In a world that amounts to a maelstrom of stimuli and a cacophony of interacting processes, it is of great importance that one develops systems for recognizing specific types of scenarios and reacting appropriately to them. These systems, or principles, inform our future decision-making and spare us the tedium of having to deal with all(...)
in the lab
Tips on How to Choose the Right Laboratory
Posted by | A Day in the LifeFor a graduate student or postdoc, choosing the right laboratory can be a daunting prospect. There are many factors that one must consider, but deciding which to prioritize is often challenging. Individual learning styles, interests and career goals vary vastly, so an environment perfectly suited to one person may be one where another flounders. That(...)
The Colorful World of Cancer Drug Discovery
Posted by | Did You See This?Melanoma cells stained with PTRF (in red), RPA194 (in green) and nucleus stained in blue. RPA194 is the main subunit of the RNA polymerase I (POL 1) enzyme. Our lab discovered a first-in-class small molecule that inhibits POL 1 enzyme and causes the destruction of RPA194 protein. Here, we are investigating how these proteins are(...)
The Universal Lab Language
Posted by | A Day in the LifeOn the floor where I work in the preclinical teaching building at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, there are a variety of postdoctoral fellows, students, technicians and faculty from all over the world. We have postdoctoral fellows from China, Portugal and Israel, and graduate students from Germany, Canada and Taiwan. You can always(...)
The Science of Snoring
Posted by | Perspectives in ResearchThere are few disciplines in science and medicine as broadly important, or as inherently relatable, as the study of sleep. During the annual Johns Hopkins Sleep and Circadian Research Day, a disparate group of clinicians, epidemiologists, geneticists and basic researchers gather to share posters and present new findings at the vanguard of sleep research on(...)
Titan Titin: When Mutations in the Largest Known Protein Affect the Heart
Posted by | Events and Happenings“We know from our clinical experience in the practice of medicine that in diagnosis, prognosis and treatment, the individual and his background of heredity are just as important, if not more so, as the disease itself.” — Paul Dudley White (1886–1973), Chief Consultant, National Heart Institute For the second installment of the Heart, Lung and(...)
Wrapping Axons – an Ongoing Mission Throughout Your Lifespan
Posted by | Recently PublishedYou are driving on a road and see a pedestrian approaching the crosswalk. You brake to give way. Even such a simple action as this requires multiple levels of processing in our brains — recognizing the shapes and curves that resemble a human being, observing the speed at which they move, pressing the brake with(...)
Why Winners Keep Winning
Posted by | Perspectives in ResearchYou are on a roll. In the morning, you delivered a compelling business proposal. You were the center of attention at lunch and your colleagues loved your witty remarks. In the afternoon meeting, you stood your ground and brilliantly defended your case with irrefutable arguments. When it’s your day, you feel invincible. What gives you(...)
Developing a Laboratory Model for Inclusion Body Myositis
Posted by | Did You See This?If you were diagnosed with a disease, there are two questions you would immediately want answered: 1. How can we treat it? 2. What caused the disease? Those two questions are the foundation of my Ph.D. thesis. I study a muscle disease called inclusion body myositis (IBM), which is sometimes referred to as the “Alzheimer’s(...)
Does My Sense of Smell Make Me Look Fat?
Posted by | Recently PublishedLong before we see or taste food, what strikes us most is its aroma wafting through the air. While eating, what we perceive as taste is not only due to the sensation on our taste buds, but is also mediated by our sense of smell. Although we can detect only five primary tastes, we are(...)
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