Bellevue College Molecular Biosciences Alum Fights Aging with WormBot-AI

Bellevue College alum Michael Muir didn’t always know he wanted to help people through science. But now, the 2019 Molecular Biosciences program graduate uses worms, robots, and artificial intelligence on a regular basis to study and find new ways to offset the diseases of aging.  

“You only live one life, and I decided why not try something else,” Muir, 44, said, noting he made a significant career change in doing so. “Why not try something that could better society?” 

Upon earning an associate degree in nanotechnology, Muir transferred to Bellevue College to complete his Bachelor of Applied Science in Molecular Biosciences in 2019. 

Soon after, Muir became the director of invertebrate research at a Seattle-based startup Ora Biomedical. He then launched the company’s pioneering laboratory using its innovative WormBot-AI, which offers researchers a way to collect significant data on anti-aging drugs and treatments. 

Without the help of a WormBot-AI, scientists must place every petri dish or plate containing worms — C. elegans — under a microscope and record the data by hand multiple times during a worm’s two-to-three-week life cycle. However, using the WormBot created by Dr. Jason Pitt and machine learning artificial intelligence, further developed by Dr. Ben Blue in Dr. Matt Kaeberlein’s Lab at the University of Washington, a tiny camera operated on a robotic arm observes the life of the worms, allowing artificial intelligence to record data instead.  

“We’ve developed this machine learning algorithm that allows us to actually detect these worms on the plate and we can track them,” said Muir, who leads the WormBot discovery science team. “That’s all automated. We can get extremely high throughput data at a low economic rate. It would take years to get similar data [if collected by hand]. It’s a great tool.”  

A single WormBot-AI can screen up to 144 populations at a time. As they observe the impact of various drugs and naturopathic therapies on C. elegans, researchers can identify promising small molecule gerotherapeutics. With five WormBot-AIs now active and more coming online, Ora Biomedical is on track to achieve their goal. 

For Muir, this combination of cutting-edge technology, biology, and chemistry is a natural extension of his studies at Bellevue College.  

“Coursework was very diverse at Bellevue,” noted Muir. “I was just blown away at what I could do. I was in classrooms with 15 people and a professor with a Ph.D. and had so many opportunities to work with equipment and to do experiments. It was such a catered experience.”  

As an undergraduate at Bellevue, Muir also worked in the CoMotion Labs, a University of Washington program providing an incubation environment for early-stage startups. While working at UW, Muir heard about Ora Biomedical’s project. 

“About a month after I graduated, I was contacted by the same lab looking for someone with a bachelor’s in molecular bioscience degree,” Muir recalled. 

From there, he connected with the founders of Ora Biomedical, established their first lab in Tukwila, and the rest is history.

But the BC alum credits much of his success to the education he received and the connections he made at Bellevue College. 

Professors, such as Jacqueline Drak, chair of the Molecular Biosciences program, served as mentors to Muir as he considered various career options. Today, he’s paying back that assistance by serving on the department’s advisory board, still meeting with Drak and others to discuss the development of the program at the college. 

Founded in 2016, BC’s Molecular Biosciences program offers two degrees, the Molecular Sciences Technician AAS-T and the Molecular Biosciences BAS. Students can expect to develop their skills in laboratory processes and equipment usage, data collection and analysis, project management and general business for laboratory settings, and scientific communication. Graduates of the program often find opportunities to work in a variety of fields, such as vaccine research, food science, forensics, molecular biology, biochemistry, and more.