Today marks an emotional day - a dream that I’ve been working toward for nearly a decade.
This would not have been possible without the incredible support of my team. To my husband, @muhdalam my rock since day one, who leads with humility, kindness, and unmatched grit—you inspire me every single day. To my parents—especially my mother, whose strength, resilience, and courage have always inspired me to follow my passion.
To my mentors—thank you for believing in me: Dr. Ather Enam, @AtherEnam the first person to see potential in me. You’ve inspired generations, and I’m privileged to call you my mentor. Dr. Carter, @BobCarterMD who truly embodies inspiration, innovation, and imagination. Meeting you during my sub-I in March 2018 was a turning point, and the journey since has been nothing short of incredible. Dr. Balaj, @BalajLeonora a mentor, friend, colleague—thank you for pushing me to be a better version of myself, always.
I’m beyond excited to join the OU Neurosurgery family, @OU_Neurosurgery a program known for its clinical excellence, supportive culture, and commitment to innovation. Grateful for the opportunity to grow as a neurosurgeon, neuroscientist, and advocate in this next chapter. @graffeo@OUbabybrainMD@AKUGlobal@WomenInNSGY
MIT Course announcement: Machine Learning for Computational Biology #MLCB25
Fall'24 Lecture Videos: https://t.co/tA3zeuIF7g
Fall'24 Lecture Notes: https://t.co/C3WmXZuQur
(a) Genomes: Statistical genomics, gene regulation, genome language models, chromatin structure, 3D genome topology, epigenomics, regulatory networks.
(b) Proteins: Protein language models, structure and folding, protein design, cryo-EM, AlphaFold2, transformers, multimodal joint representation learning.
(c) Therapeutics: Chemical landscapes, small-molecule representation, docking, structure-function embeddings, agentic drug discovery, disease circuitry, and target identification.
(d) Patients: Electronic health records, medical genomics, genetic variation, comparative genomics, evolutionary evidence, patient latent representation, AI-driven systems biology.
Foundations and frontiers of computational biology, combining theory with practice. Generative AI, foundation models, machine learning, algorithm design, influential problems and techniques, analysis of large-scale biological datasets, applications to human disease and drug discovery.
First Lecture: Thu Sept 4 at 1pm in 32-144
With: Prof. Manolis Kellis @manoliskellis, Prof. Eric Alm @ejalm, TAs: Ananth Shyamal, Shitong Luo @luost26
Course website: https://t.co/ateGr6xKLM
@MIT@MITEECS@MITdeptofBE@MITCSBPhD@MIT_CSAIL@Harvard@HarvardMed@BroadInstitute
🚨1/8 Excited to share the final version of our #meningioma#mesothelin#CART-cell paper, now published @NeuroOnc with corrected proofs! This preclinical work lays the foundation for applying CAR T-cell therapy to aggressive and treatment-refractory meningiomas. Highlights ⬇️
#AANS2025 was an esp. extraordinary meeting for me, not least of all because of the time spent w friends & mentors (old & new!)... also very excited to be hitting our #E2M stride, & thrilled to announce that we have successfully funded the Chris A. Philips HYM @NREFORG Fund!
Huge congratulations to my incredible husband, @muhdalam , on matching into Vascular Surgery Fellowship at University Hospital, Cleveland Medical Center! Your hard work, perseverance, and passion for surgery never cease to amaze me. So proud of you and excited for this next chapter! @UHSurgeryHealth@UHSurgeryRes
I want to extend a special #AANS2025 welcome to our most junior #E2M attendees! Our early-to-mid career #E2M committee has for the first time written a meeting guide tailored to our medical students, including a welcome message, session highlights, and other key resources!
Congrats to everyone who matched into #neurosurgery! 🧠 Future applicants—join WINS and 20 student panelists for Part 1 of our virtual post-match series. Hear from MD, DO, IMG, re-applicant, research-year & MD/PhD students! #Match2025#WINS
I attended the groundbreaking for @huntsmancancer's new comprehensive cancer center in Vineyard, Utah. This expansion is bringing cancer research and specialty care closer to home for hundreds of thousands of Utahns and residents in surrounding states. It will also create opportunities for workforce development and training future scientists and health care providers. This is a tremendous step for cancer care in Utah and the Mountain West.
Thank you @OGPREMED for the kind invitation to join the featured panel discussion on Liquid Biopsies: From Innovation to the Patient at #NextGenOmics2025. It was truly an honor to share the stage with Olga Udartseva (Agenus), Brian T. Cunningham (Univ. of Illinois), Aleksandra Markovets (AstraZeneca), and Kalpana Pillai (Genentech)! Liquid biopsy holds immense potential to transform cancer diagnostics and personalize patient care.
#NGOUS2025 #PrecisionMedicine #OGPREMED
@OU_Neurosurgery@MGBneurosurgery@AKUGlobal
Please join us in congratulating Ben Petersen & Syeda Batool as they officially join our residency program. 🎉
Welcome to the team!
#MatchDay2025#Match2025@OUCollegeofMed
There has never been a more exciting—or critical—time to be involved in academic health. I’m honored to be part of the @UofUHealth community as we navigate the road ahead together. Read more on #GoodNotes:
https://t.co/lQicByoh4c
In this blog, I talk about what brought me back to my birth state of Utah, my thoughts on the pressures facing academic health centers, and how we can work together to shape a strong and sustainable future.
This week marks the start of a new chapter for me and @UofUHealth. Stepping into my new role, I’m reminded leadership is a team sport. I get to work with teams of talented, driven, mission-focused leaders who care deeply about the work they do and the people they serve. I’m honored to stand alongside them and look forward to what we’ll accomplish together.
@BobCarterMD ‘s mentorship has been pivotal, challenging me to think boldly and approach neurosurgery with creativity. Dr. Carter, your vision and leadership have profoundly impacted countless lives. Wishing you continued success in this new chapter of your remarkable journey!
Our former chairman, Bob S. Carter, MD, PhD presented today at Grand Rounds with his "Reflections of the Ether Dome." Thank you so much for such an impactful last Grand Rounds, Dr. Carter, we appreciate you and all that you have contributed to MGB Neurosurgery. You will be missed, and we wish you well on your future endeavors in Utah! #GrandRounds #ThankYou