Dr. Song’s research background focuses on adeno-associated virus (AAV) biology, engineering, and gene therapy development. Her AAV journey started at the University of Florida—the birthplace of AAV vectors—under Drs. Arun Srivastava and Mengqun Tan, followed by postdoctoral and early faculty training at the University of North Carolina with Dr. Matthew Hirsch, and industry experience with Dr. R. Jude Samulski. Her journey continues at Gene Therapy Institute at The Ohio State University, where her research centers on AAV biology and ocular gene therapies.

Her early studies demonstrated AAV6 and engineered AAV6 capsids are optimal for hematopoietic stem cells, positioning AAV6 as a preferred vector for gene editing in these cells. Her postdoctoral work supports IND-enabling studies for AAV-mediated therapy targeting MPS-associated corneal blindness. Her AAV biology work includes inverted terminal repeat (ITR) engineering to enhance vector safety and persistence, as well as human-to-human (H2H) translational program to accelerate bench-to-bedside translation.

Her work received honors include the NCBiotech Gene Therapy Fellowship, UNC Research Excellence Award (postdoctoral), ASGCT Career Development Award, and GTI Pilot Award.

Research Technologist

M.Sc. Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University
B.S. Neuroscience, Simmons University

Her research interests focus on the genetic and epigenetic mechanisms underlying degenerative diseases, with a current emphasis on corneal endothelial disorders. She has experience using iPSC-based models to study neurological and neurodevelopmental disorders, including Fragile X syndrome. Currently, she is working on a gene-editing project for Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy (FECD), focusing on TCF4-associated CTG repeat expansion. She also contributes to the H2H project by establishing Cas9-enriched targeted Oxford Nanopore long-read sequencing.