With things opening up and conferences back in person, 2022 was an intense year of travel and navigating transitions. Continuing the tradition of reflecting on the year that was (see 2019, 2020 and 2021 reflections), here’s a summary of the highlights:

1. Career
   1. Promoted to faculty at Harvard Medical School as an Instructor in the Department of Ophthalmology
   2. Growing my research career independence as my postdoctoral mentor, Dr. Magali Saint-Geniez moved to Novartis to become Head of AMD. I’m now under the mentorship of Dr. Leo Kim and Dr. Pat D’Amore in my department. Trained and mentored many students: Scott Frank, Tessa Fitch, Kelly Li, Hailey McAuliffe, Erik Butcher, Suman Chaudhary
   3. Hosted the Ophthal Got Talent Show August 12th 2022 Friday 3-5pm
   4. Continued to serve in my leadership roles at the ISER ECR Representative (leading a team of 14 members with 4 new blog posts published and organized a successful networking event for ISER ECRs at ARVO in Denver), ARVO MIT Board of Trustee, WEAVR Leadership Committee
   5. Continuing work on my BrightFocus Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship Program in Macular Degeneration Program ($200,000 over 2 years)
   6. Published one first-author original paper in Frontiers of Molecular Neuroscience on the anti-inflammatory effect of dimethyl fumarate in retinal pigment epithelial cells (RPE)
   7. First corresponding author paper accepted for publication in JoVE on Seahorse assays for RPE bioenergetics
   8. Submitted two papers (Metabolomics and Oxidative Stress review)
   9. Co-editor for the Special Issue “Molecular Mechanisms in Ocular Disease and Development” for Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology alongside my co-editors: Rajalekshmy Shyam, Elizabeth Zuniga-Sanchez and Deepika Vasudevan See more details and submission link here: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/30275/molecular-mechanisms-in-ocular-disease-and-development
   10. Co-editor for the Special Issue “Bioenergetics and Cellular Dysfunction in the Brain and Eye” in Metabolites with lead editor Dr. Tina McKay. https://www.mdpi.com/journal/metabolites/special_issues/Brain_Eye Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2022.
2. Build my online presence
   1. Instagram 12.9k followers; Twitter 4.9k followers; started Mastodon account 9 followers
   2. 2022: Faces of FASEB feature here.
   3. 2022: Contributing to GeniusLab article on the need for better lab coats here.
   4. 2022: Girl Genius Magazine Instagram Takeover here on March 16th 2022.
   5. Episode 8 – Behind our Science – Black History Month, People of Path podcast collaboration, 7.3 Questions with Tessa Fitch (Link).
   6. Episode 9 – Behind our Science – Women in Pathology (Link)
   7. Episode 10 – Behind our Science – Capitol Hill Day + Last Experimental Biology (Link)
   8. Episode 11 – Behind our Science – Self ESTEAM + Art in Science (Link)
3. Academic Activities
   1. Invited speaker for the ARVO Advocacy Day Training Webinar and participated in ARVO Advocacy Day on February 25th 2022.
   2. Special guest speaker for the ARVO Advocacy Day Training Webinar on 22nd February 2022 at 4-5:30pm EST on my experiences and tips in advocating for science funding to congressional staffers
   3. Invited speaker for the Schepens Eye Research Institute of Mass Eye and Ear Soft Skills Training Workshop on “Promoting your science in social media and building an online presence” on 28th February 2022 12-1pm EST.
   4. Invited speaker for UMass Boston Graduate Students Program ‘Neurobiology Seminar’ Dr. Jens Rister on March 4th 12-1pm. “Rewiring metabolism through epithelial-mesenchymal transition: insights from the retina”
   5. Invited speaker for Experimental Biology 2022 ASIP Career Central on “Social Media as a Tool to Promote One’s Research” held in Philadelphia, PA on Sunday April 3rd 12-2pm.
   6. July – August 2022; Mentor in the Girls in STEM Program by the Ewgis Research Program, is a virtual STEM research mentorship summer program where high schoolers and other STEM young aspirants work on their own research projects at no cost under the guidance of their mentor throughout July. A completely remote track is available for all participants.
