Cathy Abbott

Does ‘laziness’ start in the brain? Understanding the surprising mechanism behind apathy can help unlock scientific ways to boost your motivation

On the Neurology of Apathy
www.theguardian.com/books/2025/n...

Hunter syndrome: Boy with rare condition amazes doctors after world-first gene therapy Oliver has an inherited condition called Hunter syndrome, which causes progressive damage to the body and brain.

In his previous role at @manchester.ac.uk, CRM Group Leader Brian Bigger led research on gene therapy for Hunter syndrome, which has just resulted in its first patient! edin.ac/49Av3wV

Read about his current work here: edin.ac/4q352LN

Wow Ben, what an amazing thread- thank you! TS is one of my long time heroes. Next time we meet remind me to tell you about when I sat across the aisle of a train listening in to a man I eventually realised was Arthur Miller 😊

EASTBIO Subcelllular compartmentalisation of eEF1A paralogous proteins in neurons across the lifespan at University of Edinburgh on FindAPhD.com PhD Project - EASTBIO Subcelllular compartmentalisation of eEF1A paralogous proteins in neurons across the lifespan at University of Edinburgh, listed on FindAPhD.com

Two studentships available, one with me and Sam Booker and the other with me and Paul Donlin-Asp- do apply!

www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

Text says: This section provides a comprehensive description of the methodology employed in this study to develop an explainable XAI framework for ASD diagnosis and parental support. The proposed framework integrates the TabPFNMix regressor, a state-of-the-art machine learning (ML) model for tabular data, with SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) to ensure both high predictive accuracy and interpretability. The methodology is structured into five subsections: (1) Dataset Description, (2) TabPFNMix Overview, (3) SHAP for Explainability, (4) Framework Design, and (5) Evaluation Metrics. Figure 1 shows the overall methodology. Informed consent was obtained from all participants involved in the study, and, where applicable, consent was obtained from legal guardians for minor participants as approved by the IRB. And then Figure 1 is shown with lots of AI errors on the image.

An absolutely totally fine this can be published in a science journal image that purports to show how the study was carried out but instead is just AI slop.

Uhh,,, Figure 1 shows you... what exactly? Trying to understand Medical fryrmbial, runctitional features and mum's legs going through concrete.

This whole article is a bit of a disaster. And it's very difficult to find other published work for the author. Strange! 🧪

(via @smutclyde.bsky.social)

Desperately wishing I had a snow covered version to add at this point 😀

The strategy also recognises that animal research will remain important for years to come, acknowledging the need for animal research in parallel with the drive, coordination & funding required to achieve the ethical, scientific & economic benefits that innovations in animal alternatives can bring.

Yikes 😬

This looks fantastic, looking forward to delving more into the predictions for EEF1A2 (where we are currently at >60 almost exclusively missense mutations!)

Proteome-wide model for human disease genetics Nature Genetics - popEVE is a proteome-wide deep generative model to identify and predict pathogenicity of missense mutations causing genetic disorders.

popEVE is out in Nature Genetics! 🎉
We built a proteome-wide model that combines cross-species and human population variation to rank missense variants by disease severity and help diagnose rare genetic disorders.
rdcu.be/eRu7K

Ha, thank you 😁 But yes, there must have been an explosion of new builds at some point years ago!

Half a pylon surrounded by a construction site

I have been on this earth for a very long time but this is the first time I have seen an unfinished pylon. I guess it should be obvious they have to be constructed by someone but I am quite awestruck nevertheless

😵‍💫 soon the journals will require physical proof of the blot/gel/etc. Thinking about it, we might as well go back to mailing a physical copy of the typed manuscript and photos/negatives.

Ha 😄 Honestly, even though I never use it, I find myself editing out adjectives and any hint of floweriness in case anyone thinks I did!

Yes, exactly- they're terrified of alienating students or putting people off applying (as though that's actually doing them any favours in the long term).

We're sleepwalking into complete disaster here. I can't believe how quickly it's taken over, and how many students have become completely reliant on it. It's terrifying.

👉🏼👉🏾👉🏻👉🏿👉🏽An opportunity for a PhD studentship in my lab to investigate the mechanisms that mediate the specialization astrocyte endfeet (subcellular compartments enwrapping the vasculature) in collaboration with the magnificent Lorena Arancibia.

See below:

Text box reading: Vaccines do not... do not overload or weaken the immune system – it's safe to give children and adults several vaccines at a time and this reduces the amount of injections needed do not contain mercury (thiomersal) do not contain any ingredients that cause harm – only ingredients essential to making them safer and more effective and only in very small amounts do not cause autism – studies have found no evidence of a link between the MMR vaccine and autism

Should you find yourself - for whatever reason - looking for a new set of authoritative, accessible summaries of the risks and benefits of vaccines to share with people, the NHS website is still doing a good job at this www.nhs.uk/vaccinations...

Superstar @sorayam.bsky.social 👏👏👏👏👏

Conceptual and methodological flaws undermine claims of a link between the gut microbiome and autism Claims that the gut microbiome causally contributes to autism regularly appear in the scientific literature and popular press. Mitchell et al. critically examine influential studies underpinning these...

New paper with @statsepi.bsky.social and @deevybee.bsky.social in which we show there's really no evidence for a link between the gut microbiome and autism www.cell.com/neuron/fullt...

NC3Rs grant holders receive funding in MRC call £15.9M awarded to develop human in vitro models of complex disease.

The NC3Rs has a strong track record in investing in in vitro models of human disease that replace the use of animals. We have recently partnered with the MRC, Wellcome and Innovate UK on a £15.9M funding call to develop human in vitro models of complex disease.
nc3rs.org.uk/news/nc3rs-g...

Less horrifically, but tellingly, the only time I met him he said (in response to something Peter Goodfellow said) “ well, I've never really had a collaborator” 🤯

Solid advice for grad school applicants #AcademicSky #MedSky #EpiSky #ScienceSky

"The UK cannot become a science superpower unless it exploits the full range of talent that we have" - @nramnani.bsky.social

We are now welcoming applications to our BNA Scholars Programme.

🔗 Find out more and apply: www.bna.org.uk/policy-advoc...

#BNAScholars #DiversityInSTEM #Mentorship

Edinburgh Neuroscience Public Christmas Lecture 2025 A brain surgeon and two discovery scientists unwrap the story of their unique collaboration using living human brain slices.

Join us for our annual lecture! We have a fantastic line-up this year: a consultant neurosurgeon and two discovery scientists will discuss how they are redefining biomedical methods - using living human brain tissue - bringing us closer to curing major neurological diseases.
Book: edin.ac/4oYHTtk

*So* looking forward to Celebrity Traitors tonight.

This quote from the Guardian has been making me laugh for hours now “David Olusoga’s … so consistently misguided that you actually began to retrospectively doubt the veracity of his highly regarded documentaries” 😁😁😁

Oh. A familiar but awful situation. Keeping everything crossed for you!

I'm so sorry to hear that Izzy. If anyone can keep it from happening to others in future, it's you ❤️

Please repost - Multiple PhDs available

www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

Oh spot on! Great article.