Biochemistry: Hands-on Learning

Stella Chiu

Major: Biochemistry
Concentration: Pre-med
Expected Graduation Date: June 2012

UO student Stella Chiu spent her summer treating HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis patients in a South African clinic. Chiu visited Africa as part of an IE₃ global internship with an organization called Child Family Health International. “I learned a lot about myself,” she says, “and about where my passions lie and how I aim to make a difference in this world.”

Chiu was inspired by Professor Janis Weeks’s biology course Diseases of Africa, part of the major program in biochemistry. Chiu learned not only about the biology of viruses and bacteria but also about the real-life situations that Weeks encountered while in Africa. “Professor Weeks taught us to look beyond the diseases to the people and communities that are affected by them,” says Chiu.

Chiu’s experiences in South Africa are not the only hands-on opportunities she’s had as a student at the UO. She participated in the Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program at Dartmouth College for a summer. Her biochemical engineering project involved magnetically targeting iron oxide nanoparticles and observing their biodistribution in mice. She also works in Professor Andy Berglund’s lab doing nanoparticle synthesis.

But it’s not all about science for Chiu, who has benefited from scholarships while at the UO, including a Diversity Excellence Scholarship and a McNair Scholarship. She also has taken classes through the Robert D. Clark Honors College, where she engaged in discussions about the ethics of reproductive technology, a fitting complement to her work in the sciences.

All of these opportunities have prepared Chiu to pursue her dreams after graduation. She hopes to go to medical school, join the Peace Corps, and earn a master’s degree in public health. Ultimately, she dreams of opening a clinic in a developing country.

Text by Jennifer Snelling.
Photos courtesy of Stella Chiu.