Varpu Marjomaki and Stepan Belyakin on Finland and Russia
Two of EMBL’s most northerly alumni tell us about life and science in their wintry lands…
Varpu Marjomaki, group leader at the University of Jyväskylä, Finland
Varpu and colleagues Lassi Paavolainen, Nina Rintanen, Mikko Karjalainen, Moona Lehkonen and Ilari Kuronen, in the lab
Science after EMBL?
I am studying endocytic membrane traffic, looking at certain picornaviruses (such as echovirus 1) that are human pathogens.
Location after EMBL?
I work in a biology department that is part of an interdisciplinary nanoscience centre, interacting closely with physicists and chemists. This is really exciting – we have learned to communicate well and collaborate on interesting projects.
Connections after EMBL?
I am in regular contact with former group leader Jean Gruenberg – I plan to visit his lab in Geneva next year.
Feeling festive in the cold!
I have visited former postdocs Harald Stenmark in Oslo and Toshihide Kobayashi in Tokyo. I recently collaborated with Finnish researchers Elina Ikonen and Vesa Olkkonen, postdocs in Kai Simons’ laboratory, and with Sarah Butcher, who is now a group leader in the Finnish Centre of Excellence in Virus Research.
I visit my good friends and EMBL alumni Ari Huovila and his wife Seija Majoinen, and am in contact with Hanna Kuusinen (formerly Lechtonen) who works in Finland as technician in VTT technical research center.
Memories of EMBL?
EMBL was a very special place with an exciting atmosphere for science and fun. My visits there have been my most important learning experience. I enjoyed the intense pace of the work, the wealth of things I learned and the friendly atmosphere. I miss all this, and the amusing lectures by Gareth Griffiths!
Stepan Belyakin, a group leader at the Novosibirsk Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology (IMCB), Russia
Stepan in the snow
Science after EMBL?
My group is working in the field of developmental biology of drosophila. We are particularly interested in genetic cascades that regulate sexual dimorphism in different body parts.
Location after EMBL?
Living in Siberia is fun. What I really like here and what I always missed in Germany is a proper winter. Here we have about five months of snow and down to -40°C, which keeps you always busy staying warm. For some reason, winter is also the most productive season in the lab!
Stepan with colleagues Daniil Maksimov (left) and Petr Laktionov (right)
Connections after EMBL?
I am in contact with many friends I met at EMBL: Pavel Natalin (former predoc in Izaurralde Group) visited me few weeks ago. He is a representative of Life Technologies Company in Russia now. Ivan Yudushkin (Bastiaens Group) came here this summer with his wife and two babygirls on his ‘curvy’ way from California to Austria.
Memories of EMBL?
It’s really hard to choose my most favourite memory: I would say it was the feeling that everything is possible and feasible. This is a feeling I try to revive in myself and plant in my students.