Alumni Brains

What is your name?

Xiaoyue (Sydney) Xie

 

Where are you from?

Nanjing, China

 

To which class do you belong?

MRes Experimental Neuroscience class of 2025

 

Where and what did you study before joining Imperial College London?

I did my BSc in Biological Sciences at Imperial College London

 

How did you find your Master experience at the College?

Challenging yet rewarding. This Master’s helped me to think more independently. By completing three rotations, I was able to explore neuroscience, and more specifically, glial cells from various perspectives. This allowed me to approach scientific questions holistically by drawing connections across disciplines. Throughout my journey, I received considerable support from both my supervisors and the department. This Master’s has helped me to confirm the area of neuroscience I am truly passionate about

 

Which research project did you work on?

I did three research projects throughout this year. My first project was with Dr Kambiz Alavian. I investigated microglial mitochondrial function in Parkinson’s disease. Using a combination of techniques, such as immunostaining, protein ligation assay and patch clamp electrophysiology, I focused on DJ-1 interaction with the ATP synthase under physiological and diseased conditions. I completed my second project under Dr Raffaella Nativio, investigating DNA-damage induced senescence in astrocytes. We revealed the paracrine effect of senescence in human primary astrocytes. I opted to complete a computational project as my last rotation with Dr Anna Mallach. By analysing the open access AMP PD single-nucleus RNA sequencing dataset, I investigated the underlying drivers of cognitive symptoms in Parkinson’s disease. I focused on astrocytes in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and primary motor cortex. We revealed regional divergence of astrocytic states and altered astrocytic communication with neurons.

 

Where are you now?

I am starting a PhD with Professor Wiliam Wisden at Imperial College London

 

What are you working on?

I will be investigating the function of different stages of sleep using transcriptomic approaches

 

What is the most important lesson you learnt as a Master’s student?

Work hard but also work smart. Hard work is irreplaceable for achieving success but learning how to rest in between the busiest times is like the cherry on top of the cake – it boosts your efficiency and mental health to help achieve better results. Instead of being frustrated and defeated, view every setback as an opportunity to learn and improve. Always focus not only on getting the best grade, but on giving your best effort

 

How did the Master’s programme help you get to where you are now?

The Master’s program helped to understand what it’s like and how to work in a laboratory environment. I have learned to execute, plan, and complete projects efficiently within a short timeframe. By completing a report for each project, I have enhanced my skills in communicating scientific findings. All these skills are helping me grow as a scientist for my future academic journey

Read Xiaoyue (Sydney) Xie: ‘Always focus not only on getting the best grade, but on giving your best effort’ in full

What is your name?

My name is Jiayu Xiang

 

Where are you from?

I am from Yichang, China

 

To which class do you belong?

MSc Translational Neuroscience 24/25

 

Where and what did you study before joining Imperial College London?

I completed my BSc in Biochemistry at Imperial College London before my Master’s degree

 

How did you find your Master’s experience at the College?

I think it was challenging, but in the best way possible. It pushed me to grow a lot, not just in research, but also in how to balance study and life and stay curious when things got tough. The research project, in particular, was such a rewarding part of the journey. One of the highlights was meeting students from diverse backgrounds, and I learned much from my classmates. Everybody was happy to share and help each other. The course was very interactive and open to feedback. It felt like the programme kept evolving with us, which made the experience even more engaging and supportive

 

Which research project did you work on?

I worked with Dr Kambiz N. Alavian’s group, investigating how mitochondrial efficiency changes during ageing using C. elegans as the model. I am grateful to have had the chance to explore different techniques and explore my curiosity throughout the project. During my time in the lab, I learned how to perform mitochondrial patch clamp recording and carry out various staining experiments. I also got to set up a machine learning model to track worm behaviour, which was a whole new and exciting area for me. It was a great experience that allowed me to combine my background in molecular and cellular biology with neuroscience, and to understand ageing mechanisms at the cellular level

 

Where are you now?

I am back home in China to rest for a bit

 

What are you working on?

