Mao Lab undergraduate student Enoch Toh has been named a 2025 Goldwater Scholar, one of the nation’s most prestigious awards for students pursuing careers in mathematics, science, and engineering. As a double major in Computer Science and Molecular & Cellular Biology, Enoch is dedicated to advancing AI-driven platforms that accelerate the development of precision medicines.
Research at the Intersection of AI and Gene Therapy
Since his freshman year, Enoch has been an undergraduate researcher in our lab, where he has been actively involved in developing novel machine learning-guided platforms for lipid nanoparticle (LNP) design. LNPs have emerged as one of the most promising carriers for targeted gene delivery. However, their success depends on precise formulation optimization, which remains a challenge for current high-throughput screening methods. To address this, Enoch has led a team to develop a new LNP optimization platform called “the Framework for Active Learning-driven Compositional Optimization of Nanoparticles,” in short, FALCON. Uniquely, FALCON is capable of identifying optimized LNPs that not only deliver to target cells highly, but also avoid off-target effects, enhancing both the efficacy and safety profile of LNPs. Additionally, FALCON is designed to be significantly more data-efficient and exhaustive compared to traditional methods.
Extensive Research Involvement and Recognition Beyond Hopkins
Beyond his work in our lab, Enoch has contributed to various interdisciplinary research efforts. He is currently serving as an Immunoengineering and Data Science intern at Red Abbey Labs, a neuropharmaceutical startup, where he leads nanoparticle R&D efforts. During the summer of his sophomore year, he received a fully funded scholarship to participate in the Harvard Immunology Undergraduate Summer Research Program at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, where he worked on deep-learning-guided optimization of tumor-selective core promoters in Dr. Ming-Ru Wu’s Synthetic Immunity Lab.
Enoch’s research contributions have been widely recognized. He has co-authored multiple publications in leading journals, including Nature Biomedical Engineering, ACS Nano, Nature Chemical Engineering, Biomaterials, and Emerging Infectious Diseases. Additionally, his independent research has earned him both the 2023 Summer Provost Undergraduate Research Award and the Undergraduate Catalyst Award.
Most recently, he was selected for an oral presentation at the 27th American Society for Gene & Cell Therapy (ASGCT) Annual Meeting, where his abstract received a Meritorious Abstract Travel Award – an honor given to the highest-scoring abstracts. He also presented his work at the 2024 Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) Annual Meeting.
A Passion for Mentorship and Community Engagement
Outside of the lab, Enoch is deeply committed to mentorship and scientific outreach. As President of the JHU Immunology & Immunoengineering Club, he fosters interdisciplinary collaboration among students interested in immunology research. He also serves as a peer listener for A Place to Talk, a peer listening group for the Hopkins undergraduate community. In addition, he has worked as a Teaching Assistant for several courses, including Intermediate Probability & Statistics, Intro Algorithms, and Biomaterials I, and has tutored East Baltimore elementary students to address pandemic-related learning loss.
Looking Ahead
As he prepares for the next stage of his academic and professional journey, Enoch is focused on expanding his research impact. He is currently working on publishing a first-author manuscript detailing his work on the FALCON platform. Looking ahead, his goal is to lead a cross-disciplinary research group that integrates biology, engineering, and AI to develop data-driven systems for optimizing next-generation genetic therapies.
Congratulations Enoch! We are so very proud of you!
