Mike McFadden

As Fran was nice enough to highlight this, I thought I'd put up a brief thread. 3 in 10 proteins that our cells make are either embedded in membranes (ion channels, adhesion molecules, etc.) or secreted (insulin, antibodies). They move through the secretory pathway.
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Esther Lederberg in the laboratory in the 1950's. Credit: Estherlederberg.com

Born #OnThisDay in 1922, Esther Lederberg was the first to isolate the lambda phage in 1951. She characterised the lysogenic phase, whereby the phage are able to integrate into the bacterial genome, staying dormant. This discovery made them a model tool of study, leading to many more breakthroughs.

Now online at mSphere with updates! journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

We have wondered what a complex archaeal cell might look like ever since 2014. It’s been a long road (and the journey is far from over), but it’s a good time to pause for breath and look. These Asgard archaeal cells are a surprise! And that is the joy of being a cell biologist.

Last year it was discovered that a single bacterial NLR-like protein can recognize multiple, structurally unrelated phage proteins (Béchon et al, Kibby et al)

Now, a new study shows the same for a plant NLR. Another example how principles of immunity remain conserved from bacteria to eukaryotes

Some charts for those who don't know the extent of the US public (and private) investment in research (particularly in biomedical research) compared to other countries and institutions. The destruction of the US' scientific institutions has global implications.

A human-specific regulatory mechanism revealed in a pre-implantation model - Nature Genetic manipulation of blastoids reveals the role of recently emerged transposable elements and genes in human development.

This paper uncovers that HERVK LTR5Hs, a hominoid-specific retrovirus, act as epiblast enhancers with a crucial function in human pre-implantation development - stunning!
doi.org/10.1038/s415...

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Myeloperoxidase transforms chromatin into neutrophil extracellular traps - Nature Myeloperoxidase, a highly expressed neutrophil protein, disassembles nucleosomes, facilitating neutrophil extracellular trap (NET) formation, and binds stably to NETs extracellularly.

📃 New paper alert!
The Zychlinsky Lab and @raunser-lab.bsky.social identified the first protein that converts chromatin into an immune effector: Myeloperoxidase transforms chromatin into neutrophil extracellular traps. Now published in @nature.com:
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

David Baltimore, Nobel-Winning Molecular Biologist, Dies at 87

www.nytimes.com/2025/09/07/s...

Commensal yeast promotes Salmonella Typhimurium virulence - Nature Commensal Candida albicans enhances the virulence and dissemination of Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Typhimurium.

Excited to share our new publication, out today in Nature! www.nature.com/articles/s41.... @kanchanj.bsky.social led this fascinating fungal-bacterial interaction project. We are grateful for our wonderful collaborators Brian Peters and David Underhill.

Metabolic imprinting drives epithelial memory during mucosal fungal infection Epithelial cells at barrier sites are emerging as active participants in innate immune memory, yet the underlying metabolic and epigenetic mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we uncover a previously unre...

Check out our new preprint Metabolic imprinting drives epithelial memory during mucosal #fungal infection. Thanks to all collaborators www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

CDC employees standing up and walking out in light of the mass shootings, firings, and *waves hands in the air* everything else.

#USAnotRFK

Lets gooooo

‘People will die because of this’: How RFK Jr. drove out the CDC’s senior leaders On the same day Susan Monarez was fired, four of the agency’s top leaders quit.

New: In 7 months, Kennedy has broken the CDC, perhaps irreparably. For all he’s done with mass firings, gutting expertise, and attacking vaccines, Wednesday’s loss of its most senior and competent leaders—truly the CDC’s backbone—is the most consequential attack yet.

www.msnbc.com/msnbc/news/c...

Vaccines do not cause autism.

As with other coronaviruses, immunity to SARS-CoV-2 is short-lived. Prioritizing older persons for vaccination saves more lives, while targeting younger persons decreases the number of infections. Banning the vaccine will predictably result in more infections, hospitalizations and deaths from COVID.

If RFK Jr. had any interest in regulating big pharma or helping americans eat better or reducing chronic illness he would not have gutted the agencies he is in charge of.

*Every* story about his alleged policy ideas should lead with this extremely elementary reality.

TL;DR: 5 justices say Trump doesn't have to immediately restore the funding, but 5 *also* signal that the underlying directives are unlawful.

