Can Senkal

Kim, Parolek, and Burd @yalecellbiology.bsky.social show that depletion of #cholesterol increases #sphingomyelin synthesis as a result of increased coatomer II–mediated endoplasmic reticulum-to-#Golgi #trafficking of #ceramide, the precursor to sphingomyelin. rupress.org/jcb/article/...

I want to highlight a new #lipidtime article from our lab on disease-associated 1-deoxysphingolipids, which is nicely featured on the cover of this month's issue of Cell Chem Bio @cp-cellchembiol.bsky.social www.cell.com/cell-chemica...

Excellent news. The NIGMS Building Undergraduate Research Training (BURT) T34 NOFO is published. First due is Feb 25th, for December 26 funding. This condenses previous UG NOFOs so reach out to email/previous PO if you have Qs. files.simpler.grants.gov/opportunitie...

Detection and quantitation of ferritinophagy using halo-tag tracing Iron is an essential element required for critical processes such as oxygen transport, energy generation, and DNA synthesis. To be incorporated as a cofactor, iron that is stored in the cytosol within...

I am very happy to share our recently published work in JBC @asbmb.bsky.social. We generated a tool to detect and quantitate ferritinophagy. We hope that this tool will be useful in iron biology research.
www.jbc.org/article/S002...

Post-Doctoral Fellow - Department of Cellular, Molecular, and Genetic Medicine - MCV Main Campus, Virginia, United States Advertising Summary: Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) School of Medicine is a premier academic medical center located in the heart of Richmond. Accounting for almost half of VCU’s sponsored rese...

We have a post-doctoral fellow position in our laboratory. Please spread the news and encourage applications. Thank you!
vcujobs.com/jobs/post-do...

So grateful to my colleagues for this honor!

My quote of the day

As I reflect on my life, I recognize that our greatest achievements often arise from our most profound struggles. Embrace challenges and view failures as opportunities for growth. It is through these trials that we learn, adapt, and ultimately succeed.

Marie Curie

Cancer centers adapt to life without site visits as NIH changes CCSG review - The Cancer Letter Love them or hate them, site visits have been a part of the culture of NCI-designated cancer centers for decades, shaping the process for admitting members to the elite club and influencing internal politics within institutions. To access this subscriber-only content please log in or subscribe.If your institution has a site license, log in with […]

Robert Winn (@aacicancer.bsky.social): “Having Tony [Letai] come in now as the actual NCI director gives us an opportunity to keep the process potentially within @theNCI, which is what I’m going to advocate for—and that we narrow the site visits."
https://cancerletter.com/nci/20251031_1/

Accumulation of succinate suppresses de novo purine synthesis through succinylation-mediated control of the mitochondrial folate cycle The de novo purine synthesis pathway is fundamental for nucleotide production, yet the role of mitochondrial metabolism in modulating this process rem…

Excited to share our latest work out today in @cp-molcell.bsky.social, revealing a molecular link between succinate dehydrogenase and purine synthesis, connecting two fundamental metabolic pathways. Huge congratulations to the first author, Mushtaq Nengroo! www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
!

FSP1-mediated lipid droplet quality control prevents neutral lipid peroxidation and ferroptosis - Nature Cell Biology Lange et al. identify a lipid droplet quality control pathway in which FSP1 safeguards stored neutral lipids from lipid peroxidation, thereby preventing the induction of ferroptosis.

Excited to share my postdoc work @olzmannlab.bsky.social! We found lipid droplets, the cell’s lipid storage depots, are subject to oxidative damage and are protected by FSP1. Loss of FSP1 triggers droplet peroxidation and cell death, revealing a new layer of lipid quality control!

shorturl.at/B5XYD

Accumulation of succinate suppresses de novo purine synthesis through succinylation-mediated control of the mitochondrial folate cycle The de novo purine synthesis pathway is fundamental for nucleotide production, yet the role of mitochondrial metabolism in modulating this process rem…

Accumulation of succinate suppresses de novo purine synthesis through succinylation-mediated control of the mitochondrial folate cyclehttps://

www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1097276525008196

Congratulations @bensahralab.bsky.social !!

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...

Many thanks to all the trainees in our laboratory for their dedication and hard work. I represent their success.
cmgm.vcu.edu/news/faculty...

🧠 The Lipid #Brain Atlas is out now! If you think #lipids are boring and membranes are all the same, prepare to be surprised. Led by @lucafusarbassini.bsky.social with Giovanni D'Angelo's lab, we mapped membrane lipids in the mouse brain at high resolution.
www.biorxiv.org/cgi/content/...

