My desire to study biochemistry and biomedical studies, stems from the personal experience of the impact that progressive neurodegenerative diseases have on both the sufferer as well as their loved ones and support network. As a child I was unfortunate enough to witness the progression of my grandmothers Alzheimers not understanding the changes in her behaviour at the time. Now, as someone passionate about my science studies, I have a much better understanding of the condition. Yet, neurodegenerative diseases are an area where the scientific community does not yet have perfect understanding. This encourages me to study biomedicine to gain thorough foundational knowledge; pursue a neuroscience direction at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels, and hopefully one day play a role in the important ongoing research into conditions like Alzheimers.
Following my ambition to study biomedicine, I took Biology and Chemistry as my IB Higher Level subjects. With the depth of the curriculum not satisfying my intellectual curiosity, I also decided to read further around the topics that most interest me, such as Alzheimers disease. Akhlaq Farooquis Neurochemical Aspects of Alzheimers Disease provided me with the understanding to retrospectively come to terms with my grandmothers condition. It taught me about the biochemical process behind Alzheimers such as the Amyloid cascade hypothesis and the contribution of Neural membrane phospholipids to Alzheimers pathogeneses. Another field of interest I pursued through research in my spare time was epigenetics. Reading Nessa Careys The epigenetics revolution:Write a paper on how modern biology is rewriting our understanding of genetics, disease and inheritance inspired me to write my IB Extended Essay on the aetiology of Major Depressive Disorder and the role that inheritance and genetics plays in its development. For this essay, I read many articles of the latest research and focused on how different variations of 5-HTTPLR impacts brain activity. Aside from being an opportunity to find out more about neuroscience and biomedical topics, my extended essay also made me familiar with the correct forms of scientific research, argumentation, and writing necessary for studying biomedicine and biochemistry.
The internal assessments for my IB as well as work experience have given me a thorough grounding in experimentation and the skills necessary for laboratory work. One of my assessments was an investigation into the impact of temperature on oxidation which involved the use of complex solutions such as 1, 10phenanthroline as well as equipment like uv-vis colorimeters. Work experience at PHARMA5 in Casablanca, one of Africas leading drug development and manufacturing laboratories, provided the greatest development of my experimental and practical scientific skills; highly transferrable to the study of biomedicine and biochemistry. It also provided an invaluable insight into a large pharmaceutical company, allowing me to see the real-world applications of biochemistry first-hand. During this opportunity, I got to apply my aptitude in manual dexterity which I had honed during earlier work experience in a gemmology laboratory as well as years of playing the piano.
Outside of my academic interests, I am passionate about helping others, having been an art volunteer at a hospice as well as volunteering my time for the Kissing it better charity which puts volunteers in touch with elderly care home residents via Zoom to combat loneliness during the pandemic. I am also a keen sportsperson, playing on my schools football 1st XI. I find sport a crucial element in maintaining both my physical and mental wellbeing as well as something that will be an important outlet for managing the pressures of a scientific degree. I hope to apply my versatility to the study of a subject of deep and genuine interest to me, with the hope of one day contributing to lifesaving research.
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