offCampus
Remix
On campus, people know Alexander Engstroem, MS (Biomedical Research ’14), as a Research Associate at the Leroy T. Canoles Jr. Cancer Research Center. Off campus, people know him as STR3AM, a popular DJ in Norfolk.
What sparked your interest in music?
I’ve always had a love for music. The boom of Swedish hip-hop that took place in the early 2000s inspired me to get into the actual music scene. I briefly tried my luck, and failed miserably, at a rap career in my early teens, and then I started experimenting with DJing shortly after that.
What do you enjoy most about being a DJ?
My brain is pretty divided between being very logical and also having a big need for a creative outlet. So having a venue for that creativity is something I really appreciate. It’s also a pretty amazing feeling to have people react in a positive way to something you’ve created. Seeing people get joy out of my music is very rewarding.
Do you see any connection between your work as a DJ and your work at EVMS?
When I DJ, I always go in with a plan: what type of music do I want to play during what time of the night and how to transition from one genre to another. However, things aren’t actually that static, and you have to be able to read the crowd throughout the night and react accordingly. It’s a bit similar to planning an experiment in the lab. Both involve a lot of trial and error, and you only get to the solution after a certain amount of experience gained.
Why did you choose to become a research associate at EVMS?
I received a master’s degree in Biomedical Research from EVMS in 2014. I was conducting my research project in Dr. Semmes’ lab and I really enjoyed him and the environment. So, once I graduated, I inquired about whether they had a position for me to continue on with my project, which luckily they did.
What research are you conducting?
I'm currently a research associate in Dr. John Semmes' lab. We're focusing on a virus called HTLV-1, it is the first human retrovirus discovered (for reference, HIV is probably the most famous retrovirus). Infection of the virus causes Adult T-Cell Leukemia as well as another neurodegenerative disease called HAM/TSP. The virus produces a protein called "Tax" - which is the main focus of my research. I am trying to map out all the proteins that Tax interacts with in order to find out more about what pathways or functions the protein may have an impact on within the cells, but also what proteins may have an impact on the Tax protein itself. I do this by introducing Tax to human cells that we culture/grow in the lab, I then isolate the protein and use Mass Spectrometry, basically a way to identify individual proteins in a mixture, to determine what proteins bind to Tax. Then by using bioinformatics tools on that data I can get some proteins of interest to further investigate.
What are you most passionate about in your work at EVMS?
Working in the Leroy T. Canoles Jr. Cancer Research Center has been very rewarding for me in a variety of ways. The fact that I have any part at all in the bigger goal of fighting cancer makes me feel very fulfilled. I also enjoy the brainstorming and problem-solving aspect of my work. It’s almost like solving a puzzle every day, and that is a lot of fun for me.