The podcast I never knew I needed 😍 open.spotify.com/episode/6Vx4...

Exciting conference alert! The 93rd Biochemical Society Harden Conference will be on "Endosomal-lysosomal network dysfunction in neurodegeneration" on the South coast of England (1st to 4th of September 2026). Lots of speaker slots available from submitted abstracts so do come and join us!

Very excited for this excellent meeting - come join us!

Helpful update into UKRI and research council funding changes from Zoe Kleinman @zsk.bsky.social But please more focus on 2 things... 1) Immediate effects (eg funding decisions expected in March) 2) Likely disproportionate effects on early career scientists www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

I watched much of Ian Chapman's (Head of @ukri.org) appearance this morning at @ukparliament.parliament.uk Science, Innovation and Technology Committee.. A few points and new information that bioscientists may find interesting... A 🧵

Leaks everywhere and finally we get an official statement, one that somehow manages to say a lot while; No timelines. No clarity. No acknowledgement of impact on ECRs whose careers depend UKRI funding. “Later this year” isn’t a plan. And the sector deserves better than reassurance without detail.

I tried that video going round where you swirl lemon curd through some fat free yoghurt, stick some digestives in and leave it in the fridge overnight and it turns into a sort of fake (healthier?) cheesecake and it’s really quite delicious!

The pause of response mode funding will have a huge impact on ECRs who are not yet fellowship ready.When researchers leave academia they rarely return. Clarity on when RM will reopen is urgently needed & transitions to the new model need to avoid investment gaps that disproportionally affect ECRs

Congratulations to Giampietro Schiavo on receiving the 2026 Basic Science Life Achievement Award of the International Neurotoxin Association. This award recognises the contributions of the Schiavo Lab. to the understanding of the mechanism of action of botulinum and tetanus neurotoxins.

We need to be shouting about the effects of this on junior researchers from the roofs, writing to our MPs. We are risking a "missing generation" of researchers.

Memory dysfunction in Alzheimer’s disease may be linked to impairment in how the brain replays our recent experiences while we are resting, according to a new study in mice led by Dr Sarah Shipley @shipleysj.bsky.social and Prof Caswell Barry @caswell.bsky.social @ucllifesciences.bsky.social

Our Best Models Working Group can offer advice on the use of a range of model systems. The next in our series highlighting our diverse expertise features Dr Andrew Wood, whose lab uses genome editing and targeted protein degradation to study genetic disease using cell lines, organoids, and mice.

Startling that this is being broadcast in the absence of any public communications by @ukri.org The academic community has a right to expect to be told first hand what is happening with response mode funding and what the immediate future looks like www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-r...

The MRC has asked each of its grant review boards to recommend no more than 3 applications for funding, RPN has heard from multiple sources Normally, boards recommend an average of 12-13 bids, so the success rate this year will be tiny This affects applicant-led calls which closed in 2025...

Just one week left to register for the #ARUKconf! With a full, varied programme, multiple networking events, and world-renowned researchers speaking, our biggest conference yet is not one to miss. Register by midday 8 Feb (in-person)/15 Feb (online): www.alzheimersresearchuk.org/research/for...

Our Science Director Roger Highfield @rogerhighfield.bsky.social reflects on how reimagining public engagement can help to reverse declining public confidence in science: https://bit.ly/4rj4EZQ?

Register now! The @ucl.ac.uk Advanced Therapies Symposium returns on 22 April 2026. This event brings together 250+ researchers, clinicians, funders & industry to explore breakthroughs from lab to market. More info: bit.ly/4j8kjIL @uclenterprise.bsky.social @uclb.bsky.social

You can read about the work and achievements of the EDI team here www.ucl.ac.uk/brain-scienc...

This is wonderful news and a reflection of the work of so many ppl to make the institute a fair and inclusive place to work, particularly Prof Hélène Plun-Favreau, Deputy Director for EDI, EDI project manager Dimitrios Zachos and Athena SWAN leads Prof Gabriele Lignani and Laura Allum.

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Lovely to be on site at Grays Inn Road for the first time this year, talking to local residents who are so accommodating to the building work about what work will be happening in the labs once we move in. Great to have their support & engagement, & so many good questions!

