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Dr Soraya M

@sorayam.bsky.social

1.2K followers 1.8K following 140 posts

Post doc at UKDRI/UniOfEdinburgh. Dementia researcher. Electrophysiology. She/Her. Field hockey enthusiast. @drsorayam on the bad place

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Dr Soraya M @sorayam.bsky.social · Nov 10

I find intros so cringe aha, but here we go. Big electrophysiology fan, working in human brain slice models at the minute to model dementia, ex in vivo patcher and other forms of ephys. Currently employed as a post doc with Dr Claire Durrant at the University of Edinburgh.

A screen showing action potentials from a single cell recording in a slice

Me at the rig talking to students about electrophysiology

An in vivo patch recording from the hippocampus showing bursting action potentials

A 2 photon image of a neuron being recorded in vivo

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Reposted by Dr Soraya M

ithinkwellhugh.bsky.social @ithinkwellhugh.bsky.social · 13d

Know your imposter moments:
- Your first lecture
- A new role
- Writing
- When you make a mistoke
These might make you feel like an imposter but they don't mean you are one.
#PhDForum #gradschool

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Dr Soraya M @sorayam.bsky.social · 19d

Chuffed to have been awarded this! Privileged to be doing what I do, with the people that support me. :)

CMVM Postdocs and Early Career Researchers @cmvm-res.bsky.social · 20d

Well done to Soraya for winning the Scientific Advancement Award! We are looking forward to seeing how your career progresses! @edinunineuro.bsky.social

Reposted by Dr Soraya M

CMVM Postdocs and Early Career Researchers @cmvm-res.bsky.social · 20d

Well done to Soraya for winning the Scientific Advancement Award! We are looking forward to seeing how your career progresses! @edinunineuro.bsky.social

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Edinburgh Neuroscience @edinunineuro.bsky.social · 20d

Woop woop, @sorayam.bsky.social! Already a trailblazer. That's some stiff competition, too. 🤩

CMVM Postdocs and Early Career Researchers @cmvm-res.bsky.social · 20d

Well done to Soraya for winning the Scientific Advancement Award! We are looking forward to seeing how your career progresses! @edinunineuro.bsky.social

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Reposted by Dr Soraya M

Kamar Ameen-Ali @kamarameenali.bsky.social · 23d

As course leader, it's been a stressful wait, but pleased to see our Biomedical Science course RETAIN 2nd place in the Guardian University Guide 2026!

There's been many challenges over the past 12 months so this is a great achievement for the team! 🎉

www.theguardian.com/education/ng...

Best UK universities for biomedical science – league table

The study of life, from molecules to populations. Includes biochemistry and virology

www.theguardian.com

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Reposted by Dr Soraya M

Ana Dorrego Rivas @adorrego.bsky.social · 25d

In vivo single-cell gene editing using RNA electroporation reveals sequential adaptation of cortical neurons to excitatory-inhibitory imbalance

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

In vivo single-cell gene editing using RNA electroporation reveals sequential adaptation of cortical neurons to excitatory-inhibitory imbalance

The balance between excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmission is fundamental for normal brain function, yet the adaptation of individual neurons to disrupted excitatory-inhibitory balance is not wel...

www.biorxiv.org

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Dr Soraya M @sorayam.bsky.social · 29d

We have a handshake! #gbbo

Reposted by Dr Soraya M

Women in Neuroscience UK @womeninneurouk.bsky.social · Sep 8

🚨WiNUK Day 2026 is coming to Birmingham this April!🚨
This year’s theme is neurodiversity🧠🌈
🗓️ Happening during #AutismAwarenessMonth 🗣️ Open call for talks, posters & panels (all genders welcome!) 📅 Deadline: Sun 14 Sept
#WiNUKDay2026 #Neurodiversity #WomenInSTEM

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Reposted by Dr Soraya M

David @dav1dcg.bsky.social · Sep 7

Cooperative actions of interneuron families support the hippocampal spatial code: science.org/doi/10.1126/...

In vivo optogenetics of interneurons + ephys recordings shows tIme division control of place fields of pyramidal cells: PV first half, Sst and Id2 the second half.

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Reposted by Dr Soraya M

Nature Neuroscience @natneuro.nature.com · Sep 3

Longitudinal neuroimaging in three adults, followed before and up to 5 years after arm amputation, reveals that amputation does not trigger large-scale cortical reorganization

@hunterschone.bsky.social @cibaker.bsky.social @plasticity-lab.bsky.social

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Stable cortical body maps before and after arm amputation - Nature Neuroscience

Longitudinal neuroimaging of participants with planned arm amputations shows that the cortical body map remains stable after amputation, with no evidence of hand or face reorganization, thus challengi...

www.nature.com

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Reposted by Dr Soraya M

Alzheimer's Society @alzheimerssoc.bsky.social · Sep 3

Last chance to register for Alzheimer’s Society Annual Conference on 11 September, sponsored by Rothesay & Lilly.

Don’t miss expert keynotes, panels & the latest in dementia care. Registration closes 4 September - secure your place now! #ASAC25

spkl.io/63328AOtZE

A blue graphic with white text that reads: "Alzheimer's Society Annual Conference, September 11, 2025, at 155 Bishopsgate, London and online. The theme is how society can beat health inequalities in dementia. Sponsored by Rothesay Lilly."

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Dr Soraya M @sorayam.bsky.social · Aug 27

I have discovered that my PhD thesis is the perfect size and weight to kill a spider. Finally have a practical use for it! 😂

Reposted by Dr Soraya M

Ana Dorrego Rivas @adorrego.bsky.social · Aug 25

Inducible NMDA receptor knockdown reveals a maintenance phase in dendritic refinement of barrel cortex neurons

www.cell.com/iscience/ful...

