EY1920 Year Book

137 136 Intercalation in Cancer Biology and Immunology Learning and Studying Exploring beyond… Laboratory work My dissertation was on characterizing T cells in patients with immune thrombocytopenia (ITP), in which I investigated whether ITP patients have an altered T cell activation signature. I processed ITP patient’s blood by staining them with immunofluorescent-tagged antibodies and analyzing their immunophenotypes using flow cytometry. I discovered that ITP patients had a significantly elevated proportion of HLA-DR + CD4 + T cells, which might be of diagnostic values. Throughout the five months of research, I encountered numerous difficulties, from failed experiments to unexplained trends and learnt to learn and adapt from failures. Learning to be Independent I studied four modules at the School of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, including Advanced Immunology, Applied Immunology and Immunopathology, Cancer Mechanisms and Therapeutics, and Haemopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation. Throughout my course I have significantly enriched my understanding on how the immune system operates down to the level of individual immune cells, transcription factors and receptors. I also learnt how autoimmune disorders and cancers can emerge from specific aberrant mutations and dysregulation in the immune system. I have also been exposed to cutting-edge medical therapies, like CAR-T cell therapies, immunotherapies and targeted therapies. This course enabled me to explore my area of interest in immunology and oncology in great depth and understand the fundamental workings of important diseases and their treatments. During holidays, I travelled to various places in Europe with friends and experienced exotic cultures and delicacies. From cooking my own meals to doing laundry, it was a valuable experience for me to learn how to be independent and better take care of myself. Learning to cook paella! Data analysis I had to analyze the expression of T cell activation markers by flow cytometry in ITP patients. Academic Essays Understanding the NF-κB pathway I had to write eight academic essays on the chosen modules, ranging from discussing NF-κB activation in T cells to discussing how disruption in the crosstalk between p53 and E2F1 can lead to cancer development. MBBS Enrichment Year 2019/20 Lip Long Yam Full Year < IC - Intercalated degree at University of Bristol, UK > Lip Long Yam Liu Chun Chung Service – Responsibilities Electives - Exercise and Health My group mates and I made a 10-minute video investigating the polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). The project included the brief introduction of PCOS, the therapeutic effects and mechanisms of exercise on PCOS, and safety issues of exercising in the disease condition. It was found that moderate aerobic and resistance training were effective in the control of PCOS. URL: https://youtu.be/T-YpINdQbFg Electives – English Grammar I wrote a report on the comparison of 2 English grammar books to the English syntax on the lexical and phrasal categories and the (clause-level) syntactic functions they distinguish and the way these are defined and differentiated. The two books are An Introduction to the Grammar of English by Elly van Geleren (2010) and Introducing English Grammar by Kersti Börjars and Kate Burridge (2010). Electives – Psychology I initiated a project to investigate the change of the behavior. I achieved my goal of doing 50 push-up a day. Through the project, I understood more on the psychological aspect of learning, motivation, and reward system. Personally, I found that positive reinforcement is the best means to motivate myself. 1. Academic tutoring 2. Health seminars for the staff and children 3. Special interest group 4. Maintain discipline 5. Personal hygiene 6. Health/medical related issues 7. Home visit 8. Create children profile 9. Counselling 10. Look after special children* Service – Special children Among the 90 children in the Children’s Home, many of them are impoverished orphans. There are kids with epilepsy, muteness and self- mutilation tendency. Under the guidance of the physiotherapists and experienced nursemaids, I learnt how to take care of the daily life of the special kids and assist their rehabilitation. It was a precious opportunity to learn to communicate and handle with the pediatric patients. Service – Research After observation of potential health problems in the Yunnan Children’s Home, head lice and foot odour are the major identifiable hygiene problems. Therefore, by systematic and evidence-based approach, I proposed some interventions to remedy the situation. For head lice, over-the-counter pediculicides as well as some prevention and control methods were suggested. As for foot odour, usage of foot spray and deodorants, together with foot hygiene and socks/shoes treatment were proposed. MBBS Enrichment Year 2019/20 Liu Chun Chung Sem 1 < SH - Internshi p at Sowers Action, China >; Sem 2 < IC - Elective Courses at HKU, Hong Kong >