Mohammed A. Mostajo-Radji | |
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Born | |
Alma mater | |
Awards |
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Scientific career | |
Fields | Neuroscience, science diplomacy |
Institutions | Harvard University, University of California San Francisco, United Nations, University of California Santa Cruz |
Thesis | In Vivo Reprogramming of Neuronal Identity and Local Connectivity in the Neocortex (2016) |
Academic advisors |
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Website | Mostajo-Radji.com |
Mohammed A. Mostajo-Radji (born January 9, 1989) is a Bolivian scientist and diplomat. As the former Bolivian Ambassador for Science, Technology and Innovation, he has been the only Latin American science diplomat at the rank of ambassador. [1] [2] [3]
Mostajo-Radji completed his undergraduate studies at the Rochester Institute of Technology, where he majored in Biotechnology and Bioinformatics and obtained a minor in Science, Technology and Society Studies. During his undergraduate times, he researched the genetic components of age-related hearing-loss under the supervision of Dina Newman. [4] In addition he worked closely with Robert Dirksen at the University of Rochester studying autosomal dominant skeletal myopathies [5] and with Nobel prize laureate Roger Tsien at the University of California San Diego synthesizing dual-modality bioimaging probes. [6] [7]
He completed his PhD at Harvard University in Molecular and Cellular Biology under the supervision of Paola Arlotta. His doctoral thesis focused on neuronal and cortical circuit reprogramming. [8] [9] His postdoctoral work, under the supervision of Alex Pollen at the University of California San Francisco focused on organoid models of brain development and evolution. [10] Throughout his scientific career, Mostajo-Radji has collaborated closely with many renowned neuroscientists, chemists, engineers and computational biologists, including, David Haussler, Adam Cohen, Arnold Kriegstein, Takao Hensch and Arturo Alvarez-Buylla. [11] [12] [13] [14] [8]
In April 2021, Mostajo-Radji announced in his social media that he had accepted a position as an Assistant Research Scientist at the Genomics Institute of the University of California Santa Cruz, where he holds principal investigator status. [15] Shortly after, he announced that he had been elected as a member of the Global Young Academy effective 2021. [16] Currently, Mostajo-Radji leads a research laboratory that is part of the Braingeneers consortium and is also the Director of the Live Cell Biotechnology Discovery Lab. [17]
Through a collaboration with the U.S. Department of State, Mostajo-Radji founded the Bolivian chapter of Clubes de Ciencia in 2015. This project aimed to create bridges of science education between the United States and Bolivia. [18] Originally criticized by the Bolivian government, this program rapidly became the most prestigious science education program in Bolivia. [19] [20] [21] Moreover, it became the largest science diplomacy experiment in Bolivian history. [20]
In February 2020, President Jeanine Áñez appointed him as Extraordinary Ambassador for Science, Technology and Innovation to international organizations and Silicon Valley. [22] [23] His primary affiliation was the United Nations, where he was part of the Bolivian Permanent Mission. [24] His role in Bolivian diplomacy became particularly relevant during the COVID-19 pandemic, as he led the scientific response team to the pandemic. [25] [26] [27] [28] From this position, Mostajo-Radji assisted the Bolivian Chancellery with securing several donations of medical equipment, diagnostic software, laboratory tests and personal protective equipment from foreign governments and tech companies, including Alibaba and Huawei. [29] [30] In addition, he aided Bolivian companies facilitating the international transit and import of raw materials for local production of medications against COVID-19. [28] [31] Upon dissolution of the strategic response room in La Paz on April 28, 2020, Mostajo-Radji worked with the United Nations Development Programme to install 13 molecular diagnosis labs across Bolivia. [32] Throughout the month of May, he personally run patient samples in several of these labs. [32] [33] Mostajo-Radji chose to work without pay while in Bolivia, and requested to donate his salary to his country's fight against COVID-19 instead. [34] [35] [36] [37] In December 2020, Nature magazine included Mostajo-Radji among the seven science advisors highlighted in its end of the year special on COVID-19. [38] In his invited contribution, he brought attention to some of the major issues he had to overcome, including political attacks and internal fights with members of the cabinet and the armed forces. After his work in Bolivia, Mostajo-Radji returned to the United States, where he worked in elucidating the molecular mechanisms of COVID-19 infection in the brain. He is a coauthor in an article published in the Proceedings of the United States National Academy of Sciences that shows the tropism of SARS-CoV-2 for human cortical astrocytes. [39]
