The array of organs in the animal body differ dramatically in their architecture, but cell-cell adhesion mediated by cadherins is a common principle. Our lab usually focuses on epithelia but cadherins are also active in migrating mesenchymal cells like these migrating testis myoblasts 1/n 🧪

I did a bit of data analysis to inform considerations of this proposal. This is not completely simple since the number of grants a PI holds varies over time as grants start and end, and because this includes MPIs (multiple PIs) in addition to Contact PIs. 1/7

1/10 For decades, cellular aggregation was considered an evolutionary dead end. Cells could come together temporarily. But complex multicellular organisms like animals? Our study, led by JP Gerdt, with Ruibao & @jennahed.bsky.social suggests it may be time to rethink that🧵 #ProtistsOnSKy

To summarize: Most important Max Perutz was NOT an example of someone with a great idea who went against the establishment wisdom to solve an important problem that he had uniquely identified. He was part of an organized team working on this problem. He got lots of help. 11/14

I’m begging my fellow study section members to please “rescue” grants for discussion while this policy continues. We are going to lose lots of good grants to one unfairly negative reviewer otherwise. grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...

Eating its own tail, the central dogma of molecular biology has come full circle! 🧬

Our latest #abscission paper is online at MBoC www.molbiolcell.org/doi/10.1091/... . We looked at what happens when there are stochastic abscission failures in a polarized epithelium in vivo. 1/6

Out now in @science.org Repurposing of a DNA segregation machinery into a cytoskeletal system controlling cell shape | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

I essentially took the entirety of the first 2.5 years of my PhD, 55 hours/week and set them on fire. Nothing productive or useful arose. Those years are also the years that made me a very good scientist. Grunt work and failure and friction IS the work. There is no way around learning.

Chilling: What scientists told @jonathanwosen.bsky.social and @aniloza.bsky.social at @statnews.com www.statnews.com/2026/03/19/n...

Apply now for the Signaling by Adhesion Receptors GRC June 7 - 12, 2026! The meeting has a terrific program that balances developmental biology, cell polarity, and adhesion and signaling. Please share! www.grc.org/signaling-by...

China increases science funding again (by at least 7-% over the next 5 years) as it pledges billion-dollar spending boost for science 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/d41...

🧵 1/5 A new BioRxiv preprint reveals that membrane tension acts as a mechanical gate for lung cell fate during development! 🫁 Our Flipper-TR probe was key to assess live Cell Membrane Tension (CMT) Here’s how Flipper-TR unlocked a hidden layer of lung development & fibrosis. 👇 #Mechanobiology

5/5 The Takeaway: Flipper-TR didn't just report CMT; it identified CMT as a master switch linking physics to genetics. From development to disease, this probe proved that how "tight" a cell is matters just as much as its DNA. Read the full study: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Yay! 🎉 Another new lab coming online in 2026! HIGHLY RECOMMEND training with @jfhorner.bsky.social as he advances #proteoform level understanding of #mechanosensitive #adhesion proteins. Be sure to follow him and his upcoming work!

I conclude that NIH should make use of the large amounts of data that they have available to examine hypotheses before proposing developing new policies. 6/6

This article was handled through our Fast & Fair peer review workflow. This initiative aims to provide authors with a first decision post review within 7 working days. Read more articles handled through our Fast & fair peer review in our collection. bit.ly/4fiAxNE

As a someone with a 33 year NIH-funded lab whose grant is supposed to be reviewed this week, shut NIH down if that is what's needed to end ICE terrorism. Innocent lives are more important 🧪

Two new 🔥pre-prints 🔥 TODAY by us & @pwoakes.bsky.social @myosincity.bsky.social change the way we think about the septin cytoskeleton Septins buffer mechanical stress on actin and membranes! Septins are like intermediate filaments www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Giving the gift of negative data 🥰 Since I joined @lsajournal.org I have handled several stellar manuscripts that report null results. These papers do very well and reviewers almost always appreciate them! Thanks @rockefeller.edu news team for the article! www.rockefeller.edu/news/38829-t...

Xiaofei Li, Adam Kwiatkowski @kwiatkowskilab.bsky.social, Glenn Radice and colleagues discover that vinculin Y822 phosphorylation regulates adhesion remodelling during cardiomyocyte maturation. journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...

A key role for Canoe's intrinsically disordered region in linking cell junctions to the #cytoskeleton. New study from Corbin Jensen, Mark Peifer (@peiferlabunc.bsky.social) and colleagues @unclineberger.bsky.social: rupress.org/jcb/article/... #Development #Adhesion #Drosophila

🎥 New video summary of a recent paper by @xsciteng.bsky.social et al. of the @jeffbush.bsky.social lab @ctbatucsf.bsky.social (rupress.org/jcb/article/...), revealing cellular mechanisms of tissue fusion in the developing face.

