectively, make up a large percentage of the diseased population in America (30 million Americans suffer from a rare disease!) However, the research conducted to learn about and treat these diseases is lacking, and many rare disease patients live without any treatment options. This project seeks to uncover the sociological, technical, and economic barriers that may be affecting the limited rare disease research in America. What sort of biological challenges make it harder to study rare diseases than more prevalent diseases like cancer, Alzheimer's, and Diabetes? How does the term "rare" affect rare disease researchers from securing funding options? Does society consider rare diseases "not important", and could this have an effect on the research interest in these diseases? An optimal conclusion to this project would be to not only identify these challenges, but propose potential solutions to improve rare disease research in America.