That sends a fairly strong (if mixed) message that Trump will lose these cases *eventually,* but only once they're brought in the Court of Federal Claims.

This is scant comfort to NIH-funded researchers.

It would take many months or more than a year to re-file cases in Federal Claims Court, win them, and get grant money back.

It's also expensive. Lawyers fees add up.

The practical result is that all of this research is gone.

What a waste.

I developed mRNA vaccines. RFK Jr is endangering US public health Katalin Karikó says the health secretary’s decision to pull research funding for the technology is akin to ‘dropping a bomb on the US’

Not just endangering US public health but global health

www.thetimes.com/us/news-toda...

Implications of successive blood feeding on Wolbachia-mediated dengue virus inhibition in Aedes aegypti mosquitoes - Nature Communications Dengue virus transmission by Ae. aegypti mosquitoes poses a significant public health threat, necessitating innovative control strategies. Here, the authors demonstrate that, while successive blood fe...

So glad to finally have this out with co-author @mallerybreban.bsky.social and very thankful for the many amazing people who contributed to this study and provided materials and input! 🦟🦠1/12 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Full Committee Markup of Defense and Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Acts | United States Senate Committee on Appropriations United States Senate Committee on Appropriations

🧪 Senate appropriators say: NIH's budget gets a... boost!

Rather than 40% cut, NIH gets a $400M *increase* in the Senate committee bill for FY26 (about +1%).

"Congress has your back," said @murray.senate.gov.

ADVOCACY MATTERS! There's still a long road (esp in the House), so keep up pressure.

$8M RESTORE Grants Program Launched for Researchers Hit by Federal Funding Terminations - AAI News AAI has launched an $8 million emergency funding initiative called the RESTORE Grants Program to support scientists whose immunology-focused federal research grants were abruptly terminated or frozen ...

📣The @aai.org allocated $8M RESTORE Grants Program, an initiative that will focus on providing financial support to researchers whose grants were abruptly terminated or frozen in 2025 for reasons unrelated to their scientific merit! 👏

Check the details 👇
#SupportResearch
#Immunology

14 Republican senators urge White House to release delayed NIH funds Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.) is leading the letter making the ask of OMB director Russ Vought.

Wait, sometimes there are surprises. Apparently some Republicans have now grasped the immense damage to their communities caused by massive cuts to NIH funding.

We told them this beforehand, yet they still thoroughly enjoyed seeing the massive cuts…until it affected them directly.

Feds Axed Grants Across Red, Blue States, Report Finds The Center for American Progress says the Trump administration has targeted for termination more than 4,000 grants across over 600 institutions. Adjusting for statewide enrollment, South Dakota is hit...

The assault on higher education is not just about coastal elite schools. "Federal agencies terminated or were attempting to terminate more than 4,000 grants across over 600 institutions. These grants are worth between $6.9 billion and $8.2 billion combined." www.insidehighered.com/news/faculty...

A host organelle integrates stolen chloroplasts for animal photosynthesis Sea slugs steal foreign chloroplasts and store them in specialized organelles that facilitate photosynthesis and eventual digestion to mediate starvation resistance.

📜 A host organelle integrates stolen chloroplasts for animal photosynthesis

🧑‍🔬 Corey A.H. Allard, Amy S.Y. Lee, @nbellono.bsky.social, et al.

📔 @cellpress.bsky.social

🔗 www.cell.com/cell/abstrac...

#️⃣ #PlantScience #Kleptosomes #Sacoglossan #SeaSlug #Photosynthesis

Kennedy Withdraws U.S. Funding Pledge to International Vaccine Agency

Not just Americans.....children around the world
Cutting off support of the organization that has saved the lives of 17 million children around the world in the past 2 decades
Front page @nytimes.com
www.nytimes.com/2025/06/25/h...

RFK Jr. says US won’t donate to global vaccine effort Kennedy ripped into Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, in a video address at its pledging summit.

This is a travesty & a nightmare. The US was a founder of @gavi.org. It lowers global vaccine costs, has vaccinated 1B children, & averted 19M deaths. This pull out will cost 100s of thousands of children's lives a year - and RFK Jr will be personally responsible.
www.politico.com/news/2025/06...