Prof. of Neuroscience
@SinaiBrain
· Investigating memory stability & flexibility · Advocate for open science · Mom of two littles · Amateur chef · she/her
I am delighted to share my recent promotion to Associate Professor at
@SinaiBrain
. I would not be here without the support from lab members, mentors, collaborators, colleagues & family – thank you all!
I am so looking forward to this next chapter 💙
There's nothing like getting the official NOA for the first R01 in the lab. I cannot thank my team, collaborators and mentors enough for their hard work, creativity and support! This was definitely a team effort. Now let's get to work!
#teamworkmakesthedreamwork
#grateful
I am thrilled to have received tenure at
@SinaiBrain
. I am beyond thankful for the support from my incredible lab members, mentors, colleagues & family - I wouldn’t be here without my amazing community.
Grateful for this milestone and excited for the journey ahead!
CONGRATULATIONS Dr. Denise Cai, promoted to Assoc Professor w Tenure, Investigator Track.
@DenisejCai
's work has yielded critical insights into our collective understanding of learning & memory➡️One of our Next Generation Leaders, the
#FriedmanBrainInstitute
is lucky to have her!
Check out
#Minian
, our new open-source
#miniscope
analysis pipeline to enhance accessibility, transparency and usability for single-photon calcium-imaging analysis! (developed by
#PhilDong
,
@MiniscopeTeam
)
preprint:
github repo:
CAI LAB PREPRINT🧠! In a team effort led by
@mysteriousjoe_
, we found that rest periods after learning not only stabilize new memories BUT ALSO integrate new memories with older memories from days past! 1/n
Check out
#ezTrack
: an open-source analysis pipeline for tracking animal behavior. Developed by the talented Zach Pennington from the Cai Lab. Try it, it's EZ! 👍😎
So honored to be named a recipient of the
@McKnightBrain1
Innovator Award!
I’m beyond grateful for this opportunity to continue contributing to the field of aging and memory alongside brilliant minds like
@ChristophThaiss
.
We are thrilled to introduce the 2023 recipients of our Innovator Awards in Cognitive Aging and Memory Loss: Denise Cai, PhD, Mount Sinai & Christoph Thaiss, PhD, University of Pennsylvania: .
Just when I thought 2020 couldn't get any worse, Clarity lost a part of her finger in a freak accident. After 2 rounds of surgery, she's still beaming with joy. My little eternal optimist reminds me to be grateful for today and hopeful for the future.
📢 We’re recruiting neuroscience postdocs! 🧠
The Cai Lab is on a mission to unravel the neural processes behind memory stability and flexibility across the lifetime. If you’re interested in working in these areas, please send an intro and CV to denisecailab
@gmail
.com.
I am honored to be one of the
@NIHDirector
's New Innovator Awardees. Thanks to
@NIH_CommonFund
! Thanks to my son, Caiden, who inspired my question about how the brain optimizes capacity for memory storage. Here is our story:
@SinaiBrain
#SinaiKids
Check out this article about an
@SinaiBrain
investigator, Dr. Cai, awarded the 2019
@NIH
Director’s New Innovator Award! Her project will focus on how the brain maximizes storage capacity for information
#NIHHighRisk
Interested in the the dynamic nature of memory? Want to be part of
#TeamScience
&
#OpenScience
?
Apply to be a lab tech in the
#CaiLab
@SinaiBrain
, where we value diversity, inclusion and great food.
Email Qs and CV to alexa.labanca
@mssm
.edu.
Please retweet! Thank you!
We are THRILLED to announce that Denise Cai, PhD, is a recipient of this year’s McKnight Memory and Cognitive Disorders Award for her work on Circuit Mechanisms of
#Memory
-Linking. CONGRATULATIONS
@denisejcai
! 🎉🍾
@McKnightFdn
@IcahnMountSinai
I find myself procrastinating on papers by working on grants. With grants, my mind is free to fantasize about what we might discover, rather than be constrained by actual data of what the discovery is.