My Master’s experience strengthens my passion for scientific research, so I’m now applying for relevant PhD opportunities. I hope to continue building on my postgraduate project if possible. It’s a field that feels both intellectually challenging and deeply meaningful and I’m excited to keep moving forward

 

What is the most important lesson you learnt as a Master’s student?

Plan ahead, work ahead and stay organised. All the requirements and deadlines of the assessments in each module were released at the start, so it is crucial to balance lectures and assignments, starting early always pays off. Another valuable takeaway was learning how to present my work effectively. Working hard is the foundation, but being able to communicate your ideas clearly and confidently is important in academia and in any future career

 

How did the Master’s programme help you get to where you are now?

Coming from a biochemistry background, the Master’s programme was a great opportunity for me to learn neuroscience from the ground up, starting with the basic neuroanatomy and core concepts in the first few modules. Those modules helped me understand which areas of neuroscience I was most interested in. As the course went on, learning from experts in different fields helped me refine those interests further. When it came to the research project, it was a great chance to put what I learned into practice and explore my chosen topic in depth. The whole experience, from writing a research proposal to presenting our findings, gave me a real taste of what being a researcher is like. It helped me confirm my passion for this path, understand the challenges behind scientific research, and see what kind of work truly excites me

 

Read Jiayu Xiang: ‘The whole experience, from writing a research proposal to presenting our findings, gave me a real taste of what being a researcher is like’ in full

What is your name?

Dana Gawlitzek

Where are you from?

San Francisco, USA

To which class do you belong?

MSc Translational Neuroscience 2024/25

Where and what did you study before joining Imperial College London?

I studied neuroscience (BS) at American University in Washington, DC

How did you find your Master’s experience at the College?

I found the Master’s program to be both challenging and highly rewarding. The skills I developed and the research techniques I was exposed to, particularly in neuroimaging and neurostimulation, proved invaluable. The MSc program ultimately shaped me into a more well-rounded and capable scientist

Which research project did you work on?

My project was titled “Investigating the role of anxiety on vestibular control of balance during step initiation” and I was supervised by Dr. Toby J. Ellmers

Where are you now? 

I am now joining the lab of Professor Charlotte Grosse Wiesmann at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig, Germany, as a research assistant and will be transitioning to a PhD position after 6 months

What are you working on?

I will be working on a project investigating the theory of mind development in children using fMRI

What is the most important lesson you learnt as a Master’s student?

The most important lesson I learned during my Master’s was the value of adaptability in research. Initially, I felt nervous about the project I was assigned, as it focused on a topic I knew little about and involved techniques with which I had no experience. However, as I engaged with the work, I realised it offered opportunities to develop new skills and perspectives that I hadn’t anticipated. In the end, the project proved to be both highly rewarding and a valuable learning experience, and I emerged with a much broader skill set than I had anticipated. This taught me that being open-minded and flexible can often lead to growth in ways I couldn’t have predicted

How did the Master’s programme help you get to where you are now?

The skills and experience I gained through my independent research project were instrumental in securing my current research position and demonstrating that I had completed a research project from start to finish, from experimental design to data analysis and write-up, which highlighted both my technical abilities and research independence, which proved to be a valuable and compelling aspect of my applications

Read Dana Gawlitzek: ‘The MSc program ultimately shaped me into a more well-rounded and capable scientist’ in full

What is your name?

My name is Lara Kaefer

Where are you from?

I’m originally from Munich, Germany, but I have spent quite a bit of time abroad. I went to boarding school in Canada for three years and then lived in London for four years

To which class do you belong?

I’m part of the MRes Experimental Neuroscience class at Imperial College London

Where and what did you study before joining Imperial College London?

Before Imperial, I did my BSc in Medical Sciences and Engineering at UCL

How did you find your Master’s experience at the College?

I really enjoyed it. What I liked most was the freedom we had to shape our own research. As long as it connected to neuroscience and was supervised at Imperial, we could explore almost anything, from wet-lab work to computational projects to patient studies. The course was very hands-on, so most of the learning happened through real research. I especially valued the chance to rotate through very different projects. It gave me a broad perspective on neuroscience. The environment at Imperial is so collaborative and international, I always felt supported but also challenged to push myself

Which research project did you work on?

