In the lead-up to a conversation with Luis Jimenez-Chavez ’22, it might be a good idea to prepare the brain for a serious workout. He’ll be talking about his research, which spans microgravity, mitochondria, galactic cosmic radiation, biophysics, bone density and the complexities of DNA. At some point, the conversation will turn to his collaboration with NASA, the impact of his research on astronaut immunology, its potential implications for cancer patients and his presentation to a Nobel Prize winning cancer researcher. It will eventually land on an amazing family background that puts all of the above into proper perspective.
Jimenez-Chavez answers his phone from a park bench and immediately puts the mind at ease.
“I’m just a normal guy,” he says. “I happen to find research exciting. It feels good to make any kind of breakthrough. I can’t get enough of it.”
The accomplishments of this “normal guy” read like those from someone looking back on a 25-year career when in fact Jimenez-Chavez is a master’s student in biomedical sciences at UCF. He’s only 26. He earned a bachelor’s degree in biomedical sciences four years ago and decided instead of going to medical school he would first spend time exploring everything he’s heard about since childhood: science, space and medicine.
It becomes clear that something stronger than worldly success is driving this guy.
“Oh, I should tell you I’m also a music producer,” Jimenez-Chavez says. “Music is another process that involves creativity and collaboration — similar to being a scientist. Honestly, none of this feels like work to me. By mixing up endeavors, I never feel burned out, even when I’m putting in 80 hours a week and going a dozen different directions.”
Jimenez-Chavez pours most of those hours into research that could provide links between health in space and diseases on Earth. It all started in June 2024 when he went as a fellow for NASA to the Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston for what was supposed to be a literature review on the effects of radiation on mitochondria.
“I was told not to expect too much,” Jimenez-Chavez says.
On his first day at JSC, he saw a whiteboard with drawings of molecular receptors, which he’d learned about in a neuroscience class at UCF. When the principal investigator, Honglu Wu, heard Jimenez-Chavez offer thoughts about what might be missing from the diagrams, he invited Jimenez-Chavez to join the research team in the Radiation Biophysics Lab, where they study the impact of space travel on astronauts at the cellular level.
“There are complications when forces in space push bodily fluids around,” Jimenez-Chavez says. “When the balance of human cells is compromised, it can cause disruptions with our immunities. The last thing NASA wants to do is send people to Mars and then find out they developed cancer as a consequence. Immune health is one of the many factors NASA has to consider.”
Recognizing a potential parallel with cancer research, Wu and Jimenez-Chavez met with immunologists at the MD Anderson Cancer Center to discuss their findings. This led to a co-authorship with researchers from the institute and, later, an audience with Nobel Laureate James Allison to explain their findings.
“A highlight of my life,” says Jimenez-Chavez. “[Allison] was fascinated because we’re attempting to go as far upstream as possible in finding root causes of cancer, all the way to the mitochondria that power the cells. Who knows? Maybe this could help revolutionize cancer treatment. Any breakthrough would be the result of another two-way bridge between the benefits of space research and medical care for people on Earth.”
This summer, Jimenez-Chavez is bringing what he learned at Johnson Space Center to Kennedy Space Center where actual astronauts will be part of the research. He’s also continuing a project with Melanie Coathup at UCF’s College of Medicine “to increase my knowledge.” Their study explores the effects of cosmic radiation on bones and the possibility that energy in space can break DNA coding.
Jimenez-Chavez admits that sometimes he’s so immersed in science, medicine and NASA that he forgets to take a step back and realize what he’s doing.
“I’m living a dream,” he says before correcting himself. “Actually, I’m living a lot of dreams.”
In June, Jimenez-Chavez will speak to a group of ambitious 18-25-year-olds living in Peru.
“Space biology in that part of Peru isn’t even a dream,” Jimenez-Chavez says. “It’s a fantasy.” He knows this because he’s listened to his family talk about growing up in that same region. His father lived with 11 siblings in a mud house (two other siblings died of malnutrition), yet he and his brothers studied and worked hard enough to become doctors and pharmacists. The pay in Peru was a fraction of what the professions pay in the U.S., so Jimenez-Chavez’s parents decided to immigrate to the U.S. to provide a better life for Luis, even if it meant starting over.
“Mom and dad are my superheroes. For the first 10 years of my life, we lived in an uncle’s basement while they learned English, went to pharmacy school and worked as custodians. Three other uncles lived in that house, too. One of them slept in a closet. They were all working to reestablish themselves in America as doctors. I was always surrounded with medical talk, diagrams of hearts and science textbooks. Instead of imagining characters from children’s books, I’d go to bed thinking about active galactic nuclei and supernovas.”
Jimenez-Chavez credits the master’s program at UCF for his ability to speak so easily about high-level topics, but he also points to his childhood as proof of the impact of an environment on learning — not so much the place as the people in it.
“The dreams of my uncles rubbed off on me, but mostly it was my dad,” he says. “His dream was to be a scientist at NASA and find cures for illnesses. He didn’t personally live his NASA dream, but 50% of me — Luis — is my dad’s DNA. So, whenever I’m at NASA, it’s like he’s there, too. That’s why I enjoy conversations like this — because everything I discuss is an accomplishment for my entire family.”
