Mona Minkara

Mona Minkara is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Bioengineering at Northeastern University, a position she held as of 2023. Her research primarily employs computational methods to explore the air-liquid interface, with a particular focus on respiratory physiology and drug delivery. Minkara, who is blind, is also a prominent advocate for the inclusion and support of blind and partially sighted individuals in science and engineering fields.

Biography
Mona Minkara was born in the late 1980s, the oldest daughter of Fida and Samer Minkara, immigrants from Tripoli, Lebanon, to the United States. She was raised in Takoma Park, Maryland, and the greater Boston, Massachusetts area, where she completed her public school education. Bilingual in Arabic and English from a young age, Minkara's multicultural background played a significant role in her early life. During her youth, she frequently visited Lebanon with her family.

Minkara was diagnosed with macular degeneration with cone-rod dystrophy at the Boston Children's Hospital, which eventually led to blindness. She pursued her undergraduate education at Wellesley College, earning a Bachelor of Arts in Chemistry and Middle Eastern Studies in 2009. Minkara then obtained her Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Florida in 2015, under the guidance of Kenneth M. Merz Jr. and Erik Deumens. Her dissertation was titled "Design of a Novel Inhibitor for Helicobacter Pylori Urease".

After her Ph.D., Minkara joined the University of Minnesota as a post-doctoral fellow in the Chemical Theory Center, working in Professor J. Ilja Siepmann's lab. In August 2019, she was appointed as a tenure-track Assistant Professor in the Department of Bioengineering at Northeastern University, where she also serves as an affiliate faculty member in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology.

Minkara's sister, Sara Minkara, has held positions in the United States Department of State and was appointed by President Joseph Biden as Special Advisor on International Disability Rights. She also has a brother, Ibrahim Minkara.

Research
Mona Minkara's research leverages computational methods to investigate the pulmonary surfactant system, a complex and vital component of respiratory physiology. Her work focuses on elucidating the structure and function of critical proteins within this system, as well as their interactions with viral pathogens and other exogenous substances.

A notable example of her work was published in 2022, where Minkara detailed how specific point mutations in the pulmonary surfactant protein SP-D could enhance its antiviral properties. This enhancement occurs through improved binding to the trimannose molecule, a crucial mediator in the interaction between the protein and viruses.

Minkara heads the COMBINE lab (Computational Modeling for Biointerface Engineering) at Northeastern University. This lab aims to deepen the understanding of biological interfaces through computer simulations and leverage this knowledge to develop advanced therapeutic and diagnostic approaches.

Advocacy
As of 2023, Mona Minkara is actively involved in advocacy for blind and partially sighted scientists and engineers. She serves as a director of Science in Braille, an organization dedicated to making science more accessible to the partially sighted. Minkara is known for her motto, "Vision is more than sight," and often speaks to diverse audiences about the unique contributions and perspectives that visually impaired individuals can offer in the scientific field. One notable instance of her advocacy was a speech at the United Nations, where she discussed the importance of inclusive practices in science and highlighted the mission of Science in Braille.

In addition, Minkara co-leads a program funded by a Science Education Partnership Award from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences as of 2023. This initiative focuses on providing assistive technologies to secondary and higher education students, enhancing their access to science education.

In 2016, Minkara spearheaded the development of a "Blind STEM curriculum," aimed at enriching science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education for visually impaired students. Through this curriculum, she addresses the educational gaps and barriers faced by blind and partially sighted students in STEM fields.

Minkara has expressed her views on inclusivity in academia, emphasizing the importance of recognizing and acting upon the differences in abilities. She argues that academic science must be more inclusive and understanding of disabilities, stating, "Academic science is not inclusive because we do not understand our differences. Not understanding is OK, but not acting to improve understanding is not OK. Everyone needs to see people with disabilities as capable, even if they are capable in different ways."

She also advocates for the unique perspective that blind scientists can bring to the chemical sciences, a field traditionally reliant on the study of phenomena too small to be seen.

Awards and recognition
Mona Minkara has been recognized for her academic and professional contributions with several prestigious awards. During her post-doctoral research at the University of Minnesota, she was awarded a Ford Foundation Fellowship by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. This fellowship is granted to individuals who have demonstrated superior academic achievement and a commitment to a career in teaching and research.

In 2019, Minkara was honored with the Holman Prize from the LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired. The Holman Prize is awarded annually to blind individuals who exhibit ambition and innovative ideas in their respective fields.

Representative publications
A representative (nonexhaustive) set of Minkara's publications in scholarly journals as of 2023 includes: