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Honours student Amandeep shares her journey to HRI

Meet Amandeep Mondal. She recently joined the Heart Research Institute (HRI) as an Honours student in the Atherosclerosis and Vascular Remodelling Unit, led by Dr Ashish Misra. And her passion for cardiovascular research is personal.

Inspired by her father, who is on colchicine after bypass surgery, Amandeep is deeply passionate about research and aims to pursue a PhD at HRI working on colchicine.

What is your background?

I grew up in Sydney and went to Randwick Girls’ High School. From there, I went straight to the University of Sydney to study Medical Science.

Were you always interested in science and a career in medical research?

No, I didn’t enjoy science until about year 10 at high school. Before then, I was interested in more creative career areas (eg, arts, writing, etc). I had an amazing biology teacher who changed my mind and made me fall in love with science and learning about the human body.

What is the focus of your research?

I’ve only just started but so far, my research is focused on assessing the effects of anti-inflammatory medication in reducing the vulnerability of unstable atherosclerotic plaques and, how these drugs modulate cell behaviour and function. We are also concerned with how we might efficiently deliver these drugs to target key cells within the plaque.

Do you have a personal connection to cardiovascular disease (CVD)?

Yes. Last year my dad had come home from work complaining of chest pain and dizziness. We were concerned considering he had a history of high blood pressure, so we rushed him to the hospital during the night. The doctors told us he was having a mild heart attack and had multiple blockages in the arteries surrounding his heart. They said he would require triple bypass surgery to correct the issue. He stayed in hospital for about two months and is currently on many medications, including colchicine, to prevent another attack. But he is feeling lively and back to normal now.

My family are so grateful for the amazing hospital staff and the decision we made that night to drive him to the emergency department. My dad now takes extra care of his health and my entire family makes an effort to learn as much as we can about CVD so that we can better support him.

Why did you decide to join HRI?

I was finishing my final semester of my Bachelor’s degree and wanted to continue along with studying science, so I decided to take an Honours year. When searching through the different projects available, I found multiple involving CVD. Considering my dad’s history, I felt strongly that I wanted to contribute something meaningful to this area of research. All the CVD projects listed were run by HRI; the supervisor for the project I chose, Dr Ashish Misra, is someone I was particularly eager to work with as, during my studies, I had read a handful of his papers which made me more invested in cardiovascular research.

What do you love most about working at HRI so far?

I love how friendly everyone is. It’s a great work environment and everyone is always happy to help, which is great because I’m not familiar with working in a lab. Everyone I’ve spoken to also has a deep interest in whatever they do and is always excited to share their knowledge. It’s so fascinating to learn about what everyone does and what they hope to achieve.

What are your career goals and dreams?

I’m not sure exactly at this point, but I would love to do a PhD after my Honours year with Ashish. My dream is to make a meaningful contribution to this field of study, and I believe further research will support that.

What is the best advice you’ve ever received?

The best advice I’ve ever received is to replace the word “should” with “could”. I’m a perfectionist and so whenever I make a mistake, I typically respond by saying “I should have done this” or “I shouldn’t have done that”. This usually makes me feel terrible and incapable. By changing my shoulds to coulds, I put less pressure on myself and can learn from my mistakes better.

What do you like to do outside of work?

I’m a very active person and have been weightlifting for around four years now. I also just recently started running and plan to attend my first marathon soon. I’m also a big reader and will spend most of my free time reading either mystery, thriller or horror novels. Other than that, I enjoy good quality time with my parents, just laughing and joking around with them.

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