IN THIS ISSUE:

 Renovation Updates
 Physiology Seminar Series
 Honours & Awards
 Science Rendezvous – May 12th
 Physiology Day 2012
 Take our Daughters and Sons To Work Day


RENOVATION UPDATES

The Heximer lab has relocated to MSB 3363 and the Bolz lab will be relocating to MSB 3305 while their labs are being renovated. Renovations to both labs will likely begin the week of May 14 and be completed by mid-June.

Paula Smellie
Business Manager


PHYSIOLOGY SEMINAR SERIES

Name: Dr. Xiao-Yan Wen

Affiliation: Director, Zebrafish Centre for Advanced Drug Discovery; Scientist, Keenan Research Centre, Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael’s Hospital; Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto

Title: Zebrafish for high throughput drug discovery and genome-wide functional studies

Date: Thursday May 17, 2012

Time: 4-5 pm

Location: Physiology Seminar Room, Medical Sciences Bldg. Room 3231, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto

*** Eligible for the PSL 1000/2000 Seminars in Physiology Course ***


HONOURS & AWARDS

Congratulations to Dr. Tony Lam. His paper on LIPIS sensing and insulin resistance in the brain (reference below) was recently published in Cell Metabolism. The paper is also highlighted as the Cover of the May 2, 2012 issue of Cell Metabolism as part of a review series focus on lipids and insulin resistance.  Paper reference: Yue JY & Lam TK. Lipid sensing and insulin resistance in the brain. Cell Metab 15(5):646-655, 2012.

Congratulations to Dr. Sinziana Avramescu (Anesthesia Resident Program) who presented at the 2012 Hospital for Sick Children Annual Perioperative Services Research Presentation & Competition. The judges selected Sinziana’s presentation entitled “Inflammation increases neuronal sensitivity to anaesthetics” as the Best Laboratory Science Research Presentation. Sinziana spent 6 months in the Department of Physiology last year and will be returning as a research fellow in September 2012 (Orser lab).

Congratulations to Theresa Chow (Supervisor: Dr. Ian Rogers) for receiving the 2012 JW Knox Ritchie Research Award at the Department Obstetrics & Gynaecology 29th Annual Research Day in the Graduate Student category.


SCIENCE RENDEZVOUS - Saturday May 12th, 2012

This year's Science Rendezvous will take place on Saturday May 12th 10 am - 3 pm on the St. George University campus - all along St George Street. The event is dedicated to showcasing the world-class scientific research happening right here at the University of Toronto with the ultimate goal of improving student enrollment and public investment in science and technology in the future. There are over 25 departments participating. Come see the many hands-on activities and exciting demonstrations for children and adults of all ages. Bring your family and friends to see the Physiology booth which has been organized by our Physiology Graduate Students on St George Street close to Harbord Street. The students have planned an excellent demonstration with snail dissections, anatomy models, lung capacity evaluations, and of course, a Banting and Best display.

http://www.sciencerendezvous.ca/2012/

Denise Belsham,
Graduate Co-cordinator


PHYSIOLOGY DAY 2012

On April 24th, the 3rd Annual Physiology Day was hosted by the Department of Physiology in cooperation with GASP, Let’s Talk Science, and the Division of Teaching Labs. Sixty-four Grade 11 high school students from around the GTA were invited to participate in a variety of lab activities and talks relevant to the study of physiology. An excellent team of 12 graduate students from the Department lead students through workshops that covered important concepts related to the cardiovascular system, respiratory system, and DNA. This event provided a unique opportunity for the students to reinforce their knowledge in a university setting, as well as a chance to chat with graduate students about post-secondary life.
Physiology Day 2012 Physiology Day 2012
I would like to extend my thanks to Dr. Matthews and Dr. French, the Division of Teaching Labs, GASP, and all volunteers involved for making the day-long event a great success!

Michael Tian
Graduate student, Lambe lab
Outreach Coordinator, GASP


TAKE OUR DAUGHTERS & SONS TO WORK DAY

On April 26th, children of faculty and staff aged 8-12 years were invited to accompany their parents to Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work, a day that involved various scheduled activities including job-shadowing, guest speakers, departmental tours and a lunch. The event was administered by the University’s Human Resources & Equity Office. We were delighted to welcome and meet some of the children of our Physiology faculty and staff.
Children Visit Belsham Lab Learning about snails
Back row: Zoey Friedman, Rhodri Davies McNelles, Anaies Nazarians-Armavil.  Front Row: Dr. Denise Belsham, Ben Matthews, Carlos Yusta Belsham, Diego Yusta Belsham, Niclas Davies McNelles, Eric Liu, Josh Matthews, Brandon Liu Rhodri Davies McNelles and Dr. Stephen Matthews
Thank you to Dr. Belsham, Dr. Feng, Jenny Katsoulakos and everyone who helped make the children’s visit a great success: Alice Kostaki (Matthews Lab), Vasilis Moisiadis (Matthews Lab), Dr. Sophie Petropoulos (Szyf/Matthews Lab), Yi Quan (Feng Lab), Zoey Friedman (Belsham Lab), Anaies Nazarians-Armavil (Belsham Lab) and Jennifer Chalmers (Belsham Lab).

Stephen G. Matthews
Ernest B. and Leonard B. Smith Professor and
Chair, Department of Physiology



If you have a news item for PhysioLINK, please send it to the Chair's Office c/o e.katsoulakos@utoronto.ca