Written by Rachel Farrell | April 2025

In spring 2024, sophomore Reena Nuygen (CAS’26) was hard at work in the National Emerging Infectious Disease Laboratories (NEIDL) at BU. Under the guidance of Assistant Professor Florian Douam and PhD mentor Anna Tseng, she was studying the Nipah virus, a deadly disease spread by fruit bats in parts of Asia.

The Nipah virus has two strains—one prevalent in Malaysia and the other in Bangladesh—that produce different symptoms. In Malaysia, the virus attacks the brain; in Bangladesh, it attacks the lungs. Nuygen was studying the two viral proteins, V and W, responsible for these differences, hoping to understand how they helped the Nipah virus spread and survive.

As summer inched closer, Nuygen’s work was far from done, which left her with a dilemma. She wanted to stay in the lab over the summer, but her research position was unpaid—and she couldn’t afford to stay in Boston without any income. At the same time, “because I was working with cells and viruses, the work was very time-sensitive,” she recalls. “And if I didn’t stay over the summer, the work might get dismissed.”

A donor-funded solution

The Newbury Center—a place dedicated to supporting first-gen students at BU—had a solution. As a first-gen student, Nuygen was eligible to receive a summer housing stipend through the Newbury Center Fund. This fund, generously financed by donors, grants stipends to select students engaged in unpaid or low-paying research projects or internships over the summer.

Nuygen applied for the stipend and received it, becoming one of 49 students supported by gifts to the Newbury Center to date. As a result, she was able to stay at NEIDL for the summer and gain invaluable lab experience.

“I was able to enter a Biosafety Level 2 Laboratory for the first time,” she says. “I learned the core techniques that all members of a research lab need to know, like Polymerase Chain Reaction, Immunofluorescence, and how to stain cells with antibodies.”

Nuygen was also able to make strides in her research on the Nipah virus, which she continues to work on today.

“We made the lentivirus, and now we’re going to infect some lung cells and observe the effects,” she says. “Studying the host response gives us more insight into the gap between the countries. Right now, because there are no treatments for the Nipah virus, understanding the two critical proteins will help us design antiviral strategies.”

Finding ‘the best’ community

Unlike many of her peers, Nuygen came to BU without connections to researchers or academics, which made her feel “a little bit behind,” she says.

Through NEIDL, however, she’s tapped into a broad network of researchers from the virology community. In fact, she’s even talked with a Nobel Peace Prize winner and met a researcher who grew human lung tissue on the back of a humanized mouse to study SARS-CoV-2.

“I’ve met a lot of very talented professionals who research the coolest things,” she says. “I’m constantly amazed.”

For Nuygen, having this network is essential for achieving her long-term goals, which include becoming a physician assistant and an expert in infectious diseases. In the meantime, she’s deeply grateful to the donors who got her where she is today.

“The summer lab experience was a very big steppingstone for me,” she says. “To the donors who supported me, I want to say a very, very big thank you. Without the housing stipend, I wouldn’t have been able to continue studying infectious disease, find my passion, and meet the best community.”

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