Zahra Mazhar

A Computational Biologist | Food as Medicine Advocate | University of Houston PhD

[Zahra Mazhar @Xee92]

@ElonMuskAOC 1

[Dr. Rhonda Patrick @foundmyfitness]

Lactate, produced by muscles during intense exertion, transitions from a mere energy byproduct to a neuro-enhancing elixir, fueling both our physical and cognitive engines during and after a workout.

The brain starts soaking up lactate, utilizing it as a crucial fuel source during workouts. But lactate's role extends beyond mere energy supply.

Lactate signals to the brain and increases levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a protein essential for the survival and growth of neurons.

BDNF plays a pivotal role in memory, learning, and higher thinking. Remarkably, a study showed a short, six-minute bout of intense cycling induced a four to five-fold increase in BDNF.

Why This Matters:

Enhanced Cognitive Function: BDNF plays a vital role in learning and memory. Increasing its levels through exercise can lead to improved cognitive abilities, helping in both the short and long term.

Neuroprotection: Higher BDNF levels can offer protection against cognitive decline, especially relevant in an aging population and those at risk of neurodegenerative diseases.

Mental Health Benefits: BDNF has been linked to reduced symptoms of depression and anxiety, making exercise a valuable tool for mental well-being.

[Sen. Bernie Sanders @SenSanders]

My statement on the continuing violence in Israel and Gaza.

[Pratham @Prathkum]

Use these AI tools for your various daily tasks (all free):

WRITING

• Quillbot
• Easy-Peasy
• Simpleblog

DESIGN

• Diagram
• StockImg
• Vizcom

WEBSITE BUILDER

• Stunning
• 10Web
• Vzy

CODE

• Tabnine
• Codeium
• Jit codes

SEARCH ENGINE

• GptGo AI
• You
• Phind

RESUME

• ResumAI
• Resume Checker

EMAILS

• Super Reply
• Addy-AI
• Hot Reach AI

SLIDES

• MagicSlides
• Slide Speak
• Prezo

[Dr. Jason Fung @drjasonfung]

Hmm.. this huge (1.5 million people) new study says Increasing non-HDL levels don't increase mortality, unlike all the other risk factors. Diabetes BY FAR the worst. Published last week in the NEFJM (New England F***ing Journal of Medicine)

[Ellen Zhong @ZhongingAlong]

What do dynamic protein complexes look like *inside the cell*? Excited to share our work, led by superstar @ramyarangan, on cryoDRGN-ET, a new approach in the ❄️🐉 software for reconstructing and visualizing structures from in situ cryo-ET data. 1/

https://t.co/85vb8wAF17

[Amina Yonis, PhD @DrAminaYonis]

Stop using ChatGPT to understand academic papers.

Instead, here are 5 AI-powered platforms that will save you hours during the literature search.

[James DiNicolantonio @drjamesdinic]

Vitamin B1 (THIAMINE) is the vitamin
we need to BURN CARBS

A lack of thiamine leads to ELEVATED
BLOOD GLUCOSE

Thiamine deficiency also IMPAIRS
ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE

Thiamine levels in food have GONE
DOWN over recent years

Here are 9 things you should know
about Vitamin B1

[MDAnalysis @mdanalysis.bsky.social @mdanalysis]

Are you a new or prospective MDAnalysis user?

Join us for our online training workshop for a basic introduction to MDAnalysis and hands-on tutorials!

🗓️ October 25, 15:00 UTC
🔗 Apply by September 30: https://t.co/b2ufOzLFS9

[Horacio Pérez Sánchez @horacio_ps]

Researchers at Brown University and Dalgarno Scientific LLC have developed an innovative method using AlphaFold 2 to predict relative populations of protein conformations without needing a physics engine. AlphaFold 2, already renowned for its accurate protein structure prediction, has now been adapted to predict fold switching and effects of mutations on conformational landscapes. By subsampling multiple sequence alignments, the team has managed to predict changes in protein conformations, even at single point mutation resolution. The method was tested on two proteins, Abl1 kinase and the granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor, with over 80% accuracy! This breakthrough offers a rapid, cost-effective tool that could significantly impact pharmacology, NMR data analysis, and evolutionary studies. #AlphaFold2 #ProteinFolding #ScienceInnovation

[Hasan Toor @hasantoxr]

This is literally ChatGPT for everything.

