Ciencia Puerto Rico

Desire M. Ortiz Torres (she/her/hers) is a Latinx Ph.D. Candidate in the Chemistry Department at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). Her research focuses on the synthesis of novel FASN-Specific PET tracers for the discrimination of prostate cancer phenotypes, under Dr. Daesung Lee's mentorship. She is also working as a teaching assistant for undergrad level courses in Chemistry. Prior to coming to UIC, Desire received a BS degree from the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras Campus in Chemistry. In her free time, she is a curly hair enthusiast & beauty blogger in partnership with local brands through social media platforms (e.g. Instagram). Also, she enjoys dancing salsa and, in recent years, she finished a sign language ASL intermediate course.