Cobbers on the Brain

This blog post is all about how neurochemistry class meets Concordia’s 5 goals for liberal learning and hones skills developed from other classes.

Install a love for learning

Neurochemistry achieved this goal through a few different avenues. I think the best example is the Friday discussions where we communicate with our classmates about what we learned. Not only did we discuss the relevant pathways and hypothesize novel treatments, but we also related it to topics that interested us. For example, we would discuss how insulin resistance contributes to Alzheimer’s disease mechanistically, and also what we can actively do ourselves to prevent the disease.

Develop foundational skills and transferable intellectual capacities

Wow did Neurochem develop this skill! Reading a research article every week greatly improved my skills as a researcher in many different fields. Additionally, the content we learned is applicable to many different fields including cancer biology, genetics, drug-design, and many more. Understanding the fundamental signaling pathways of life is a valuable skill for many different scientific disciplines.

Develop an understanding of disciplinary, interdisciplinary and intercultural perspectives and their connections

While neurochem was mostly sunshine-and rainbows, sometimes it took on heavy concepts like Alzheimer’s, obesity, autism, and drug addiction. There is a very clear connection between the signaling pathways we learned for these diseases to other scientific disciplines, but interestingly, there are clear connections to social work and public policy.

A very good example of this comes from the obesity paper we read. As you can see in the diagram (figure 1) below, SFA (saturated fatty acids–think butter) and insulin signaling play a role in regulating obesity.

While on the surface, these discoveries don’t seem to directly tie to socioeconomics and public policy, they assuredly do. A lot of the cheapest food consumed by the socioeconomically disadvantaged can cause insulin resistance and is often high in SFA. Furthermore, the connection between socioeconomic status (SES) and race is linked in the USA. Because of this, the implications of this knowledge apply across cultures and between disciplines both social and scientific.

Cultivate an examined cultural, ethical, physical and spiritual self-understanding

Boy oh boy did neurochem cultivate a whole lot of self-understanding. I think there are a few reasons people could be interested in studying neuroscience:

1. They are interested in others and want to understand how they work on a more fundamental level. The reasoning for wanting to understand can vary from nefarious to benevolent.
2. They are interested in themselves. They are curious about how they make sense of the world from a metacognitive level.

Personally, I’m in it for both reasons but I definitely lean towards #2 more. Because of this, I think neuroscience inherently forces one  to examine their cultural, ethical, physical, and spiritual self. In many ways, neuroscience a very philosophical subject with immediate and implications for the student. For example, baring willful ignorance, it’s impossible to avoid examining the role free will (or the lack thereof) and its implications on nearly all social institutions.

Encourage responsible participation in the world

Conclusion

This course developed the core competencies Concordia considers integral to its education through a variety of ways. Neurochemistry was a very engaging class with topics ranging from cool to mind blowing. My ability to read scientific papers was further refined in this course, as was my ability to draw conclusions form the papers. This class has already improved my research by giving me new ideas on what pathways need adjustment in a variety of illnesses. I think the knowledge gained in this class will carry with me throughout my education and future career.

while we sleep, we cycle through different stages. In this blog post, I will give a blurb of information about each stage of the cycle.

Stage 1

Stage 1 is when we first enter sleep and where our sleep is the lightest possible and can easily be disrupted. This is also when our muscles begin to weaken and our eye movement is slow.

Stage 2

Stage 2 is marked by slower brain waves. This is when our eyes stop moving. While brainwaves have begun to slow, there are brief periods of time where there will be short bursts of activity.

Stages 3 and 4 

Stage 3 is classified as the period of entering deep sleep. Slower waves begin to show. During the 4th stage, the slower waves are at times interrupted with waves that are a little more hyperactive. during both of these stages is when an individual is in or has entered deep sleep. When individuals are awoken from these specific stages, they feel groggy and disoriented.

