Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
@basicsci.fredhutch.org
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Making Foundational Discoveries
@fredhutch.org
fredhutch.org/basicsciences
pinned post!
2025 was an exceptional year for the Basic Sciences Division. We celebrated
@fredhutch.org
ās 50th anniversary, faculty, trainees, and staff receiving numerous awards, the retirements of Drs. Jon Cooper and Michael Emerman, and so much more. Get the highlights in our annual report:
buff.ly/xQ8hsUM
14 days ago
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Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Harmit Singh Malik
13 days ago
@pravrutharaman.bsky.social
got super intrigued about EZHIP/CATACOMB, previously identified as a histone H3K27M mimic of PRC2. You can read about her efforts here:
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
We hope these analyses will help spur more analyses in this very cool gene! 1/
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Dynamic evolution of EZHIP, an inhibitor of the Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 in mammals
The Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 (PRC2) is an ancient, conserved chromatin-interacting complex that controls gene expression, facilitating differentiation and cellular identity during development. It...
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.12.693809v1?ct=
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2025 was an exceptional year for the Basic Sciences Division. We celebrated
@fredhutch.org
ās 50th anniversary, faculty, trainees, and staff receiving numerous awards, the retirements of Drs. Jon Cooper and Michael Emerman, and so much more. Get the highlights in our annual report:
buff.ly/xQ8hsUM
14 days ago
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reposted by
Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Irving Institute for Cancer Dynamics
15 days ago
Last seminar of 2025: Dr.
@sanjaysrivatsan.bsky.social
from
@fredhutch.org
discussed capsule-based genome sequencing and lineage tracing. Thank you to everyone who joined us in person and via Zoom. Recording available on our YouTube channel:
youtu.be/ykS0q7Pl3xo?...
@jlmcfalinefigueroa.bsky.social
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Today we celebrated the retirement of research administration manager Katrina Akioka after 13 years
@fredhutch.org
. She leaves behind a legacy of service to Fred Hutch, the division, and the many faculty and labs she supported over the years. We wish her all the best in retirement.
18 days ago
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Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Molecular & Cellular Biology Graduate Program
18 days ago
Happening TODAY - Timothy Yuās (
@timyu.bsky.social
) dissertation defense! Title: Epistasis and pleiotropy in viral protein evolution Lab: Bloom Lab, FH When: Monday, December 8, 2 p.m. PST Where: Fred Hutch Pelton Auditorium (Weintraub Building) & Zoom (email
[email protected]
for link)
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Itās almost the best part of the week: Friday Afternoon Seminars! Canāt wait to learn about the latest research from Changkun Hu in the
@suebiggins.bsky.social
Lab and Haolong Li from the Human Biology Division. For all our
@FredHutch.org
colleagues, join us in Pelton at 4PM for two great talks!
21 days ago
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Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Harmit Singh Malik
21 days ago
Very proud of our lab manager, Aida de la Cruz, for winning the Nancy Hutchinson mentoring award (
www.fredhutch.org/en/education...
) based on her mentees' nominations.
@fredhutch.org
@basicsci.fredhutch.org
Internal news:
centernet.fredhutch.org/n/2025/12/sp...
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Congratulations to Aida de la Cruz, lab manager in the
@harmitmalik.bsky.social
Lab, on receiving the Hutchison Award! The award, presented by
@fredhutch.org
SPAC and named for Dr. Nancy Hutchison, recognizes phenomenal mentorship. It also comes with an awesome personalized bobblehead.
21 days ago
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Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Molecular & Cellular Biology Graduate Program
25 days ago
See you next week for Timothy Yuās (
@timyu.bsky.social
) dissertation defense! Title: Epistasis and pleiotropy in viral protein evolution Lab: Bloom Lab, FH When: Monday, December 8, 2 p.m. PST Where: Fred Hutch Pelton Auditorium (Weintraub Building) & Zoom (email
[email protected]
for link)
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We have two great speakers lined up for Friday Afternoon Seminars! For everyone
@FredHutch.org
, join us at 4:00 in Pelton to hear Gardenia Sanchez from the
@yarimura.bsky.social
and Saurabh Verma from Human Biologyās Nelson Lab share their latest discoveries!
about 1 month ago
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Weāre excited to have Edgar Fernandes from the Talbot Lab and Supriya Amonkar from Human Biologyās Galloway Lab sharing their latest research at Friday Afternoon Seminars. For all our
@FredHutch.org
colleagues, donāt miss two fantastic talks today at 4:00!
about 1 month ago
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Excited for two great speakers at Friday Afternoon Seminars! For all our
@FredHutch.org
colleagues , join us at 4:00 in Pelton to hear Alina Lorant from the Koch Lab and Naomi Yamamoto from Human Biologyās Kugel Lab share their latest research!
about 2 months ago
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reposted by
Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Molecular & Cellular Biology Graduate Program
about 2 months ago
Join us for Darren Mallettās dissertation defense! Title: Uncovering the mechanisms that control unattached kinetochore clustering Lab: Biggins Lab, FH When: Friday, November 14, 10 a.m. PST Where: Fred Hutch Pelton Auditorium (Weintraub Building)
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Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Fred Hutch
about 2 months ago
Congrats to Steven Henikoff, PhD, of
@basicsci.fredhutch.org
on receiving the 55th Lewis S. Rosenstiel Award for Distinguished Work in Basic Medical Research!
