Construct plasmids with genes of therapeutic interest for Glaucoma, the second leading cause of blindness in humans• Design Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) primers using SnapGene• Use PCR to amplify genes of interest from mouse cDNA library and use gel electrophoresis to confirm PCR products• Run double digestion reactions to cut genes and vectors at restriction sites, ligate resulting DNA fragments• Transform plasmid into bacterial host Escherichia coli (E. coli) using heat shock• Perform Mini-Prep and Maxi-Prep to extract and purify plasmid DNA from E. coliTransfect HEK293 mammalian cells with plasmid DNA by lipofection• Stain cells with primary and secondary antibodies to measure gene expression levelsDissect mouse retina using a dissecting microscope• Stain retinas for fluorescence imaging

Working to address the issues that Fremont teens face and supporting their interests through various events and activities• Conducted a college application workshop for rising Fremont seniors• Leading a Green City contest to encourage Fremont youth to contribute to green city initiatives

• Ran molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of covalent vs non-covalent kinase inhibitors to understand how they interact with the binding pocket of kinases using NAMD and AmberTools• Visualized trajectories produced by MD simulations using Python scripts

Performed computational screening of compounds against clinically relevant proteins• Modeled compounds with Avogadro, and performed Density Functional Theory (DFT) geometry optimizations using ORCA• Performed protein-ligand docking and binding visualization/analysis of molecules using Chimera and Autodock Vina• Homology modeled and docked unique small molecules against variants of SARS-CoV-2 main proteaseUsed transgenic c. elegans expressing amyloid-β as a model to study Alzheimer’s Disease• Cultured and maintained c. elegans on NGM plates and OP50 media• Performed short term and long term associative memory studies using odorant-dependent chemotaxis assays

Designed and prototyped an eye strain detector to monitor and improve eye health.