When his family relocated to the United States, he faced the enormous task of adapting to a new culture, mastering a new language, and rebuilding a sense of identity as a young immigrant. Despite the challenges, he embraced education as a tool of empowerment, and his academic potential soon led him toward the sciences. He enrolled at the University of Massachusetts to study biology and chemistry, two fields that allowed him to explore the molecular machinery of life. In the laboratories where he trained as an undergraduate, he began discovering how scientific inquiry could help explain not only biological systems but also the invisible forces shaping human health.