I worked on three rotations. The first one was on mitochondrial metabolic efficiency in glioblastoma. I examined how ion leak currents regulate glutamate utilisation and drive cell proliferation in brain tumours. The second one was on sensorimotor gating under postural threat, studying how induced anxiety affects prepulse inhibition of the startle reflex in healthy adults. For the third one, I chose a project on multisensory algorithms and I used computational models and symbolic discovery to understand how agents integrate different sensory channels to navigate. I chose these different projects to figure out what I enjoy most and to get a really well-rounded experience

Where are you now?

I am moving back to Munich

What are you working on?

Currently, I am starting a short-term project at my family’s company in Munich, where I will be working on the digitalisation of property management systems. After that, I am applying for positions in strategy consulting, ideally in teams that work with medical technology and life sciences companies. My goal is to understand the business and strategic side of science and healthcare, and to gain experience in how research and innovation are translated into real-world impact

What is the most important lesson you learnt as a Master’s student?

The most important thing I learnt was how to stay flexible and open. Each project demanded something completely different, from running wet-lab experiments to coding models to working with participants. I often had to pick up skills from scratch, and that taught me not to be intimidated by new methods but just to start and figure it out. I also enjoy the human side of research. During my psychophysiology project, I worked directly with healthy participants and patients, and it showed me how much I value the interaction with people

How did the Master’s programme help you get to where you are now?

The programme pushed me out of my comfort zone in every direction. It gave me practical skills — from coding and data analysis to lab techniques and working with participants — but more importantly, it changed how I approach problems. I’ve become much more independent in my thinking, more confident in exploring unfamiliar areas, and more comfortable adapting to different kinds of challenges

Read Lara Kaefer: ‘What I liked most was the freedom we had to shape our own research’ in full

What is your name?

Ana Sofia Narvaez Paliza

 

Where are you from?

Mexico

 

To which class do you belong?

MSc in Translational Neuroscience 2024/25

 

Where and what did you study before joining Imperial College London?

I did a BSc in Biomedical Sciences at King’s College London

 

How did you find your Master’s experience at the College?

Stimulating, challenging, and inspiring. I had been excited about pursuing this master’s for a very long time. Now that I have finished it, I can say it was so worth it. I did not find the master’s easy, but for me, that was the whole point: I wanted to be challenged! I learnt so much: a wealth of neuroscience knowledge, numerous skills, increased confidence and I made friends!

 

Which research project did you work on?

I worked at Jackson’s lab at the UKDRI. I investigated whether Alzheimer’s disease resilient individuals (individuals who show no cognitive impairment despite the presence of pathology) have a distinct pathology profile. Specifically, I examined whether certain types of amyloid beta and tau pathology, in higher or lower proportions, are more closely associated with synaptic preservation or compensatory changes. I used human post-mortem brain tissue and techniques such as immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, and AI-powered segmentation

 

Where are you now? 

London

 

What are you working on?

I love research, so I am currently working towards securing funding to pursue a PhD and continue my career as a researcher in the field of neurodegeneration

 

What is the most important lesson you learnt as a Master’s student?

I learnt about resilience. We sometimes assume that if we put 100% of our effort into something, things will work out because we tried our best. However, experiments can fail, applications can be rejected, and setbacks can occur. So, I really learnt to be resilient and to keep working towards my dreams, because if not now, then when?

 

How did the Master’s programme help you get to where you are now?

Thanks to the master’s, I feel ready to take on any challenge. I believe the master’s program taught me how to learn more effectively in the future. As a researcher, you never stop learning (which is the awesome part of it), so being ready to learn and take on any challenge is essential. This master’s program prepared me to acquire new skills and tackle challenges and gave me the confidence to do so

Read Ana Sofia Narvaez Paliza: ‘I had been excited about pursuing this master’s for a very long time. Now that I have finished it, I can say it was so worth it’ in full