Introducing Droxy AI: the Ultimate AI tool that transforms anything into personalized chatbots.

Here’s how you can easily convert your content into a custom ChatGPT chatbot in 4 minutes:

[Andrew Akbashev @Andrew_Akbashev]

Your PhD is about the evolution of your mindset.

It proceeds through personal research experience, mentorship and development of key skills.

This is why PhD in STEM:

- is NOT about a thesis (very few people will read it)
- is NOT about finish your advisor’s project
- is NOT about attending new courses
- is NOT to learn how to use cool instruments (although it might be handy, it is of little help in a long run)

Yes, some of it will help you get hired. BUT PhD should not be about this.

▫️

PhD is about personal development, creativity and problem solving in a highly dynamic research environment.

First of all, it is about:

- Becoming a highly critical and creative thinker
- Learning how to think independently (against the local or global mainstream)
- Learning how to “jump-start” a project and bring it to perfection
- Discovering your strengths and weaknesses as a future leader
- Learning from massive number of mistakes without big consequences
- Learning how to accept failures and move on
- Understanding the value of teamwork and collaboration
- Publishing important studies and making discoveries (especially if you plan to stay in academia)

▫️

Of course, there are some “perks” that come with it:

1. Getting a good expertise in some field
2. Getting some idea about the world of academia and how things work there
3. Learning how to use fancy tools (microscopes, spectrometers, etc)
4. Learning how to write papers, etc etc

But these are only bonuses. They should not be why you are pursuing PhD.

▫️

As a prospective PhD student, do NOT look for a supervisor who will be simply assigning tasks to you and tracking your project.

Look for a good mentor and advisor who can help you develop YOUR leadership skills.

A proper research environment and inspiration to pursue your dreams are the key ingredients.

#AcademicTwitter #AcademicChatter #phdchat

[Elon Musk @elonmusk]

Just drove Cybertruck around Austin!

[Alex Banks @thealexbanks]

OpenAI just released its Code interpreter to all Plus users.

You now have access to a junior programmer at the speed of your fingertips.

Here's everything you need to know:

[Andrew D. Huberman, Ph.D. @hubermanlab]

Please add to this list of contentious online health discussions (in no particular order):
Vaccines (esp. Covid)
Autism
EMFs
SSRIs
Ice Baths
Whether apparent physical health of a MD/scientist is relevant
Addiction as a Disease
Sunscreen
Seed Oils
Oral Contraceptives
…

[Codie Sanchez @Codie_Sanchez]

They've already bought our food, our entertainment, and our houses.

Now our DNA too.

You will own nothing, and like it.

[Andrew White 🐦‍⬛ @andrewwhite01]

We report a model that can go from natural language instructions, to robot actions, to synthesized molecule with an LLM. We synthesized catalysts, a novel dye, and insect repellent from 1-2 sentence instructions. This has been a seemingly unreachable goal for years! 1/3

[Hassan W. Bhatti @hwbhatti]

Don’t buy a $500 “prompt engineering” course to learn how to use ChatGPT and other AI tools.

Read this thread, and you’ll get everything you need for free:

[Mark Hyman, M.D. @drmarkhyman]

People tend to associate aging with weakness, frailty, and the inability to continue doing the things they love. But it doesn’t have to be this way! If we eat right, exercise regularly, and incorporate healthy stressors into our daily routine, we can stay young forever.

[Andrew D. Huberman, Ph.D. @hubermanlab]

All of the past issues of the Huberman Lab Neural Network Newsletter are accessible at zero cost (no sign-up required).

Here are the most popular newsletters: