Some of my PhD work is now out in Nature! www.nature.com/articles/s41... Investigating the structural basis of off‑target Cas9 binding to supercoiled DNA with #AFM & cryo-EM. From my time in the lab of @alicepyne.bsky.social, in collaboration with @qmsmith.bsky.social and the team at the MRC LMS.

Supercoiling not only brings DNA to life (and makes it dance) but also changes how key proteins such as #CRISPR interact with it. Thanks @qmsmith.bsky.social for the brilliant collaboration, Sylvia for developing an amazing new #imageanalysis pipeline & @eddierollins.bsky.social for beautiful #AFM.

1/11 In our story out today in @nature.com , we showcase the molecular mechanisms that enable Cas9 to bind and cleave negatively supercoiled ((-)SC) off-targets! 🧬🧵 🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s41... #CRISPR #Cas9 #DNATopology #AFM #CryoEM #SingleMolecule #Biophysics

New research in Nature shows that the physical twisting of DNA plays an important role in DNA editing mistakes made by CRISPR. Using nanometer-sized circles of DNA, scientists captured never-before-seen interactions between CRISPR & DNA, providing insights that could eradicate errors altogether.

Organized with the @sheffielduni.bsky.social team: Matt Newton, @alicepyne.bsky.social & Ruby Peters. 👏 Speakers include Gijs Wuite, @jwelburn.bsky.social, @slfort.bsky.social, @akellett.bsky.social, @michellepeckham.bsky.social & Aakash Basu. Program & registration --> bit.ly/3NtxZlM

📐On #WorldMetrologyDay, we celebrate 150 years of measurement science! At #SPM40, precision at the nanoscale is our mission, advancing biomedical research through AI-powered microscopy. #MetrologyMatters #MSCA #ResearchEU

Abstract deadlines coming up soon! Talk - 14th March Poster - 28th March Sign up on our Eventbrite: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/glasgow-im... and come along and see our wonderful keynote speaker @alicepyne.bsky.social ! For more info, head to the GIN website : glasgowimagingnetwork.wordpress.com

🚨 PhD position available for Oct 25 🔬Using advanced microscopy to understand how keratin networks control tissue mechanics An interdisciplinary #cellbiology #biophysics collaboration with Ruby Peters & @alicepyne.bsky.social 👇 Apply by March 14 www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

It’s been a busy start to the year with marking, paper and grant reviews and travel to SMB2025 in the US, I think we were delayed for as long as we were actually at the conference… Its good to be home in the Peak District with my best girl Tasso 🌅 🐕 ❤️

After a remarkable 300 columns, David Goodsell has retired from the Molecule of the Month. We are very grateful for his service. @jiwasa.bsky.social will continue the series, beginning with January's article on Assembly Line Polyketide Synthases Details: cdn.rcsb.org/rcsb-pd...

Delighted to share our @NAR_Open paper on a click chemistry-derived DNA damaging agent 🧬✂️👏 Congrats to @westerlundlab.bsky.social @alicepyne.bsky.social @researchireland.bsky.social @dcuresearch.bsky.social @sspc.bsky.social @dublincityuni.bsky.social doi.org/10.1093/nar/...

Two more weeks to apply to our opening for a senior postdoc in biophysics; work on exciting projects in DNA replication and/or chromatin organization from an interest in instrumentation! Deadline Jan 15 and application link: my.corehr.com/pls/uoxrecru...

Today a Tasso jog through Endcliffe park - lots of storm damage with trees uprooted 🐕

Frosty twixmas adventures with Tasso 🤍💚

A few days of beautiful cloud inversions in the peak. Today a little exploration by bike 🚲- trying to stay above the cloud

Boxing Day walks with Tasso, enjoying the #PeakDistrict and thinking how much my mum would have loved to have been with us 💚

First Christmas without maman, thinking of her lots and spending time enjoying the Peak District. She loved it up here 💚

Celebrating the start of longer days with a beautiful sunrise on a morning trot with Tasso 🐕

Only two days left to apply for this amazing opportunity to join Siân’s lab at Kings. Interested in data analysis, microscopy and working with an awesome PI? One not to miss 🔬 💻

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...