Mostajo-Radji wrote two articles highlighting the special needs of his country during the pandemic: one article brings attention to the need for testing ventilators at high altitude, [40] and another one warning about the risks of HIV transmission in hyperimmune convalescent plasma donations in low- and middle- income countries. [41] Both articles were highlighted in the COVID-19 section of the International Network for Government Science Advice (INGSA) website. [42] [43] More recently, he has been the proponent of neurodiplomacy as a new science diplomacy tool that focuses on issues related to brain manipulation, governance and health. [44] [45]
Mostajo-Radji has received several awards, including an honorary doctorate from Jose Ballivian University in Beni, Bolivia. In addition, he has been granted the Franz Tamayo medal, which is the highest honor granted by the Bolivian Senate. [46] In 2015, he was selected as Person of the Year by El Deber newspaper, [47] [48] and in 2017 he was selected as "Latino 30 under 30" by El Mundo Boston. [49] In 2019 he received the Latin Maya Award from the Networking for the Arts Foundation in Washington DC for his work in education development in Latin America. Other awards include the "Cruz Potenzada", which is the maximum award granted by the Comite Civico Pro Santa Cruz, [50] as well as the Melchor Pinto award granted by the Government of Santa Cruz, Bolivia. [51] [52] In 2023, Mostajo-Radji was selected as a Google Cloud Research Innovator. [53]
Science Publications
Science Diplomacy Publications
A dendrite or dendron is a branched protoplasmic extension of a nerve cell that propagates the electrochemical stimulation received from other neural cells to the cell body, or soma, of the neuron from which the dendrites project. Electrical stimulation is transmitted onto dendrites by upstream neurons via synapses which are located at various points throughout the dendritic tree.
γ-Aminobutyric acid, or GABA, is the chief inhibitory neurotransmitter in the developmentally mature mammalian central nervous system. Its principal role is reducing neuronal excitability throughout the nervous system.
Interneurons are neurons that connect to brain regions, i.e. not direct motor neurons or sensory neurons. Interneurons are the central nodes of neural circuits, enabling communication between sensory or motor neurons and the central nervous system (CNS). They play vital roles in reflexes, neuronal oscillations, and neurogenesis in the adult mammalian brain.
A cytokine storm, also called hypercytokinemia, is a pathological reaction in humans and other animals in which the innate immune system causes an uncontrolled and excessive release of pro-inflammatory signaling molecules called cytokines. Cytokines are a normal part of the body's immune response to infection, but their sudden release in large quantities may cause multisystem organ failure and death.
The habenula is a small bilateral neuronal structure in the brain of vertebrates, that has also been called a microstructure since it is no bigger than a pea. The naming as little rein describes its elongated shape in the epithalamus, where it borders the third ventricle, and lies in front of the pineal gland.
The Blue Brain Project is a Swiss brain research initiative that aims to create a digital reconstruction of the mouse brain. The project was founded in May 2005 by the Brain and Mind Institute of École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland. Its mission is to use biologically-detailed digital reconstructions and simulations of the mammalian brain to identify the fundamental principles of brain structure and function.
The endocannabinoid system (ECS) is a biological system composed of endocannabinoids, which are endogenous lipid-based retrograde neurotransmitters that bind to cannabinoid receptors, and cannabinoid receptor proteins that are expressed throughout the vertebrate central nervous system and peripheral nervous system. The endocannabinoid system remains under preliminary research, but may be involved in regulating physiological and cognitive processes, including fertility, pregnancy, pre- and postnatal development, various activity of immune system, appetite, pain-sensation, mood, and memory, and in mediating the pharmacological effects of cannabis. The ECS plays an important role in multiple aspects of neural functions, including the control of movement and motor coordination, learning and memory, emotion and motivation, addictive-like behavior and pain modulation, among others.
