Holthuis Lab

Key determinants of VDAC-hexokinase I complex assembly revealed by a minimal vesicle-based interaction assay https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.11.03.686449v1

An Asgard archaeon with internal membrane compartments

Brilliant study led by @fmacleod.bsky.social and Andriko von Kügelgen. Tight collaboration with @buzzbaum.bsky.social and lab. Congrats to all authors!

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Such a worthy recipient. Maya is not only a great scientist but also a fantastic mentor and a rich source of inspiration.

📯 shoutout for this beautiful work by Kenji Maeda’s lab, who mapped 300 lipid species across 6 compartiments of humane cells. Besides uncovering general principles of lipid organization, the paper establishes a framework for exploring how lipid landscapes are regulated in physiology and disease 👇🏼

Thank you, Giovanni!

Thank you, Andre.

Thank you, Rachid. Let’s see what the reviewers think…

Our data collectively support a model according to which VPS13C acts upstream of OSBP/ORP lipid transport proteins to orchestrate bulk lipid transport in synchrony with lysosomal damage and repair, thereby maintaining lysosome integrity

As ER-lysosome contact sites bridged by VPS13C have a gap width that cannot be resolved by light microscopy, we used a ratiometric approach to simultaneously trace fluorescence levels of ER-derived lipids & ER membrane proteins on the surface of damaged lysosomes containing pHrodo-labeled microbeads

VPS13C/PARK23 initiates lipid transfer and membrane remodeling for efficient lysosomal repair Perturbations in lysosome integrity are tightly linked to neurological disorders and ageing, but the underlying pathogenic mechanisms are incompletely understood. Using an unbiased proteomic approach,...

Proud to share a preprint of our paper on how bridge-like lipid transport protein VPS13C senses lysosomal membrane tension in anticipation of membrane lesions to initiate net ER-to-lysosome lipid transfer for efficient lysosomal repair www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

🚨🚨🚨 We are launching the 2nd application round for the Erasmus Mundus Joint Master’s Program MemBioMed, offering cutting-edge training on exploring the complex behavior of cellular membranes & unlocking their therapeutic potential. Students can apply here: life.univ-cotedazur.eu/internationa...

🚨🚨🚨 We are launching the 2nd application round for the Erasmus Mundus Joint Master’s Program MemBioMed, offering cutting-edge training on exploring the complex behavior of cellular membranes & unlocking their therapeutic potential. Students can apply here: life.univ-cotedazur.eu/internationa...

I am proud to 📣 today’s superb thesis defense by Milena Wessing on “Molecular dissection of ceramide-induced apoptosis: a bottom-up approach”. Two papers describing Milena’s heroic efforts are close to submission. It was a privilege serving as her “Doktorvater” 🥂

I am pleased to 📣 today’s superb thesis defense by Christian Schroer on “Chemical strategies for studying lipid signaling and transport”. Part of his work was recently published in the JLR; the other part will follow soon. A very proud and somewhat tipsy “Doktorvater” 🥂

Great to see this work on imaging cellular lipid logistics in Nature, where it belongs. Chapeau! Many gratulations to Andre, Alf and their co-workers!

That’s fantastic news, Fikadu! And very much deserved. Many congratulations, also to OHSU for this wise decision 🍾🍾🍾

🔥🔥🔥 (= highly recommended) 👇🏼

A university & its leadership standing for academic freedom, truth, integrity & shared values deserve support from across the globe. Those believing in these virtues greatly outnumber those who seek to undermine them. As admirer of the 1st class scientists working at UVA, I gladly signed the letter👇

Wir für Demokratie | Unabhängig & Überparteilich Demokratisches Engagement Für Dich. Für mich. Für uns alle. Wir sind ein gemeinnütziger Verein, der einen niedrigschwelligen Zugang zu demokratischer Beteiligung ermöglicht. Als Plattform für überpart...

Science is the engine of an open, pluralistic society. So scientists serve a central role in defending it. In 🇩🇪, the association „Wissenschaft für Demokratie – Wir für Dich“ was founded to strengthen the role of science in the public debate & in the fight against disinformation
wirfuerdemokratie.org

Totally agree!

Thank you so much @jamessaenz.bsky.social‬ for the inspiring #sfb1557 talk on lipid-sensitive riboswitches and the role of lipid diversity & membrane biophysics in the origin of life. A great scientist & wonderful colleague to hang out with 🍺, who is currently on the job market, but not for long… 🚴‍♂️

Rapport KNAW: Academische vrijheid in Nederland

Academische vrijheid staat onder druk en moet beter worden beschermd. Die conclusie lees je vandaag in dit KNAW-rapport: www.knaw.nl/nieuws/knaw-... Aanbevelingen o.m.: meer vrijheid van onderzoek, bescherming tegen intimidatie en minder inhoudelijke overheidsbemoeienis.

Exclusive: NSF faces radical shake-up as officials abolish its 37 divisions Changes seen as a response to presidential directives on what research to fund

This is an absolute disaster. If we don't stop this, they will turn NSF into a pawn of the Trump administration. There will be no research on climate, biodiversity, or anything that isn't eugenics or AI or how to more efficiently destroy the planet for profit.

This cannot be allowed to happen.

NIH Research Funding at Risk—Take Action Now! - ASCB Along with supporting important scientific discoveries, federally funded scientific research has significant impact on state and local economies. It is estimated that, on average, every $1 of National...

Science is under attack. Proposed 40% NIH cut threatens jobs, research, and medical progress. Call your reps, governor, and mayor now—urge them to stand up for science.

www.ascb.org/science-poli...

Thank you so much for the warm welcome, @gloriusgroup.bsky.social & @gloriusfrank.bsky.social! I thoroughly enjoyed the wonderful brainstorm on how to capture the complex dance of lipids during cell wounding and repair using the power of synthetic chemistry. So much left to explore and accomplish🧑‍🔬🧪🔬

Structural basis of lipid transfer by a bridge-like lipid-transfer protein - Nature The LPD-3 complex structure reveals protein–lipid interactions that suggest a model for how the native LPD-3 complex mediates bulk lipid transport and provides a foundation for mechanistic studies of ...

At membrane contact sites, bridge-like transport proteins, e.g. LPD-3, mediate bulk lipid transfer between cellular organelles. @nature see cryo-EM structure of native LDP-3, and gain insights into its functioning and interaction with other proteins and lipids.
shorturl.at/lycuz & shorturl.at/ARpUK

For everyone interested in organoid technology and skin regeneration there is a great postdoc opportunity in the Bartscherer Lab.
Check out the posting below.

www.uni-osnabrueck.de/universitaet...

www.biologie.uni-osnabrueck.de/en/research/...

Cell membranes sustain phospholipid imbalance via cholesterol asymmetry This work challenges a major assumption in cell biology by showing that lipid bilayers can have drastically different phospholipid abundances between their two leaflets. This lipid abundance asymmetry...

Groundbreaking study in Cell from @leventallab.bsky.social: phospholipid asymmetry is a defining feature of the plasma membrane and cholesterol fills the holes — major implications for how this membrane works. A #lipidtime must-read! www.cell.com/cell/abstrac...

📯📯📯 10 days left to apply for the International Master MemBioMed "From Membrane Biology to Neuroscience & Experimental Medicine". Scholarships available for selected students to acquire intensive training in analysing the complex behavior of biomembranes and exploiting their therapeutic potential 👇👇

This is a beautiful paper. Very important implications - and further evidence for the link between lipid transbilayer movement / lipid asymmetry and directional lipid transport.