Dr. Rai completed her undergraduate studies in Beirut, Lebanon and moved in 2001 to Belgium where she has joined the laboratory of Professor Massimo Pandolfo at the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) in 2002. This is where her journey in FA started. She studied the mechanism of frataxin gene silencing in cellular and animal models and contributed to the development and validation of small molecules as potential treatment for FA in Pandolfo’s lab, in collaboration with academic and non-academic partners. Dr. Rai obtained her Ph.D. with a thesis entitled Overcoming frataxin gene silencing in Friedreich ataxia with small molecules: studies on cellular and animal models. She was awarded fellowships from GoFAR, FARA, Ataxia UK and ABMM (Belgian Association for neuro-muscular diseases). Since 2010 she has served as administrative and scientific officer in the European Friedreich’s Ataxia Consortium for Translational Studies (EFACTS), a collaboration of clinical and basic scientists to perform translational research in FA initially funded by the European Union. Dr Rai has also been involved in several clinical trials in FA at the ULB University Hospital Erasme.
Working with FARA, Dr. Rai will be responsible for developing relationships with non-US key stakeholders: scientists, clinicians, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, patient advocacy organizations and government agencies. She will identify new possibilities, partners and ideas to advance FARA’s research priorities on a global scale and accelerate research towards a cure for FA.