Career Conversations: Q & A with Neuroimmunology Researcher Jingru Sun

Dr. Jingru Sun. Credit: Cori Kogan. “If you want to pursue a career in science, it’s very important to foster a hardworking attitude, a creative mind, and critical thinking,” says Jingru Sun, Ph.D., an associate professor of translational medicine and physiology at Washington State University’s Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine in Spokane. Our interview with Dr. Sun highlights how her career path led her to research the way the nervous system regulates immune responses. Q: How did you become interested in science? A: In high school, I had an amazing teacher who introduced me to the scientific world, guided me to ask the right questions, and encouraged me to find answers by myself. I asked questions like: How do trees produce oxygen? How can we see bacteria through a microscope? Why are humans smarter than other animals? Q: What was your path to becoming a researcher? A: I received a bachelor’s degree in biochemical engineering and a master’s degree in genetics from Sichuan University in China. Then I earned a Ph.D. in microbiology at East Tennessee State University and completed my postdoc training in neuroimmunology at Duke University. In 2014, I became a tenure-track assistant professor at Washington State University and received tenure and promotion to associate professor in 2021. Q: What do you study in your lab? Credit: Bob Hubner. A: My lab is investigating how the nervous system regulates the immune system to keep us healthy. Hu...
Source: Biomedical Beat Blog - National Institute of General Medical Sciences - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Being a Scientist Injury and Illness Profiles Source Type: blogs