---

“It was constant problem-solving on the fly,” he says. “I was just reading paper after paper and printing everything out, piecing it together like a puzzle.”

Now a senior, Chen has enormous autonomy over his projects. He is the one reading scientific papers and background material, developing hypotheses, and collecting the data.

“For me right now, where I am in my career, being able to do that is a real privilege,” he remarks.

Building a cure

While Chen didn’t set out to study brain cancer specifically, his neuroscience background drew him to the brain, the body’s most complex and least understood organ. He soon realized that brain cancer represents one of the greatest challenges in modern medicine.

“Brain cancer has one of the most terminal prognoses,” Chen says. “There is still so much unknown about this disease, and the need for new treatments and cures is dire.”

In the lab, Chen works with Kerry Roby Jr., a senior research associate, to study glioblastoma, one of the most aggressive and deadly forms of brain cancer. The standard chemotherapy drug, temozolomide (TMZ), works by damaging the DNA of cancer cells so they can’t keep dividing. But there’s a catch: a gene called MGMT can undo that damage. If MGMT is “switched on” in a patient’s tumor, it acts like a molecular repair crew, patching up the DNA so TMZ can’t do its job.

“So, chemotherapy doesn’t work, and most patients with the activated gene only have months to live,” he explains.

Chen is working with a novel pharmaceutical, AM101, which offers a promising alternative. Originally developed in Wisconsin, AM101 is part of the benzodiazepine family — better known for use in anxiety and sleep medications. But in this case, it’s being repurposed to target a feature of cancer cells that’s very different from normal cells.

That feature involves the GABA-A receptor, a kind of “ion gate” in the cell membrane. In healthy brain cells, this receptor pulls chloride ions — which maintain cellular balance and regulate electrical activity — into the cell. But in glioblastoma cells, it’s flipped, pushing chloride out.

AM101 amplifies this outward chloride flow, which in turn destabilizes the cell, essentially causing it to digest itself from the inside. When AM101 is combined with TMZ, the results are dramatic.

“The combo almost completely wipes out cancer cells,” Chen says excitedly.

With the lab’s translational focus, the drug could soon be developed into actual therapeutics for the clinic.

Creating what’s needed

Chen’s drive to make science impactful goes beyond the lab. He’s also the founder of Made4Me UNC, a student-run branch of a nonprofit that designs and builds custom adaptations for children with disabilities like adjustable benches, guided writing tools, and toddler-sized wheelchairs.

The idea was born during the HEELS UP summer program, where Chen lived with students with autism and physical disabilities.

“One of my residents had severe tremors and struggled to cook,” he says. “I knew there had to be a way to make this easier.”

After a professor told him that starting a nonprofit was too complicated, Chen found another way. He partnered with a Raleigh-based nonprofit and launched a UNC-Chapel Hill branch, navigating university regulations, sourcing materials, and teaching himself to use complex design software.

“I’m a neuroscience major — and the least qualified person to run an engineering club,” he says with a laugh. “I’m just learning along with everyone else.”

This fall, Made4Me will begin working directly with families, moving from prototypes to real-world impact.

“Now we need to prove to the parent organization that we can handle clients,” Chen says. “I am excited to work with families, seeing the improvement in kids’ lives, and keeping in contact with them.”

Although his work in neuro-oncology research and disability advocacy might seem like separate pursuits, they’re deeply connected for Chen. Whether it’s building a lab or a guided writing tool, he has the same mindset.

“Every single day there are new problems,” he says. “The best part of my day is figuring them out.”