Mohammed Mostajo-Radji

Mohammed A. Mostajo-Radji (born January 9, 1989) is a Bolivian scientist and diplomat. As the former Bolivian Ambassador for Science, Technology and Innovation, he was the only Latin American science diplomat at the rank of ambassador.[1][2][3]

Mohammed A. Mostajo-Radji
Mostajo-Radji addresses Bolivia during his inauguration in 2020
Born (1989-01-09) 9 January 1989
Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia
Alma mater
Awards
  • Latin Maya Award (2019)
  • 25 Drivers of a New Economy (2018)
  • Honorary Doctorate - Jose Ballivian University (2017)
  • Latino 30 under 30 (2017)
  • Franz Tamayo Medal (2015)
  • Person of the Year - El Deber Newspaper (2015)
  • John Wiley Jones Award for Outstanding Students in Science (2011)
Scientific career
FieldsNeuroscience, science diplomacy
InstitutionsHarvard University, University of California San Francisco, United Nations
ThesisIn Vivo Reprogramming of Neuronal Identity and Local Connectivity in the Neocortex (2016)
Academic advisors

Scientific career
Mostajo-Radji keynotes a medical conference in Granada, Spain
Mostajo-Radji participates in a panel at the Thailand National Science and Technology Fair in Bangkok

Mostajo-Radji completed his undergraduate studies at the Rochester Institute of Technology, where he majored in Biotechnology and Bioinformatics and obtained a minor in Science, Technology and Society Studies. During his undergraduate times, he researched the genetic components of age-related hearing-loss under the supervision of Dina Newman.[4] In addition he worked closely with Robert Dirksen at the University of Rochester studying autosomal dominant skeletal myopathies[5] and with Nobel prize laureate Roger Tsien at the University of California San Diego synthesizing dual-modality bioimaging probes.[6][7]

He completed his PhD at Harvard University in Molecular and Cellular Biology under the supervision of Paola Arlotta. His doctoral thesis focused on neuronal and cortical circuit reprogramming.[8][9] His postdoctoral work, under the supervision of Alex Pollen at the University of California San Francisco focuses on organoid models of brain development and evolution.[10] Throughout his scientific career, Mostajo-Radji has collaborated closely with many renowned neuroscientists, chemists, engineers and computational biologists, including, David Haussler, Adam Cohen, Arnold Kriegstein, Takao Hensch, Arturo Alvarez-Buylla, Mircea Teodorescu, Tomasz Nowakowski and Aparna Bhaduri.[11][12][13][14][15]

Diplomatic career
Mostajo-Radji swore in by President Jeanine Áñez as Latin America's first Science, Technology and Innovation Ambassador at the Bolivian Presidential Palace in La Paz

Through a collaboration with the U.S. Department of State, Mostajo-Radji founded the Bolivian chapter of Clubes de Ciencia in 2015. This project aimed to create bridges of science education between the United States and Bolivia.[16] Originally criticized by the Bolivian government, this program rapidly became the most prestigious science education program in Bolivia.[17][18][19] Moreover, it became the largest science diplomacy experiment in Bolivian history.[20]

In February 2020, President Jeanine Áñez appointed him as Extraordinary Ambassador for Science, Technology and Innovation to international organizations and Silicon Valley.[21][22] His primary affiliation is the United Nations, where he is part of the Bolivian Permanent Mission.[23] His role in Bolivian diplomacy became particularly relevant during the COVID-19 pandemic, as he led the scientific response team to the pandemic.[24][25][26][27] From this position, Mostajo-Radji assisted the Bolivian Chancellery with securing several donations of medical equipment, diagnostic software, laboratory tests and personal protective equipment from foreign governments and tech companies, including Alibaba and Huawei.[28][29] In addition, he aided Bolivian companies facilitating the international transit and import of raw materials for local production of medications against COVID-19.[27][30] Upon dissolution of the strategic response room in La Paz on April 28th, 2020, Mostajo-Radji worked with the United Nations Development Programme to install 13 molecular diagnosis labs across Bolivia.[31] Throughout the month of May, he personally run patient samples in several of these labs.[32][33] Mostajo-Radji chose to work without pay while in Bolivia, and requested to donate his salary to his country's fight against COVID-19 instead.[34][35][36][37] In June, he returned to his post in the United States to fulfill his diplomatic roles,[38] while continuing to work with the scientific committee online.[39]

