Guess I'll follow suit too.. I've been checking out this NG for a while
there and have noticed the down-time as well.. Of course, I've just
finished my candidacy exam (with great results!!!) and am now back in the
lab after almost two months of inactivity.
I'm a 2nd year PhD student in cardiovascular physiology at the University
of Montreal... Considering the current rate of success (and failure. ) of
the experiments I expect to be here for another two years at the most.. I
started here in a MSc program studying the mechanism of 4-aminopyridine in
inhibiting the delayed rectifier potassium channel in coronary smooth
muscle cells. However, I transferred directly to the PhD program in 1995
under the direction of the same supervisor, and am currently investigating
the role of calcium-activated chloride channels in the myogenic response in
rabbit mesenteric arterioles (< 100µm inner diameter).. This project is
the greatest because I'm using three different techniques to complete the
study.. I've already been doing patch-clamping for a few years and will
put that knowledge to work soon again.. I'm also doing pressurized artery
work and microelectrode recordings to measure membrane potential in the
intact tissues under various pressure and pharmacological conditions.
In addition to the experiments, I'm preparing to write up a paper, getting
ready for x-mas visiting back home (Winnipeg for all you Canadians out
there), and also getting ready for my spring wedding (my fiance is a
pharmacology graduate currently doing his post-doc here in Montreal but we
met back home)..
Can't wait to see what other women are doing out there in newsgroup-land!!
Carmelle V. Remillard
cvr at icm.umontreal.ca
University of Montreal
Montreal Heart Institute
