I am just now catching up on the fact that the FDA was demanding Uniqure do sham brain surgeries (from what I can tell, comprising simulated burr holes and 10-12 hours of anesthesia) in their placebo arm for their Huntington's therapeutic, and I'm absolutely floored that this was a serious demand.

GOOD NEWS! Researchers at Stanford University have developed a UNIVERSAL vaccine known as GLA-3M-052-LS+OVA, that protects against a wide range of respiratory viruses, bacteria AND even allergens. The vaccine is delivered intranasally AND provides broad protection in the lungs for several MONTHS.

Are you finished with the proposal?

My quote of the day Courage is the most important of all the virtues, because without courage you can't practice any other virtue consistently. You can practice any virtue erratically, but nothing consistently without courage. Maya Angelou

The expression “making time” is strange. Time cannot be manufactured. It can only taken from one thing and given to other.

Job alert ‼️ UChicago Micro is hiring! Open to tenured/tenure track faculty at all levels in any area of microbiology. Come join our amazing and growing department. apply.interfolio.com/174404

Ok. Didn’t know that was a thing. But I don’t judge.

Are you from one of these states? Then we need your help to save American science! The Senate Appropriations Committee will be marking up the President's Budget Request for science on Wednesday. People have been saying the proposed cuts "decimated" US science, but that's wrong: they are apocalyptic

Today is the last day to submit public comments on Schedule F, which is essentially designed to politicize the Civil Service. Here is the letter that I just submitted:

If universities do not unite on this, we will all fall. The entire country will suffer. They will not stop at Harvard and Columbia. They are coming for ALL of higher education. Every single center of higher education will be targeted. This is what authoritarians do. Again, and again, and again.

From hundreds of terminated grants in biomedicine to selective prosecutions to organizational overhauls at the nation's science funding agencies, today's news reports salvo after salvo from a Republican administration dead set on destroying higher education—and with it, US leadership in technology.

All 4 of my NIH research grants are terminated. These were grants on MDR-TB treatment & strategies for supporting adolescents living w/ HIV. This is a massive waste of resources. I am heartbroken for my Harvard team, my partners in Peru, the next generation of scientists & our country. Shame.

FROM @reuters.com: The Trump administration has said addressing autism is one of its top health priorities. Records show it has also halted about a quarter of NIH's research funding related to autism. www.reuters.com/business/hea...

"I'm still in shock. I know that there have been political issues around Harvard in recent weeks, but antibiotic resistance isn't one of them." My conversation with Harvard microbiologist @baym.lol, one of many researchers there who just lost millions in fed. grants. www.wbur.org/news/2025/05...

"The future of biomedical research [amounts to] a race to see whether the biomedical research community can mobilize politically, access that vast but latent political power, before the White House can do enough sustained damage to make the whole question moot." talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/a-pat...

What cutting science and biomedical grants mean for the nation... www.npr.org/2025/04/25/n...

A scientific Boston massacre.

A lipid nanoparticle–delivered base-editing therapy was custom designed for an infant with a ureacycle disorder. The affected infant was treated at approximately 7 and 8 months of age. Read the Brief Report: nej.md/42XF03F #ASGCT2025 #MedSky @asgct.bsky.social

At the end of this summer, the future of U.S. science and research will be decided. From weather alerts to cancer breakthroughs, science shapes every part of our lives. We need everyone in this fight. The Summer Fight for Science starts now. Are you in? The fight starts here: bit.ly/4ddiuqU

Yesterday, the NIH R35 “Outstanding Investigator” grant to fund scientists in my lab studying antibiotic resistance was terminated for reasons not related to the content of the science, or any actions taken by me or members of my lab

I am thinking a lot today about how heavy things feel in my world of faculty doing scientific research. There's the immediate chaos and panic about our ability to pay people and continue our research. But there's also a deeper grief at watching everything get bulldozed for no reason

I never imagined I would see something like this happen to federally funded research in the US. I am heartbroken for all the researchers whose grants have been terminated and devastated for all the patients whose current (and future) treatments are being impacted 🧪 💔

Current situation at Harvard Medical School for NIH grants view.u.hms.harvard.edu?qs=3ed8c01b9...