As a scientist and a diplomat, Mostajo-Radji wrote two relevant articles highlighting the special needs of his country during the pandemic: one article brings attention to the need for testing ventilators at high altitude,[40] and another one warning about the risks of HIV transmission in hyperimmune convalescent plasma donations in low- and middle- income countries.[41] Both articles were highlighted in the COVID-19 section of the International Network for Government Science Advice (INGSA) website.[42][43]

Honors and awards

Mostajo-Radji has received several awards, including an honorary doctorate from Jose Ballivian University in Beni, Bolivia. In addition, he has been granted the Franz Tamayo medal, which is the highest honor granted by the Bolivian Senate.[44] In 2015, he was selected as Person of the Year by El Deber newspaper,[45][46] and in 2017 he was selected as "Latino 30 under 30" by El Mundo Boston.[47] In 2019 he received the Latin Maya Award from the Networking for the Arts Foundation in Washington DC for his work in education development in Latin America. Other awards include the "Cruz Potenzada", which is the maximum award granted by the Comite Civico Pro Santa Cruz,[48] as well as the Melchor Pinto award granted by the Government of Santa Cruz, Bolivia.[49][50]

Select Publications

Science Publications

  • Mostajo-Radji MA, Schmitz MT, Montoya ST, Pollen AA. 2020. Reverse engineering human brain evolution using organoid models. Brain Research. 1729:146582. PMID 31809699 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2019.146582.[51]
  • Mostajo-Radji MA, Pollen AA. 2018. Physiological Models of Human Neuronal Development and Disease. Neuron. 100(5):1025-1027. PMID 30521777 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2018.11.026.[52]
  • Mostajo-Radji MA, Pollen AA. 2018. Postmitotic Fate Refinement in the Subplate. Cell Stem Cell. 23(1):7-9. PMID 29979992 DOI: 10.1016/j.stem.2018.06.017.[53]
  • Nowakowski TJ, Bhaduri A, Pollen AA, Alvarado B, Mostajo-Radji MA, Di Lullo E, Haeussler M, Sandoval-Espinosa C, Liu SJ, Velmeshev D, Ounadjela JR, Shuga J, Wang X, Lim DA, West JA, Leyrat AA, Kent WJ, Kriegstein AR. 2017. Spatiotemporal gene expression trajectories reveal developmental hierarchies of the human cortex. Science. 358(6368):1318-1323. PMID 29217575 DOI: 10.1126/science.aap8809.[54]
  • Ye Z, Mostajo-Radji MA, Brown JR, Rouaux C, Tomassy GS, Hensch TK, Arlotta P. 2015. Instructing Perisomatic Inhibition by Direct Lineage Reprogramming of Neocortical Projection Neurons. Neuron. 88(3):475-83. PMID 26539889 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2015.10.006.[55]
  • Ferreira LMR, Mostajo-Radji MA. 2013. How induced pluripotent stem cells are redefining personalized medicine. Gene. 520(1):1-6. PMID 23470844 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2013.02.037.[56]

