Starting work on a new research project can be overwhelming. This is especially true in the stem cell field, with its complexities and rapid evolution. It is quite easy to get lost while conducting literature searches or looking for specific protocols, making it feel difficult to get started. This Alice in Wonderland quote comes to mind:
“It takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place. If you want to get somewhere else, you must run at least twice as fast as that!”
This feeling might apply to any academic stage: A post-doctoral fellow looking to get a new project off the ground might require background and training on a technique they’ve never used before. A PhD student in their final years might be looking to try a different experimental strategy to strengthen their previous data. A master’s student might be starting a project using a method that the lab does not have experience with.
That last scenario is where I’ve found myself on multiple occasions. In trying to keep our lab on the cutting edge, my research supervisor has always been very enthusiastic about new professional training – either in person, or virtually. I’ll talk about those experiences in greater detail later.
As principal investigators know, external training opportunities are available for specific methods and skills that are offered outside of university and/or institute resources. However, I have written this blog to serve as a collection of these resources accessible at a single link. I have included basic resources for those who have very little experience in the field and more advanced resources for those pursuing niche protocols.
Here they are below, in no particular order.
In my last blog, I raved about the Optogenetics Training Series offered by the Society for Neuroscience. This time, I am excited to tell you about a training course tailored specifically for stem cell researchers in the neuroscience field. With this series, the Society for Neuroscience aims to help develop the user’s knowledge of neuron subtype generation through stem cell reprogramming or other reprogramming techniques.
Training content includes:
a) A trip back in time to explore the field’s history, including technological advances in reprogramming.
b) Foundational knowledge of the relevant biology and methods (including organoid generation).
c) Practical information on important methods, including trouble-shooting tips.
d) The potential of stem cell models to advance our knowledge of human conditions.
The Society for Neuroscience’s Optogenetics Training Series was outstanding – I cite it to this day. It was extremely rigorous and the knowledge was always accessible. I have every confidence in the quality of this new training series.
Who is the target audience?
This series is for those who have begun working in the stem cell field and want to expand their knowledge. It is also suitable for neuroscientists eyeing human cell models, but who first need to know more about their possibilities and limitations.
Membership is required for full access to the training series, but a free preview is available.
ThermoFisher Scientific is the lab-equivalent of a household name when it comes to research supplies, but did you know that they also offer a wide array of free resources covering different topics including cell culture (of course), cell reprogramming, cell-type characterization and differentiation? That’s not all though. They have additional free guides on cryoprotection, transfection, topics in forensic science (need a free e-book on forensic chemistry? You got it!), biobanking, antibodies and much more. You will find that some of these subjects are more relevant to stem cell research than others, but there seems to be something for everyone.
Who is the target audience?
ThermoFisher is aiming to target all experience levels with their learning centre, meaning that it is likely a resource you can come back to over the course of your career.
Another big name in lab supplies is STEMCELL Technologies. Their training programs, branded as “Scientists Helping Scientists,” are also very extensive; however, they offer in-person and online courses in addition to virtual resources.
You can select from pre-designed courses, or you can choose to tailor the training so that it is customized to your needs and hosted at your own facility. This is unique in that you can pick a particular cell type from their list of offerings and gather up to six of your colleagues per day of instruction. In most cases, you will receive a technical lecture, booklets/manuals and hands-on sessions. Some conditions do apply.
They also provide what they call “Standardization Tools,” in which they offer proficiency testing programs, quality control kits, and other resources to help improve the competency of the user at the bench and reduce the variability that is often seen from researcher to researcher. This program specifically covers the hematopoietic colony forming unit assay, which is employed by many scientists to evaluate the proliferative capability of hematopoietic cells. They provide you with instructions, reagents/lab supplies, cell media and a cell sample.
They also have free webinars, videos, brochures, and other resources on their website.
Who is the target audience?
STEMCELL training content is branded as customizable to your level of expertise, so again this seems like the sort of resource that one might want to keep bookmarked.
Course pricing varies.
The Stem Cell Network offers support to students seeking training through exchange programs, travel awards and bursaries. I have benefitted from a Stem Cell Network workshop offered jointly through the Ontario Institute for Regenerative Medicine and hosted at the University of Ottawa – I mentioned it in my first blog for Signals. I was lucky enough to have my travel and accommodations paid for through one of their travel awards. Not only did I gain knowledge and experience, but I also made multiple invaluable contacts.
The Stem Cell Network also offers a library of free videos called Stem Cell Shorts for those seeking basic knowledge of different types of stem cells. They can also be used to teach trainees what a professional, effective, accessible explanation of basic concepts looks like – a skill that is no doubt critical for presentations that they will give in the future.
Who is the target audience?
It depends! Each opportunity that becomes available is unique, so I recommend you review each one to determine whether or not it’s right for you or for your students.
Many labs enjoy meeting up with colleagues around the world at the ISSCR annual conference, hosted at different locations each year. However, ISSCR also offers online resources for stem cell scientists.
For basic knowledge of stem cells, how medicine gets from the bench to the clinic, clinical trials and the like, ISSCR’s A Closer Look at Stem Cells should be explored. This free website reads like a textbook and is a great launch point for brand new trainees or those new to the clinical aspects of research. They also have a great section addressing stem cell treatments not supported by science.
Free clinical resources are also available, designed to educate professionals through current information on stem cell therapies.
Additionally, ISSCR offers free scientific webinars on all sorts of useful topics, including titles such as “Tissue Specific Stem/Progenitor Cells Known as MSCS” and “’Know Thy Cell’ – Rigorous Assays for the Characterization of MSCs.”
Finally, they list non-ISSCR meetings and courses, hosted around the globe, which may be relevant to your research!
Who is the target audience?
The target audience ranges from people with little to no stem cell knowledge, all the way up to professionals. There seems to be something for everyone.
Pricing for non-ISSCR courses will vary.
- Technique-specific Working Groups
When a new method or technique is published, testing it out can be difficult if nobody else in the lab has experience with it. That being said, you might not have to struggle through it on your own. There are technique-specific working groups, at least in Toronto, that make knowledge far more accessible.
Two examples include:
> Toronto scAnalysis Working Group Slack
Technique: Single cell analysis, stem cell or otherwise.
> The Optogenetics Working Group in Toronto
Technique: All things optogenetics, including in vivo and in vitro users.
* Disclaimer: I founded the Optogenetics Working Group, and I know the graduate student who established the scAnalysis Working Group. Joining and participating is completely free, so we do not gain anything financially by spreading the word. We find them useful, so I think that they may be useful to others as well.
Who is the target audience?
These working groups are designed for people who already have the necessary foundational knowledge about their study system (for the purposes of this blog, stem cells), but who lack knowledge about specific techniques they aim to use.
What to take away from this blog
If trainees are not finding what they need at their own institutions, other supplementary resources are out there. Not all of them are free, but many are.
This post is not an exhaustive list. Are there any training resources that you swear by? If so, please add them in the comments.
Lyla El-Fayomi
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