In the last 2 months and half Vaishnavi – DC6 did her secondment not so far from the place she’s calling “home” for the last almost 3 years.
While normally she is living and working in Leiden at LUMC in Prof. Jan Wijnholds‘ laboratory, in this last period she moved to Nijmegen, at Prof. Zohreh Hosseinzadeh‘s laboratory at Radboud University Medical Center. There Vaishnavi had the opportunity to further develop her research and gain hands-on experience in a new laboratory setting. In the following, she shares insights into her scientific work, as well as her personal experience living in Nijmegen.
Here below her words on how the experience went:
Lab experience
During my secondment in Nijmegen, I worked on a mild LCA mouse retina model. I performed retinal sectioning and immunostaining to investigate protein localization differences between the disease model and the rescue condition. This involved extensive imaging and learning new microscopy techniques. Throughout the secondment, I was able to generate a substantial amount of data that will contribute to my ongoing project.
I would like to thank Yao for her continuous support throughout the secondment. She guided me through all experimental steps, helped me integrate into the lab, and introduced me to colleagues both within and outside the department. I am also grateful to the entire group of Dr. Zohreh Hosseinzadeh for their welcoming environment and for their willingness to help whenever needed. Finally, I would like to thank the PI herself (Dr. Zohreh Hosseinzadeh) for hosting me and enabling this opportunity.
Life in Nijmegen
Living in Nijmegen was a very positive experience. I am already familiar with Dutch culture and the academic environment, which made settling in quite easy. However, Nijmegen still felt distinct from Leiden, with its larger scale and the beautiful riverside setting, which I particularly enjoyed.
Outside the lab, I had the opportunity to meet new people from RadboudUMC. We spent time together after work on several occasions, which made the experience more social and enjoyable.
Overall, I really appreciated my time in Nijmegen, both professionally and personally. It was a smooth and enriching secondment, and I am especially grateful to Yao for making the experience so supportive and enjoyable throughout.
Vaishnavi, PhD student at Leiden University Medical Center, The Netherlands in secondment at Radboud University Medical Center in Nijmegen, The Netherlands.