Science Diplomacy Publications

  • Breevoort A, Carosso GA, Mostajo-Radji MA. 2020. High-altitude populations need special considerations for COVID-19. Nature Communications. 11:3280. PMID 32612128 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-17131-6[57]
  • Ferreira LMR, Mostajo-Radji MA. 2020. Plasma-based COVID-19 treatments in low- and middle-income nations pose a high risk of an HIV epidemic. NPJ Vaccines. 5:58. PMID 32655899 DOI: 10.1038/s41541-020-0209-2.[58]
  • Barber K, Mostajo-Radji MA. 2020. The role of youth networks in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals during the COVID-19 pandemic. SocArXiv. DOI: 10.31235/osf.io/x2uq7.[59]
  • Acosta M, Szlamka Z, Mostajo-Radji MA. 2020. Transnational youth networks: an evolving form of public diplomacy to accelerate the Sustainable Development Goals. SocArXiv. DOI: 10.31235/osf.io/8247s.[60]
  • Carosso GA, Ferreira LMR, Mostajo-Radji MA. 2019. Developing Brains, Developing Nations: Can Scientists Be Effective Non-State Diplomats?. Frontiers in Education. 4:95. DOI = 10.3389/feduc.2019.00095.[61]
  • Carosso GA, Ferreira LMR, Mostajo-Radji MA. 2019. Scientists as non-state actors of public diplomacy. Nature Human Behaviour. 3(11):1129-1130. PMID 31427786 DOI: 10.1038/s41562-019-0716-1.[62]
  • Ferreira LMR, Carosso GA, Duran NM, Bohorquez-Massud SV, Vaca-Diez G, Rivera-Betancourt LI, Rodriguez Y, Ordonez DG, Alatriste-Gonzalez DK, Vacaflores A, Auza LG, Schuetz C, Alvarado-Arnez LE, Alexander-Savino CV, Gandarilla O, Mostajo-Radji MA. 2019. Effective participatory science education in a diverse Latin American population. Palgrave Communications. 5(1):63. DOI: 10.1057/s41599-019-0275-0.[63]

