BEIJING (CHINA DAILY/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - A Peking University student has pledged to donate her head for scientific research after she dies.

Ms Lou Tao, 29, a PhD candidate at the university, has been suffering from motor neuron disease for the past two years, according to thepaper.cn

"After I pass away, I want to give up my head for medical study and hope motor neuron disease can be overcome soon so that those suffer from this disease can get rid of the pain," Ms Lou said in her will, which has been published online.

Ms Lou's parents signed a human organ donation document on her behalf, as she is now in "deep sedation".

Ms Lou's supporters have managed to raise one million yuan (S$205,461) to help with her medical treatment.

Before her diagnosis, Ms Lou had hoped to become a history professor after graduation. But she came down with the disease unexpectedly.

In October 2015, Ms Lou first discovered that she could not move one of her toes. Three months later, she was diagnosed with motor neuron disease. Ms Lou was admitted to intensive care in hospital in January.

In her will, Ms Lou also expressed her wish to donate all her other organs to help those in need. She also did not want a funeral wake after she dies and declined monetary condolences from families and friends.

"The meaning of life is not determined by how long or short one lives; rather, it is measured by the quality of one's life," Ms Lou said in her will, adding that she wanted to "leave with dignity".

"Please let me leave quietly, without a trace, just as if I have never been in this world," she said in her will.