Government imposed lockdown measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in widespread laboratory closures. This study aimed to examine the impact of this disruption on graduate students and postdoctoral fellows completing laboratory-based research in Canada. We used an anonymous online survey and semi-structured interviews to document the experiences of graduate students and postdoctoral fellows during laboratory closures and following the transition to working from home. We employed a mixed-method approach using survey and interview data to identify shared experiences, concerns, and supports. The emotions reported by respondents at different points during laboratory closures align with the Kübler-Ross model of grief following change. Respondents describe closure processes as chaotic and confusing, primarily resulting from inconsistent communication. Respondents reported increased indications of distress while working from home. Concerns about how COVID-19 might impact trainees were identified, including decreasing competitiveness of applicants while limiting future employment opportunities. Finally, we outline five types of supports that can be implemented by supervisors and administrators to support graduate students and postdoctoral fellows to return to the laboratory. Overall, we document shared experiences of respondents during the COVID-19 laboratory shutdown and identify areas of improvement in the event widespread laboratory closures occur in the future.

Recent genome-wide association studies of Huntington's disease (HD) primarily highlighted genes involved in DNA damage repair mechanisms as modifiers of age at onset and disease severity, consistent with evidence that more DNA repair genes are being implicated in late age-onset neurodegenerative diseases. This provides an exciting opportunity to advance therapeutic development in HD, as these pathways have already been under intense investigation in cancer research. Also emerging are the roles of other polyglutamine disease proteins in DNA damage repair mechanisms. A potential universal trigger of oxidative DNA damage shared in these late age-onset diseases is the increase of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in human aging, defining an agerelated mechanism that has defied other hypotheses of neurodegeneration. We discuss the potential commonality of DNA damage repair pathways in HD and other neurodegenerative diseases. Potential targets for therapy that may prove beneficial across many of these diseases are also identified, defining nodes in the ataxia telangiectasia-mutated (ATM) complex, mismatch repair, and poly ADP-ribose polymerases (PARPs).

Physical distancing measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in widespread laboratory closures. This study aimed to examine the impact of this disruption on graduate students and postdoctoral fellows completing laboratory-based research in Canada. We used an anonymous online survey and semi-structured interviews to document the experiences of graduate students and postdoctoral fellows during laboratory closures and following the transition to working from home. We employed mixed-method analysis of survey and interview data to identify shared experiences, feelings, concerns, and supports.Respondents’ emotions reported from different points during the COVID-19 laboratory closures align with previously described Kübler-Ross model of grief following change. Respondents describe closure processes as chaotic and confusing, primarily due to inconsistent communication between graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, supervisors, and administration. Respondents reported increased anxiety during closures, however, those who experienced uniform laboratory closures also developed a sense of solidarity and safety while those with staggered shutdowns did not. Graduate students and postdoctoral fellows reported increased indications of distress while working from home. Four key barriers to working from home were described; technical issues, domestic distractions, decreased motivation, and poor mental health. Five key supports while working at home were also identified, including financial security, social connections, establishing and maintaining routines, mental health support, and support from supervisors and administration. Respondents had concerns of how COVID-19 might impact them, including decreasing competitiveness applicants while limiting future employment opportunities. Finally, we outline five types of supports which can be implemented by supervisors and administrators to support graduate students and postdoctoral fellows to return to the laboratory, including; personal protective equipment and protocols, understanding and empathy, guidance and direction, timeline support, and financial support. Overall, we document shared experiences of respondents during the COVID-19 laboratory shutdown and identify areas of improvement in the event widespread laboratory closures occur in the future.

The use of genome wide association studies (GWAS) in Huntington’s disease (HD) research, driven by unbiased human data analysis, has transformed the focus of new targets that could affect age at onset. While there is a significant depth of information on DNA damage repair, with many drugs and drug targets, most of this development has taken place in the context of cancer therapy. DNA damage repair in neurons does not rely on DNA replication correction mechanisms. However, there is a strong connection between DNA repair and neuronal metabolism, mediated by nucleotide salvaging and the poly ADP-ribose (PAR) response, and this connection has been implicated in other age-onset neurodegenerative diseases. Validation of leads including the mismatch repair protein MSH3, and interstrand cross-link repair protein FAN1, suggest the mechanism is driven by somatic CAG instability, which is supported by the protective effect of CAA substitutions in the CAG tract. We currently do not understand: how somatic instability is triggered; the state of DNA damage within expanding alleles in the brain; whether this damage induces mismatch repair and interstrand cross-link pathways; whether instability mediates toxicity, and how this relates to human ageing. We discuss DNA damage pathways uncovered by HD GWAS, known roles of other polyglutamine disease proteins in DNA damage repair, and a panel of hypotheses for pathogenic mechanisms.

The phenomenon of “publish-or-perish” in academia, spurred on by limited funding and academic positions, has led to increased competition and pressure on academics to publish. Publication pressure has been linked with multiple negative outcomes, including increased academic misconduct and researcher burnout. COVID-19 has disrupted research worldwide, leading to lost research time and increased anxiety amongst researchers. The objective of this study was to examine how COVID-19 has impacted perceived publication pressure amongst academic researchers in Canada. We used the revised Publication Pressure Questionnaire, in addition to Likert-type questions to discern respondents’ beliefs and concerns about the impact of COVID-19 on academic publishing. We found that publication pressure increased across academic researchers in Canada following the pandemic, with respondents reporting increased stress, increased pessimism, and decreased access to support related to publishing. Doctoral students reported the highest levels of stress and pessimism, while principal investigators had the most access to publication support. There were no significant differences in publication pressure reported between different research disciplines. Women and non-binary or genderfluid respondents reported higher stress and pessimism than men. We also identified differences in perceived publication pressure based on respondents’ publication frequency and other demographic factors, including disability and citizenship status. Overall, we document a snapshot of perceived publication pressure in Canada across researchers of different academic career stages and disciplines. This information can be used to guide the creation of researcher supports, as well as identify groups of researchers who may benefit from targeted resources.