Ayça Şahin obtained her BSc degree from Koç University Molecular Biology and Genetics department. She is currently a PhD student in Neuroscience program at Koç University, under the supervision of Prof. A. Nazlı Başak. Due to the fact that Ayça and her brother are both SMA patients and because of Ayça’s dedication to SMA, her PhD thesis focuses on one of the hot topics of disease biology and genome research, e.g., modifier genes and variants that affect SMA phenotypes. Her research puts an effort to answer the question “why SMA phenotypes are different even though the genetic cause of the disease is the same?” by using the most up-to-date methods in molecular biology. She receives a scholarship from the Koç University Graduate School. Ayça plays an active role in SMA advocacy in Turkey, she and her family being a part of Turkey’s SMA association, named SMA Walk With Me (SMA Benimle Yürü Derneği). Besides her academic life, she likes being active in social media, doing pilates, swimming, taking photos, playing with her cats, and taking care of stray animals.
