Besting the Regional Brain Bee

When Muyan Liu learned that the brain is the only organ that can study itself, she was hooked! The middle schooler’s pursuit of neuroscience took off through both independent study and classes at school. Now a junior, Muyan recently earned the top spot at the Northeastern Pennsylvania Brain Bee. She’ll compete in the USA National Brain Bee competition at the University of California, Irvine in April. 

As Muyan expanded her understanding of the brain and neuroscience through books and articles, she began to focus on the treatment of psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders. She came to GFS as a freshman international student from China and has since studied biology and anti-aging through a DIS (Directed Independent Study) on the effect of WGX50 on C. elegans. WGX50, a molecule derived from peppers, shows potential as an anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. C. elegans is a worm often used as a research model in biology experiments. 

To prepare for the National Brain Bee, Muyan said she will follow the same roadmap she has for other competitions: read textbooks, take notes, and teach herself to memorize concepts. But, for her, the quest is more than mastering a subject or winning competitions. 

Knowledge in this field is important and really meaningful because we don't yet have concrete treatments for many brain diseases. —Muyan Liu ’27