Calling all postdocs! Applications are open for Dept. of Molecular Biosciences 3rd Trailblazers Postdoctoral Symposium @utaustin.bsky.social. Come to Austin, meet your peers, showcase your work. Application is easy and all expenses are paid! Spread the word! tinyurl.com/yw7ffjn9

From MBoC... Ronald Wek and colleagues show PERK helps skin cells migrate during healing—not by its kinase activity, but by acting as a structural supporter for key adhesion proteins. A fresh look at how keratinocytes stay connected and move together. 🔗 www.molbiolcell.org/doi/10.1091/...

To my fellow old farts: amplify junior PIs debuts. All of ‘em 🙌🏻👏🏻 all the best Maik, go get it.

Congrats to one of the most talented folks with whom I have ever worked. Follow Maik as he pursues new insights into morphogenesis using highly innovative multi-disciplinary tools! 🧪

So, let me share the NIGMS processes from my time. 1/8

New septin paper by our next door lab neighbors @ebrahim-lab.bsky.social, and on the cover of JCI Insight no less. Septin 9 reinforces intestinal epithelial junctions, preventing leaky gut and inflammation. Check it out!

Confirmation of the new triage line at 65-70% of proposals. Introduction of a new “competitive but ND” class to permit exception pay pickups.

It was a great pleasure attending my first #HUPO world congress in Toronto last week and sharing our catenin phospho-code story! It was inspiring meeting with peers and pioneers in the field, which reminded me how special the proteomics community is!

A new enzyme-free technique uses alternating electrochemical currents to gently detach cells from culture surfaces, maintaining high cell viability and reducing waste in biomanufacturing processes. doi.org/hbbs27

Thank you UVa for being the first places asking for grad school recomendations that did not include ANY of the silly ratings questions

Bluesky folks, @jfhorner.bsky.social is also ON THE JOB MARKET! Check out his work 🧐... he's SUPER TALENTED and a pleasure to work with!

Faculty positions in animal morphogenesis that may be filled at the Assistant or Associate Professor level in one of my favorite Departments" Cell and Systems Biology at the University of Toronto. 1/n jobs.utoronto.ca/job/Toronto-... jobs.utoronto.ca/job/Toronto-...

that time of the year... writing letters for 8 UG's applying to grad school, each of them to ~15 programs. And while I passionately support every one of them, thats A LOT of letters, a lot of web sites to keep track of, a lot of my time. Why dont Grad programs use interfolio? One and done???

After a "suspension" of just a few days, UNC Professor Dwayne Dixon is re-instated, revealing the weakness of the fabricated issues used for the suspension. Here is his response. Stand up to the fascists--when we work together we can triumph.

My entry for today’s #FluorescenceFriday: a pupal #Drosophila testis with muscles expressing 🔵 lifeact & 🔴 RFP-nls Honored & grateful to receive an honorable mention at @healthcare.nikon.com Nikon Small World 🌍🔬✨ 🔗 www.nikonsmallworld.com/galleries/20... #NikonSmallWorld #Microscopy #ScienceArt

Kate's work is remarkable--saw it at the Cell Contact and Adhesion GRC. Hiring faculty--she's a scientist to watch

A new email to Director Bhattacharya this morning. 1/n

"Head down focus on the science" folks: here is one super easy thing you can do today.

An email to Director Bhattacharya to start the day 1/6

Super cool work from our institute!

Geometry first: how positional cues dictate fate in bilayered epithelia thenode.biologists.com/geometry-fir...

Top-Down Individual Ion Mass Spectrometry Reveals 85-110 kDa Catenin Phospho-Proteoforms Regulated by Actomyosin Contractility https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.09.06.674621v1

I'm more than a little excited about this interstellar visitor 🧪 The images keep getting better and the insights deeper PS this is just some of the science funded by the NSF that is threatened by devastating budget cuts--speak up and call Congress. www.sci.news/astronomy/in...

We had #four interdisciplinary teams, integrating dev-bio, evolution, tissue mechanics, and biophysical modeling, all going full throttle to understand the #CF. Still, it took more than 7 years to publish two papers back-to-back (10/12) www.nature.com/articles/s41... www.nature.com/articles/s41...

α-catenin phosphorylation is actomyosin-sensitive and required for epithelial barrier functions through Afadin https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.08.21.671625v1

NIH progress on new R01s in FY 2025 drugmonkey.wordpress.com/2025/08/18/n...

Indirect cost fun facts (from FY2024) 3 of the top 5 institutions in terms of negotiated indirect rates are pediatric hospitals. The University of Kansas Medical Center had a higher negotiated indirect rate that Stanford.