REM Sleep or Stage 5

REM stands for “rapid eye movement” and that is exactly what occurs during this stage in sleep. Our eyes rapidly move back and forth while our breathing becomes more rapid and while we are paralyzed, our heart rate and blood pressure increase. An individual awakened from this stage can recall their dreams.

https://www.sleepassociation.org/about-sleep/what-is-sleep/

I found that this specified class was unique compared to the other ones that I have taken during my time at Concordia. However, it was a good experience that helped me be able to understand more on comprehending data and information on multiple scientific articles. From what I learned from this class, I believe that visual and audio learning, from reading, are important types of learning for me when trying to comprehend complex scientific writing. The visual imagery of each neural pathway helped me understand what exactly goes on in the brain, allowing myself to understand the scientific writing. Hearing myself talk and converse on the topic also helped me as well. 

I found myself learning more on how to understand scientific writing styles and the skills, competences, and knowledge gained from this experience allowed me to apply this mode of study to other assignments and projects. An example in this instance is this senior seminar paper I am writing on solutions to climate change. The papers I read for my review are scientific articles and applying from what I learned on reading these types of articles in neurochemistry, I am able to comprehend what goes on in each of the experiments conducted in each paper. While this cannot be considered as a future goal right now, it was in November when I was writing my first draft for my review. 

Along with applying this way of study to my assignments, it has helped me understand more on the concepts of vocational value and liberal arts. Learning at a liberal arts institution to me is learning how to create a strong sense of social responsibility and expand your vocational values, expanding your intellectual and practical skills, such as communication, analytical, and problem-solving abilities, and a demonstrated ability to apply knowledge and skills in real-world settings. These new skills that I have obtained can be highlighted on my resume as skills and competencies that prove that I have improved by way of thinking on a problem and answer it with the best answer possible. An example of a type of problem I solved was describing how two neural receptors are similar but have different functions when a mechanism is carried out. Reading carefully and efficiently through this part of the paper is key.

The skills I believe that I have improved very well are reading comprehension, statistical analysis, and visual learning through studying certain parts of each research paper, or article. This includes scientific functions of each neural pathway written in the paper, understanding the results of each experiment, and once again the ability to learn by seeing the example of the neural pathway present in the paper.  Overall this type of class has shown me not just how to apply ways of study to a paper and understand it, but also to understand more on how each disease is caused and how certain mechanisms that happen in the brain develop. These were very interesting articles to read and I found that the course information was very interesting and fun to learn about. 

What kinds of learning occurred for you during this semester?

             Fall 2021 held many opportunities for learning—both in the academic sense and the personal sense. I learned all sorts of neurochemical pathways in class this semester, and many of them will stick with me for a long time. I have already shown off my knowledge about neurochemical pathways to my parents, and I will continue doing so for the rest of my life. Most of my learning this semester, however, took place in the personal sense. I learned what type of learner I am (yes, it took four years to figure this out). I learned that I am a visual learner, as writing out a pathway helped me really understand it and extrapolate on it. I also learned where I am most confident in terms of topics.       

What does learning at a liberal arts institution mean to you?

            Learning at a liberal arts college means that I learn the skills I need to be a well-rounded individual. Learning at a liberal arts institution means that I learn the skills I need to be successful in my field, but I also learn the skills that I need to become responsibly engaged in the world. I tried to come up with a better phrase for it, but Concordia hit the nail on the head with that phrase. Learning at a liberal arts college means that you explore disciplines that are different from yours and, by doing that, you are able to bring the skills you learned from one class into the other. For example, I am a science major, but I had to take a few courses in the humanities area of study. I chose to take a class called Culture, Identity, and Dialogue. Going into the class, I was prepared to be bored out of my mind. My favorite subject to learn was science, and this class was the complete opposite of science. However, the global studies course ended up being one of my favorites that I have ever taken at Concordia. This class was completely different than one I have ever taken, and it challenged me to think differently about the world around me. Learning at a liberal arts college means that you challenge yourself to take on new perspectives through the lens of different disciplines and investigate how you might be able to use those perspectives in your specific field of study. Learning at a liberal arts college is all about exploring other perspectives and integrating them into other fields of study.

