Bio of Neeltje Peters (tutor)

Yes, also the tutors will briefly introduce themselves on this weblog!
I'm Neeltje Peters - van Gemert, almost 29, and I have a background in neurobiology. Originally from a small village in the south of the Netherlands, I came to the University of Amsterdam 11 years ago to study biology. After my first year, I decided I could look at plants and trees in my own time, so for my studies I chose the direction of medical biology. Doing this, I got more and more interested in the brain, and did a minor (1 year) in psychology next to my 4-year major in biology.
My first internship was at the UvA as well, looking at the effects of stress and maternal deprivation in rats. I enjoyed this internship so much, that I returned to the lab of Marian Joëls after my graduation to do my PhD research on the effects of stress on the hippocampus. The main result (see summary) of my thesis is that the effects of stress and corticosterone can differ both in different subareas of the hippocampus as well as on different levels (gene expression, protein expression and ion current). This should be taken as an advice not to draw firm conclusions based on findings on only one level! You never know what additional effects or compensatory mechanisms might exist...
Towards the end of my PhD period, I came to the conclusion that I didn't want to be a scientist when I grew up... So after graduation, I first had a temporary job at ZonMw, where I was involved in watching over various grants for medical biological research. I now work at the CSCA as an assistant coordinator, which means that I do a lot of things including organising the Summer School and Lecture Series you all will attend. And, of course, I am a tutor for Current Issues as well.