Dr. Nicolas Mauranyapin visits MEOW lab

Posted on November 23, 2024 by Yun Chen

We greeted our collaborator Dr. Nicolas Mauranyapin from University of Queensland visiting MEOW lab.  Showing our guest from Brisbane, Australia our facility and research projects made the late November Saturday warm despite the low temperature.

We first toured our Krieger labs and showcased our microscopes, and other instruments.

 

Then we went to Steiff for a tour of the bioprinting lab.

Of course a good tour had to conclude with a hearty meal followed by exquisite ice cream! We also discussed science during the lunch. It was a lot of fun!

Thank you Nico for visiting us. We hope to see you soon again in Baltimore and/or Brisbane!

 

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Septennial Fall hike

Posted on November 8, 2024 by Yun Chen

After an intense week, we went hiking, a group event only occurs every seven years,  to regroup our thoughts and appreciate the fall colors at the end tail of the Fall season.

We walked along the Jones Fall trail by the creek. We saw wildlifes: deers, ducks, other birds and bugs. The weather was mild and the sun was light. It was a good afternoon on Friday.

The nature gave us serenity. With the recovered peace of mind, we gathered at a local brewery to share our thoughts.

With the special beers of pumpkin flavors, we looked forward to a hectic winter of travels, presentations and more lab works. Hooray!

 

 

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The Uni-unibrow for Halloween 2024

Posted on October 31, 2024 by Yun Chen

This year we celebrated Halloween with the theme of uni-unibrow, which is shared by everyone in the lab.

This 10-feet long uni-unibrow symbolizes harmony, wisdom and unparalleled scientific rigor in many ancient cultures. We hope we embody the meaning of the uni-unibrow and move forward in our research accordingly.

Happy Halloween 2024!

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Apple picking Sunday

Posted on September 29, 2024 by Yun Chen

To celebrate Hoff’s success in passing her DQE, we had a celebratory outing to commemorate this happy season.

At Weber’s PeachBerry Farm, we picked pumpkins.

We tried on crab hats.

We studied mechanics of apples.

Of course, we also ventured to the orchard and picked bushels of apples.

As usual, Hoff took no prisoner even when picking apples. No apple in the world is out of Hoff’s reach.

In contrast, Tony is focused on lower hanging fruits.

We really collected a lot apples- probably enough for the whole season!

We had fun!

 

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Daniel, Hoff and Feiyu are selected for 2024 Cell Bio travel grants

Posted on September 25, 2024 by Yun Chen

We are very pleased to learn that Daniel, Hoff and Feiyu are awarded for the 2024 Cell Bio travel grants. They will be funded for the trip to present their research results at 2024 Cell Bio meeting to be held in San Diego in mid-December this year. It is a competitive process, in which their professional experience and statement of promoting diversity were evaluated.  The awardees from MEOW lab are hard working and visionary in promoting diversity manifested in scientific disciplines, social backgrounds, heritages and personal choices. This honor is well deserved. Congratulations!

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Bioprinting Lab is set up

Posted on September 1, 2024 by Yun Chen

Thanks to everyone’s (mostly physical) efforts, now the bioprinting lab has been set up for serious bioprinting.

We have the fridge, the incubator, the water bath and gas tanks all up and running.

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We have two biosafety cabinets installed.

And we have the new fluorescence microscope too to scrutinize the cells.

Now we are in business of biofabrication full speed!

 

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Dr. Takehiro Yasukawa from Juntendo University visits MEOW lab

Posted on August 7, 2024 by Yun Chen

We were delighted to have Dr. Takehiro Yasukawa from Juntendo University, Tokyo, Japan visit us. Dr. Yasukawa is an expert in mitochondria. He is currently studying the changes in mitochondrial dynamics in the context of tumor microenvironment. We exchanged ideas and made plans for our collaboration.

Dr. Franck Housseau joined us over dinner to talk more.

Thank you for visiting us, Takehiro. We look forward to working with you!

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Quantum-Enabled Dial (QED) is funded via NSF Trailblazer Engineering Impact Award

Posted on July 24, 2024 by Yun Chen

We are very delighted that our project “Quantum-Enabled Dial (QED) to control biochemical reactions and cell behaviors” based on Junjie’s preliminary data has been selected by National Science Foundation (NSF) for the inaugural Trailblazer Engineering Impact Award (https://new.nsf.gov/news/nsf-awards-inaugural-trailblazer-grants). The 3 million USD funding will enable us to pursue the ambitious idea of engineering a novel class of proteins to control any biochemical reactions anywhere in the human body Lera more here). We are excited and ready to dive into the world of quantum biotechnology!

 

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Prof. Yukako Nishimura visits MEOW Lab

Posted on July 14, 2024 by Yun Chen

We welcomed Prof. Yukako Nishimura from Hokkaido University visiting us. Prof. Nishimura spent a week with us at Hopkins to test the new generation of cell stretcher developed by Junjie and redesigned by Daniel.

We also exchanged ideas and brainstormed about new research directions involving microtubules-driven cell dynamics and beyond.

We gave tours to Prof. Nishimura showcasing  the state-of-art facilities at Hopkins.

Dr. Ana Pasapera joined us for the tour at Center for Material Characterization and Processing.

Of course, Prof. Nishimura took the chance to visit other scientist friends here.

Prof. Takanari Inoue showed us the touristy spots in Baltimore on a sunny and breezy Thursday.

Profs. Jian Liu and Sergey Plotnikov shared good time and good food with our guest of honor too.

It was great to have you here Yukako. Please come back soon!

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Dr. Taneka Jones from Lehigh visits

Posted on June 12, 2024 by Yun Chen

We welcome Dr. Taneka Jones and her graduate student Zelalem Ayalew visiting us at Homewood for the Biofabrication Workshop for Women’s Health (June 10 – June 14, 2024). We discussed and tested the strategy of fibricating engineered tissues in the lab to study diseases affect women’s health.

Daniel was the instructor for the workshop.

We shared our experience in using multifunctional bioprinters for tissue manufacturing.

Of course we also exchanged notes about research and beyond over good food.

Thank you for visiting us, Taneka! We had a great time!

 

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