RaMP Extension 2024

Biomedical Research and Mentoring Program Extension

As I continue my research experience in the lab, I extended my RaMP placement after having an immersive and research experience through the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) MedEx. Having dedicated my summer to research, I've become more interested in contributing to our lab's research efforts as I became involved in more project-specific work. Throughout this semester, I've had the chance to continue develop practical and technical skills in research as I became more confident and drove my own experiments. With guidance from my mentor and PI, I've started asking questions that allowed me to gain a deeper understanding of the topic and curious about various methods of approach in terms of the research work. I've also gained a deeper connection with my mentor, Dr. Qingnian Goh, who continues to push me to always strive for more and emphasizes the significance of scholarly work and asking scholarly questions. As I started collecting data for the cell work for my project, I've learned different methods of experimentation including cell culture techniques, staining/imaging, and quantification analyses using Elements software. Additionally, I've become more familiar with research writing and the style of literature as I became more immersed in referencing and reading through research articles.

One of my most memorable moments of this semester was having the opportunity to submit an abstract to the Orthopedic Research Society (ORS), which is a national organization that promotes orthopedic research. With the help of my mentor, I was able to construct and submit an abstract that was reviewed and was chosen for a podium presentation. This opportunity was something that I was beyond grateful for and looked forward to as a great learning experience as I attended the annual conference in Phoenix, Arizona. My talk was titled, "The Role of Dysregulated DNA Methylation and Gene Expression in Impaired Longitudinal Muscle Growth and Neuromuscular Contractures”. My research this semester focused on identifying primary genes regulating muscle elongation which is impaired in contractures following Neonatal Brachial Plexus Injury, our lab’s primary focus.

Being able to present my work to a highly intellectual yet welcoming audience was a great pleasure and will remain a memorable experience in my research journey. In attending the various sessions throughout the conference, I was inspired by the research work of others and have gained valuable insights and knowledge that I hope to learn from and incorporate into my own pursuits. I am also extremely grateful for my mentors Dr. Roger Cornwall and Dr. Qingnian Goh for providing me this opportunity to take part in this project and for their support and guidance throughout this experience. I've truly learned so much in terms of research presentation format and structure, catering the talk to the audience, and how to best approach audience questions.

As I continue my research and participate in similar endeavors, I hope to progress in developing my research skills and techniques while continuing to grow professionally and academically.

Finished off the semester by presenting at the annual undergraduate scholarly showcase!

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