Slow grant making continues. Here is a graph through May 1st. 2/n

ACTION ITEM-----ACTION ITEM Implementation of Schedule F This is what a lot of us have been worried about. This allows for many civil service positions to replaced with political appointees. This could include NIH institute directors and even POs. BUT THERE IS A COMMENT PERIOD... 1/n

Many hundreds (perhaps up to 1000) of additional NIH grants appear to be have been terminated on Friday. I have updated the data from the HHS TAGGS site (and converted it from a pdf to an Excel file) on the dashboard but many hundreds are still missing. jeremymberg.github.io/jeremyberg.g...

Today I lost an NIH grant training clinicians to do research about intimate partner violence with perinatal women. More women are murdered in the perinatal period than die of obstetric complications. I didn't just lose a grant. We lost an entire cohort of people building careers to prevent that.

The crush of new grant cancellations hasn't let up. If your grant was terminated (or your app was pulled) please use this Google Form👇 to submit details for tracking purposes. Multiple advocacy efforts are moving forward, but we must must must know more about what grants were cancelled and why.

ATTENTION If you are someone (or know someone) who is enrolled in an NIH-funded clinical trial that has been disrupted by grant uncertainties or terminations, please DM me. THANK YOU!

In my 25 years since high school I’ve seen 1. HIV/AIDS go from death sentence to manageable with drugs 2. Cystic fibrosis go from pretty much an extended death sentence to manageable with drugs 3. Sickle cell go from a horrible disease to (almost maybe) cured by gene therapy Simply incredible

This is shameful. I have met with many NOAA scientists in our district. Their work monitoring extreme weather and addressing the climate crisis is critical. We must advocate for NOAA and stand with the workers who were unjustly fired. www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...

1) The "cuts" that DOGE/Trump/Musk are doing are things that stimulate the economy. Some, like NIH return multiples to the economy. 2) The job cuts are spooking people. When people are spooked, they don't spend money. 3) Cutting contracts sends the message that America does not pay its bills.

Anne Carpenter writes about the science cuts: “this is like suddenly announcing that you will pay for doctors and nurses but not the hospital building they work in” for the LaPorte Herald Dispatch in IN 🌽 🧪🧬🔬🏠 @drannecarpenter.bsky.social www.lpheralddispatch.com/opinion/gues...

NEW: “Kennedy paused a multimillion dollar project to create a new Covid-19 vaccine in pill form on Tuesday, and the Food and Drug Administration canceled an advisory committee meeting on updating next season’s flu vaccine.” newrepublic.com/post/192059/...

We’ve tried to shelter our minds but tonight we’re preparing for the genocide of Science. Entire NIH departments will have no leaders. World renowned Scientists kicked to the curb without cause, & grants will loose their lead investigators. Is this what they want? Chaos? Destruction?

Very encouraging news about cancer research and mRNA vaccines. An administration that cared about Americans' well-being would be looking for ways to follow up and double down on such efforts. The Trump administration on the other hand seems determined to gut NIH and is hostile to vaccines.

So: We have news of very promising developments in cancer treatment with mRNA vaccines. The Trump administration wants to gut cancer research and hamper the development of mRNA vaccines.

Article in WaPo today on the Federal Register ban. If ayone has a gift link to share I’d be much obliged! www.washingtonpost.com/science/2025...

The head of the Autism, ADHD, and Externalizing Disorders Interventions Research Program at the National Institute of Mental Health was fired over the weekend, 21 days shy of the end of her one year probationary period. She posted about it on fb.

As a parent to a child with special needs, I can’t even begin to tell you how heartbreaking it is to see this.

Strong background in genomics and bioinformatics education and community engagement. Currently located in Bethesda, MD. Updated CV: app.box.com/s/hg5g6z05cz...

I maxed out my credit card, emptied my savings account, and took out a loan to move from Alabama to Bethesda, MD. I don’t even qualify for unemployment since I’ve only worked at NIH for a month. I will be financially and medically devastated. Seeking suggestions for anywhere that’s hiring!!

To all my colleagues at NIH and CDC: I know that you worked so hard to get the position you had. I know how seriously you took your oath. I'm sorry that we've abandoned you and are willing to just let you go after all your training. I know we'll regret this but I'm afraid that'll come too late.

Here's a quantitative illustration of what's happening with NIH funding.

Shocked only 22 are joining in. States with a lot to lose (like mine, Alabama) should join the suit.

This right here is it. The OMB freeze may have failed and the indirects cut is almost certainly illegal, but sooner or later they will start landing hits. We’re only three weeks into this