Journalist, author and researcher Danna Staaf’s story on the lab’s recent breakthrough work on cephalopod anesthesia is published as an In Depth article in Science Magazine this week. Thanks to Danna for getting our work onto the global stage!!
Congratulations Emily!!
Crook Lab alum Emily Zepeda was awarded a highly prestigious NSF GRFP (Graduate Research Fellowship Program) fellowship for her PhD work at UC Davis. Emily was an undergraduate in the Crook Lab from 2016-2017, where she conducted a study on operant conditioning in Euprymna. Her work was published last year in The Biological Bulletin, and is the first published account of learning and memory in this squid species. Great job Emily!!
Scientist, Journalist and Author Danna Staaf visits the lab
Danna is the author of the fantastic book Squid Empire. The lab hosted a visit from her last week, to talk cephalopods, anesthesia and welfare. Look out for an article coming soon from her about the Crook Lab’s recent work!
New Publication: Euprymna defensive behavior and habituation
Congratulations to REU student Kia Seehafer and undergraduates Samantha Brophy and Sara Tom for successfully publishing their research in Frontiers in Physiology. Their paper “Ontogenetic and Experience-Dependent Changes in Defensive Behavior in Captive-Bred Hawaiian Bobtail Squid, Euprymna scolopes” began as an REU summer project for Kia, who came to the Crook Lab from Sacramento State University. Great work for all three authors! Read the open-access full text for all the details.
New Publication: Cephalopod Anesthesia
Work done by Masters student Hanna Butler-Steuben and undergraduate students Samantha Brophy and Nasira Johnson was published today in Frontiers in Physiology. Congratulations Hanna, Sam and Nasira on fantastic work on this project. This paper demonstrates that the two most commonly used substances used to immobilize cephalopods during invasive procedures are effective as anesthetics. This paper will help researchers in countries where cephalopods are protected in research ensure that their practices are compliant with federal law. Read the full open-access article for all the details.
New Publication: Serotonin and Octopus Neurons
Congratulations to undergraduate Paul Perez and MS student Hanna Butler-Struben for publishing their work in Invertebrate Neuroscience. Their paper titled “The selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor fluoxetine increases spontaneous afferent firing, but not mechanonociceptive sensitization, in octopus” is the result of an independent research project led by Paul for the past year, with assistance from Hanna. Great work Paul and Hanna! Read the full text for all the details.