Dr. Shun-Hua Chen (right 1) and her students. (Photo
credit: Dr. Shun-Hua Chen)
With a
research paper “Suppression of transcription factor early growth
response 1 reduces herpes simplex virus lethality in mice”, Dr.
Shun-Hua Chen, associate professor in the Department of Microbiology
and Immunology, gained recognition in her field (The paper will be
published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation).
Dr. Chen accepted the Banyan’s interview and shared
her experiences on doing research and learning. The following is a
summary of this interview.
1.Please tell us something
about this research.
A: Herpes simplex virus type 1
(HSV-1) infection is the most common cause of sporadic, fatal
encephalitis. Though antiviral drugs are available, many patients
still have sequelae. Only 2.5% patients can return to normal
neurological function; others will suffer sequelae, such as mental
retardation. HSV-1 counts on cellular machinery to cause diseases.
However, due to limitations in research techniques, this area has
not been well studied. In this study we found how the virus could
use a cellular machinery to cause fatal encephalitis and the
possibility of blocking the cellular machinery exploited by the
virus to prevent mortality in infected hosts.
2.Please
tell us something about your research career.
A: I have
been doing HSV-1 research in the past 19 years and still love to do
it. There are many stages. In the beginning, I did immunology.
Later, I moved on to virology because I wanted to gain more
understanding in order to have a whole picture of how the virus
causes diseases.
After I came to National Cheng Kung
University Medical College, I shifted to neuroscience, focusing on
the mechanisms of how virus infections damage the central nervous
system. The main reason was because I wanted to do something
different from U.S. researchers, so I do not have to compete with
them.
The central nervous system is an under-explored area
in virology, and I learned a lot by collaborating with colleagues in
my college. My present and future studies are cross-disciplinary
research of virology and neuroscience. Few people in the U.S. do
this type of study.
3.As a teacher, can you tell us
something about your teaching?
A: I spend time to train
my students and also have high expectations for them. After years of
training, I can see progress in some hard-working students. I
encourage my students to go abroad to attend conferences. I also
arrange for them to take short-term training in other institutions,
such as Harvard Medical School and University of Pennsylvania. I
want them to broaden their horizon, so they can realize that what
they do here is as good as what they can do abroad. This is very
important. My students become more open-minded and have clearer
future goals after such experience. I think students should look for
opportunities, not for opportunities to wait for you.
4. For students’ learning, do you have any
recommendations?
A: In the last two years of Ph. D.
study, students need to have a clear picture about what they are
going to do in future and prepare for that. I got a good
post-doctoral position because of having done this.
During
post-doctoral stage, besides doing scientific research, it is
important to learn how to manage a laboratory and apply for research
funding and to find the research that you would love to do in the
next 20 to 30 years. These issues are every important.
I
enjoy being a researcher, because I get to learn and do something
new every day. This keeps me going, and I never feel bored. I hope
students can enjoy doing research like me
5.Is there any
similarity between science and life?
A: I think to do
well in science is to find out the problem, face it, and then solve
it. You need to be able to focus and know your priorities. This can
be applied to your life. The university is not an ivory tower. If
you can do science well, you can manage other aspects of your life
well, too. The rationale is the same.
