1. Welcome to Newcastle !
Dr Claudia Schneider Royal Society University Research Fellow Institute for Cell and Molecular Bioscience (ICaMB) Research Group Leader since 2011

2. (Research Group Leader)
How did I get here?
Edinburgh (PostDoc)
Newcastle
(Research Group Leader)
Göttingen (PhD)
Marburg
(UG/Masters/PhD)
School

3. X Looking back.. Was it all planned? Definitely not!
What moved me along?
Curiosity and a strong interest in science and research
Enjoying what I am doing
Hard work and long hours
A bit of luck at each step
People who supported me (High school chemistry teacher, PhD and PostDoc supervisors, colleagues) X

4. Where did it all start?

5. UG studies ( )
Took up a degree called “Human Biology – Theoretical Medicine” (I also applied to medicine as a backup plan)
Year 1-2:
Basic Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Maths, Anatomy, Physiology,..
Year 3-4:
Molecular Biology, Biochemistry, Immunology
3 laboratory placements in research labs (6 weeks each)
Got hooked on RNA and its diverse roles in gene expression during a placement in the Lührmann lab!
Prof Reinhard Lührmann

6. Eukaryotic gene expression
Pre-mRNA splicing
Spliceosomes are assembled of small nuclear RNA-protein particles (snRNPs)
Two different types of introns are cut out by two different spliceosomes - Why and How?
Majority of all introns: U2-dependent or „major“ spliceosome
<1% of all introns: U12-dependent or „minor“ spliceosome
Very little was known about the protein components of the minor spliceosome or how it works.

7. Masters studies ( )
Masters/Diploma studies in the Lührmann lab (~20 people)
Learnt:
many biochemical and molecular biology techniques
logical experimental design
how to think of all the appropriate controls
how to manage my own project and enjoy science
Got incredibly lucky, because data generated during my Diploma studies led to my very first publication (in 1999)!
Prof Reinhard Lührmann

8. My first paper

9. PhD studies ( )
Wanted to find out more about the minor spliceosome
Happily took up the offer to stay on for a PhD!
Continued to work with human cells and later in Drosophila
Halfway through my thesis, the whole lab moved to a different city.
Spent several months first packing and then unpacking boxes
Prof Reinhard Lührmann

10. PhD studies ( )
Göttingen

11. PhD studies ( )
The Lührmann lab had grown massively after the move, now more than 60 people including subgroups.
Downsides:
I saw a lot less of my professor on a daily basis
Presentations at group meetings turned into daunting, although often very educational experiences
Upsides:
Many colleagues (often PostDocs) who could help with any technical problem or scientific question
Always enough money to do research
Göttingen

12. PhD studies (1998-2004) I managed to produce data for 5 more papers
(2 of them as first author)
This would not have been possible without the help of my direct supervisor Dr Cindy Will (PostDoc in the Lührmann lab)
Göttingen

13. Big thanks to Cindy for:
Sharing her excitement about science with me
Teaching me to perform, analyse and troubleshoot experiments
Helping me how to understand and, eventually, to write papers
Building up my confidence and motivating me in difficult times
Having fun in the lab
Pieces of her wisdom that my students now hear from me..
“A watched pot will never boil”
“There is never time to do it right, but there is always time to do it over”
“Garbage in, garbage out”
“Reading is important!”

14. Prof Reinhard Lührmann
Looking back at my PhD
It took a long time (5.5 years).
BUT:
Had a lot of fun and learnt a lot
Was able to go and present my work at big international RNA conferences (Edinburgh, Vienna)
Met people from all over the world
Became a member of the “RNA Society”
Enabled me to join a great lab in Edinburgh
My publications helped me to secure postdoctoral fellowships (EMBO, Human Frontier Science Program)
Prof Reinhard Lührmann
(PhD supervisor)
Prof David Tollervey
(Post Doc supervisor)
RNA 2008 meeting, Berlin

15. PostDoc studies (2004-2011) Budding yeast Edinburgh
Wellcome Trust Centre for Cell Biology
Budding yeast
The Tollervey Lab

16. Ribonucleases: From PhD problems to a PostDoc project?
RNase A RI
Mammalian Ribonuclease Inhibitor (RI)/RNase A complex: (kd~ 20 fM)
RNasin®

17. Ribonucleases break and make many different RNAs in the cell
RNases achieve: Accurate RNA processing of different RNA species
Efficient RNA quality control
Correct RNA levels at any given time
Key Questions: Which enzyme is responsible for which RNA?
(5’ exonucleases, endonucleases, 3’ exonucleases)
How are different substrates recognised and targeted for processing or degradation?
Structure taken from Nature. 2013 Mar 7;495(7439):70-5
Rrp44
Exosome complex

18. Looking back at my PostDoc
It (again) took a long time (almost 7 years)
BUT:
Learnt to survive in a competitive environment
Got involved in several national and international collaborations
Published first and second author papers on ribonucleases in high impact journals (e.g. 2x Molecular Cell, NSMB, Plos Biol.)
Had the chance to write review articles
Had the chance to find my own niche in research to start my own group
Focusing on the function of a group of RNA endonucleases in RNA quality control and ribosome production

19. Starting my own group (2011-….)
Big thanks to:
Prof. David Tollervey (University of Edinburgh)
For his help with my fellowship applications and everything else
ICaMB, the Faculty of Medical Sciences and Newcastle University
For their kind offer to be my host organisation during my fellowship applications and their support ever since
The Royal Society
For giving me the chance (and money) to start my own group as a Royal Society University Research Fellow (URF)
5+3 years of core funding plus additional pots of money

20. How do I spend my days now?
“Heading” a small, but growing research group
currently 2 PhD students, 1 ERASMUS exchange student
in the process of hiring a PostDoc on a project grant that will start in January 2018
Teaching
supervising UG and Masters students, giving lectures
Writing grant applications and papers
Going to conferences and meetings to get new ideas
Occasionally doing some experiments myself
But now mainly getting excited about my students’ results!

21. The Big questions: 1) Would I do all of this again? Definitely.
2) What would I do differently?
Try not to be terrified at each step and just have a go.
3) What are the reasons that kept me in research?
(quoting one of my former UG students)
“The times when you see an exciting and often difficult to get result for the first time – and knowing that you are the first person in the world who knows about it…”

22. Good luck for your PhD, MRes, MPhil or MD and enjoy your time in Newcastle!