2. What made you interested in doing research? How did you get interested in the specific topic you are researching?

3. What types of challenges did you encounter while doing you research? Were you able to overcome them?

4. What advice would you give to other students interested in doing research?

Tell me a little about your research.

I’m studying the role of micro RNA 126, or miR126 and how it transactivates other proteins in tumogenesis. Basically, whether it encodes an oncogene, promoting tumor growth, or an anti-oncogene, suppressing tumor growth. We basically inject a virus into mice that are miR126+ and miR126-. We’ve found that mice that are miR126- have much larger tumors, and experience a lot more vessel leakage, which is bad. So we’ve determined that miR126plays a large role in stopping tumor cells from metastasizing into lymph nodes or even into the brain. Humans can also be MiR126+ or miR-, so if we can control its transcription levels, then we have a much higher chance of detecting and treating things like lung cancer or breast cancer.

What do you like about research?

I like how you can actually see tangible results. Some parts of research are very tedious like PCR, or genotyping, or when you’re taking measurements. But when you can measure tumor sizes and see the different results, that’s inspiring. Even if they’re not what you expect, at least you’re getting some types of results that you can use for later experiments.

What do you like about this particular topic or lab?

Everyone in my lab is working on very similar projects so there’s a lot of collaboration. There isn’t really a scripted set of experiments that you have to do. If you have a new idea you can kinda just run with, go into lab and start doing experiments. Everything is changing, and there’s always something to do.

Interview by Elaine Zhou

Tell me more about your project.

My project defines a musical model for organic compounds that uses music theory and musical notation to explain and model various chemical properties of organic molecules. The significance of the study lies in its novel approach to combine an unexplored link between music and chemistry. Marking the first time music has been used to understand a scientific field, this study is unparalleled not only in its attempt to model chemistry, but also in its unprecedented approach that it takes to establish music as a model for scientific understanding.

How did you arrive at this topic?

It started as a University of Chicago essay where I was asked to describe a nonscientific method. I had background in piano and was taking organic chemistry at the time because I like science and I also like music so putting them together would be nonscientific. What started as an essay turned it into an article. I had originally submitted it to the Journal of Chemical Education but did not want to go through editing the process, so I withdrew my manuscript.

What were some successes and challenges?

It worked both chemically and musically. I liked the idea you had seven notes and seven valence electrons. I had chemical structures that I wanted to imitate, so I bent my model to fit it. At the same time, there is stereochemistry and other topics that my model cannot account for. I reached a point where I cannot model anything more complex than I found. I applied for a Davidson Fellows Scholarship for an outstanding and innovative project where I sent in a video of me playing some of the music.  

Other than organic chemistry, what else do you think you can apply music and art to learning?

You can relate math to music; for example, if you have a math proof, you can turn it into music. There are a lot of studies between music and psychology as well. My project is among the first to take music and chemistry together. 

What is the most important thing you want people to take away from your research?

You don’t have to look at science with a scientific lens. There are a lot of different perspectives in how to understand science. This model is an example of that different perspective. The more perspectives you have, the more knowledge you can derive from it. 

What are your future plans?

I did a lot of research throughout high school and worked in a lab every summer. I am currently looking at computer science and biology and maybe finding a common ground between the two. As for now, I want to go to medical school but I am also considering CS.

Interviewer: Caroline Zhang

SURJ: Tell us about the project you are working on.

An: I’m currently working with cancer stem cells and analyzing the role that microRNAs have in tumorigenesis, particularly for breast cancers. Specifically, I am altering the expression of certain genes and documenting the results in vitro as well as in vivo.

SURJ: What made you get into this?

An: In high school, I first learned of stem cells and their capabilities in my AP Biology class. Ever since, I have been fascinated by the topic. The possibilities and benefits that they can offer are almost boundless. So going into college, I knew that I would want to work with stem cells. Hopefully, I would also like to contribute some sort of discovery to this growing field.

SURJ: What are some challenges you have encountered and how did you overcome them?

An: It has been particularly difficult devoting the time necessary to conduct successful biological research. Because the samples that I work with are living organisms, all of my tasks are very time-sensitive. During this past summer, I had to sometimes bike to the lab at midnight to finish experiments. I overcome these challenges by reminding myself that I have been given the unique and amazing opportunity to work at a fantastic research institution. A little less sleep here and there is a small price to pay for the experience that I am getting.

SURJ: What other topics would you like to conduct research on?

 An: I am currently interested in expanding my research to include a bioinformatics approach. I think there could be some very interesting insights that would result with this approach. I would definitely have to work with a lot more data though!

SURJ: Any tips for fellow students who want to get into research?

An: Just reach out via email. I found my position through email. During winter break of my freshman year, I Googled research topics that I was interested in. For example, I searched “stem cells” and “cancer,” and my PI came up as the first entry. After reaching out to them electronically, try to set up a personal meeting with them. It shows that you’re serious about your research.

 

An Luong is a sophomore from Texas. 

Interviewer: James Nie