References
  1. "Mohammed Mostajo es designado embajador de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación".
  2. "Bolivia, el primer país de Latinoamérica que cuenta con un embajador en Ciencia y Tecnología". Economy.
  3. Saucedo-Bendek, O; Ewel, S; Roman-Roig, FJ (2020). "Entrepreneurs' Perception Toward International Cooperation and Government Programs Concerning Entrepreneurship". Frontiers in Education. 5: 57. doi:10.3389/feduc.2020.00057.
  4. "Resident of Santa Cruz, Bolivia, Finds a World of Research Opportunities".
  5. Loy, RE; Lueck, JD; Mostajo-Radji, MA; Carrell, EM; Dirksen, RT (2012). "Allele-specific gene silencing in two mouse models of autosomal dominant skeletal myopathy". PLOS ONE. 7 (11): e49757. Bibcode:2012PLoSO...749757L. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0049757. PMC 3495761. PMID 23152933.
  6. "El joven boliviano Mostajo brilla en Harvard y se codea con premios Nobel".
  7. Hannover, Carla A. "Mohammed Mostajo-Radji, un científico incansable". Pagina Siete.
  8. Ye, Z; Mostajo-Radji, MA; Brown, JR; Rouaux, C; Tomassy, GS; Hensch, TK; Arlotta, P (2015). "Instructing Perisomatic Inhibition by Direct Lineage Reprogramming of Neocortical Projection Neurons". Neuron. 88 (3): 475–483. doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2015.10.006. PMC 4794746. PMID 26539889.
  9. Colen, BD. "Neurons reprogrammed in animals".
  10. Mostajo-Radji, MA; Schmitz, MT; Montoya, ST; Pollen, AA (2020). "Reverse engineering human brain evolution using organoid models". Brain Research. 1729: 146582. doi:10.1016/j.brainres.2019.146582. PMC 7058376. PMID 31809699.
  11. Bhaduri, A; Di Lullo, E; Jung, D; Müller, S; Crouch, EE; Espinosa, CS; Ozawa, T; Alvarado, B; Spatazza, J; Cadwell, CR; Wilkins, G; Velmeshev, D; Liu, SJ; Malatesta, M; Andrews, MG; Mostajo-Radji, MA; Huang, EJ; Nowakowski, TJ; Lim, DA; Diaz, A; Raleigh, DR; Kriegstein, AR (2020). "Outer Radial Glia-like Cancer Stem Cells Contribute to Heterogeneity of Glioblastoma". Cell Stem Cell. 26 (1): 48–63. doi:10.1016/j.stem.2019.11.015. PMC 7029801. PMID 31901251.
  12. Cadwell, CR; Bhaduri, A; Mostajo-Radji, MA; Keefe, MG; Nowakowski, TJ (2019). "Development and Arealization of the Cerebral Cortex". Neuron. 103 (6): 980–1004. doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2019.07.009. PMID 31557462. S2CID 202749696.
  13. Adam, Y; Kim, JJ; Lou, S; Zhao, Y; Xie, ME; Brinks, D; Wu, H; Mostajo-Radji, MA; Kheifets, S; Parot, V; Chettih, S; Williams, KJ; Gmeiner, B; Farhi, SL; Madisen, L; Buchanan, EK; Kinsella, I; Zhou, D; Paninski, L; Harvey, CD; Zeng, H; Arlotta, P; Campbell, RE; Cohen, AE (2019). "Voltage imaging and optogenetics reveal behaviour-dependent changes in hippocampal dynamics". Nature. 569 (7756): 413–417. Bibcode:2019Natur.569..413A. doi:10.1038/s41586-019-1166-7. PMC 6613938. PMID 31043747.
  14. Pollen, AA; Bhaduri, A; Andrews, MG; Nowakowski, TJ; Meyerson, OS; Mostajo-Radji, MA; Di Lullo, E; Alvarado, B; Bedolli, M; Dougherty, ML; Fiddes, IT; Kronenberg, ZN; Shuga, J; Leyrat, AA; West, JA; Bershteyn, M; Lowe, CB; Pavlovic, BJ; Salama, SR; Haussler, D; Eichler, E; Kriegstein, AR (2019). "Establishing cerebral organoids as models of human-specific brain evolution". Cell. 176 (4): 743–756. doi:10.1016/j.cell.2019.01.017. PMC 6544371. PMID 30735633.
  15. Ye, Z; Mostajo-Radji, MA; Brown, JR; Rouaux, C; Tomassy, GS; Hensch, TK; Arlotta, P (2015). "Instructing Perisomatic Inhibition by Direct Lineage Reprogramming of Neocortical Projection Neurons". Neuron. 88 (3): 475–483. doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2015.10.006. PMC 4794746. PMID 26539889.
  16. U.S. Embassy in Bolivia. "Empowering the future generation of Bolivian scientists and innovators".
  17. Ferreira, LMR; Carosso, GA; Duran, NM; Bohorquez-Massud, SV; Vaca-Diez, G; Rivera-Betancourt, LI; Rodriguez, Y; Ordonez, DG; Alatriste-Gonzalez, DK; Vacaflores, A; Auza, LG; Schuetz, C; Alvarado-Arnez, LE; Alexander-Savino, CV; Gandarilla, O; Mostajo-Radji, MA (2019). "Effective participatory science education in a diverse Latin American population". Palgrave Communications. 5 (1): 63. doi:10.1057/s41599-019-0275-0. S2CID 195354045.
