An interview with Jonathan Davies

Name: Dr Jonathan Davies

Current Job: Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Scientific Discipline/Field: Psychiatric Epigenetics

Country: United Kingdom

Pick some letters (L,G,B,T,Q,+, etc.): G, Q

Website: https://www.epigenomicslab.com/

Twitter or other social media handle: @Jon_Davies27

What does your job involve?

Mostly I am a laboratory based research scientist and I spend the majority of my time at work carrying out “wet-lab” research. I work on three different projects, all to do with investigating cell specific gene regulation in post-mortem brain tissue samples. This means, I will take a piece of human brain, homogenise the tissue and extract just the nuclei of the cells by spinning in a centrifuge at very high speeds, through a very dense sucrose gradient.Then, using fluorescent labelled antibodies, I use a cell sorting machine to sort the nuclei into different cell populations such as neurons, oligodendrocytes and astrocytes. In this way, we can profile how gene regulation varies between cell types.

We can then extract the DNA to study DNA methylation, histone modification and accessibility, and RNA expression. This multi-omics approach ensures that we get a broader image of how genes are being regulated and how this ties into actual levels of gene expression. Furthermore, my personal project expands this work into the fourth dimension by studying a very rare cohort of brain samples from foetal and early postnatal post mortem samples. We are attempting to establish a timeline of gene regulation throughout neurodevelopment and see if we can map known epigenetic changes associated with psychiatric disorders such as Schizophrenia or Autism Spectrum Disorder to this timeline.

From the day-to-day perspective, I work in collaboration with other scientists in my research group so we have to coordinate our work to avoid bottle necks, and ensure the data we produce is handed over to our bioinformaticians who handle a lot of the complex analytical work. As I work with human tissue, we have to keep incredibly accurate records of the work we do and the samples we are looking after in order to keep on the goodside of the law. It’s also in our interest to keep accurate records for posterity, as I want anyone in our group to be able to find each one of our 2000+ brain samples, even when I’ve left and moved on.

How did you get to this job (education etc.)?

I went on a long and convoluted journey to get to where I am today. I studied for a BSc in Biomedical Sciences at the University of Southampton, after which I had no idea what I genuinely wanted to do next, so I took a year out and worked in a bar. This gave me great life skills and a new perspective, as university can be a very sheltered bubble away from the real world. I then knew I wanted to follow a career in science, so I undertook my Masters degree at the University of the West of England in Bristol. During this time I was working and volunteering at the We The Curious science centre and carried on with this work for a year after my studies. I was doing science communication and community engagement at the centre, whilst I was looking for a PhD, and I was looking all over the country and applied to almost 100 places.

Eventually, I was offered a PhD student position at the University of Plymouth which was in the field of oral and dental sciences. I developed three-dimensional tissue culture models of salivary gland tissue, very different from my current work today. When my lab time for my PhD was done, I needed a job, we all have bills to pay, and you’re often only funded for three years of a PhD, and expected to write up in a fourth year. So I took as job as a research assistant with my current group whilst also writing. After a year, my group had a post-doc position available, so I applied and was successful.

It just goes to show that, just because you don’t know what you want to do, or you feel that you’ve encountered hurdles in your studies or personal life, there is always a benefit to taking time out for yourself, doing something you enjoy and stepping away from the pressures of academic life in order to find yourself before re-engaging.

Do you feel being LGBT has affected your career decisions?

Certainly. My coming out story is not a hugely happy one, and it severely impacted my A Levels which had knock on effects for universities, personal confidence and how I formed friendships and work relationships.

However, things do happen for a reason and I’m very happy for studying the courses that I did, and I feel happy and satisfied with my career and my life as a whole. It’s important for me not to hold resentment or regret as it doesn’t serve any purpose. Plus, the relationship with my family now is better than it has ever been before, and for that I am entirely grateful.

I definitely feel like I had to work twice as hard to prove myself to be just as good as anyone else. I realise now that this is an internal drive, that we all seek validation to placate our insecurities. My sexuality has certainly made me more cautious when choosing what to wear or how to present myself when I first meet prospective employers, and I find myself hiding who I really am until I have the job.

Have you had any reactions from colleagues about being LGBT, either good or bad?

Biosciences is quite largely dominated by women, particularly at student and postdoctoral levels. The inequality at higher positions is still yet to be broken down. But this has meant, that at universities, I have never really encountered any negative reactions from my work colleagues, not that I know of, as it appears women are a lot more open minded and less threateing. My current research group is fantastic and I act as a staff LGBTQ+ coordinator for our satellite campus, which

However, as a student I did encounter homophobia a lot. Mostly from other students, generally passing by, or in sports clubs and societies. It’s still prevalent and we do have to work hard with student organisations to educate and eradicate such behaviour.

Did you have any role models growing up (LGBT, STEM, totally unrelated.)?

Professor Alice Roberts was a big role model for me, as she was a presenter on Time Team when I was a child and talked about anthropology, human evolution and biology. I did originally want to study medicine because of her! She was fun and quirky and didn’t fit the mould of a stereotypical TV presenter or scientist. I met her years later whilst I was finishing my Masters degree and she was so engaged and asked questions about my work, it was a great day.

I still don’t have an LGBT STEM role model, they are still not visible enough, or for those who are well known scientists, their sexuality is still not something they wear on their sleeves because of concerns for the impact on their careers or it’s the subject of a lifetime of hiding it away. I wish that in the next few years, these role models do arise, I’d love to think, even on a small scale, that I can contribute to being inspiring for young people who think that their sexuality or gender identity would be a barrier to them entering the STEM field. I have found the science field a mostly progressive and welcoming community for any minority individuals.

What are your plans for the future?

In the next couple of years, I plan to publish papers, write my own grants or a fellowship application in order to become a PI and support my own staff and students. I would like to lecture more on undergraduate and masters courses and I want to engage more with the public on science and critical thinking, and the LGBT STEMinar in January was a fantastic way for me to do this.

I will continue working with my University’s staff LGBTQ+ network and the local PRISM network, which supports local LGBTQ+ STEM workers through lectures and social events. I believe these networks are invaluable for lobbying your places of work to improve the offer for LGBTQ+ individuals, and having a supportive and united voice for when issues do arise, as they still do from time to time.

Anything else you’d like to add?

I LOVED attending the LGBT STEMinar, it was a fantastic way to meet people and to practice presenting work. I don’t engage with Twitter enough, as I know a lot of the community is on there, so I need to up that game a huge amount. However, if anyone would like to ask me questions about my work, personal questions or how I got to where I am now, or even agony aunt questions, then please don’t hesitate to email or tweet me, I’m happy to help!