If you were to highlight on your resume a skill or competency that you improved upon this semester, what would you be sure to include?

            If I were to highlight particular skills on my resume that I improved upon in this semester, I would highlight team-work. I would make it a fancier term on my resume, but I would highlight this skill for sure. In this course, we worked together on a project where half of the people had a different background than we did. I honed my skill of being able to work with others in a setting where the team members have different knowledge and different skills. I also would highlight the “clear communicator” skill. Some of this skill was improved upon through my job, but this course also taught me a lot about how to communicate complex topics to people who are not at the same understanding as I am. I learned how to describe complex processes in simple terms (most often in the form of metaphors). I also learned how to communicate my thoughts more effectively with someone who has a similar background to me. I am often intimidated by other’s knowledge, but I learned how to accept that I won’t know everything and just communicate what I do know.

Final Thoughts?

I grew a lot this semester—both in my academic and my personal life. These two pieces of me also influenced each other, which led to even more learning. I discovered my inner self-confidence, and I learned how to put myself first. I learned that being imperfect is okay, and I learned to not underestimate myself. I know and understand more than I think I do, and sometimes it just takes a little bit of work for me to see that. This class (along with physical chemistry) taught me a lot about the world. I learned that there is always more learning to be done, and I learned to think critically about issues within the field. But I also learned more about myself through these courses. I am truly grateful for all of the things I have learned through this course and throughout the semester.

Wildest Dreams (not the song by Taylor Swift)

Before you begin to read the rest of this post, I ask that you watch this video.

What you just watched is one of my favorite videos on the internet. Whenever I see this video on a platform, I watch the whole thing and just smile the whole time. In case you didn’t feel like watching the video, I will also describe it. The video is just twenty seconds long and consists of a little boy attempting to ask the audience if they were had a dream similar to one of his. However, the audience is unable to recall a similar dream, due to the child’s inability actually ask the question. He tries to ask but cannot form a complete sentence until the very end of the video and, even then, the question still doesn’t make sense. I had you watch this video for two reasons: 1) I was hoping to put a smile on your face and make your day a little bit better and 2) I wanted to pose a similar (?) question to my audience (you).

What is the most memorable dream you’ve ever had? I’ve had many memorable dreams, but there is one set of recurring dreams I had that I will probably remember forever. I call them recurring because, though the actual plot of the dreams had nothing to do with the other, the ending was always the same. The first one took place at a river near my childhood home, one which had a strong current. The second dream took place in the ocean on the boat from Suite Life on Deck (shout out if you remember that show). TRIGGER WARNING. In both dreams, my brother’s death was the end of the story. In both dreams, he died due to drowning. I had these dreams probably in middle school, but I still remember them like I dreamt about them last night. You’ve probably had equally impactful dreams—ones that make you forget you’re dreaming, ones that you could retell with astounding accuracy. Now, researchers aren’t exactly sure why we dream when we sleep, but many dream theories have to do with memory consolidation.

(Also, just so you don’t think I’m a psychopath for dreaming about my brother’s death, he had a dream where I was mauled by a pack of wild dogs, so we are even).

Sleep and Memory Consolidation

Memory consolidation in the hippocampus follows a pretty distinct pathway, starting with the NMDA receptor. The NMDA receptors are most commonly known for their role in learning and memory, so it is no surprise that these receptors are the starting point for memory consolidation. Once the NMDA receptor is activated by glutamate, this triggers a cellular influx of calcium. The influx of calcium into the cell activates adenylyl cyclase, which then increases the production of cAMP. The increased production of cAMP activates PKA, which then activates Ras and the rest of the MAPK pathway (Raf, MEK, and ERK). Then, MSK-1 is activated, which phosphorylates CREB and triggers the transcription and translation of the CRE gene. To break it into chunks, and maybe help with the understanding, the first part of the pathway is G-protein signaling. The middle piece of the pathway is the usual MAPK pathway, followed by activation of a transcription factor. The figure below outlines this pathway.

