What have your Ph.D. studies focused on?
"My Ph.D. studies revolved around cell replacement therapy for Parkinson's disease. The focus was on evaluating the potential of using patient-specific cells (i.e., autologous grafting). The potential benefit of a patient-specific treatment is the circumvention of an immunosuppressive regimen that causes side effects and put the patient at risk of infection. However, since the patient-derived cells have a disease background it could be so that they develop disease-associated phenotypes and degenerate over time. My projects investigated whether patient-derived cells are more prone to develop disease phenotypes and what can be done to protect these cells after transplantation."
Can you tell us more about the cover of your thesis?
"My thesis cover illustrates the workflow of generating patient-specific cells for cell replacement therapy for Parkinson's Disease. Skin cells are taken from a patient, reprogrammed to induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), differentiated into dopaminergic progenitors, and put back in the patient. En route to the patient we can also remove disease-associated genes that might compromise the transplanted cells and eventually the clinical benefit of the graft over time."
How did you end up doing a Ph.D. at MultiPark?
"Before my Ph.D. studies, I was studying engineering in biotechnology at the engineering faculty here at Lund University. During a biology course, we had a guest speaker from Lund Stem Cell Center who talked about stem cells and their potential to become any type of cell in the body. I found it incredibly interesting so when it came to doing a master's project, I reached out to Lund Stem Cell Center. Luckily, a postdoc in Malin Parmar's group was looking for a master's student and it turned out to be a great fit. Malin Parmar's group is also a part of MultiPark, so I was affiliated with both environments when I continued as a Ph.D. student."
What have you found the most enjoyable during your Ph.D. studies at MultiPark?
"It is difficult to pinpoint one thing or one event. In my opinion, the entire journey has been the most enjoyable. That is, all the fika moments, lunches, retreats/conferences, and laughs around the office. I am very fortunate that I had the opportunity to do my Ph.D. studies in such a nice environment. It was never stressful to go to work."
What has been the most challenging aspect?
"Since we are often interested in the ability of our cells to be able to alleviate motor symptoms after transplantation, we often conduct long-term (6-12 months) animal studies. Moreover, many of our in vitro studies require several months of cellular maturation. Thus, if things go wrong (which they tend to do from time to time) it is a lot of time that has been lost. Furthermore, often you simply don't know where the fault lies and all you can do is repeat it and hope for the best. Such is the world of science."
What has been the most rewarding?
"I would say that the most rewarding part of the Ph.D. studies was towards the end when you are writing your thesis and defending it. At least for me that was when I realized how much work I had put in and just how much I had learned over the years. It is easy to think about what we don’t know that we sometimes forget how much we have learnt and how much we have grown."
What are you most proud of?
"I would say that I am most proud of the Ph.D. journey as a whole. Looking back at it, there were many hurdles, challenges and plenty of work that had to be done. But in the end, much thanks to fantastic friends and colleagues I managed to overcome them and matured and learned plenty in the process."
What do you like to do when you are not at work?
"When I am not working, I like to spend my time making shorter trips as well as longer ones when I get the opportunity. Cooking different foods and trying new restaurants is also something my partner and I love to do. I also like to stay active, which include going to the gym and playing padel."
What are your plans following your Ph.D. defense?
"I am currently looking for an exciting new career step, both in the industry and in academia. I don't know where I will end up, but I know that I want to work with translational research, something that can bring benefit to patients in the not-so-distant future."
Any tips or advice for future Ph.D. students?
"My advice for future Ph.D. students would be to learn as many methods/techniques as possible. Not only is this very fun but it will also help you in the future when you apply for a job. Try to find a project that excites you because this will keep you going when you are tired, or when things are not working out. Also, know that things will go awry, so don't get too disappointed and beaten down when these things happen. Lastly, I would also like to mention that if you can get a first-author paper published around your half-time (easier said than done) this will make the end of your Ph.D. studies less stressful."
