Mariana Astiz was invited to give a talk at the 2025 Chinese Society of Biological Rhythms Conference (Hefei, China). This was the first time that Mariana presented our lab’s work in China (actually her first time in China!) and she was very happy with the interest that grew around her talk and our research in circadian biology. She could learn about the latest findings in the field from Chinese colleagues, a unique opportunity to widen our knowledge of what is being done in other labs. 

She also had the chance to visit her fantastic host, Prof. Jin Bao, lab in Brain Cognition and Brain Disease located at the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology (Shenzhen, China). Mariana was impressed with the technological advances of the institute and their great potential. 

Both the conference and the visit to Shenzhen were enriching experiences for Mariana and great opportunities to discuss current projects and scientific interests. They have yielded promising collaborations and interesting ideas for joint projects. On top of that, Mariana had time to climb the Huangshan Yellow Mountains and try some Chinese delicacies, so not bad for a first time!!