Our efforts at the Massey in training the next generation of oncology leaders was highlighted in the ACCC-Oncology Issues:
journals.accc-cancer.org/view/buildin...

Anthony G. Letai to be named NCI director The Dana-Farber and Harvard physician-scientist is an inspired choice, colleagues say - The Cancer Letter Anthony G. Letai, a physician-scientist at Harvard Medical School and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute whose research is focused on apoptosis and functional diagnostics, has been tapped by the Trump administration to become the 18th director of the National Cancer Institute. To access this subscriber-only content please log in or subscribe.If your institution has a site license, […]

Many observers view Anthony Letai’s appointment as part of a series of hopeful events that followed months of reductions in force, proposed reorganizations, and efforts to cut intramural and extramural spending.
https://cancerletter.com/nci/20250925_1/

Secretary Kennedy Swears in Dr. Anthony Letai as Director of the National Cancer Institute Dr. Letai will serve as NCI’s 18th director.

We want to congratulate our President, Dr. Tony Letai, on his appointment as Director of the NCI. This announcement marks an historic moment for cancer research. Dr. Letai has been a tireless advocate and visionary leader for functional precision medicine 🧵

www.nih.gov/news-events/...

thank you to all the NIH staff who stand by their duty and put in heroic efforts to get it done. I'll never forget it and will be eternally grateful.

Congratulations!

Anthony G. Letai to be named NCI director The Dana-Farber and Harvard physician-scientist is an inspired choice, colleagues say - The Cancer Letter Anthony G. Letai, a physician-scientist at Harvard Medical School and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute whose research is focused on apoptosis and functional diagnostics, has been tapped by the Trump administration to become the 18th director of the National Cancer Institute. To access this subscriber-only content please log in or subscribe.If your institution has a site license, […]

SPECIAL REPORT: Anthony G. Letai to be named NCI director
The Dana-Farber (@danafarber.bsky.social) and Harvard physician-scientist is an inspired choice, colleagues say
https://cancerletter.com/nci/20250925_1/

A huge shoutout to all the dedicated grants management specialists at the NIH who are working around the clock to push grants out before the Sep 30 deadline. And also to the POs responding to frantic emails.
Not an easy job under the best of circumstances and right now it's the pits.
Thank you!

Leaflet-specific phospholipid imaging using genetically encoded proximity sensors - Nature Chemical Biology An approach combining bioorthogonal chemistry with genetically encoded fluorogen-activating proteins enables subcellular imaging of phospholipids and glycans, as well as the visualization of lipid tra...

Very excited to share new work out today in @natchembio.nature.com on a new approach - FACES - for selectively imaging of phospholipids and other biomolecules at spatial resolutions down to individual membrane leaflets (1/n) www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Some happy news to share: We received the NOA of our R01 today.

Congrarulations!

Excited to share our new review with @depaceraffa.bsky.social‬, @saikat2025.bsky.social‬, and Chad Williamson on the BLOC-1 and BORC complexes—key regulators of endolysosomal processes and linked to several genetic diseases. #NIH #Lysosomes #RareDiseases authors.elsevier.com/a/1lg4i8jWWJ...

Quantitative imaging of lipid transport in mammalian cells - Nature Directional, non-vesicular lipid transport is responsible for fast, species-selective lipid sorting into organelle membranes.

Quite a week for #lipidtime: phenomenal study using bifunctional lipid probes to quantify intracellular lipid transport from @nadlerlab.bsky.social and colleagues is now out @nature.com! www.nature.com/articles/s41...

The goal of a PhD is not to learn some facts or read a few papers or learn a bunch of techniques. The goal of a PhD is to learn independence, problem solving, how to finish things you start, resilience, & gain the ability to adapt & think creatively. Learning these things is hard.

Ray Blind (@blindlab.bsky.social), an associate professor at Vanderbilt University Medical Center & @vumedicine.bsky.social, investigates how ligands bind & change the activity of two nuclear receptor 5A, or NR5A, family members called steroidogenic factor-1 & liver receptor homomlog-1, or LRH-1.

The source of dietary fat influences anti-tumour immunity in obese mice - Nature Metabolism This study shows that animal-based high-fat diets accelerate tumour growth and impair anti-tumour response to melanoma in obese mice, whereas plant-based high-fat diets do not.

This was a labor of love requiring lots of teamwork over years, repeating in 3 locations! Thanks to all the lab over the years, giving their time generously to this team project, & our wonderful collaborators. The source of fat matters for anti-tumor immunity 🐄🐖🧈🌴🫒🥥
www.nature.com/articles/s42...

Congratulations!