2021 Graduate Studies Entrance Award
Project title: Investigating the role of NOD2 in intestinal epithelial growth and differentiation
How would you describe your research project to someone without a scientific background?
Gut bacteria play a critical role in human health and diseases. When the gut bacteria are imbalanced, several diseases may occur. The NOD2 protein detects the cellular walls of bacteria. My goal is to determine how NOD2 is essential for intestinal health within zebrafish intestine. Zebrafish are model organisms to help us understand intestinal health in other organisms, such as humans.
What impact do you hope this project makes once completed?
I hope that my project will contribute to advancing our understanding of how gut bacteria impact intestinal health in humans.
How has the support from Li Ka Shing Institute of Virology helped you?
The Li Ka Shing Institute of Virology has supoorted the infrastructure that I use to conduct immunological research. They have also provided me with multiple networking opportunities.
What first attracted you to science?
What first attracted me to science is that it allows us to be ambitious and daring. We get to ask the questions, “What would happen if…?” and “Why does that …?” It provides logic and reason in what might otherwise seem chaotic.
To quote Aristotle, “The more you know, the more you realize you don’t know.” That unlimited potential is exciting, and that’s why I find science so amazing.
What three words describe your research experience?
Investigation. Rigorous. Unknown.
If you could invite anyone — alive or dead, real or fictional — to dinner, who would it be? Why?
I would invite Archimedes for dinner. I have so many questions as to how he came up with most of his inventions.
What is one thing you cannot live without?
I definitely cannot live without coffee!