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Dr Kilangsungla Yanger (L) with Nobel Prize Laureate Sir John Gurdon (centre) during a symposium in honour of Gurdon in 2014.[/caption]
Eastern Mirror Desk
Dimapur, Aug 14 : The sky is the limit for those who dream and strive for excellence. Dr. Kilangsungla Yanger, is one who is living her dreams, as a biologist and also as an ambassador of the Naga people in the field of biological science. She is one among the very few Naga scholars involved in the intricate study of cell and molecular regeneration in one of the most prestigious institution - The Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.
In an interaction with Eastern Mirror, the young scientist shared an insight into her life and career.
“I was always an inquisitive kid and I had never considered pursuing biology,” says Yanger while saying that she always thought she would get into the field of engineering but fate had something else in store for her.
While giving full credit to her teachers and mentors who shaped her life, Yanger shared her inspiration to go for biology not just because she received a full scholarship but also because of her father ill.
“I saw an interest and potential after my dad got sick after which I wanted to pursue medicine,” said Yanger. She received a full scholarship to study Bachelors Degree in Biology as a major at Carleton College, Minnesota.
She said that her physics teachers recommended her recommended me to go for a fellowship at the Howard Hughes Medical Institution .
The HHMI fellowship ensured Dr. Yanger was to be an undergraduate researcher who could perform any research in any lab in America. She chose Columbia
University in New York where she conducted ‘fate mapping studies’ to determine neural areas of vocal pattern generation in Xenopus laevis or commonly known as the African clawed frog.
While expressing her experiences in the United States and the people that she met, Yanger said that she was “exposed to brilliant minds and people” and adding that as scientists you can have ideas but you need to put time and effort.
“You need to convince yourself of the research you are doing, if you are not convinced yourself, others will not believe in your work,” she said.
On being asked about one of her greatest experiences in life, Dr Yanger said that it came it the year 2014 when she was invited for a symposium to honour Nobel Prize winner Sir John Gurdon/
She said that it happened while she was at the University of Pennsylvania working on her PhD thesis on cellular and molecular mechanisms of liver regeneration and cancer.
She was the only student invited to present her work alongside the famous ‘ Gurdon and New York Times’ science writer Nicholas Wade., said Dr. Yanger.
Dr. Yanger said that the symposium on cellular reprogramming gave her a chance to present her experiment and (Patho) physiological reprogramming in the adult liver.
On being asked about the health care scenario in Nagaland, Dr. Kilangsungla Yanger said that more research institutes are needed in the state.
“Through these research institutes we will get to know more about the genes of the Naga’s which can help a lot in the medical treatments we seek,” she said. During her short break in her hometown, Dr. Yanger was also invited to speak at the Kohima Science College.
“I was encouraged to see student’s actively interested in science and would love to see these students catering to health care of the Naga’s in future, “she said while commenting about her interaction with the KSC students.
Apart from attaining a Ph.D at the University of Pennsylvania (Perelman School of Medicine), Philadelphia majoring in Cell and Molecular Biology, Cancer Biology, Yanger’s endless achievements and contribution in the world include her thesis titled ‘Cellular mechanisms of liver regeneration’ has received recognition and positive reviews.