📣 Please share: We’re hiring a tenure-track Group Leader in Multicellular Systems to explore the molecular and cellular mechanisms driving the formation, maintenance, or destabilization of tissues, organs and organisms. Apply at: www.fmi.ch/education-ca...

Looking for a #biophysics PhD? There's still time to apply for our Yorkshire Biosciences project on how keratin networks affect the mechanical properties of cells & tissues. Interdisciplinary collab with Ruby Peters & @alicepyne.bsky.social. Deadline 6th Jan www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

On my way to London for the @royalmicrosoc.bsky.social Data Analysis in Microscopy section meeting. Excited to catch up in person with everyone and chat all things 🔬 💻

A weekend of catching up with old pals from UCL in Hamburg. Tackling the grey drizzle with epic pastries 🥐

We were so happy to have @raveentank.bsky.social join us for our first Insigneo Imaging Life workshop in Sheffield this week. It was an amazing day of microscopy🔬 and science 🧪 - thank you Raveen for braving the Manchester-Sheffield train line!

1/ Cancer cell biology MRC DiMeN project in collaboration with @maiblab.bsky.social & Liz Smythe to use recombinant biosensors to image active KRAS in #pancreaticcancer Apply by 13th Dec www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

In this paper #AFM is used to image the chain-mail structure of kinetoplast #DNA from parasites and automated analysis unravels the complex molecular topology. 🧪 🔬 🧬 @alicepyne.bsky.social doi.org/10.1039/D4CP...

The @royalmicrosoc.bsky.social #DataAnalysisInImaging special issue of Journal of Microscopy is out now! onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/13652818... #ImageAnalysis #BioImageAnalysis #RMSDAIM

Come join us in Harrogate for a really exciting programme at the interface of the physical and life sciences! Abstract submission is now open, Harrogate is beautiful and the meeting will be really reasonably priced thanks to all our amazing sponsors 🥳

I haven't seen a nucleic acids starter pack yet, so I started one! Please reach out if I missed you! go.bsky.app/NxKgUY5

"Dark TFs": new manuscript mapped 166 uncharacterized human transcription factors, finding half bind genomic "dark matter," often closed chromatin rich in transposable elements. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

We have tutorials on how to generate SuperPlots in Prism, R, Python, and Excel in the paper, but you can also easily make SuperPlots using @joachimgoedhart.bsky.social's SuperPlotsOfData: huygens.science.uva.nl/SuperPlotsOf...

How much snow will we get! Currently quite wet but settling… spot the chilly Tasso ❄️

When I finally arrived back in Sheffield (UK train nonsense) - it was so lovely to step off and head to Sheffield Open Studios at Persistence Works. I picked up some beautiful ceramics, wandered round the artists studios, and enjoyed the curated exhibition. I do so love Sheffield.

AFM starter pack. Sorry if I missed anyone, relatively small numbers at the moment. Please share, nominate others/yourself (any career stage). I will also try to add incoming new users regularly. go.bsky.app/MSz2t33

If you’re making a starter pack, take a quick look at its demographics. Worth a bit of consideration!

On the train home from a fantastic evening at the John Innes celebrating my long time collaborator and friend Tony Maxwell. I shouldn’t have been surprised by just how many people made the journey to Norwich to celebrate his incredible career, but it was still amazing to see. 🧬 ⭕️

Hola Barcelona 🌅 - stunning morning run before the kick off meeting for our MSCA DN #SPM4.0

Testing out blue sky with a picture of Tasso from a recent adventure weekend in the Lake District before I get down to the serious business of posting about DNA and microscopy

Interested in difficult to access parts of genetics, cellular & structural biology? Join us in Edinburgh 2-4th April 2025 for "Hidden Cell, Dark Genome" Regulation in the dark genome Uncharted proteins, RNA complexity Atomic structures at cellular scale Cell diversity www.ed.ac.uk/c/hidden-cel...

Register now for the Crick Bioimage Analysis Symposium 🧫 We’ll be joined by leading experts to discuss the latest tools and techniques of image analysis and explore their future potential. #CBIAS2024 📅 25-26 November 🎟️ Online and in-person tickets www.crick.ac.uk/whats-on/cri...