@freemo it is a cruel disease yet I find it so interesting. From a neurobiological point of view, loads of stuff seems to be implicated in this: metalloproteases such as MMP-9, when overexpressed, can degrade the extracellular matrix of inhibitory GABAergic neurons so that the neural network is altered, leading to schizophrenia-like symptoms. But MMP-9 is just one molecule among many others: just on the top of my head I remember Reelin, MMP-2, semaphorins. Basically we don't know shit about this (and this of course makes it more interesting)

@PeanceAfterMath I'm about to start mine in a couple of weeks and this is really nice to read. Also all the other resources! As a non English native speaker, the writing article is very useful

Having watched Ph.D. students succeed and fail at four universities, I infer that success in graduate school hinges on three qualities: perseverance, tenacity and cogency.

matt.might.net/articles/succes

Is achievement the only real healthy way to feel happy? Not talking about pleasure here, but the feeling of contentedness

I started my #paperoftheday to put some actual everyday science in the fediverse #science tag, drown out the current majority in the #science tag who are just using it on their political opinions. please join me, simply put #science #physics #biology #research whatever as appropriate on your science content posts.

@freemo I still remember when eBay was "the big thing".. And you used to find only actual used stuff from privates

@freemo congrats! When I was on a diet (for the opposite purpose -gaining weight) I used a lot myfitnesspal to count my calories. It was a life saver

Feeling quite excited about starting my PhD soon next month. I hope covid won't slow down my research too much!

The stuff is very interesting: when young neurons need help to grow and duplicate, migrate and extend their processes towards them. In this way they support the cell with nutrients and growth factors so that it can keep developing. cells hijack this physiological mechanism for their own good and use it to keep growing uncontrollably, becoming lethal cancers. What's even more cool is how microglia manage to build a whole deep cellular network to make this happen. I'll probably spend a lot of time brains (well, zebrafish brains) and cells, which I always loved

Also, today is a special day: just got my first poop in my new flat + I'm getting a dog :blobblush:

@freemo DAMN I usually get my big brother to help me when I get to this dungeon boss

@freemo hopefully in the world of time machines dog cloning will be cheap

@freemo might be because they all have a double carbon bond

RESEARCH LAB GOTHIC

There is a fed ex man waiting at the entrance to the restricted area. He is trying to deliver a package to someone who has never worked in the lab. There is always a fed ex man waiting at the door. The fed ex men never come back out.

The LB broth is contaminated. The LB broth is always contaminated. The LB broth comes out of the autoclave contaminated.

You get a message saying there is cake in the break room. There is cake in the break room every day. You always go to the break room as soon as you get the message, but the cake is always gone by then.

The PI is working on a grant. The PI has been working on a grant for years. You have never seen your PI. You’re not sure if the PI really exists.

The undergrads left the lid off the pipette tip box again. “You’ll contaminate them,” you say. “When will the undergrads learn?” There aren’t any undergrads in the lab.

There are biohazard signs everywhere. There’s a biohazard sign on your door, on your desk, on all your equipment, on your pencil. You are a biohazard.

You break a small, useless piece of plastic by gently touching it. You find out later it was the most important thing in the lab and costs $60,000 to replace.

Everyone is thanking each other. You thank the person who gives you tubes to process and they thank you. No one is sure who is doing whom a favor. None of you are actually grateful.

A new machine has appeared in the lab overnight. No one ordered it. No one knows what it does or how to use it. There is a webinar from the company that sent it to you tomorrow, but tomorrow never comes. They have already come and done preventative maintenance on it.

Source: old.reddit.com/r/labrats/comme

@jack @zoetropeexplosn @jack while I do agree that Ketamine seems promising, this is not true. Other antidepressants have been shown to promote neurogenesis: fluoxetine (Prozac, SSRI) (Ohira et al., 2013), venlafaxine (Effexor, SNRI) (Zhang et al., 2015) and even way before: reboxetine (NRI) and tranylcypromine (MAOI) (Malberg et al., 2000). Quite sure most SSRIs and SNRIs do promote neurogenesis.

Another point: neurogenesis is definitely implicated in the antidepressant effect but individual differences (genetics, epigenetics, biochemistry) play a major role in the effectiveness of a drug.. So for instance, fluoxetine works for me, might not work for somebody else. That could be the same for Ketamine. Definitely more research (and funding that research) is mandatory!

Show more
Qoto Mastodon

QOTO: Question Others to Teach Ourselves
An inclusive, Academic Freedom, instance
All cultures welcome.
Hate speech and harassment strictly forbidden.