  18. Carosso, GA; Ferreira, LMR; Mostajo-Radji, MA (2019). "Scientists as non-state actors of public diplomacy". Nature Human Behaviour. 3 (11): 1129–1130. doi:10.1038/s41562-019-0716-1. PMID 31427786. S2CID 201064904.
  19. Carosso, GA; Ferreira, LMR; Mostajo-Radji, MA (2019). "Developing Brains, Developing Nations: Can Scientists Be Effective Non-state Diplomats?". Frontiers in Education. 4: 95. doi:10.3389/feduc.2019.00095. S2CID 201711307.
  20. Carosso, GA; Ferreira, LMR; Mostajo-Radji, MA (2019). "Scientists as non-state actors of public diplomacy". Nature Human Behaviour. 3 (11): 1129–1130. doi:10.1038/s41562-019-0716-1. PMID 31427786. S2CID 201064904.
  21. Los Tiempos Digital. "Presidenta Áñez posesiona a Mohammed Mostajo Radji como Embajador de Ciencia y Tecnología".
  22. Justiniano Cuellar, Gina. "Mohammed es embajador tecnológico; hará acercamientos a nombre del Estado en Silicon Valley". El Deber.
  23. Juarez, Ivone. "Embajador Mostajo, listo para presentar a Bolivia como colaboradora del avance científico". Pagina Siete.
  24. Egaña, Camilo. "Especialistas: La geografía, un obstáculo para Bolivia en la lucha contra el coronavirus". CNN en Espanol.
  25. "Gobierno compra 500 respiradores y fortalece sistema de salud para luchar contra el coronavirus". Bolivia.com.
  26. Wight, Andrew J. "Venezuela faces COVID-19 outbreak with hospitals that at times lack soap and water". NBC News.
  27. Paredes Tamayo, Ivan Alejandro. "Llega a Bolivia hidroxicloroquina, insumo clave para el tratamiento del coronavirus". El Deber.
  28. AFP. "Bolivia recibe donación de Alibaba y pide ayuda a Musk por coronavirus". Los Tiempos.
  29. "Hospital del Norte: Implementan Inteligencia Artificial para tratar pacientes con Covid-19". Pagina Siete. June 12, 2020.
  30. "Llega a Bolivia materia prima para tres medicamentos contra el COVID-19". La Razón | Noticias de Bolivia y el Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 2020-07-15.
  31. "Sucre: Embajador de Ciencia y Tecnología entregó laboratorio PCR con reactivos y en pleno funcionamiento". Bolivia Nueva (May 2020).
  32. "Sucre: Embajador de Ciencia y Tecnología entregó laboratorio PCR con reactivos y en pleno funcionamiento". Bolivia Nueva (May 2020).
  33. "Mostajo: Gobierno instaló 5 laboratorios para diagnóstico; los dos últimos en Beni y Chuquisaca". Opinion Bolivia: https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/pais/mostajo-gobierno-instalo-5-laboratorios-diagnostico-ultimos-beni-sucre/20200512014250767126.html.
  34. "Mostajo sobre respiradores: Declaré como testigo, no tengo vela en ese entierro - Diario Pagina Siete". www.paginasiete.bo (in Spanish). Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  35. "Longaric dice que Mostajo pidió licencia sin sueldo para dedicarse a la lucha contra el COVID-19". La Razón | Noticias de Bolivia y el Mundo. Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  36. "Áñez y su gabinete donarán parte de su sueldo para afectados por COVID-19". La Razón | Noticias de Bolivia y el Mundo. Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  37. Bolivia, Opinión. "Mostajo dice que no tiene "vela en este entierro" y niega ser novio de hija de Áñez". Opinión Bolivia (in Spanish). Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  38. "Más de dos meses después, Trump no manda aún los respiradores". La Razón | Noticias de Bolivia y el Mundo. Retrieved 2020-07-21.
  39. "Mohammed Mostajo: "He salido del país porque puedo hacerlo cuando quiera porque no tengo ningún lío con la ley" | EL DEBER". eldeber.com.bo (in Spanish). Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  40. Breevoort, A; Carosso, GA; Mostajo-Radji, MA (2020). "High-altitude populations need special considerations for COVID-19". Nature Communications. 11 (1): 3280. doi:10.1038/s41467-020-17131-6. PMC 7329858. PMID 32612128. S2CID 220296637.
  41. Ferreira, LMR; Mostajo-Radji, MA (2020). "Plasma-based COVID-19 treatments in low- and middle-income nations pose a high risk of an HIV epidemic". NPJ Vaccines. 5: 58. doi:10.1038/s41541-020-0209-2. PMC 7338534. PMID 32655899.
  42. Global Science Advice. "[Comment] High-altitude populations need special considerations for COVID-19". INGSA.
