The Journal Club in a typical meeting, sat around a table while using the large screen to look through a research paper and discuss it together.
Can you tell us a little about who you are and what you do?
My name is Lili. I am a postdoc in Harveer Dev's group at the Early Cancer Institute (ECI). My research is focused on the derivation of human prostate cancer organoids from diagnostic biopsies to model early-stage disease. Our group website is Prostate Cancer Early Detection & Intervention.
I also work closely with other team members supporting them with their experiments. One of my other roles is related to lab management ensuring the smooth day-to-day running of the lab.
For those who may not know, what is a journal club?
A journal club is a forum where we get together as scientists and discuss the most recent scientific papers. We critically evaluate the published research data, so we keep ourselves up-to-date with the latest published literature. It is also useful to keep an eye on any new and relevant methodologies that we could employ in our lab.
How long have you been hosting the journal club?
We've been running our journal club for about a year, and it's been really successful in keeping us up-to-date in our research field. It’s been really good so far!
How did it get started?
Our projects overlap, so we were already reading papers on our own. So, we decided it would be a good idea to do it in a structured way, where we discuss together to gain a more coherent, up-to-date understanding of what’s going on in our research field.
Have you recommended the group to others?
I have recommended the group to others and in fact, it's also inspired me to plan a more focused journal club around 3D organoid cultures and tissue slices. This is because the 3D in vitro model systems are becoming more the normal model system in labs around the world and especially in the UK.
My plan is to bring together researchers at ECI who would be interested so we can keep an eye on the most recent 3D model literature.
How does the club help with your work as a researcher?
It helps us determine whether there are any new methods we can use for our projects. The club is also strengthening our critical thinking, as it’s really important that we’re able to look at other people’s work, identify gaps, and see what works. This helps build our higher-order thinking skills.
Have you made connections through the club you otherwise wouldn’t have?
Maybe not necessarily through the journal club, but we do have various postdoc events that link us together. For example, postdocs from other groups will come together for coffee or other social events such as the book club and workshops. These connect us, leading to spontaneous discussions and the generation of ideas.
How do you use the space for the meetings?
We meet at the Newman Library or the Seminar Room in the Postdoc Centre at the Biomedical Campus. The quiet environment and atmosphere of the centre allows us to focus and be productive while viewing various experiments, figures, and data using the projector screen.
How did you find out about the space?
Our Business and Operations Manager here at ECI, told us about it. After we moved to the Clifford Allbutt Building, while our old ECI building is being refurbished, we started having meetings here, and we thought it was a great environment and thought, ‘Can we have all our meetings here?’ It's well equipped, so it has everything you need, and it's just great to have a dedicated space like this.
What do you like most about the space (convenience, facilities, vibes, etc)?
Actually, all of the above! It's a wonderful space. I personally love libraries, and it has that same feel about it. Being all together in such a nice, cosy environment, surrounded by the feeling of books, just gets you in the right zone.
It's also very easy to access, it has good vibes and is in a very good, easy-to-reach location. So, it's really practical that it's integrated into the place where we work.
How would you encourage other postdocs to use the space for their own activities?
I think they should totally use the space for their activities, since it's dedicated to postdocs and also early-career researchers getting together. It's really well set up for networking, which is critical for researchers.
Many big institutes lay out their buildings so people can more easily get together and have more social interactions. So having such a space is vital because, again, through it, even in informal chats, you can spark collaborations, exchange great ideas, or simply share troubleshooting experience. Colleagues already know about it and use it, but I would also always recommend it.