Travel Story: Siew Leng Wong
Siew Leng Wong from the Robinson Research Institute’s Ovarian Cell Biology Research Group attended the 6th Congress of The Asia Pacific Initiative on Reproduction, Jakarta, Indonesia in April 2016.
Siew presented on her research Cholesterol in oocytes is required for embryogenesis and membrane functional domains in blastocysts.
This is what Siew had to say about her experience:
What was a highlight of the conference?
Prof Yoshiharu Morimoto’s talk on Ovarian stimulation strategies for the poor responder where he discussed hormone stimulation protocols in different clinics and how that affects oocyte quality, and he provided his insights into the future of innovative technologies in improving ovarian stimulation strategy.
Did you meet any researchers or collaborators of significance? Why are they important to your work?
I met Matsumoto, a PhD student towards the end of his PhD. He has generated significant results and great techniques, which I am quite interested in how to apply on my own project. I also met Ogura, an embryologist from the Lady’s clinic in Japan. We had some conversation about the effects of different embryo culture media on development which is a very important factor in my research.
How will the experience support you and your research going forward?
Some of the presentations are related to my research area of oocytes and embryo development. It provided a great opportunity to speak with some of the presenters, which will assist me to think about my future research direction.
What was the most exciting thing you learned/experienced at the Conference?
The most exciting thing I learnt at this conference was how to talk confidently in front of all audiences. I have always felt nervous when presenting on the stage but in this conference I received positive advice and feedback which makes me feel more comfortable and confident for future conferences.
What was the most interesting or unexpected moment of your travel?
The most interesting moment was that I met a lot of researchers, clinicians and embryologists from Asia and it was fascinating to hear how they carry out research in their countries.