Rooh Ullah

PhD-qualified researcher with a PharmD from Pakistan and over 9 years of experience in clinical pharmacy, hospital management, and drug regulatory control. Expertise in advanced CRISPR-Cas9 gene therapy research for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, including four years developing in vitro and in vivo genome editing models. Proficient in molecular biology, viral vector production, data analysis, and regulatory compliance. Seeking postdoctoral research scientist or R&D roles in biotechnology and pharmaceutical development focused on novel therapeutics for rare diseases.

• Two-month internship: Community, hospital, clinical pharmacy & experimental medicines (UAMS & Walgreens, USA, 2009)
• Teaching & Mentoring: Supervised undergrad students, pharmacy interns, and technicians

• Antihyperglycemic effect of methanol extract of Tamarix aphylla L. Karst in streptozotocin–nicotinamide induced diabetic rats., Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Biomedicine, 2017, First Author
• Lipid lowering effect of methanol extract of Tamarix aphylla L. Karst in streptozotocin-nicotinamide induced diabetic rats., Journal of Diabetes and Treatment, 2017, First Author
• Covid-19 detection from X-ray images using customized convolutional neural network., 2nd International Conference on Artificial Intelligence (ICAI), 2022
• Investigation of the laxative activity of methanolic extract of Tamarix aphylla L. Karst in experimental animals., The Stetho, Vol. 2(12)

• I developed and validated a CRISPR-Cas9 Homology-Independent Targeted Integration (HITI) platform as a near-universal genome-editing strategy for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD). The approach enables targeted integration of microdystrophin under the native DMD promoter, utilizing endogenous DNA repair pathways for efficient transgene insertion. Good integration efficiency was achieved in human and murine cell lines in vitro and in the mdx mouse model in vivo. I optimized AAV vector production, purification, and systemic delivery, resulting in sustained microdystrophin restoration, as confirmed by qPCR, Western blotting, immunohistochemistry, and confocal microscopy. I independently designed and managed parallel in vitro/in vivo experiments, performed statistical analysis (GraphPad Prism), interpreted complex datasets, and provided primary data and figures for internal reports and for funding applications.
• Prior to the PhD, during my MPhil in Pharmacology, I conducted preclinical in vivo studies evaluating the anti-diabetic potential of selected plant extracts in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rat models. Therapeutic effects were assessed using molecular (PCR) and analytical techniques (UV-Vis spectroscopy, mass spectrometry) to quantify glucose regulation and characterize bioactive constituents.

• Dr. Alberto Malerba, Lecturer in Gene Therapy, Department of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, England, United Kingdom, Alberto.Malerba@rhul.ac.uk
• Prof. Dr. Shafiq Ahmed Tariq, Professor, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Khyber Medical University, Peshawar, KPK, Pakistan, Shafiq.ibms@kmu.edu.pk
• Dhruve Patel, Business Director and Optometrist, Jays Pharmacy, Egham, England, United Kingdom, dhruve@jaysplusltd.com

• CRISPR: Design, Strategy & Analysis (UK)
• Using Gas Cylinders and Liquid Nitrogen Safely Within Universities (UK)
• Communication & Leadership (UALR, USA)
• Nonprofit Organisation Management (USA)