  43. Global Science Advice. "[Comment] Plasma-based COVID-19 treatments in low- and middle-income nations pose a high risk of an HIV epidemic". INGSA.
  44. Prensa Senado. "Senado otorga máximas condecoraciones a personalidades e instituciones destacadas". Camara de Senadores de Bolivia.
  45. "EL DEBER homenajeó a 11 Personajes del Año". El Deber.
  46. "Mohamed Mostajo - Investigador Club de Ciencia Bolivia premiado por El Deber". Universidad Catolica Boliviana Santa Cruz.
  47. Harvard University. "Former MCO student elected to latino 30 under 30". Harvard University.
  48. "El Comité cruceño celebrará 68 años de vida con distinciones". El Deber.
  49. "Legisladores condecoran a un colegio, una maestra y un científico". El Deber.
  50. "Distinciones en celebración de la urbe cruceña". El Deber.
  51. Mostajo-Radji, MA; Schmitz, MT; Montoya, ST; Pollen, AA (2020). "Reverse engineering human brain evolution using organoid models". Brain Research. 1729: 146582. doi:10.1016/j.brainres.2019.146582. PMC 7058376. PMID 31809699.
  52. Mostajo-Radji, MA; Pollen, AA (2018). "Physiological Models of Human Neuronal Development and Disease". Neuron. 100 (5): 1025–1027. doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2018.11.026. PMID 30521777. S2CID 54446293.
  53. Mostajo-Radji, MA; Pollen, AA (2018). "Postmitotic Fate Refinement in the Subplate". Cell Stem Cell. 23 (1): 7–9. doi:10.1016/j.stem.2018.06.017. PMID 29979992.
  54. Nowakowski, TJ; Bhaduri, A; Pollen, AA; Alvarado, B; Mostajo-Radji, MA; Di Lullo, E; Haeussler, M; Sandoval-Espinosa, C; Liu, SJ; Velmeshev, D; Ounadjela, JR; Shuga, J; Wang, X; Lim, DA; West, JA; Leyrat, AA; Kent, WJ; Kriegstein, AR (2017). "Spatiotemporal gene expression trajectories reveal developmental hierarchies of the human cortex". Science. 358 (6368): 1318–1323. Bibcode:2017Sci...358.1318N. doi:10.1126/science.aap8809. PMC 5991609. PMID 29217575.
  55. Ye, Z; Mostajo-Radji, MA; Brown, JR; Rouaux, C; Tomassy, GS; Hensch, TK; Arlotta, P (2015). "Instructing Perisomatic Inhibition by Direct Lineage Reprogramming of Neocortical Projection Neurons". Neuron. 88 (3): 475–483. doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2015.10.006. PMC 4794746. PMID 26539889.
  56. Ferreira, LMR; Mostajo-Radji, MA (2013). "How induced pluripotent stem cells are redefining personalized medicine". Gene. 520 (1): 1–6. doi:10.1016/j.gene.2013.02.037. PMID 23470844.
  57. Breevoort, A; Carosso, GA; Mostajo-Radji, MA (2020). "High-altitude populations need special considerations for COVID-19". Nature Communications. 11 (1): 3280. doi:10.1038/s41467-020-17131-6. PMC 7329858. PMID 32612128. S2CID 220296637.
  58. Ferreira, LMR; Mostajo-Radji, MA (2020). "Plasma-based COVID-19 treatments in low- and middle-income nations pose a high risk of an HIV epidemic". NPJ Vaccines. 5: 58. doi:10.1038/s41541-020-0209-2. PMID 32655899.
  59. Barber, K; Mostajo-Radji, MA (2020). "The role of youth networks in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals during the COVID-19 pandemic". SocArXiv. doi:10.31235/osf.io/x2uq7.
  60. Acosta, M; Szlamka, Z; Mostajo-Radji, MA (2020). "Transnational youth networks: an evolving form of public diplomacy to accelerate the Sustainable Development Goals". SocArXiv. doi:10.31235/osf.io/8247s.
  61. Carosso, GA; Ferreira, LMR; Mostajo-Radji, MA (2019). "Developing Brains, Developing Nations: Can Scientists Be Effective Non-state Diplomats?". Frontiers in Education. 4: 95. doi:10.3389/feduc.2019.00095. S2CID 201711307.
  62. Carosso, GA; Ferreira, LMR; Mostajo-Radji, MA (2019). "Scientists as non-state actors of public diplomacy". Nature Human Behaviour. 3 (11): 1129–1130. doi:10.1038/s41562-019-0716-1. PMID 31427786. S2CID 201064904.
  63. Ferreira, LMR; Carosso, GA; Duran, NM; Bohorquez-Massud, SV; Vaca-Diez, G; Rivera-Betancourt, LI; Rodriguez, Y; Ordonez, DG; Alatriste-Gonzalez, DK; Vacaflores, A; Auza, LG; Schuetz, C; Alvarado-Arnez, LE; Alexander-Savino, CV; Gandarilla, O; Mostajo-Radji, MA (2019). "Effective participatory science education in a diverse Latin American population". Palgrave Communications. 5 (1): 63. doi:10.1057/s41599-019-0275-0. S2CID 195354045.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.