Inducible NMDA receptor knockdown reveals a maintenance phase in dendritic refinement of barrel cortex neurons

Neuroscience; Molecular Biology; Developmental Biology

www.cell.com

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Reposted by Dr Soraya M

Nature Neuroscience @natneuro.nature.com · Aug 25

Layer-specific changes in sensory cortex across the lifespan in mice and humans

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Layer-specific changes in sensory cortex across the lifespan in mice and humans - Nature Neuroscience

The principal layer architecture of the sensory cortex is altered with aging. The authors show that overall thinning of the primary somatosensory cortex is driven by deep layer degeneration but that l...

www.nature.com

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Dr Soraya M @sorayam.bsky.social · Aug 22

A stimulating two days at the @alzheimersresearchuk.org Scotland Network meeting. Of course a trip to Dundee cannot be done without a visit to F&D (if you know you know).

A picture of the discovery point sailing ship reflecting in water

A picture of a fisher and Donaldson box - the love of baking since 1919

Reposted by Dr Soraya M

Dementia Researcher @dementiaresearcher.bsky.social · Aug 18

From fellowship heartbreak to rewriting success — stories of resilience in research funding on this week’s podcast. With Fiona McLean, Kate Harris, Dayne Beccano-Kelly & @sj-marzi.bsky.social

pod.fo/e/314db1

Dementia Researcher: Failing Forward: What My Grant Rejection Taught Me

Grant rejection is part of every researcher’s journey — and it never stops, no matter your career stage. In this episode of the Dementia Researcher Podcast, host Dr Fiona McLean (Alzheimer’...

pod.fo

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UK Dementia Research Institute @ukdri.ac.uk · Aug 18

🌟 Don't miss out on this opportunity for a position as Science Portfolio Manager in the UK DRI Core team 🌟

🗓️ Deadline: Monday 1 September

📍Based at our office in London / Hybrid

Find out more & Apply 👉 lnkd.in/epEaTr22

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Reposted by Dr Soraya M

Women in Neuroscience UK @womeninneurouk.bsky.social · Aug 15

✨WiNUK Awards 2024 = 100% positive feedback and 92% found our categories meaningful!
🌍 100+ nominations from 16 UK institutions 🙌
💜 Thank you to all who joined us in celebrating women in neuroscience!
📅 WiNUK Awards 2025: 7th Nov
📝 Nominations close 17th Aug – get yours in! 👩‍🔬💫

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Reposted by Dr Soraya M

Women in Neuroscience UK @womeninneurouk.bsky.social · Aug 9

🚨 Deadline for nominations extended! 🚨

You have one week to nominate someone doing exceptional neuroscience work! 🧠

Whether they’re in the lab, behind the scenes, or amplifying science through communication—nominate them now before the window closes 👩‍🔬 👨‍🔬

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UK Dementia Research Institute @ukdri.ac.uk · Aug 5

Last month, the UK DRI's Dr Nathasia Muwanigwa & Dr Dayne Beccano-Kelly, alongside Dr Moïse Roche (UCL), led a discussion on dementia with 60+ attendees from Black African & Caribbean communities.

Nathasia reflects on the experience in this excellent blog post👉 buff.ly/PQ6KXUf

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Joe Raimondo @joeraimondo.bsky.social · Aug 4

I’m incredibly stoked to announce our latest preprint led by Thijs Verhoog, where we show that human cortical neurons mature hundreds of times slower than mouse neurons, only reaching functional maturity well into the third decade of life.

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

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Nature Neuroscience @natneuro.nature.com · Jul 23

Evidence for trans-synaptic propagation of oligomeric tau in human progressive supranuclear palsy, including postmortem PSP brain samples and a living human brain slice culture model

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Evidence for trans-synaptic propagation of oligomeric tau in human progressive supranuclear palsy - Nature Neuroscience

McGeachan et al. observe oligomeric tau in synapses from individuals with progressive supranuclear palsy and provide evidence that tau pathology may spread through the brain via synapses.

www.nature.com

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Reposted by Dr Soraya M

Nature Neuroscience @natneuro.nature.com · Jul 22

Tau PET positivity in individuals (42 cohorts worldwide, N = 12,048) with and without cognitive impairment varies with age, amyloid-β status, APOE genotype and sex

@rikossenkoppele.bsky.social

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Tau PET positivity in individuals with and without cognitive impairment varies with age, amyloid-β status, APOE genotype and sex - Nature Neuroscience

Ossenkoppele, Coomans and colleagues analyzed the tau PET data of 12,048 individuals from 42 cohorts worldwide. They found that age, amyloid-β status, presence of an APOE ε4 allele and female sex are ...

www.nature.com

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Reposted by Dr Soraya M

Soumya Rangarajan, MD, MPP @soumya-goblue.medsky.social · Jul 17

The lifetime risk of dementia after age 55 was 42%, higher in women, Black adults and APOE ε4 carriers up to 60%. US adults with dementia will increase from ~514,000 in 2020 to ~1 million in 2060."

14 of 35 Alzheimer's research centers have had all funding cut off

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Lifetime risk and projected burden of dementia - Nature Medicine

A cohort study of over 15,000 US adults found that the lifetime risk of developing dementia from ages 55 to 95 is 42%, with the highest risk in APOE ε4 carriers, women and Black adults, and projected ...

www.nature.com

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