Karen D. Corbin, PhD RD

Metagenomic estimation of absolute bacterial biomass in the mammalian gut through host-derived read normalization | mSystems In this study, we asked whether normalization by host reads alone was sufficient to estimate absolute bacterial biomass directly from stool metagenomic data, without the need for synthetic spike-ins, ...

You can get an accurate estimate of total bacterial biomass from stool metagenomes by simply normalizing by host read count, without needing any additional measurements.

Excellent work by UW Master's student Gechlang Tang in @asm.org #mSystems Journal.

journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
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Super excited to share our paper online 🚨today🚨 in Cell Host & Microbe‬! Xiaomei Ren @xiaomeiren.bsky.social and Mason Clark @rmasonclark.bsky.social‬ co-led discovery of ecological factors for Acinetobacter baumannii carriage in the gut, a reservoir for pathogen spread. 🎉

tinyurl.com/443kfefk

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This is absolutely catastrophic

This is figure 1, which shows a single-cell atlas of human AT in leanness, obesity and WL.

A study in Nature found that weight loss reduces cell senescence in people with obesity but doesn’t fully reverse all metabolic issues associated with obesity. go.nature.com/452Bbdv #medsky 🧪

Nature: US senators poised to reject Trump’s proposed massive science cuts Committee gives first hint that policymakers might preserve, rather than slash, funding for US National Science Foundation and other agencies.

DO NOT GIVE UP!

Our advocacy is working.

A key Senate committee has indicated that it will reject Trump’s proposed cuts to science agencies including NASA and the NSF.

Keep speaking up and calling your electeds 🗣️🗣️🗣️

YouTube video by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert A Scientific Brain Drain Has Followed Trump’s Gutting Of The NIH - Dr. Francis Collins

Such wisdom

youtu.be/lW9c6t4potU?...

Cool! Congratulations @kevinh-phd.bsky.social and @juliabelluz.bsky.social!!

Cancer vaccines and the future of immunotherapy Vaccines have had a major impact on the control of infectious disease, most recently by helping to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Prophylactic cancer vaccines have prevented several malignancies by pro...

“Vaccines have done more to improve public health than any other medical intervention.”

Cancer vaccines and the future of immunotherapy - www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

This exciting research gonna be a challenge for the antivaxx community...👆

A Pocket Guide for Scientists: The First Amendment - Climate Science Legal Defense Fund We wrote this guide so scientists can make informed decisions about how to safely and effectively participate in advocacy and activism.

The 1st Amendment protects scientists who engage in advocacy & activism - even if they work for a federal agency. We joined forces with @aclu.org to create a guide for scientists who wish to speak out while minimizing negative repercussions: www.csldf.org/resource/fir...

🤦🏻‍♀️🤯

What a wonderful organization. I donated for their effort to go to DC to share their real life stories of how the big disgraceful bill will hurt families.

Metabolic Dysfunction–Associated Steatotic Liver Disease (MASLD) in People With Diabetes: The Need for Screening and Early Intervention. A Consensus Report of the American Diabetes Association Metabolic dysfunction–associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), formerly referred to as nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), is a growing but often

Metabolic Dysfunction–Associated Steatotic Liver Disease (MASLD) in People With Diabetes: The Need for Screening and Early Intervention. A Consensus Report of the American Diabetes Association🔓
diabetesjournals.org/care/article...

Awesome! Congratulations. Can’t wait to see the paper.

Try This Podcast Logo

The “Try This” podcast was all about gut health and featured our research 🧪

#geeksthatspeak

podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

Thank you! It was an interesting hypothesis with much left to uncover.

Hypotheses and overall findings

Overall- we uncovered novel hypotheses related to a gut-adipose-liver axis that should be tested in future studies that focus on a broader range of MASLD physiology and evaluate people with and without diabetes and obesity.

Gene modules related to adipose insulin resistance and encroachment.

We did not find differences in biomarkers of gut permeability or colon histology (by group or overall). What we did find were colonic gene modules that were correlated with adipose insulin resistance encroachment.

Insulin resistance between groups

We found a range of encroachment from low to high- similar to what has been seen in people w diabetes/obesity. It could be that insulin resistance is a key driver since all participants had obesity. We then set out to determine what might distinguish high vs low encroachment.

Encroachment between groups

The short answer is no. We did not find more encroachment in people with steatosis or fibrosis as compared to controls. However…

Microbiota encroachment and a gut-adipose-liver axis in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease | American Journal of Physiology-Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology | American Physi... Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) affects ∼40% of adults, but causal mechanisms remain elusive. Preclinical models implicate the gut microbiota in MASLD pathogenesis, ye...

Out in final form today, our paper exploring whether microbiota encroachment into the mucosal lining is associated with MASLD in humans 🧪

journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10....

You too! So cool. We need to elevate the voices of scientists- especially right now. So glad to meet you.

I think we have a similar path as I help scientists and other geeks to use storytelling techniques. It’s my passion project. I do human metabolism research as my main gig.

Yes! Communication that goes beyond a data dump is key!

Would be awesome. My collaborators have some posters Sunday - maybe we can connect at the poster session!

It was a great session!!

Tragic

Infographic with bold red and navy headers reads “Take Action Now!” and “Ongoing Actions.” Lists include: Sign the Bethesda Declaration, sign the Open Letter against the Fool’s Gold EO, spread the word, host a teach-in, run a science demo table at a local event, and lead an open lab tour. Each item is accompanied by a checkmark. At the bottom, the red and white Stand Up for Science logo appears above a faded protest photo.

✊ACTION MENU✊

Science is under attack. But we’re fighting back.

✔️ Sign the Bethesda Declaration
✔️ Join our resistance to the Fool’s Gold EO
✔️ Take action in your community
✊ Let’s flood the zone with science.

Judge rules against NIH grant cuts — and calls them discriminatory The decision means that the US biomedical agency has to restore funding to hundreds of research projects, but the government will likely appeal.

A US judge has ordered hundreds of terminated research projects at the US National Institutes of Health to be reinstated, calling the processes that led to their cancellation “bereft of reasoning”.

https://go.nature.com/4kOmXDy

No Kings protest poster that reads “Science Saves Lives”

No Kings protest poster that reads “No Kings”

It’s #NoKings day in Seattle. I’m ready. Solidarity, to fellow citizens across the U.S. and to freedom-loving compatriots around the world.

Stand with us! Stand up for democracy, science, journalism, freedom of speech, peace, justice, rule of law, and a diverse and open society.

🕊️✊ 🚫👑