Now, you may be wondering how the memory consolidation pathway in the hippocampus relates to sleep. This is a very good question, and I will answer it for you. The memory consolidation pathway is active during REM sleep. In addition, many of pieces of the CRE transcriptional pathway are modulated by the PER1 protein. The PER1 protein is an essential protein in the circadian cycle, and this protein oscillates cAMP, Ras, MAPK, and CREB. The circadian cycle refers to the physical, mental, and behavioral changes that follow a 24-hour cycle. Circadian cycles are primarily stimulated by light input thus, it controls the sleep-wake cycle. During the circadian cycle, an individual’s proteins are expressed in various levels depending on what point in the cycle an individual is on, which is referred to the circadian oscillations of the protein. So, PER1, which is an essential clock protein, controls the circadian oscillations of cAMP, Ras, MAPK, and CREB. Thus, in REM sleep, PER1 is responsible for the strength of the expression of these proteins after the pathway has been activated.

Throughout this course, I have fostered all five aspects of liberal learning and been able to apply all of the skills I have gathered while learning here at Concordia.

Instill a love for learning.

I have found myself immersed in group discussions and building off my classmates throughout this course. What helped me instill a love for learning was the open nature of the course layout that allowed for our own interpretations of the material discussed in class. During Friday group meetings, as students and young neuroscientists, we built off one another and grew together as one rather than alone. Learning was made enjoyable. Learning was viewed as a time to socialize and share our findings, rather than sitting in a chair for a few hours, taking in regurgitated information from someone leading the class.

Develop foundational skills and transferable intellectual capacities.

Throughout my time enrolled in neurochemistry. I have developed strong communication and cooperation skills with fellow peers. These are skills that I can apply to almost any discipline and day-to-day life. some examples are post-undergraduate research, future employment, this, and this coming semester of classes.

Develop an understanding of disciplinary, interdisciplinary, and intercultural perspectives and their connections.

We have explored many topics during this course and approached them from various angles. These at times included viewing the topics at hand through the lenses of nutritional, psychological, pharmacological, and anatomical viewpoints. The differing perspectives allowed me to develop a greater understanding of the true nature and the complexity of the subjects studied. Had we only focused on neurochemistry, I believe we would ultimately only be receiving and trying to make sense of a single piece of the puzzle. While this would have helped us indeed become more well-versed in the course material, it would bar us off from thinking “outside of the box” and exploring while using neurochemistry as a guide to help us formulate our own opinions and answers.

Cultivate an examined cultural, ethical, physical, and spiritual self-understanding.

The course helped me realize a science culture that praises data and numerical language. While this can help provide evidence and support arguments when it comes to other scientists, what is failed to be considered is what a broader and less well-versed audience can take away from it. To others not in a scientific discipline, all of the numbers and data entries can be overwhelming and be seen as just a bunch of chicken scratches or numbers thrown onto a page. Scientific literature needs to be more relaxed to attract larger audiences and inform them of our findings. Ethically, this change is also a great thing to consider. It no longer will “bar off” non-scientific disciplines from learning, questioning, and providing input on our work. It would allow for equality in terms of legibility.

Encourage responsible participation in the world.

The diversity of approaches to the topics discussed in class helped me realize how complex some of them are, as mentioned before. Suppose we are to one day tackle the disorders mentioned in class. In that case, we will have to rely on working together as peers and as members of a large scientific community to formulate different approaches and methods of attack for treatments. We simply can not begin to treat or aid in treating these disorders if we choose not to take responsible participation in a larger community that grows off of the bright minds within it.

Final Remarks

My experience gained throughout this semester will help contribute to my future goals in neuroscience research. Being someone conducting the research, it is critical that I understand how to work in a group and not only communicate amongst those in my group, but with my audience as well. Being enrolled in a liberal arts institution allows me to better understand my field of study not only on its own but with an interdisciplinary understanding and a sense of social responsibility.