Desi Alexander
@DesiAlexander_
Followers
126
Following
341
Media
1
Statuses
56
PhD candidate (Berger Lab @ UPenn) interested in how the neural epigenome deals with the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune (and also metabolism)
Philadelphia, PA
Joined July 2018
My first (co-)first author paper with @tee_corman is out in @PNASNews! We found that loss or inhibition of ACSS2, a metabolic enzyme, impairs the formation of long term fear memories, but has no discernible impact on other forms of behavior.
pnas.org
Histone acetylation is a key component in the consolidation of long-term fear memories. Histone acetylation is fueled by acetyl-coenzyme A (acetyl-...
5
13
77
RT @senergystic: I am looking to recruit a postdoc to study muscle stem cell aging at the NIA. Interested candidates with expertise in chro….
0
37
0
Who let this happen?!.
0
0
10
RT @berger_lab: Congrats to Dr. Collins @lettherebedata on her successful PhD defense! 🥂🥳 Time to celebrate! Cookies by fellow graduate stu….
0
1
0
Looks like the proteomics folks in the @berger_lab have found an unlikely ally.
Guys we have to talk about proteins today 😭.
0
0
2
RT @PennMedEVDCSO: New study identifies #ACSS2 as a key regulator of long-term fear memories in rodents ft. @DesiAlexander_, @tee_corman, @….
0
4
0
Huge thanks to everyone in the @berger_lab, @GarciaLabMS, @MarceloWoodUCI as well as the twitterless Winkler and Cohen groups who contributed materially, intellectually, and, uh, emotionally to this project.
1
0
3
Administering an ACSS2 inhibitor (ACSS2i) not only reduced fear memory, but also reduced generalized anxiety in rats traumatized with dirty kitty litter. This effect was specific to the consolidation window – dosing 24h before or after training had no effect on memory strength.
1
0
2
Since ACSS2 is important for histone acetylation, we saw reductions in key acetylation sites and activity-related gene expression during memory consolidation. However, the transcriptome and epigenome of unstimulated mice was surprisingly unchanged.
1
0
2
Absolutely thrilled to take over your desk @berger_lab!.
Absolutely thrilled to announce that I will be joining the amazing groups @WashUGenetics and @WUSM_BMB as an Assistant Professor in January 2023. The lab will study metabolic and epigenetic aspects of substance use disorders and neurodegeneration. Details soon!.
0
0
9
RT @berger_lab: The latest work on our ant project led by Karl Glastad @Laevorotatory is now online at @PLOSGenetics. Karl and @LinyangJ d….
0
7
0
Just retrieved my pens from the basement steps again because the cat thinks they're my favorite toy.
0
0
4
RT @tran_khoa: 5 years. 5 years ago I started drawing comics with @jkxcomics in a small pub at @UWMadison. I couldn't imagine that we would….
0
6
0
Thrilled that you're thrilled (and no longer checking ERA commons every five minutes).
Thrilled to receive a K99/R00 transition award from @NIAAAnews. I am excited to continue studying the epigenetic-metabolic aspects of AUD and early developmental alcohol exposure.
1
0
9
Trying to listen to Amanda Gorman, but made the mistake of asking who “Chris Gaines” was about 10 mins ago. Didn’t expect an impromptu music history lecture.
0
0
1
RT @malcolmkenyatta: Senator Hawley who is not from Pennsylvania is now lecturing the US Senate and the country about what’s in our Constit….
0
950
0
Every fall, my husband has to turn away great applicants to his school's orchestra because his # of instruments is too small (/broken). If you have a few extra $, make his life better (and mine worse) by letting more kids scratch away at scales over zoom.
0
0
5