The Mellon College of Science had an extraordinary year in 2025. From groundbreaking research to inspiring leadership, our faculty, students and community came together to advance science. Explore the moments and milestones that defined the year: www.cmu.edu/mcs/news-eve...

New preprint led by super🌟 PhD student @eloisewells.bsky.social! Here we explore using exon-skipping to remove upstream open reading frames (uORFs) and increase protein translation as a therapeutic approach for rare haploinsufficient disorders 🧬 To learn more see Eloise's 🧵 👇

Our Science paper is out! Huge congratulations to @huabin-zhou.bsky.social, Mike Rosen, and the brilliant @janhuemar.bsky.social @juliamaristany.bsky.social and @kieran-russell.bsky.social from our group News: bit.ly/4avnkAr and bit.ly/3XBGVHS Great perspective by @vram142.bsky.social +K Zhang

Really looking forward to presenting our lab's most recent work on transcriptional control and a surprising non-enzymatic function for RNA polymerase II

Unpause! I'm super happy to now be able to share the published version of our paper at Science Advances showing that: 1) active histone mods occur independently of transcription 2) transcription coordinates histone deacetylation at active promoters www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

We’re excited to share our new work in Soft Matter: doi.org/10.1039/D5SM... We demonstrate how in vitro transcription can drive biomolecular phase separation — and how that phase separation in turn regulates transcription.

We are pleased to announce a new preprint by @mlweilert.bsky.social: “Widespread low-affinity motifs enhance chromatin accessibility and regulatory potential in mESCs” (www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...). See summary and longer recap below: (TLDR; low-affinity motifs matter as pioneers!)

Interested in pursuing a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences? Join Carnegie Mellon University’s info session on Nov. 12 to learn how our program prepares students to become impactful scientific leaders. apply-dc-mcs.mcs.cmu.edu/register/?id...

(1/10) How do diverse leukemia mutations converge on the same molecular program? In #RibackLab first manuscript @cp-cell.bsky.social, collaboration with @goodell-lab.bsky.social shows that disparate mutations rewire shared protein networks to form nuclear condensates called C-bodies.

CMU biologist @jhenninger.bsky.social is uncovering how RNA shapes gene expression and drives disease. His lab is developing tools to visualize transcription and design RNA-based therapies, paving the way for precision treatments for cancers like leukemia. www.cmu.edu/mcs/news-eve...

Make an impact in Pittsburgh! We are seeking the next Head of the Dept. of Bio Sciences, with Ferra Executive Search. Nominate or refer now: apply.interfolio.com/174916 #STEMLeadership #HigherEd #LifeSciences #AcademicJobs #jobs #Pittsburgh #CarnegieMellonUniversity #FerraSearch #BiologyChair

Happy to share our latest in @natcomputsci.nature.com led by (amazing) Ryan Krueger + colab w M. Brenner! We introduce a framework to directly design intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) from physics-based simulations. 🧬 doi.org/10.1038/s435... 📰 www.mccormick.northwestern.edu/news/article...

I am super excited to announce that we have a tenure-track faculty position in biophysics open in the Department of Physics at Carnegie Mellon! 🧪 Interfolio link: apply.interfolio.com/174360 PLEASE, share widely across the blue skies! Let me briefly explain what we're looking for: 1/10

Please share with anyone who cares about NSF support for graduate students and take 30 seconds to sign and leave a comment. The deadline for the 2025 Graduate Research Fellowship Program is about one month away and literally no one can apply. #NSFGRFP jasonjwilliamsny.github.io/grfp2025/

I am extremely grateful for the support from the Samuel and Emma Winters Foundation! This award directly supports our research on targeting RNA sequences as potential therapies in multiple disorders, including cancer.

Preprint! Inspired by condensates that form on specific DNA, we ask: can we design multicomponent fluids to form distinct condensates on diff. surfaces? i.e. perform classification by condensation ⚛️ 💻 exploiting phase transitions beyond compartmentalization! arxiv.org/abs/2509.08100 (1/2)

New preprint is up, led by former postdoc Braulio Bonilla. We know these remodelers regulate nucleosome positions and occupancy, but do they have a role in regulating higher order chromatin structure? We take a peek for BAF and INO80C. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

The GRFP lives!! (due end of October) www.nsf.gov/funding/oppo...

