I am delighted to share the newest work from the Sternberg Lab, in which we discover RNA-templated gene creation as a mechanism of antiviral immunity. This is a story for anyone who loves molecular biology, and one that repeatedly left us in disbelief. doi.org/10.1101/2024.0…

On a related note, I’m worried about a widespread attitude that undervalues group effort and overvalues “the top.”
Statistically, most of us have no chance of winning a Nobel prize. But we do have a good chance of making valuable contributions. Which is the better life goal?

Congratulations to Graham Hatfull for
Joining the National Academy of Science!
pitt.edu/pittwire/featu…

Congratulations Helen Berman of Rutgers University, newly inducted #NASmember ! #NAS161 #biology #chemistry #biophysics

We are recruiting for a new fiber and microbiome study for #breastcancersurvivors UC Irvine UCI BioSci Susan Samueli Integrative Health Institute UCSF Breast Care Center Please help spread the word!

UChicago CARES fosters inclusivity for the The University of Chicago community, combating discrimination, harassment, and sexual misconduct. The multidisciplinary team offers outreach, support services, and resolution options, prioritizing empowerment and well-being.
cares.uchicago.edu

I did at least once receive a follow-up note from a Molecular Microbiology editor.

Just what I've been looking for for teaching ... but behind a paywall. Hopefully the full text will be available soon!

Totally 🤯 by Sam Sternberg talk at #ICTE2024 : phages have coopted bacterial RNA-guided transposons into RNA-guided transcription factors to precisely manipulate host gene expression! Likely used for inter-phage warfare!

biorxiv.org/content/10.110…

The follow-up of our January Science advances paper! I am sure that you are all willing to know how survive the superintegron inversion? here it is , congrats Loot Céline Egill Richard journals.plos.org/plosgenetics/a…

I'm going to start a new hashtag to show cases where universities or journals have been notified of severe (image) concerns years ago, but have not taken any action.
I will name and shame, because it's frustrating and maddening.
#IntegrityInertia

Visualizing the role of an FeS cluster in DNA repair, in exquisite detail - amazing work from my friends Xiaojing Yang and Zhong Ren:
sciencedirect.com/science/articl…

As teaching evaluation season is upon us, a reminder that they can be incredibly biased. This is readily visualized using benschmidt.org, which lets you search ratings by keyword. Here I used common gender-neutral terms for intelligence - all used more often for males.🧵

The Joseph Piccirilli Lab has shown a structural basis for promiscuity in ligand recognition by yjdF riboswitch

Cell Discovery Daniel Krochmal Christina Roman UChiPhysicalSciences UChicago Biological Sciences

nature.com/articles/s4142…

I don't quite understand the snark? Yes the beauty of mathematics is that it transcends culture, but the way I was taught math in my youth certainly gave the incorrect impression that it was a purely western invention.

Congrats ⁦Amer A Hossain⁩ for the great work on anti-phage DNA glycosylases!! Thanks to our collaborator Phoebe Rice, and also Sean Brady and Joshua Chappie. nature.com/articles/s4158…

Structural basis of DNA crossover capture by Escherichia coli DNA gyrase | Science science.org/doi/10.1126/sc…

Structure-functional characterization of Lactococcus AbiA phage defense system - Marcus J O Johansson and Artyom Egorov from our lab teamed up with the Nowotny lab at IIMCB, Warsaw, Poland! academic.oup.com/nar/article/do…

Some fun during the near-total eclipse here with a zillion - pinhole camara - that is, an old loose-weave bag.

Chicago fought the fog ... and the fog won