Omar Habib

Although protein-based drugs such as monoclonal antibodies are efficacious in treating various diseases, their worldwide availability is hampered by high production costs. Our lab has been focusing on a promising solution, which is to deliver these biologics via gene vectors to accessible tissues to generate a “protein factory”. Therapeutics produced in the body could provide a consistent supply, dramatically reduce costs and improve patients’ quality of life as minimal administration of gene vector is required.

I will be exploring transcriptional ‘switches’ to control transgene expression in the expression vectors so that adverse effects from high level over-expression can be controlled. My D.Phil in Medical Sciences at St Anne’s College, is funded under the Merdeka Scholarship by Khazanah-Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies.

Before joining Gene Medicine Group, I obtained MSc in Molecular Medicine from Universiti Putra Malaysia and BSc (Hons) in Biomedical Science from International Medical University, Malaysia.