   7. February 28th 2022, 6-7pm, ASIP Trainee Hangout, Preparation for Experimental Biology 2022 featruing Dr. Magali Saint-Geniez and Dr. Diane Bielenberg
   8. June 28th 2022, 6-7pm, ASIP Trainee Hangout, Pathways to Independence featuring Dr. Mindy Engevik and Dr. Menglu Yang
   9. September 27th 2022, 6-7pm, ASIP Trainee Hangout – Making Tough Decisions in Your Career: How to Find the Right Lab and Mentor featuring Dr. Roberto Mota Alvidrez
   10. Invited speaker for the ARVO WEAVR inaugural quarterly career development talk 9th December 2022: Creating your own personal Board of Directors: how to find a mentor and sponsor
4. Leadership Training
   1. October 2021-2022: Flom Leadership Program by American Academy of Optometry
   2. October 2-4th 2022: ASIP Leadership Academy, Rockville, MD https://www.asip.org/career/asip-leadership-academy/ This event will be limited to forty (40) participants who hold entry level tenure-track or nontenure-track academic faculty positions (assistant professor or equivalent) or similar positions in non-academic institutions (government, industry, or biotech) led by Deb Elbaum Coaching, LLC and Heather Evans from Catalyst of Awesomeness and Facilitators Dr. Pat D’Amore, Dr. Cecilia Yates, Dr. Robinna Lopez, Dr. Jennifer Sanders, Dr. Kari Nejak-Bowen, Dr. Richard Mitchell and Dr. Satdarshan (Paul) Singh Monga.
5. Conferences
   1. Moderator
      • Moderated the ASIP Young Investigator Keynote Seminar on February 16th 2022 12-1pm EST by Erik Butcher on “From Hundreds to Millions and Beyond: Making the Impossible the Daily” (Link).
      • Moderated and co-organized the ARVO-AAO (American Academy of Ophthalmology) collaborative event as part of my role on the ARVO Professional Development and Education Committee on “Presenting your research: Quality abstracts, posters, and presentations” on February 16th 2022 8-9pm EST (Link).
      • Co-Chair ASIP Highlights Session: I Am An ASIP Member and This Is My Science on Saturday, April 2, 2022 • 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM (EST) at Experimental Biology 2022 in Philadephia, PA. Co-Sponsored by the ASIP Committee for Career Development, Education Committee, and Women in Pathology (Link).
      • Moderator: Histochemical Society, ASIP, ASMB webinar: Career options in science – Industry vs. Academia. There will be four panelists – some from industry, some from academia, some who have worked in both, Wednesday, July 27, 2022, 12:00pm US eastern. Panelists were Drs. Robin Lorenz, Morgan Preziosi, Paul Goodwin, Andrew Leask.
   2. Talks
      • Shu DY, Fitch TC, Frank SI, Butcher E, Karg MM, Cai S, Shah R, Gollapalli D, Saint-Geniez M. Dimethyl fumarate blocks TNFα-driven inflammation and metabolic rewiring in retinal pigment epithelial cells [Abstract]. ARVO 2022 in Retinal Metabolism Session on May 1st 2022 in Denver, Colorado.
      • Butcher ER, Frank SI , Saint-Geniez M, Kim LA , Shu DY.  Mitochondrial Transplantation as a Novel Inducer of Retinal Pigment Epithelium Epithelial-Mesenchymal-Transition and Fibrosis, PISA2022, Wednesday, September 28, 2022 Neuropathology and Ocular Pathology Session (Link).
      • Fitch TC, Frank SI , Saint-Geniez M, Kim LA , Shu DY. Protective Role of Resveratrol Against TNF-induced Inflammation and Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells, PISA2022, Wednesday, September 28, 2022 Neuropathology and Ocular Pathology Session (Link).
   3. Posters
      • Shu DY, Frank SI, Karg MM, Butcher ER, Nnuji-John E, Shah R, Gollapalli D, Saint-Geniez M. [Abstract]. Contrasting Metabolic Profiles of TGFβ2 and TNFα in the Induction of Retinal Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition (EMT) at Experimental Biology (Philadelphia, PA) on Saturday April 2nd ASIP Highlight Trailblazer Session (of 20 selected top posters from Trainees) and Sunday April 3rd 2022 in the Ocular Pathobiology Session.