Mount Sinai announces recipients of nation's first gender equity grants. Congratulations to the winners who include
@denisejcai
and Sarah Stanley from
@SinaiBrain
and
@taliaswartz
from our MD-PhD program.
Beyond excited for our TWO-DAY
#COSYNE2022
workshop on memory encoding this March. The speaker line-up is WOW! 🤩 Learn more about
@CosyneMeeting
& register here:
My beloved mom passed away peacefully on June 16, 2024. She loved fiercely, laughed loudly and welcomed everyone (and anyone) into her home and heart. We will honor my mom this Sat, June 22, 2024 (details below). Please feel free to join us as we remember her.
GOOD NEWS! 5 yrs ago, my MIL was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer. She was given 15% chance of surviving 5 yrs. Well...she is a warrior and beat the odds. We are celebrating her remission and her bad-assery. Also, kudos to my FIL cause he has been her rock. 💞💞💞
So proud & excited for Dr. Phil Dong, Ph.D., who successfully defended his thesis today! His work developing
#Minian
& a novel two-channel miniscope has been wonderful to watch.
We can’t wait to see what comes next. Congrats, Dr. Dong! 🧑🏻🎓
📢 We are looking for talented research technicians to join the Cai Lab. Come be part of a supportive & creative lab with opportunities for growth & impact. Let’s uncover the secrets of the brain together!
Email denisecai
@gmail
.com for more info🧠Please RT!
We have a new website & logo! ✨ The Cai Lab at
@SinaiBrain
is proud to unveil a new look in celebration of our growth, achievements & the team who made it all happen.
Visit to learn more about who we are, what we do & where we’re headed:
Check out
#ezTrack
: an open-source analysis pipeline for tracking animal behavior. Developed by the talented Zach Pennington from the Cai Lab. Try it, it's EZ! 👍😎
Neuro grad students from underrepresented backgrounds can apply to visit us at ISMMS, give an in-person talk & receive a $1,000 honorarium! Kudos to the
@SinaiBrain
& Nash neuro postdocs who launched this new program! 👇🏾
The silver lining for me has been accepting that I can't perform at 100% with work and 100% with kids. If I can function at 20% with either, I'll give myself a gold star (and a glass of wine, let's be honest). I wish everyone a guilt-free mother's day (including non-mothers)!
“As moms we are expected to work as though we do not have children and raise children as though we do not work.” Well said, Shannon Sneed. The eternal guilt of the working mother, X1000 during COVID. Wishing all moms around the globe a Happy Mothers’ Day!
@NickKristof
@COHIntl
Thank you, Josh &
@ACNPorg
! 🙏🏻 Looking forward to continuing to learn from & contribute to the College.
Also, thanks to
@EricJNestler
&
@ahmari_lab
for the nominations. Honored to be a part of this incredible group of investigators!
#ACNP2022
Here we come
#SfN2022
! 🧠🐭 Mark your calendars for these posters from my team. Super proud of all of this hard work & looking forward to the feedback. See everyone soon in SD!
So proud to learn that the
@BBRFoundation
has recognized
@ZachTPennington
with a Young Investigator Award for his research on stress circuits in the hypothalamus. Congrats, Zach!
Meet our spotlight of the week, Dr. Denise Cai! She is a 2020 Distinguished Scholar Awardee whose lab uses molecular, cellular and behavioral techniques to investigate the dynamic nature of memory.
#WomensHistoryMonth
#WomenInSTEM
@denisejcai
So excited for
#SfN23
!
Mark your calendars for these posters from the Cai Lab!
Our team's dedication to this research has me bursting with pride and we can't wait to share it with you all! 🌟🧠
Such an honor to do what I love with such a great team! Thanks to everyone in my lab for their grit, data and humor. And to my past and current mentors for all their incredible support.
#TogetherEveryoneAchievesMore
#teamscience
#openscience
Want new neuroscience superpowers? Have any, really -any- questions about technical stuff? Come hang out with these innovative scientists at the Open-Source Technology Social
@Neurosci2019
! Monday, 6:45PM, Room N135.
