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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · 20d

This week is the 16th Annual National Postdoc Appreciation Week, and we couldn't be prouder of our postdocs in the Tian Lab! ✨

Our postdocs drive forward research, plan and lead projects, mentor students, present and publish work, and much more. I am grateful for you every day!

#NPAW2025

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Reposted by Lin Tian, PhD

Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience @mpfneuro.bsky.social · Sep 8

Thinking about attending Sunposium 2026? The early bird registration deadline is September 19th. Curious what makes this conference so special? Our video will give you a glimpse: buff.ly/2FuGjgO Join us March 9–11, 2026, in sunny South Florida. Find more information at buff.ly/zn5aS2b

Sunposium 2026

This is "Sunposium 2026" by Max Planck Florida on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

buff.ly

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Aug 25

💡 The future direction of these sensors goes beyond optimization. We want to combine sensor use with technology such as fiber photometry in order to measure the full range of dynamics such as tonic and phasic neuromodulator release.

➡️ Learn more here: www.lintianlab.org/research#tools

Lin Tian Lab - Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience - Research

Lin Tian's Lab invents, optimizes, and shares innovative molecular tools and biosensors with the ultimate goal of uncovering new treatments for neuropsychiatric diseases.

www.lintianlab.org

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Aug 25

🔎 We optimize for signal to noise ratio, measuring intrinsic properties: dynamic range, dissociation constant (Kd), frequency & concentration of signaling molecules.

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Aug 25

At a recent lecture I gave at Cold Spring Harbor Lab Asia, I used our calcium indicator as an example to illustrate how we design these sensors.

📈 Optimization is key.

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Aug 25

The brain has complex dynamics that give rise to a range of states & behaviors.

🤔 How do we study this complex system?

In my lab’s work, we design and optimize biosensors to measure brain activity at the molecular level.

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Aug 7

I attended the first ever Neurobiology of Psychedelics GRC last month.

I was impressed by how interdisciplinary the field is, from molecules to humans. We are just starting to understand the mechanisms of these drugs and how they can unlock future treatments. #GRCPsychedelics

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Aug 5

They celebrated with a poster session last week highlighting what they learned. We are so proud of them and their contribution to advancing brain research. Thanks also to their mentors, Yiwei Hua, Julie Chouinard, and Erin Scott!

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Aug 5

Congratulations to our three wonderful interns who joined us in the Tian Lab this summer, working on optimizing our PsychLight methodology to screen for potentially therapeutic compounds with similar mechanisms to psychedelics.

www.mpfi.org/high-school-...

Photo of the summer interns and lab mentors in the Tian Lab.

Photo of the summer interns at their poster session & end of program celebration.

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Jul 17

The Tian Lab looks forward to welcoming high school students each year as a part of @mpfneuro.bsky.social's summer internship program!

We’re thrilled to have Olivia & Nicole join us this summer and to be part of their journey as they explore what a future in neuroscience can look like.

Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience @mpfneuro.bsky.social · Jul 9

Meet MPFI's 2025 High School Internship cohort! These seven talented students have been working alongside our researchers this summer on projects in neuroscience, programming, or mechanical engineering. Read more about these talented students in our latest blog post: mpfi.org/welcome-2025...

Welcome 2025 High School Interns! – Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience

The Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience (MPFI) proudly announces its 2025 High School Summer Internship Program participants. This select group of rising stars are spending six immersive…

mpfi.org

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Jul 10

I recently spoke about my lab's newest sensors at @embl.org‬'s European Light Microscopy Initiative meeting 🔦 🧠

Sharing progress with the community is key to moving science forward, which is why these sensors, and all our tools, are open source ➡️ www.lintianlab.org/research#tools

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Jun 18

What a joy to celebrate Nikki, Yihan & Kiran at @ucdavis.bsky.social commencement 🎓

As Chancellor May said, the world needs minds like yours more than ever & I’m so excited to see the impact you’ll make in the years ahead.

Congratulations on this incredible milestone!

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Reposted by Lin Tian, PhD

Optogenetics Gordon Research Conference @optogrc.bsky.social · May 23

📆 Mark your calendars: #OptoGRC2026 is headed back to Tuscany, May 10-15, 2026!

We look forward to reuniting with our amazing community for a week of great science, thoughtful discussions & shared time with colleagues.