      • Lennikov A, Yang M, Chang K, Pan Li, Shu DY, Cho K, Saint-Geniez M, Dartt DA, Utheim T, Chen D; Electric stimulation reduces microglia proinflammatory activity in vitro. Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci. 2022;63(7):3177 – F0451.
      • Fitch TC, Frank S, Kim LA, Shu DY. Resveratrol protects RPE against TNFα-induced inflammation in Age related Macular Degeneration. Harvard Ophthalmology Annual Meeting and Alumni Reunion, June 24, 2022, Boston, MA.
      • Shu DY, FitchTC , Frank SI, Karg MM , Butcher ER, Nnuji-John E, Kim LA , Saint-Geniez M.  Metabolic Targeting of RPE Mesenchymal-transition for the Treatment of Proliferative Vitreoretinopathy. September 13 2022, Military Health System Research Symposium (MHSRS), Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center, Kissimmee, Florida (Link).
   4. Planning Committee
      • ARVO Envisioning Equity in Eye Care, Virtual conference, Nov. 16 – 17, 1 – 4:30pm ET daily https://www.arvo.org/education/2022-envisioning-equity/
      • ARVO Advance for Feb 1-2 2023
6. Publications
   1. Shu DY, Frank SI, Fitch TC, Karg MM, Butcher ER, Nnuji-John E, Kim LA and Saint-Geniez M (2022) Dimethyl Fumarate Blocks Tumor Necrosis Factor-Alpha-Driven Inflammation and Metabolic Rewiring in the Retinal Pigment Epithelium. Front. Mol. Neurosci. 15:896786. doi: 10.3389/fnmol.2022.896786
7. Awards and Grants
   1. Awarded ARVO Emerging Advocate Award for 2022 recognising my documented history of advocating for eye and vision research at local, state/province and national levels, relative to their tenure in the field (Link).
   2. July 2021 – July 2023: Shu DY. Postdoctoral Fellowship Program in Macular Degeneration Research, USD$200, 000. BrightFocus Foundation (Link)
   3. 2022-2022: Shu DY. Interstellar Initiative by the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED) and the New York Academy of Sciences. The initiative aims to increase international and interdisciplinary collaboration uniting scientists within the early stages of their careers and catalyzing scientific advancement 2700000JPY (18598USD). nyas.org/interstellar
   4. Applied for collaborative grants
      • DoD VRP with Leo Kim
      • DoD Intramural Grant with Leo Kim and Hetty Wang (Heuy-Ching Hetty Wang, Ph.D.)
      • BrightFocus Foundation New Investigator Grant in the Macular Degeneration Program
      • Lions Eye Grant – New Collaboration with Michael Young
      • Letter of Intent for the Blavatnik Grant with Michael Young, Leo Kim and Myron Spector
   5. November 2021: You Jingjing. Global Development Awards, Office of Global Engagement (OGE) at the University of Sydney, Australia. The Global Development Awards include a structured training program, mentoring and where required, teaching relief, to provide focused time for international research development (Link) AUD$25, 000
8. Travelling and social events
   • October 1-4th 2022 ASIP Leadership Academy at Rockville MD
   • September 24-25th 2022 Nate’s Oktoberfest 25th Birthday Party
   • September 18-24th 2022 Orlando, Florida for DoD conference, Kennedy Space Center, Universal Studios with Davey, Menglu, Bowei – 1 park bumped into Melody + Nathan
   • September 17-18th 2022 New Jersey Six Flags
   • July 16-18th 2022 Warwick, Rhode Island for Erik & Christine’s wedding at Aldrich Mansion
   • June 10-13th 2022 Jarrod and Yan’s wedding, Columbus Ohio
   • April 29th-May 6th 2022 ARVO 2022 in Denver, CO, Rocky Mountain Hotel Estes Park; Boulder, CO
   • April 1-5th 2022 EB2022 in Philly
   • March 25-27 2022 Asheville for Christine’s bachelorette party
   • January 13-16th 2022 Disneyland LA with Davey
   • Started learning French on Duolingo as of December 6th 2022