Sophia Hernandez

Featured on March 27, 2022

This week, we’re joined by Sophia Hernandez, a PhD student in molecular biology at Umea University, Sweden.

Sophia graduated cum laude from UP Diliman’s Molecular Biology and Biotechnology program, where her thesis investigated the immune response of mice to variants of the malaria-causing parasite, Plasmodium. After graduating, she taught laboratory classes in subjects like animal tissue culture and molecular cloning/gene manipulation at the same university.

In 2018, Sophia won the Wellcome Sanger Institute Prize, giving her the opportunity to do a three-month all-expenses paid research in the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute. She also had a stint at the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub as a research intern, where she modeled novel engineered immunogens from dengue virus.

Sophia continues to investigate the Plasmodium parasite through research grants from EMBO and the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. Recently, she won 2nd place in the Forskar Grand Prix, a Swedish national science communication competition (go scicomm!)

Three fun facts about Sophia:

1. She’s a Formula One fan and would love to watch a race one day!
2. She enjoys drawing and illustrating in her spare time.
3. She likes making Powerpoint presentations but hates presenting them (Anyone else like this?)

Let’s all say hi to Sophia and welcome her to Pinoy Scientists!