PDC chair 2023: Eliana Nachman

What are you investigating?
I am a neuroscientist by training. I work on the molecular mechanisms that cause progressive neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, because we still don’t have a cure for any of these diseases. We know that long before the neurons die, their synaptic function gets impaired. In my research, I focus on the molecular pathways in synapses that are affected very early in disease to identify a therapeutic strategy to maintain synaptic health and thus prevent neuronal death and hopefully slow down the disease progression. 

What’s your favorite thing about your job?
I really enjoy how varied the job of a scientist is. It entails very diverse tasks, such as performing experiments, designing projects, going to conferences, and supervising students. I’m very excited that I can constantly learn new things and use my creativity to answer our research questions. Moreover, I really like that biology is full of surprizes. When you embark on a new project, you might find something, that was completely unexpected. 

Besides the research, what’s your favorite thing about VIB?
There is a strong collaborative mindset in the VIB community, which I find very inspiring. You can easily collaborate with people from your own center or other VIBs. It’s very easy to connect with people at one of the VIB-wide networking events, such as the annual Postdoc Day that we organize at the PDC to strengthen the postdoc community. 

What did you want to be as a kid?
As nerdy as it sounds, I always wanted to become a scientist. As a kid, I was very curious to learn new stuff and to figure out how things worked. I guess therefore my younger self thought it would be pretty cool to be able to do experiments all day to discover something new about the world that was unknown before. And until today, I still think it is!

What keeps you busy outside the lab? / Is there a parallel between that hobby and science?
I love cooking and trying out new recipes, especially the ones that I learned from my international friends that I met while working and studying in different countries. For example, I learned from them how to make Italian pasta from scartch, Swedish chocolate cake, and different Indian curries. In exchange, I taught my friends how to bake German Pretzels and make the best potato salad ?
My other big hobby is photography. I really enjoy traveling with my camera. I think you become more attentive to your environment if you try to capture the essence of a moment in a photograph. 
I think there are several common themes between science and my hobbies. They’re all very creative activities, but they also require you to follow some rules to get nice results (You better know when to stick to the recipe/protocol and when it’s ok to improvise with the ingredients ?). The other common thing is, there are always more skills to learn or tools to discover, e.g. new experimental methods, new recipes, or a different photography style. You will never be done!

Do you have any tips to stay focused?
If you need to stay focused in a busy office, noise canceling headphones are a game changer.