#SfN19
Really important thread! Postpartum is real. I almost quit science but with A TON of support (including from my hubs, advisor, labmates, friends), I was able to pull through. Happy to chat with anyone about it. Thanks
@meganranney
for sharing and enlightening!
📢 The Cai Lab is recruiting technicians! Neuroscience, computational, or psychology related experience is preferred.
If you’re interested in joining our fun and talented team, please send an intro and CV to denisecailab
@gmail
.com.
Clarity: "I want to be a mommy."
Me: "Are you sure you want to be a mommy? You have to clean, cook, do laundry. "
Clarity: "I'm going to marry someone who will help me. I won't do it all by myself silly."
Thankful she has an amazing father to model this for her.
#LiveByExample
Check out new
#CaiLab
preprint on how ensemble dynamics support memory flexibility and how this changes with age! Project spearheaded by the talented Will Mau (
@MauseWhisperer
). Thanks to awesome collaborators
@SinaiBrain
&
@MiniscopeTeam
!
Excited to share my *last hurrah* in academia— a study on how neural ensemble dynamics support memory flexibility with
@denisejcai
@tristanshuman
@markgbaxter
🧵 Thread on the preprint & what’s next for me… (1/12)
Come join us at
#OptoGRC2020
@GordonConf
in Newry Maine, July 19-24, 2020!
@blsabatini
and I are excited to share the spectacular line up. Submit your abstract for the chance to be selected as a speaker. Apply soon!
"We believe that it is bad policy for journals like Science to publish big, bold ideas and then leave it to subfield journals to publish replications showing that those ideas aren’t so accurate after all." via
@slate
Love to see
@sjo09
's important work on memory engrams highlighted in
@_TheTransmitter
!
A well-deserved feature for such an innovative pioneer in the field of learning and memory 🧠🌟
I'm looking forward to hearing all about the incredible memory research being done in NYC! I feel fortunate to work in a field with such inspiring colleagues and there's nothing I enjoy more than chatting with them about the complexities of memory.
Thrilled to be in beautiful Barcelona for
#AmygdalaGRC2023
! 🧠
Can't wait to share some of
@ZachTPennington
’s exciting new data on stress-induced changes in defensive behavior tomorrow, July 10, at 9 am. Feeling extra grateful for my team and all they put into their science.
My heart breaks for the families that lost their loved ones in this tragedy. Monterey Park in many ways represents the heart & soul of the Asian community. I grew up and my parents still live a block from the shooting. Sending ♥️& solidarity to the 626.
Absolutely thrilled to be co-chairing a TWO-part session with
@JasonSynaptic
at the Park City Winter Conference ❄️🧠
Mark your calendars for Friday and join us to hear this stellar lineup of scientists share their perspective on the topic of memory stability vs. plasticity.
Having SO MUCH FUN at
#Cosyne24
!
I am always incredibly impressed by the outstanding work my colleagues are doing 🧠🔬
Amazing science, great food, and even better company!
Children 17 and under are welcome to attend any aspect of
#SfN19
with adult supervision. No official meeting badge is required for children. Learn more about our infant and child care facilities:
Loved rocking out to my fav artist with my fav girls.
"I love this concert because you can dance and sing a loud as you want and no one cares" - Clarity
May we all experience life as free and joyous as a 9yr old at an
@edsheeran
concert. 💖
Don't miss the Cai Lab posters today & tomorrow at
#SfN22
! Come check out the work we've been doing on memory ensembles, stress, and dual-color calcium imaging 🐭🔬
#FBIatSfN
Dr. Joe Zaki - the productive scholar, curious explorer, determined do-er & unifying maestro.