A pet Swiss Brown cow named Veronika has learned how to use both ends of a stick to scratch her own back. This kind of flexible tool use is rarely seen in the animal kingdom and has never been documented in cattle before. www.sciencefocus.com/news/cow-too...

Dolly Parton is 80 today 🎂 A Feminist, a philanthropist, an icon. Supporter of vaccine research, supporter of LGBTQ+ and Black communities, provider of scholarships and supporter of education We need more Dolly’s in the world right now!

The Michael J Fox Foundation is hosting an online town hall on endolysosomal targets in Parkinson disease on 25 March at 12.30pm EST. Registration now open. www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/event/mjff-t...

Did the new Greenwich Peninsula Parkrun this morning (lovely event!) then over to the London stadium for a talk to this years cohort of runners for Alzheimer’s Research UK 🥳 🏃🏼‍♀️

Me: I should buy plain smart clothes so people take me more seriously Also me: whooo dinosaurs! 🦖

One month to go… UCL turns 200! 🎉 On 11 February, we kick off #UCL200 – a year of celebrations marking our radical founding in 1826 as London’s first university, open to all. Expect parties, exhibitions, student festivals, art, books, performances, and more. Get ready! @uclspeccoll.bsky.social#UCL200

I don’t think we should have ceded control quite so quickly and without so much as a fight.

Applications to our 2026 Summer Student Training Programme are now open. We’re looking for undergrad students to join us for nine weeks this summer. See the projects on offer and check the participation eligibility requirements on our website. ⬇️ www.crick.ac.uk/careers-and-...

Gorgeous (but cold! 🥶) 10 mile cross country race at Epsom Downs this morning. Hoping tiring myself out will stop the back to work scaries creeping in!

Nice to start 2026 with my 300th Parkrun though! 🥳

Happy new year to everyone except this -80 which decided to completely fail at 2am 😭

Lovely day out running on the trails today 🤩

Merry Christmas everyone and thanks to I lovely volunteers at Dulwich Parkrun for putting on a great morning event :) now, we eat!

A year ago I took Billy to the vets because his breathing wasn’t right.48h later - on Xmas day - we were told he has heart failure & his prognosis was somewhere between 1-12 months.So the best Xmas present is how well he has responded to meds & that he is still here to cause mayhem and mischief! ❤️

Dear GOD. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Hi all. The Crystal Palace Dinosaurs are the subject of a fantastic article, by Henry Wismayer, in today’s FT Magazine. We are proud to have advised, and be featured in it. We’re lead to believe that it is Christmas soon, so here’s a free link - our gift to you all xx as.ft.com/r/aa778cba-5...

ECR looking for a change in the New Year? We are recruiting a new Lecturer in Psychology at @birkbeckpsychology.bsky.social ! If you’d like to talk about life in the Department, please do feel free to get in touch. Deadline 8th Feb - More details below 👇 cis7.bbk.ac.uk/vacancy/lect...

What links GPNMB to Parkinson’s? Research from (bluesky-less) Erin Bogacki and Susanne Herbst suggests that lysosomes could be the link: GPNMB is a biomarker for lysosomal dysfunction and is secreted via LRRK2-modulated lysosomal exocytosis | Science Advances www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Congratulations to Dr Claire Leckey my PhD student. Using stable isotope labelled leucine we measured synthesis and turnover of neurofilament light in patients. The protein turns over very slowly showing brain trials need long timelines to reveal benefit. academic.oup.com/braincomms/a...

New collaborative paper out just before the holidays 🥳 academic.oup.com/braincomms/a...

Happy holidays from my lab to yours - current/past/affiliate I’m super proud to work alongside these fantastic humans 🥳

🌟 stay toxic 🌟

Ok maybe this is my fault for videoing it instead of intervening but… 🫣

Cardboard box + clean towel = happy kitty

Leaders at @ukri.org should be seriously looking at the lottery first idea. 68% lower economic costs, increase in diversity of award holders and well received. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Percy Pud 10km ✅ Pudding & hat at the finish is way better than getting a medal!

I have a real fondness for pigeons, so naturally really enjoyed the “Human Animal” exhibition by Lucy Dewsnap at Barnsley Civic 😍

We had the cosiest corner of the pub last night 😍

First stop on my mini tour of the north…. Back in the homeland and felt surprisingly good on the hills at Barnsley Parkrun this morning! 🏃🏼‍♀️