Summer is here!

With Grace returning from her maternity leave, we are really excited to host STAR recipient Michael and Mansi, part of @LoyolaCaMP’s first cohort of summer undergrads!

And huge kudos to Erik our lab tech for holding down the fort the last couple months!

Congratulations to Michael Fitch for being selected as a STAR awardee to support his work in the Muller Lab this summer! Michael is an MD student at the Stritch School of Medicine with great research experience in cardiovascular health, and plans to spend this summer diving into cell signaling in myocytes working on a clinically-relevant research. We’re thrilled by the news, and can’t wait to have him onboard!

We are thrilled to have Abby join the lab as our first PhD candidate student. Cheers to growing lab, new beginnings and exciting scientific findings to come from Abby’s era!

With the start of the new year, we welcomed Abby for a rotation in the lab. We are excited to have her for the next six weeks!

Requirements: BS/BA in science

Preferred: research experience in a lab with basic biology science theme

The newest group in Loyola University Chicago’s Cellular and Molecular Physiology (CaMP) is looking to bring on a Research Assistant. The start date will be January/February 2023. The Muller Lab exists to deepen our understanding of cardiac cell signaling and physiology, and to expose molecular mechanisms of human disease that can be applied clinically. Our lab will be a space where exciting discoveries are made, while supporting the individual and scientific growth of every member. We value integrity, pursuit of the truth, camaraderie, and creativity. Please check out the lab website (mullerheartlab.org) for more information.

For the Level I RA position, we are specifically looking for an individual with:

A BA/BS in science with grit, creativity, honesty, and motivation with minimum one-year commitment

Skills the individual will develop in the lab include:

1) logical and reasoning skills

2) effective communication

3) critical evaluation of data and research articles, and

4) basic-to-advanced skills encompassing cell to animal physiology (cell isolation and culture, FRET and calcium/sarcomere imaging techniques, protein and DNA assays, open-heart surgery in preclinical models, rodent husbandry including mouse and guinea pig)

In addition, the individual will receive customized mentoring to consider and accomplish their professional goals using various strategies:

1) Individual Development Plan using SMART goals

2) One-on-one meetings with PI

3) Formal discussions with the lab

Please submit your cover letter and CV to Dr. Muller

We had an exciting few weeks demoing a Nikon Ti2E microscope.

The level of cAMP is increasing in these c2c12 cells with pharmacologic modulators of cAMP production/hydrolysis. Here, we are using a cytosolic FRET sensor that will lose the CFP-to-YFP FRET with increasing cAMP level, but the ratio view is pseudo-coloring a view of CFP/YFP ratio so that the intensity increases as this is happening.

Originally tweeted by Grace Muller (@GraceKMuller) on October 17, 2022.

We welcome Angela as she begins her rotation in the lab!

Dr. Muller’s abstract was selected for oral presentation at the 2022 Cyclic Nucleotide Phosphodiesterases Conference, hosted by Gordon Research Conference in Les Diablerets, Switzerland.

Because of last-minute covid cancellations, Grace was asked the day before the scheduled talk whether she could extend her talk by 20 minutes to fill a 30-min time slot. Grace agreed, and performed well under pressure to receive a continuous stream of questions following her talk.

The lab officially opened its doors in June of 2022, but equipment and lab supplies have finally started arriving in July. Here’s a snapshot of some of our boxes on the last day of July.