Challenges and updates to the lab

It has been a busy few months for the lab. We had our long time lab member Dr. Stanton-Turcotte finish in the lab this past March. Danielle was the lab's most prolific graduate student, and stayed with us for almost 2 years as a postdoc following her graduation as a doctoral student. She has been instrumental in our exploration of a novel factor called Mllt11 in neural development. Danielle is still within our department, working for the Rafuse lab as a research associate.

We've had two excellent neuroscience undergraduate students over the past year, Basmah Hendy and Laura Harrison. They successfully completed their honours theses and moved on, using the skills they've learned in developmental neurobiology to pursue careers in science and medicine.

As I transition to more senior role in science, I am heartened to see how many of the trainees in my group have moved on to excellent careers in research and medicine. I was recently elected to the Board of Directors of the American Association for Anatomy; an organization I admire greatly and for whom I've been volunteering the past several years. It will become ever more important during these challenging times to support our research community and continue to make them feel valued and their research worthwhile.

We have had some setbacks in securing funding to the lab, which has led to a contraction in lab personnel. This is a frustration I share with many investigators across the country. The challenges in securing funding is especially difficult as I see some much great potential in the work we do and the outstanding students and postdocs I have the privilege to work with.

On a more positive note, I had the pleasure of visiting and lecturing at the SunnyBrook Research Institute in Toronto last September 25th, 2024. My lecture was entitled: "The regulation of neuronal migration and neuritogenesis : implications for neurodevelopmental disorders". I also gave a Webinar for the American Association for Anatomy: Inspiring Scientific Curiosity Series, sponsored by the society journals. My online talk was entitled: "Neurons on the move: how neuronal migration shapes brain anatomy during development". I attended the American Association for Anatomy Annual Meeting in Portland, Oregon from April 28-31, 2025, and chaired an outstanding session entitled: "Developmental Neurobiology: Connectivity is Essential for Function in Development and Disease!", anchored by Dr. Xiangmin Xu (UC Irving) and Dr. Naomi Tjaden (Children's Hospital of Philadelphia), along with amazing student talks from Alexandria Anding (University of Nebraska Medical Center) and Abigail Kucera (University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus). It was a meeting I will cherish as my collaborator and postdoc mentor Dr. Paul Trainor received the prestigious Henry Grey Scientific Achievement Award for his groundbreaking studies on craniofacial disorders. Congratulations Paul, a well-deserved honour!

On May 21, 2025, I will join many of my colleagues in the Canadian Developmental Neuroscience community in the "Stem Cells, Brain Development and Regeneration" satellite symposium for the annual Canadian Association for Neuroscience meeting in Toronto. I look forward discussing our research in hippocampal neurogenesis. On June 27, we will be hosting our annual Atlantic Regional Developmental Biology Symposium at Dalhousie University, and has been posted on the Brain Repair Centre of Halifax website: https://www.brainrepair.ca/calendar/12th-developmental-biology-meeting, Bluesky (@aineurolab.bsky.social).

So while the year has presented us with significant funding challenges, we remain very active in the community, and with hope look forward to sharing positive news of funding successes in the near future.

All the best,

Angelo.

Paul and Angelo at the American Association of Anatomy awards ceremony in Portland, 2025