About Me
My journey started in statistical human genetics at Rutgers University. Seeing the transformative potential of machine learning in healthcare and genomics led me to defer MD-PhD acceptances to pursue an MS and, now, career in machine learning –– a decision that has opened up exciting opportunities at the intersection of AI and biological research.
Technical Skills
Languages and Frameworks
ML and Data
Computational Biology
DevOps
Professional Experience
New York Genome Center
New York, NY
Computational Biologist
Jun 2024 - Present
- Improving CRISPR: Fine-tuned ESM protein language model, developed XGBoost and CNN classifier models, incorporated proteomics data, and utilized AlphaFold3 at scale to identify motifs that improve CRISPR editing rates
- Finding sites to target with CRISPR for improved understanding of complex diseases: Utilized Enformer, SQLite, LangChain, and RShiny, and developed a Python package that facilitates CRISPR cas9 guide library development from GWAS fine-mapped loci of complex diseases (three papers -– on Autoimmune, Cardiovascular, and Psychiatric Traits -- in progress; all similar in concept to original STING-seq paper)
- Created comprehensive RNA-targeting cas13 guide library using TIGER model inference and alignment for off-target effects with Bowtie2
- Contributed to alignment and preprocessing pipeline of MultiPerturb-seq, a novel pooled CRISPR screen method allowing for dual capture of ATAC and single-cell RNA-seq, along with sgRNA
Published in Nat. Biotechnol. (2024)
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Regeneron Genetics Center
Tarrytown, NY
Genome Informatics & Data Engineering Co-op
Jun 2023 - Dec 2023
- Developed full-stack web-app with React, Flask, Spark, and AWS
- Designed a Python pipeline for processing transcriptomic data
Rutgers University, Department of Genetics
Piscataway, NJ
Research Assistant
Jun 2021 - May 2022
- Created mappings between genetic and phenotypic datasets using Python and R for NIMH Repository
- Ran statistical analysis to match genetic profiles and eliminate 15% redundancy in biosample identifiers
Projects
Fine-tuned, evaluated, ensembled LLM guardrails to improve content moderation to a 98% F1-score
Fine-tuned CNN on retina images to create cataracts detection deep learning model with 96% accuracy
Architected full-stack Flask/PostgreSQL activity tracking app, deployed to server, now with 450+ users
Education
Columbia University, School of Engineering
New York, NY
Master of Science in Computer Science, Machine Learning track
Sep 2022 - May 2024
- Courses: Algorithms, Systems Programming, OS, AI, ML, Deep Learning in Genomics, NLP, Databases
- Leadership: President & Co-Founder of Columbia Artificial Intelligence Society for Graduate Engineers
Rutgers University, Honors Program
New Brunswick, NJ
Bachelor of Arts in Genetics, summa cum laude
Sep 2017 - May 2021
- Thesis: Genome-Wide Association Study of Bipolar Disorder with Dimensional Symptom Classifications
- Honors: Phi Beta Kappa, Henry Rutgers Award, Excellence in Research Pres. Award, Scarlet Scholarship
- Courses: Data Structures & Algorithms, Bioinformatics, Quant. Bio, Probability Theory, Linear Algebra
- Leadership: President & Editor-in-Chief of The Examiner, the Rutgers life science periodical