Patrick S. Mitchell

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

Co-discoverer of reverse transcriptase at 32, Nobel Prize at 37, played a key role at the 1975 Asilomar comference.

Hypermutable hotspot enables the rapid evolution of self/non-self recognition genes in Dictyostelium Cells require highly polymorphic receptors to perform accurate self/non-self recognition. In the amoeba Dicytostelium discoideum, polymorphic TgrB1 & TgrC1 proteins are used to bind sister cells and e...

I'm excited to announce our new biorxiv preprint, wherein we investigate the evolution of the weirdest genetic locus I've ever seen! Behold the tgr genes of the social amoeba, which mediate self/non-self discrimination during facultative multicellularity 🐅 🧵 1/
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Over 70K in Seattle denounce Trump at massive ‘No Kings’ rally Massive crowds gathered in Cal Anderson Park, aboard a state ferry and at the state Capitol to denounce the hard-line policies of President Donald Trump.

Over 70K in Seattle denounce Trump at massive ‘No Kings’ rally

ADD YOUR NAME: Sign the Open Letter in Support of NIH Staff Join the courageous and committed National Institutes of Health (NIH) public servants by adding your name now.

What does 18,000+ brave signatories look like standing together in massive solidarity with the #NIH heroes of the historic Bethesda Declaration??...

Find out by adding YOUR NAME to our #NIHLove letter here! -

actionnetwork.org/forms/add-na...

#StandUpForScience
#BethesdaDeclaration
#StopTrump

#nokings

Especially if you're on the fence about it, protest today. Fascism is isolating and lonely. Its very goal is to make you feel like you're the only person unwilling to accept a cult of personality. On days like today you fully realize there are more of us than there are them. You will feel better.

Trump preparing large-scale cancellation of federal funding for California, sources say | CNN Politics The Trump administration is preparing to cancel a large swath of federal funding to California, an effort which could begin as soon as Friday, according to multiple sources.

"Sources said the administration is specifically considering a full termination of federal grant funding for the University of California and California State University systems."

Pure vandalism.

This could never happen in a country with functioning checks and balances.

Federal investment in UC research Federal funds are the university’s single most important source of support for research, accounting for more than half of UC’s total research awards. Many of California’s leading industries grew from UC research, including biotechnology, computing, semiconductors, telecommunications and agriculture. Providing health care at UC University of California Health (UC Health) is one of the nation’s largest public academic health systems, serving as a critical part of the California safety net. UC trains approximately 36% of the medical residents in California

The university of California is a powerhouse of innovation, healthcare, and social mobility for California and the US.

Together with leading science organizations, ASM filed an amicus brief calling for immediate restoration of NIH grants supporting early-career scientists. Read the press release: asm.org/press-releas...

NIH's work saves lives—& Trump is gutting it.

Straight from D.C. I headed to Seattle Children's to hear from researchers & patients alike about the importance of NIH funding—it's not just about lines in a budget, it's about lifesaving discoveries.

We ALL need to speak up to save it.

#Seattle showed out for the #Handsoff rally. Truly heartening to see the local and national turnout. Keep fighting.

You can count on me to be a square anytime Vineet. But @elearlybird.bsky.social and I are not mutually exclusive - hedge your bets!

Graduate Reductions Across Biomedical Sciences (2025)

🚨 Over 70 graduate programs in the biological and biomedical sciences have frozen or slashed admissions.

The consequences are profound—how many brilliant minds are being shut out of research entirely? How much future discovery is being lost before it even begins?

docs.google.com/spreadsheets...

Cuts to science research funding cut American lives short − federal support is essential for medical breakthroughs The National Institutes of Health has been integral to scientific progress in treating countless human diseases. Without its support, patients will ultimately pay the price.

Cuts to science research funding cut American lives short − federal support is essential for medical breakthroughs

See this chart for one stark example: NIH funding has dramatically slowed down.

Grant awards are down *$3 billion* so far, compared to same time period last year

I asked the White House to explain.