Congratulations on a successful PhD defense and the beginning of what is sure to be an incredible career🎉👨🎓
Looking forward to a new collaboration with
@ChangyangLinghu
! We'll develop new timestamping techniques to study how memories are stably stored & dynamically updated across a lifetime ⏳
We’re excited to support 64 interdisciplinary teams that are taking innovative approaches to study fundamental
#neuroscience
+ neurodegenerative diseases. Read more about our second cycle of
@ChanZuckerberg
’s Neuroscience Collaborative Pairs Pilot Projects
It's official! Check out the incredible speaker line-up for the VCAR Science Day next Thursday!
Don't forget to mark your calendars for April 18th and stay tuned throughout the week as we highlight each of our speakers in more detail.
I was delighted to share my thoughts with
@DanRobitzski
for
@TheScientistLLC
magazine’s Scientist to Watch feature about my friend & colleague
@okaysteve
🤩 An incredible scientist who always has a positive word & helping hand to offer.
It's days like this that make me LOVE my job!
Our annual Shuman-Cai summer "bye bye" where we say farewell and congratulations to our team members moving on to their next adventure.
Bittersweet memories of a day spent with the BEST people 💜
Excited to visit Seattle &
@UW
to give two talks! 🤩
I’ll be sharing our work on memory updating at the
@UWBioE
seminar series on Thurs. 2/2 & discussing navigating being a woman in STEM at the NAPE Center on Fri. 2/3. Looking forward to seeing some PNW colleagues!
Mark your calendar now: the 2024 Optogenetics Gordon Research Conference will be held on July 21 - 26, 2024! 📅
Stay tuned for more info about the program & speakers. We hope to see you in Tuscany!
The final schedule is ready for our 2-day
#COSYNE2022
workshop on how memories evolve across time and experience! 🎉 Could not be more excited for this incredible lineup.
As a Mother's day present to myself, could you share/reply with your favorite recipe you've made during this
#QuarantineLife
? Thanks in advance! Here's one of my all time and super easy favorites.
Check out our lab's new
@eLife
review by
@MauseWhisperer
, in collaboration with
@HasselmoMichael
!
The brain in motion: how ensemble fluidity drives memory-updating and flexibility.
See thread below for the scoop or read in more detail:
Join us for
#OptoGRC2020
(July 19-24, 2020)! Come for the cutting edge science and mentorship. Stay for the ping-pong tournaments and midnight pizza! Send suggestions our way.
@blsabatini
Save the date - it's official
Optogenetic Approaches to Understanding Neural Circuits and Behavior
July 19-24 2020
Grand Summit Hotel at Sunday River in Newry ME
Thrilled to be organizing this with
@denisejcai
after being vice-chair with the indomitable
@kaymtye
as chair in 2018
This week we profile Dr. Denise Cai
@denisejcai
who shared with us her journey studying memory and developing open tools for science. She also shared her experience facing gender bias.
Read/listen to her story below
#WomenInSTEM
#WomenInNeuro
WTF?! Horrified over another racist attack, this time in Buffalo, NY. Nervous for our children’s futures & heartbroken for my Black friends, colleagues & their communities 💔.
White supremacism & race-based terrorism… these should have no place in our country.
I am here to celebrate with you on ALL your wins (and commiserate with you on your losses), even if I don't know you.
As said by Mother Teresa, "we belong to each other." Let's elevate each other today!
#TogetherEveryoneAchievesMore
Pls RT: Looking to hire an enthusiastic team member/research technician to join the Cai lab! Must have a penchant for learning, strong research experience and can work well in a team. Send CVs and Q's to denisecai
@gmail
.com.
@MiniscopeTeam
@SinaiBrain
We are excited to announce that our
#OpenSource
wire-free
#Miniscope
is now up on . Here you can find assembly and use tutorials along with all design files and source code.
Excited for our first journal club by Zoom featuring "Disruption of Oligodendrogenesis Impairs Memory
Consolidation in Adult Mice" by
@Franklandlab
@sjo09
!
The lab on lockdown: thinking back and looking ahead - a new Comment by Gina Poe (
@doctorpoe
) and Denise Cai (
@denisejcai
) about their experiences and lessons learned in lockdown