Oxytosis/ferroptosis is a type of programmed cell death dependent on iron and characterized by the accumulation of lipid peroxides, and is genetically and biochemically distinct from other forms of regulated cell death such as apoptosis. Oxytosis/ferroptosis is initiated by the failure of the glutathione-dependent antioxidant defenses, resulting in unchecked lipid peroxidation and eventual cell death. Lipophilic antioxidants and iron chelators can prevent ferroptotic cell death. Although the connection between iron and lipid peroxidation has been appreciated for years, it was not until 2012 that Brent Stockwell and Scott J. Dixon coined the term ferroptosis and described several of its key features. Pamela Maher and David Schubert discovered the process in 2001 and called it oxytosis. While they did not describe the involvement of iron at the time, oxytosis and ferroptosis are today thought to be the same cell death mechanism.
Antonello Bonci is an Italian-American neurologist and a neuropsychopharmacologist specialized in the long-term effects of drug exposure on the brain. In August 2019, he became president of Global Institutes on Addictions Miami. Bonci was previously the scientific director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse and a professor at the University of California, San Francisco.
Calcium imaging is a microscopy technique to optically measure the calcium (Ca2+) status of an isolated cell, tissue or medium. Calcium imaging takes advantage of calcium indicators, fluorescent molecules that respond to the binding of Ca2+ ions by fluorescence properties. Two main classes of calcium indicators exist: chemical indicators and genetically encoded calcium indicators (GECI). This technique has allowed studies of calcium signalling in a wide variety of cell types. In neurons, action potential generation is always accompanied by rapid influx of Ca2+ ions. Thus, calcium imaging can be used to monitor the electrical activity in hundreds of neurons in cell culture or in living animals, which has made it possible to observe the activity of neuronal circuits during ongoing behavior.
Neurogenesis is the process by which nervous system cells, the neurons, are produced by neural stem cells (NSCs). In short, it is brain growth in relation to its organization. This occurs in all species of animals except the porifera (sponges) and placozoans. Types of NSCs include neuroepithelial cells (NECs), radial glial cells (RGCs), basal progenitors (BPs), intermediate neuronal precursors (INPs), subventricular zone astrocytes, and subgranular zone radial astrocytes, among others.
Clubes de Ciencia is a non-profit organization founded in 2014 that organizes hands-on week-long workshops in STEM to kids in developing countries at no cost. The instructors are PhD volunteers from top universities, such as Harvard, Princeton, MIT who organizes the workshops. By combining hands-on experimental learning, on-line exercises and mentorship, Clubes de Ciencia takes a unique approach to educating the millennials in developing countries. In two years, Clubes de Ciencia grew past its Mexico program, to also work in Colombia and Bolivia. Currently, it also operates in Brazil, Paraguay, Peru and Spain.
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) is a strain of coronavirus that causes COVID-19, the respiratory illness responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. The virus previously had the provisional name 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), and has also been called human coronavirus 2019. First identified in the city of Wuhan, Hubei, China, the World Health Organization designated the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern from January 30, 2020, to May 5, 2023. SARS‑CoV‑2 is a positive-sense single-stranded RNA virus that is contagious in humans.
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the virus SARS-CoV-2. The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic.
The COVID-19 pandemic in Bolivia was a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. The virus was confirmed to have spread to Bolivia on 10 March 2020, when its first two cases were confirmed in the departments of Oruro and Santa Cruz.
Corey C. Harwell is an American neuroscientist who is an assistant professor in the Department of Neurobiology at Harvard Medical School.
Bat coronavirus RaTG13 is a SARS-like betacoronavirus identified in the droppings of the horseshoe bat Rhinolophus affinis. It was discovered in 2013 in bat droppings from a mining cave near the town of Tongguan in Mojiang county in Yunnan, China. In February 2020, it was identified as the closest known relative of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, sharing 96.1% nucleotide identity. However, in 2022, scientists found three closer matches in bats found 530 km south, in Feuang, Laos, designated as BANAL-52, BANAL-103 and BANAL-236.
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been efforts by scientists, governments, and others to determine the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Similar to other outbreaks, the virus was derived from a bat-borne virus and most likely was transmitted to humans via another animal in nature or during wildlife trade such as that in food markets. While other explanations such as speculations that SARS-CoV-2 was accidentally released from a laboratory have been proposed, such explanations are not supported by evidence. Conspiracy theories about the virus's origin have also proliferated.
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