New in @pnas.org with @gladfelterlab.bsky.social @sneadlab.bsky.social ! 📢 Cells use condensates (dynamic compartments without membranes) to organize key reactions. Some condensates have core & shell layers… but how do such layers form? 🤔 👉 pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2504778122 (1/6)

The deadline is coming up for this fantastic meeting on all things RNA in gene regulation. Highly recommend! www.fusion-conferences.com/conference/1...

We're super excited to announce the entire lineup for the Fall season of Fragile Nucleosome Seminars, starting on Sept 10th at 1200 EDT / 1600 UTC with @gracebower.bsky.social and @creminslab.bsky.social! register here for the entire series: us06web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

Final version of Bingbing Duan’s main thesis work is out now now in Nature Communications @natureportfolio.nature.com www.nature.com/articles/s41... I’m so pleased with this study that we’ve been working on for so long #epistasis #transcription #geneexpression 1/

Our collaborative paper with the Arndt lab is out today: doi.org/10.1093/nar/... (originally bioRxiv: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...). Here we asked the question of how CHD1 localizes to chromatin.

Hello! Ever wonder what's "talking to" your favorite transcript, but were too scared to ask? In our review in @cp-cellreports.bsky.social, @mardakheh.bsky.social and I highlight new RNA-focused tools for discovering RNA interactions across organizational scales. Checkit! tinyurl.com/ydn6e3ac

Hot off the press for your Friday morning! 🔥 Our new (and highly revised!) preprint is out. It significantly expands on our previous work, unveiling exciting new data on how CBP's intrinsically disordered regions (IDRs) regulate genes. Link to preprint: tinyurl.com/5npjkyps #IDRs #condensates #CBP

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... from @superscijew.bsky.social

Now published! Big congrats to first author @gginell.bsky.social We are actively working improving/updating various aspects of FINCHES; don't hesitate to reach out if you run into issues, have questions. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Biomolecular condensates are critical for organizing cellular contents, but most studies focus on phase separation driven by salt, pH, or temperature. But what if intracellular movement also matters? Here, we explore motility-induced condensation in the cell. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

So fortunate to have Mike Rosen as the Keynote speaker at our 2nd Annual Steel City Condensate Symposium. The day was filled with fantastic science and discussion from biologists, chemists, physicians, and computer scientists from CMU, Pitt & NYU. Condensates continue to surprise us in many ways!

I am excited to share the latest paper from my lab where we leverage the selection bias of condensate-promoting oncofusions to uncover molecular rules governing condensate specificity and function. www.cell.com/cell/fulltex....

Assortment of ‘zebrabow’ embryos. Credit to @jhenninger.bsky.social. #ZebrafishZunday 🧪

In the midst of everything it feels particularly appropriate to highlight all the amazing #RNA research taking place at #NIH! Follow this thread to join us for our biannual #RNASymposium, this year featuring intramural research superstars!

RNA xkcd.com/3056

"Mysterious Blobs Found inside Cells Are Rewriting the Story of How Life Works" Exciting times ahead! www.scientificamerican.com/article/myst...

New review / perspective with @albertilab-tud.bsky.social on our thoughts on condensate speciality and recruitment, focusing on interplay between site specific and chemically specific interactions www.cell.com/molecular-ce...

Check out the latest Reviews and Perspectives from experts in RNA biology in this joint collection from @CellChemBiol and @MolecularCell http://dlvr.it/TGwFkr

Full spectrum of ‘zebrabow’ embryos. Credit to @jhenninger.bsky.social. #ZebrafishZunday 🧪

We have a #PhD available! I'm really excited about this project, looking at whether and how differences in the #IDRs of paralogous epigenetic enzymes CBP and p300 cause them to behave differently. www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

I had started the notes for this thread awhile ago and am happy to put it out here. My student James Kuldell and I have a review: RNA Polymerase II activity control of gene expression and involvement in disease 3/ www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

I am excited to share our review published online with Nature Reviews MCB. Pilong Li, Gaofeng Pei, Heankel Lyons, and I review the current literature on the regulation of transcription by condensates, large length scale assemblies of complexes (Figure 1). www.nature.com/articles/s41...

A new starter pack for condensates :) i am obviously missing many, pls ping and I'll add go.bsky.app/FdHEYR3

Let's make a thread of RNA-related conferences in 2025 🧵 (add missing!)

Putting together packs of transcription and Chromatin people - Nominate others to add! go.bsky.app/5zgpZfg

First post! I am a new Assistant Professor at Carnegie Mellon University exploring how RNA molecules regulate transcription and cell fate. Check out our recent review in this space! www.cell.com/molecular-ce...