“This is not a researcher entitlement program,” said an official, defending their new approach.

written with my wonderful colleague Deb Fuller.

I want to highlight:

...trainees are the lifeblood of biomedical research and its future. Supporting young people committed to public service through research and health care is an investment in medical advancements and public health...

We see you. You belong here.

We lose:

✖️Basic science advancements that help us understand the causes of disease.

✖️New treatments and cures for diseases like cancer and Alzheimer's. Our ability to combat infectious diseases.

✖️the biomedical workforce.

✖️the next generation of researchers and health professionals.

Cuts to science research funding cut American lives short − federal support is essential for medical breakthroughs The National Institutes of Health has been integral to scientific progress in treating countless human diseases. Without its support, patients will ultimately pay the price.

Federal funding of biomedical research has been a remarkably successful partnership, with benefits that are so intertwined in our daily lives that they can be easy to take for granted.

So what will we lose if the U.S. continues to defund research?

theconversation.com/cuts-to-scie...

Vilcek Prizes for Creative Promise - Vilcek Foundation The Creative Promise Prizes are awarded to young immigrant professionals who have demonstrated outstanding achievement early in their careers.

More important now than ever before: vilcek.org/prizes/vilce...

Making the case for science - The Morning Sun I am a research scientist at the Center for Mind and Brain at the University of California, Davis. Before that, I was a student in Pittsburg Community Schools: I started kindergarten at Lakeside and g...

I wrote an OpEd arguing against funding cuts to NIH and NSF and their devastating impact for the newspaper I grew up with, the Morning Sun, in Pittsburg, Kansas.

Keep spreading the word, wherever you can.

morningsun.net/stories/maki...

First authors Madeline Churchill and Ankit Pandeya @nkeet50.bsky.social from @rauchlab.bsky.social show that tuft cells, known for their role in anti-parasite defenses, can also contribute to anti-bacterial responses in the small intestine. rupress.org/jem/article/...

#InfectiousDisease

Let's not forget that apart from science advocacy the Rauch lab also does kick-ass science!
Together with the @psmitchej.bsky.social and Tait Wojno labs, we show that #tuftcells can induce specific protective signaling after recognition of intracellular bacterial infection via the #inflammasome!

NIH Grants Fueled $95 Billion In FY 2024 Economic Activity, Finds New Report National Institutes of Health grants generated almost $95 billion in economic activity nationwide in FY 2024 according to a new report by United for Medical Research.

New report shows that NIH grants fueled $95 billion in economic activity and 407,782 jobs in 2024.

That's not to mention the countless lives that biomedical research has saved.

Show me a better investment than that.
www.forbes.com/sites/michae...

NIH Cuts Create a Lost Generation of Scientists Trump administration attacks on the National Institutes of Health mean biomedical research will become less ambitious, less competitive and result in fewer breakthroughs.

🧪 The attack on science could have a generational effect. We risk losing a wave of early-career researchers to these cuts. And biomedical science in the US will be less ambitious, less competitive & lead to fewer breakthroughs. So much is at stake. My latest for @opinion.bloomberg.com (🎁 link):

See below for an AMAZING opportunity to learn the science of mosquito neurobiology.

Lee Herzenberg playing guitar during her time in France

Lee Herzenberg in her lab at Stanford

1/4
Today, I honor Dr. Lee Herzenberg, a renaissance woman and a pioneer.
#InternationalWomensDay #WomenInScience #IWD

I’ve been fortunate to be mentored by women at home and in science. I met Lee in 2004, and her mentorship profoundly influenced my career and values.

if you've had an NIH grant terminated, I want to hear about it. Signal: katherinejwu.12

Seattle scientists fight back against Trump cuts, disinformation “No one is coming to save us from this,” said Abraham Flaxman, a professor at the University of Washington. “We’re going to have to save ourselves.”

www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...

#standupforscience

Many, many thanks to all who attended, the speakers, and to the incredible @sufsseattle.bsky.social organizers!!!