Hannah Shumsky (‘26), a Neuroscience major, conducted research on the effect of circadian rhythms on lung repair and regeneration with mentorship from Dr. Shaon Sengupta (Division of Neonatology, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia). This research was supported by the College Alumni Society Undergraduate Research Grant.
Last summer, I conducted research on the effect of circadian rhythms on lung repair and regeneration. I was drawn to Dr. Sengupta’s lab through a class I took sophomore year called Chronobiology and Sleep, where we read Dr. Sengupta’s paper about the impact of circadian rhythms on flu recovery. Through this research experience, I learned better mouse-handling techniques, how to extract lungs and process them, how to stain and image slides, and how to graph and analyze my data. Perhaps most importantly, I learned how to live with the discomfort of not knowing the answer. The research process is unpredictable, and it required me to find new ways to approach questions and challenges.
During my time in the lab, I built connections with other students, the lab manager, a visiting post-doctoral researcher, and my mentor. Through building these connections, I experienced the importance of teamwork in research. Time spent chatting with these people opened my eyes to the many career paths within the medical and scientific world. One-on-one meetings with my mentor gave me opportunities to ask scientific questions and brainstorm ways to address the challenges I faced in the lab. It was clear that my ideas and suggestions were valued and respected, and it was incredibly meaningful to have a mentor who cared so deeply about my learning and success. I am very grateful to have cultivated these relationships.
I have been fortunate to have been involved in several different types of research during my time at Penn. In the summer after my freshman year, I studied medieval Jewish books through PURM. That research connected me with humanities departments at Penn and other institutions like the Jewish Theological Seminary and Columbia. In addition to my research with Dr. Sengupta being quite different than my PURM research, this most recent experience connected me to the Penn community in new ways. I felt like my research was giving back to the Penn community, Philadelphia, and the broader medical community. It is an extremely fulfilling feeling, and I could not be more appreciative of this opportunity.
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