@brandeisuniversity.bsky.social
recognized Henikoff with this prestigious award for his innovative studies on gene expression.
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Brandeis University honors Fred Hutch molecular biologist
Dr. Steven Henikoff, a molecular biologist at Fred Hutch Cancer Center, has won the prestigious Rosenstiel Award for Distinguished Work in Basic Medical Research from Brandeis University recognizing h...
https://www.fredhutch.org/en/news/center-news/2025/10/henikoff-rosenstiel-award-brandeis-gene-expression.html
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Today we celebrated Dr. Steve Henikoff receiving the Lewis S. Rosenstiel Award for Distinguished Work in Basic Medical Research. Dr. Henikoff will formally receive the award and present a lecture on his work next April
@brandeisuniversity.bsky.social
.
www.brandeis.edu/stories/2025...
about 2 months ago
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Congratulations to Dr. Steve Henikoff on receiving the 55th Rosenstiel Award for his research on genome organization and gene expression! The award is given for recent discoveries of particular originality and importance to basic medical research.
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Professor Steven Henikoff receives 55th Rosenstiel Award for research on genome organization and gene expression
October 29, 2025
https://www.brandeis.edu/stories/2025/october/of-note/55th-rosenstiel-award-henikoff.html
about 2 months ago
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reposted by
Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Yasu Arimura
about 2 months ago
@jhigginswriter.bsky.social
wrote an article about my lab and our frog šø at the Hutch! Thank you!
add a skeleton here at some point
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"Foundation models for 3D genome architecture and tandem mass spectra" Weāre excited to have
@wnoble.bsky.social
joining us from
@uwgenome.bsky.social
to share his latest research at todayās Current Biology Seminar! For all our
@fredhutch.org
colleagues, donāt miss a great talk at noon in Pelton!
about 2 months ago
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reposted by
Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Fred Hutch
2 months ago
When
#science
meets
#spookyseason
! š§¬š We didnāt think it was possible, but our
@basicsci.fredhutch.org
and Human Biology Divisions raised the bar once again as they turned their creativity loose on some pumpkins during their annual pumpkin carving contest.
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Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Fred Hutch
about 2 months ago
Dr.
@yarimura.bsky.social
brings frogs back to Fred Hutch after a long absence to study the structure of DNA-linked molecular complexes that change during the cell cycle and malfunction in cancer and other diseases.
bit.ly/3J8S5Ae
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Frogs help Fred Hutch find the shape of small things
Frogs have made significant contributions to Fred Hutch science over the years as a model organism that shares much of our biology, but they've been absent from the menagerie for about two decades. Dr...
https://bit.ly/3J8S5Ae
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reposted by
Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Harmit Singh Malik
2 months ago
More pictures of the brilliance that is (lab manager) Aida de la Cruz with her creation.
add a skeleton here at some point
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So many phenomenal pumpkins at this yearās carving contest! Congratulations to the Berger Lab for most humorous, the Talbot Lab for most horrific, the
@melodygcampbell.bsky.social
Lab for most artistic and the
@harmitmalik.bsky.social
Lab for most scientific!
2 months ago
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The 2025 Pumpkin Carving Contest Kicks off at 4pm today! Canāt wait to see everyone and their amazing pumpkins!
2 months ago
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reposted by
Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Fred Hutch
2 months ago
In a study published in @science.org, Fred Hutch immunologist Meghan Koch, PhD, describes how breastmilk helps newborn mice develop immune tolerance to gut microbes and new foods, revealing a key mechanism that kicks in during the first week of life.
https://bit.ly/4ogmQ53
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It's a Basic Sciences double feature for Friday Afternoon Seminars! Excited to learn about the latest discoveries from Xiaohui Ju in the
@jbloomlab.bsky.social
and Matthew Chan in the
@rasilab.bsky.social
and
@melodygcampbell.bsky.social
Lab. See everyone at 4pm in Pelton for two great talks!
2 months ago
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"Decoding the autoantibody reactome." Weāre excited to have
@aaronmring.bsky.social
joining us from the Translational Science and Therapeutics Division to share his latest research at todayās Current Biology Seminar! For all our
@FredHutch.org
colleagues, donāt miss a great talk at noon!
