Alvaro is a rising fourth-year Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology Major at the University of California, Los Angeles. As an undergraduate, he worked in Dr. Julia Mack’s laboratory developing machine learning models for image segmentation and imaging calcium signaling activity in zebrafish embryos. The Mack Lab is interested in elucidating mechanisms of endothelial mechanotransduction in the context of vascular health and disease. For the UCLA Amgen Scholars Program, Alvaro will be conducting research in the laboratory of Dr. David Nathanson in the Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology. The Nathanson Laboratory focuses on understanding the functional biology of brain cancer and the development of novel therapeutics to target glioblastoma, an aggressive and lethal malignant tumor. Aberrations in the signaling cascades of ErbB/HER family of tyrosine kinase receptors are a hallmark of several types of cancer; specifically, mutations in the EGFR/HER1 receptor can lead to uncontrolled cellular proliferation and migration. Therefore, this pathway presents itself as a target for therapeutics aiming to combat cancer growth. For his project, Alvaro will be investigating the selectivity and potency of a novel small molecule tyrosine kinase inhibitor against metastatic EGFR-driven non-small-cell lung cancer. This research could provide invaluable information for further inquires into the novel drug’s ability to target other EGFR-driven cancer types. Alvaro would like to thank Dr. Nathanson and his graduate student mentor, Quincy Okobi, for all the support and an unforgettable summer. Alvaro would also like to thank the Amgen Foundation for this opportunity to conduct research during the summer.