Saovleak Khim

Saovleak (Noury) Khim

Postbac, STAR-PREP Scholar

BSc, Cell & Molecular Neuroscience, Temple University

Research is formalized curiosity. It is poking and prying with purpose.”
– Zora Neale Hurston
I am broadly interested in the mechanisms underlying neuropsychiatric disorders in efforts to accelerate novel therapeutics for treatment-resistant patients. My current project involves the development of in vivo genome editing to investigate a family of receptor tyrosine phosphates (PTPRs) that are tightly regulated during brain development and implicated in Schizophrenia and Autism Spectrum Disorders. I am fascinated by how the brain develops and generates the Human Experience. Outside of the lab, you’ll find me playing volleyball, cooking, or experimenting with coffee.
Check out my latest data using the Aeropress: 
Coffee: 30 grams
Granulation: 4/10 (1=very fine, 10=very coarse)
Water: 70 ml at 90.5°C
Brewer: Inverted
Filter: Paper
Total extraction time:  90 sec
 Enjoy! ☕?

Contact: skhim{at}som.umaryland.edu

Lab space: Microscopy suite, HSF3 room 9168

Posts with Noury:

Cas9-RC on the cover of The CRISPR Journal!

Ryan Richardson’s paper describing the development of Cas9-RC, a new CRISPR agent with increased performance for knockin, is out in the October 2023 issue of The CRISPR Journal.

Not only that, but the paper got the cover! Kudos to Cheryl Brandenburg for the beautiful image of knockin neurons and astrocytes using Cas9-RC in the developing mouse brain. Congrats to the whole team for concluding this large piece of Synth Bio meets Dev Neurosci!

We would be delighted to have you try out Cas9-RC for your own knockin needs. Plasmids will become available on Addgene within the next few days!

Cas9-RC Knockin on the cover of The CRISPR Journal

Phosphorylation of Neuroligin-3

Our work on how the synaptic adhesion molecule Neuroligin-3 is targeted to either excitatory or inhibitory synapses based on phosphorylation is now available on the bioRxiv! Congrats to Bekir Altas, Liam Tuffy, Annarita Patrizi and the rest of the team in this international collaboration between the University of Maryland School of Medicine, the Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, and the University of Turin.

Phosphorylation Determines Whether Neuroligin-3 is at Excitatory or Inhibitory Synapses in Different Regions of the Brain

Getting creative to keep science strong in the pandemic

Noury Khim, unflinching scientist vs. the pandemic! Taking on the hurdles of social distancing, Noury live streams a procedure from a head mounted phone to train the lab’s incoming graduate students. To research and teach against all odds, you gotta be strong… #ScienceWomanStrong