2 months ago
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Friday Afternoon Seminars are back! Kicking things off are
@pravrutharaman.bsky.social
from the
@harmitmalik.bsky.social
Lab and
@christianloyo.bsky.social
from Human Biologyās Salama Lab. Canāt wait to see everyone today at 4:00 pm in Pelton for two great talks!
3 months ago
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For this Current Biology Seminar series, weāre hosting local luminaries from the pacific northwest. For the first talk of the series, weāre excited to have Dr. Eric Holland speaking today at noon in Pelton. For all our
@FredHutch.org
colleagues, donāt miss a great talk!
3 months ago
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The Weintraub Award is seeking nominations for 2026! The award recognizes the outstanding achievements of grad students in biology and was established to honor the bold, creative, pioneering spirit embodied by Dr. Hal Weintraub.
www.fredhutch.org/en/research/...
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Harold M. Weintraub Graduate Student Award
Annual award to honor the bold, creative, pioneering spirit embodied by Hal Weintraub. The Harold M. Weintraub Graduate Student Award recognizes outstanding achievements during graduate studies in the...
https://www.fredhutch.org/en/research/divisions/basic-sciences-division/weintraub-graduate-student-award.html
3 months ago
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Congrats to Rina Hirano, postdoc in the Tsukiyama Lab, for receiving the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science's Overseas Research Fellowship in support of excellent young Japanese scientists working abroad! The fellowship helps further her research on how cells go in and out of quiescence.
3 months ago
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It's National Research Administrator Day! On behalf of everyone in the division, we thank our research administrators for their vital role in advancing Basic Sciences. From managing labs and funding to resolving problems big and small, our division's success is thanks to their many contributions.
3 months ago
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Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Fred Hutch
3 months ago
Fred Hutch immunologist Dr. Meghan Koch discovers a biological mechanism sprung in the first week of life that trains a mouse pupās immune system to tolerate harmless gut bugs and new foods ā insights that could lead to potential therapies for food allergies in newborns and infants.
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Oh, the microbes youāll meet!
A Fred Hutch Cancer Center study shows maternal antibodies in breastmilk help newborn mice develop immune tolerance, offering insights into human immunity and potential therapies for infant food aller...
https://www.fredhutch.org/en/news/center-news/2025/09/meghan-koch-microbiome-breastmilk-immune-system.html?creator=fred_hutch&team=content&utm_campaign=hutchnews&utm_content=1758476581&utm_medium=social&utm_source=bluesky
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reposted by
Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Fred Hutch
3 months ago
This year, Fred Hutch Cancer Center turned the big 5-0 and celebrated all year long with stories highlighting the people and moments that have truly defined the organization. š https://bit.ly/4nengsC
#FH50
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Fred Hutch is 50
This year, Fred Hutch Cancer Center turned the big 5-0 and celebrated all year long with stories highlighting the people and moments that have truly defined the organization. From groundbreaking scien...
https://bit.ly/4nengsC
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The 2025 Basic Sciences retreat continues today with talks from division faculty. Canāt wait to meet the first-year postbacs and
@mcbseattle.bsky.social
students. Excited for another great day of science!
3 months ago
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The 2025 Basic Sciences retreat kicks off today at 2:00 p.m. with the main poster session in the Behnke Suites in Arnold Building. Canāt wait to hear about all the latest research happening in the division!
3 months ago
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reposted by
Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Harmit Singh Malik
3 months ago
My awesome Drosophila colleague Akhila Rajan at Fred Hutch (Seattle) is recruiting both a staff scientist and a postdoc to study fatābrain communication, innate immunity, mitochondrial signaling, and brain senescence. Great team, great environment. Apply here:
careers-fhcrc.icims.com/jobs/30062/j...
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Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center
Fred Hutch is dedicated to the elimination of cancer and related diseases as causes of human suffering and death.
https://careers-fhcrc.icims.com/jobs/30062/job?hub=7
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reposted by
Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Jane Coffin Childs Fund for Medical Research
3 months ago
Changkun Hu, PhD, is our featured fellow! Dr. Hu uses in vitro reconstitution and TIRF microscopy (šš) to investigate the kinetochore, a protein complex that's required for the proper segregation of chromosomes. 1/
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reposted by
Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Jeremy Hollis
4 months ago
So excited to see the first part of my thesis work with
@harmitmalik.bsky.social
and
@melodygcampbell.bsky.social
in print!
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
We have a bit of evolution and a whole lotta structure to figure out how new protein domains work
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Molecular exaptation by the integrin αI domain
An ancient protein domain insertion seamlessly preserved conformational signaling while providing a novel surface for adaptation.
