Field
Location (during time of takeover)
School/Institution
| Undergrad | De La Salle University Biochemistry |
|---|---|
| MD | St. Luke’s Medical Center Medicine |
| Research | Brigham and Women's Hospital Neuro-immunology |
Featured on April 14, 2024
Take a look into the mind of our next Pinoy Scientist for April, Dr. Danielle “Dani” Pua, MD! A licensed medical doctor by trade, she is currently a research fellow for neuro-immunology at the Multiple Sclerosis Center of the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Massachusetts, United States of America.
Dani received her Bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry from De La Salle University Manila in 2015. From there, she jumped straight into a medical degree at the St. Luke’s Medical Center College of Medicine – William H. Quasha Memorial (WHQM). While there, she was a research assistant at the Institute for Neurosciences. She passed her medical licensure exam in 2020 and worked briefly as a primary care physician. However, her interest in neurology led her to the US where she began working as a research trainee at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital under their Department of Neurology. Her specialization was in neuro-immunology, studying a number of neuroinflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases. She briefly returned to the Philippines as a clinical associate in 2023 where she co-managed patients at her mentor’s – Dr. Geraldine Mariano’s – neurology private practice clinic.
Having returned to the US, she is now a research fellow at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital’s Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Center where she is testing various therapies for the management of the disease. In addition to MS, she is doing research on tick-borne illnesses. She also works as a clinical observer for autoimmune neurology at the hospital.
Some fun facts about Dani:
- She developed an allergy to mangoes after eating a whole basket or ripe ones as a kid.
- She fell in love with research after helping out a resident with chart reviewing back in her clerkship year. Before then, she didn’t really think she’d do much academic writing.
- She’s a huge fan of poetry and had an audio newsletter during the pandemic. She’d read out her favorite poems and send them to a small group of people. Her favorite poet these days is Mark Doty.
