Dr. Asma Bashir

Asma is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the UK Dementia Research Institute in Edinburgh, Scotland studying interactions between astrocytes and blood vessels in disease. In her interview with Catie, Asma shares her journey that has spanned multiple disciplines and three countries, including initially wanting to study psychology in college at Boston University and moving to Vancouver for her graduate research developing an improved mouse model of traumatic brain injury (TBI). While her graduate work had important clinical implications for both TBI and biomarkers of Alzheimer’s Disease, Asma realized that research was not the only way she wanted to have a broader impact. To create a community of scientists from minoritized groups who shared her experiences in the world of research, she started her own podcast “Her Royal Science” where she welcomes a new scientist to this community, and speaks with them about their stories. Asma’s dedication to cultivating personal connections while doing cutting-edge research is a testament to her desire to improve lives and make a lasting difference.