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adx9567
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reposted by
Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Bloom lab
4 months ago
In new study led by Xiaohui Ju, we define how mutations to Chikungunya virus envelope proteins affect entry in human vs mosquito cells. Sheds light on functional constraints & enables us to make loss-of-tropism mutants, which could be of use for vaccines.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
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Determinants of human versus mosquito cell entry by the Chikungunya virus envelope proteins
Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) infects both humans and mosquitoes during its transmission cycle. How the virusās envelope proteins mediate entry in cells from such different species is unclear. MXRA8 is a ...
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.08.25.672233v1
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Drs. Steve Hahn and Lakshmi Mahendrawada sit down with the Double-stranded Podcast. Check out a great conversation and learn about their recent
@nature.com
paper thatās rewriting our understanding of transcription factors:
youtu.be/lXgdvmveA_k?...
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Low overlap of transcription factor DNA binding and regulatory targets
YouTube video by Double-stranded Podcast
https://youtu.be/lXgdvmveA_k?si=mkWo__MsyyKoX852
4 months ago
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reposted by
Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Harmit Singh Malik
4 months ago
Preparing to say goodbye to two outstanding scientists from the lab: Ching-Ho Chang (āŖ@ching-hochang.bsky.socialā¬) and Yu-Ying Phoebe Hsieh (āŖ@hsiehyp.bsky.socialā¬) who are both leaving the lab at the end of the month to start their own independent labs at the prestigious Academia Sinica in Taipei
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Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Bloom lab
4 months ago
In new study led by
@bdadonaite.bsky.social
, we measure how spike mutations affect function & antigenicity of spike of KP.3.1.1 strain of SARS-CoV-2. Sheds light on how key neutralizing epitopes are changing & importance of RBD up/down motion.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
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Spike mutations that affect the function and antigenicity of recent KP.3.1.1-like SARS-CoV-2 variants
SARS-CoV-2 is under strong evolutionary selection to acquire mutations in its spike protein that reduce neutralization by human polyclonal antibodies. Here we use pseudovirus-based deep mutational sca...
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.08.18.671001v1
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Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Bloom lab
4 months ago
Our lab has an opening for a research technician to contribute to our efforts to understand RSV evolution & its impact on antibody countermeasures (see
journals.asm.org/doi/full/10....
). The tech will also help w lab management. If interested, apply here:
careers-fhcrc.icims.com/jobs/29940/job
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reposted by
Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Bloom lab
5 months ago
Wanted to flag this interesting study led by our collaborators
@kinglabipd.bsky.social
suggesting that at least in some contexts, the immunogenicity of H5 influenza vaccines can be improved by mutations that stabilize the HA protein.
add a skeleton here at some point
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reposted by
Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Bloom lab
5 months ago
Final version of this paper is published in Journal of Virology:
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
If you are interested in implementing RSV pseudovirus neutralization assays, the plasmids are now available in AddGene (
www.addgene.org/browse/artic...
) and we are happy to share the 293T-TIM1 cells.
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RSV F evolution escapes some monoclonal antibodies but does not strongly erode neutralization by human polyclonal sera | Journal of Virology
We describe an efficient approach to measure how antibodies inhibit infection by historical and recent human strains of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). This approach is useful for understanding how...
https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/jvi.00531-25
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Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Fred Hutch
5 months ago
During his 36-year career at Fred Hutch,
@memerman.bsky.social
made fundamental discoveries about HIV, co-founded the field of paleovirology and mentored generations of scientists.
bit.ly/4nMqOmr
@hutchbasicsci.bsky.social
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Virologist and HIV expert Dr. Michael Emerman retires
During his 36-year career at Fred Hutch Cancer Center, Michael Emerman, PhD, made fundamental discoveries about HIV, the retrovirus that causes AIDS. He co-founded the field of paleovirology and consi...
https://bit.ly/4nMqOmr
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"Signals, forces and cells: Force sensing in epithelial tissues" Weāre excited to have Dr. Jennifer Zallen joining us from
@mskcancercenter.bsky.social
for a special guest seminar. For all our
@FredHutch.bsky.social
colleagues, donāt miss a great talk today at noon!
6 months ago
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reposted by
Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Fred Hutch
6 months ago
Staff, faculty, providers and furry friends š¶ came out to celebrate Fred Hutch's 50th Anniversary at the South Lake Union campus.
#fredhutch
#fh50
#cancer
#cancerresearch
#cancertreatment
#seattle
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Fred Hutch Basic Sciences Division
Fred Hutch
6 months ago
Scenes from the 51st
@seattlepride.bsky.social
!
#fredhutch
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For all our
@FredHutch.bsky.social
colleagues, donāt miss a special talk today at noon hosted by the Fred Hutch Chromatin Club. Weāre excited to have Dr. Zhiguo Zhang joining us from
@columbiamed.bsky.social
to share his latest discoveries on chromatin replication.
6 months ago
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