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Chia-Hsuan Chang, a Laidlaw Scholar at Imperial College London, explores how metabolic resources are applied to human fetuses, centring this around sleep.
Research Title:
How metabolic resources are applied to human fetuses and how this applies to sleep:
In this research, we investigated whether the abnormal brain-to-body scaling due to the brain sparing effect (a phenomenon resulted by the body prioritising metabolic resources to the brain over other body parts under fetal growth restriction (FGR)) in newborns affects the REM-to-total sleep ratio. Cao et al. (2020) has concluded that REM sleep is important for brain functions and has established a model predicting the “REM-to-total sleep ratio” from brain mass. However, since the study has a wider age range and because newborns usually have faster developmental rate, we wonder if the existing model can be applied to newborns.
The research has three research questions:
- Does the fetal body significantly prioritise metabolic resources to the brain under FGR?
- Does Cao et al. (2020)'s "ln(REM-to-total sleep ratio) vs. ln(brain mass)" model applies to healthy newborns?
- Does Cao et al. (2020)'s "ln(REM-to-total sleep ratio) vs. ln(brain mass)" model applies to FGR newborns (with larger relative brain size when compared to body)?
We investigated the first question by comparing the brain developmental curves of FGR and non-FGR newborns to see if there is a significant difference, and we did the same procedure for the body development as well. We investigated the second and third questions by investigating the "ln(REM-to-total sleep ratio) vs. ln(brain mass)" relationship of healthy and FGR newborns, then juxtapose the results to Cao et al. (2020)'s model.
We found that the fetal body does significantly prioritise brain development, and we found that the existing model underestimating REM sleep requirement of newborns. Therefore, we concluded that there is a need to develop a new model to estimate REM sleep time of newborns. The result could be applied to broader studies, for example, "how active movements affects recovery after brain injury" that my supervisor is working on.
Where did your passion for this research originate?
I chose a predefined project because it was my first time doing research, and I worried my ideas might not be comprehensive enough. I chose this research project because it is related to human biology and investigates how metabolic sources are allocated, which is associated with my area of interest: immunology.
Personally, I found this research interesting because have been interested in neuroscience and body scaling. Because I am short (I have never gotten out of the 5th percentile in height since I was born) but considered intelligent, I often wonder if my smaller body size resulted in me having a relatively large brain and if that gives me an advantage in terms of cognitive function.
What is the most memorable moment from your Laidlaw scholarship experience so far?
The most memorable moment from my Laidlaw journey so far was Imperial's first leadership training in Windsor. It was my first time meeting my cohort and programme manager in person. Although I felt awkward to talk to others in the beginning, by the end of the 3-day event, I was comfortable talking to everyone. I really appreciate how this event allowed me to meet a group of new, multi-disciplinary, and multicultural friends with shared visions. I also learned a lot about how to be a good leader through the team activities. For example, I remember how we were told to form a square with the rope holded in our hands while being blindfolded. I think this event was a really nice start of my Laidlaw journey, and I really would like to make these relationship eternal.
What is the biggest challenge you came across in your research and leadership journeys so far, and what did you learn from it?
Because I did my summer research in King's College London, I was unfamiliar with and did not have access to the building. For every in-person meeting and working session, I would need to travel at least 40 minutes to KCL campus, and to check-in at the reception. To enter the building, I would need to message my supervisor; and to re-enter the room, I would need to knock on the door and wait for someone to open the door for me. Despite these inconveniences, I really appreciate the opportunity to work with people from other universities and work in a different environment. Furthermore, I think this experience would prepare me for collaborating with different people in my future career.
Which particular leaders inspire you the most and why?
I would consider Mr. Baek Jong-won, the most well-known chef in South Korea, as my role model in terms of leadership. Despite experiencing failure and being in debt to a point that he almost committed suicide, Mr. Baek was resilient and determined to work endlessly, eventually paying off the debt. He is also very smart in operating business, and therefore established and became the CEO of Theborn Korea Inc, which owns more than a thousand branches worldwide. Besides being successful in business, he also devotes himself to helping farmers (for example, he participated in a TV show to promote agricultural products which were eliminated for looking ugly) and spread Korean food culture to the world.
What does it mean for you to be a Laidlaw Scholar?
Personally, being a Laidlaw Scholar is a pride, a privilege, but at the same time, a responsibility. I feel privileged to conduct research as an undergraduate (even as a first-year), to network with scholars from different universities, and to make myself a better leader through leadership workshops. I feel proud of being a part of this amazing program.
On the other hand, for taking these privileges from the Laidlaw Foundation, I feel the responsibility to "give" as well. In the imminent future, as the first Imperial cohort, I think I have the responsibility to help promote the Laidlaw program at Imperial so that more people can share the wonderful experience I have had so far. In the long term, I think I have the responsibility to conduct research in my expertise that would benefit the society.
Briefly describe a scene from the future you are striving to create.
Having lost my loved ones due to cancer, although difficult, I am striving to create a scene in which cancer is no longer one of the leading causes of death. Hence, I would like to devote myself in immunotherapy research to find more effective and less damaging treatment for cancer. Despite the fact that immunotherapy might be expensive in the beginning, I believe the cost will eventually get lower and thus the therapy would eventually be available to everyone in the future.
Quick-fire Questions
📺 Currently binging:
It is a Korean drama about an anchor woman experiencing dissociative identity disorder.
📚 My top book recommendation:
The Secret Body by Daniel M. Davis
This is a book written by the head of my department. It discusses the current understanding of our body from six different aspects of biology.
🎶 My anthem:
This song is really energetic, and encourages me to do things at my own pace.
🌈 Something that made me feel joy recently:
I really enjoy watching videos of Hailey’s lovely family, Owen (the little boy) always makes me smile.
If you want to learn more about Chia-Hsuan's work, explore Chia-Hsuan's research here and follow her on LinkedIn. Chia-Hsuan is a Laidlaw Undergraduate Leadership and Research Scholar at @Imperial College. Become a Laidlaw Scholar to conduct a research project of your choice, develop your leadership skills, and join a global community of changemakers from world-leading universities.
Find out more about the Laidlaw Scholars Undergraduate Leadership and Research Programme.
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