More details coming soon👇🏽
tinyurl.com/esvrabsu

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Reposted by Lin Tian, PhD

Institute for Neuroscience, Neurotechnology, and Society @gt-neuro.bsky.social · May 8

Our next #InterfaceNeuroGT session highlighted cutting-edge techniques for measuring and manipulating sensorimotor and cognitive behavior — across species and across scales.

Sponsored by McCamish Parkinson's Disease Innovation Program and chaired by @drannabellesinger.bsky.social.

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Reposted by Lin Tian, PhD

Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience @mpfneuro.bsky.social · May 8

Know an exceptional early-career independent scientist? Nominate them for the Peter Gruss Young Investigator Award, honoring outstanding contributions to the scientific community through collaboration, creativity, and curiosity-driven research. Please share! mpfi.org/pgyia

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Reposted by Lin Tian, PhD

Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience @mpfneuro.bsky.social · May 2

It's #MentalHealthAwareness Month. At MPFI, Dr. Lin Tian's team is uncovering changes in brain signaling in conditions like depression by developing tools to visualize neurotransmitters in real-time. This work brings us closer to improved treatment of mental health challenges. buff.ly/LguhgQU

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Apr 28

The new @maxplanck.de Postdoc Program platform is now open for its first ever round of applications!

If you're looking for a new research opportunity, check out the full list of open positions👇🏽

postdocprogram.mpg.de/node/3

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Apr 16

Last week was #GradStudentAppreciationWeek – a chance to celebrate and thank the incredible Tian Lab students who move our science forward 🧑🏽‍🔬👩🏻‍🔬

Your creativity, focus & determination in the face of big questions inspire me every day, and I am so grateful to learn alongside you.

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Reposted by Lin Tian, PhD

Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience @mpfneuro.bsky.social · Apr 14

A warm welcome to all of the students, faculty and sponsors who have traveled from around the world to join us at the 2025 Advanced Neurotechniques Course! We couldn't imagine a more exciting way to kick off the course than with a fantastic keynote lecture from Nobel laureate Stefan Hell!

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Apr 10

He introduced the Max Planck Transatlantic Program — focused on strengthening global partnerships, promoting #collaboration at every stage, and investing in the next generation of science.

It was a privilege to be in the room for such an important and timely conversation - curiosity never fades!

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Apr 10

On Monday, @patrick-cramer.maxplanck.de, President of @maxplanck.de, shared a powerful message at @germanyinusa.bsky.social about the importance of partnership between the USA and Germany — built on our shared core values of excellence, integrity, openness, and freedom 🇺🇸🇩🇪

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Apr 9

Proud to have had our Senior Research Scientist, Kwun Nok Mimi Man, represent the Tian Lab at #CSNeuroMet2025 in Shenzhen!

She presented our new FLIM sensor—compatible with both fluorescence and lifetime imaging, enabling deeper, more versatile measurements of dopamine dynamics in vivo 💡 🧠

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Apr 7

Since we began tracking in 2023, we've shipped over 170 biosensor samples to research teams across 4 continents!

#OpenScience is a core value of the Tian Lab & we're proud to contribute by making our tools globally accessible 🌎🔬

🔗 Requests: lintianlab.org/research#tools

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Reposted by Lin Tian, PhD

Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience @mpfneuro.bsky.social · Apr 7

If you are at @cellpress.bsky.social “Neurometabolism in health and disease”, don’t miss hearing about a new red-shifted dopamine sensor compatible with both fluorescence and lifetime measurements developed by Kwun Nok Mimi Man from @lintianphd.bsky.social lab! Poster P.38, 1:30 – 3:30 Tuesday.

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Lin Tian, PhD @lintianphd.bsky.social · Apr 3

Thank you to @thetransmitter.bsky.social for highlighting some of the latest breakthroughs in photometry!

As these systems continue to improve, the technology becomes more efficient, affordable & accessible, and unlocks the potential for new discoveries about the human brain 🧠

The Transmitter @thetransmitter.bsky.social · Mar 21

A new photometry tool tracks fast and slow changes in dopamine levels and offers new insights into how the signals change across the brain.

By @sydneywyatt.bsky.social

www.thetransmitter.org/methods/besp...

Bespoke photometry system captures variety of dopamine signals in mice

The tool tracks the excitation of an engineered protein that senses dopamine’s absolute levels, including fast and slow fluctuations in real time, and offers new insights into how the signals change…

www.thetransmitter.org

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