Finally out! We studied the retinas of the longest-living vertebrate, the Greenland shark, and found that the retinas remain remarkably healthy in animals around 150 years old. What is the mechanism? It may be a highly efficient DNA repair system. Enjoy! www.nature.com/articles/s41...

So so proud of the new Dr Hwu! Was smiling so much that my face hurt. @ucibiosci.bsky.social @ucirvine.bsky.social

My UCI colleague Dr. Sydney Prange (@sciencey-syd.bsky.social) & I recently published an article on LGBTQ+ persons, queer bioethics, & the importance of diversity, equity, & inclusivity in stem cell research, regenerative medicine, & other "STEM" fields. OA link: www.tandfonline.com/eprint/SHJBX...

I'm delighted to see this come out: "Nine Undergraduate Biology Instructors Revealing their LGBTQ+ Identities in Class Resulted in Benefits for their LGBTQ+ Students and Students with Other Marginalized Identities" from Carly Busch and Sara Brownell and colleagues www.lifescied.org/doi/10.1187/...

I was a UC PPFP fellow when I was a postdoc at UCSD. This program is invaluable--aside from support for two years of my postdoc, I received excellent mentoring from faculty at the UCs. This fellowship set me up for success and gave me a cohort of fellow postdocs who are now UC faculty. 1/2

The President's Postdoctoral Fellowship Program is one of the most coveted & prestigious positions for UC graduates. It gives a hiring incentive to campuses who hire recipients for a tenure track position. What a DAMN travesty. This is capitulation to Trump's demand letter & anti-diversity agenda.

The Kim Lab (sskimlab.org) at UC Irvine is recruiting motivated grad students interested in uncovering how transcriptional regulators direct cell fates. We accept students through the CMB (cmb.uci.edu) and MCSB (ccbs.uci.edu/education/mcsb/) PhD programs. Please share with prospective grad students!

@joann-trejo.bsky.social, @marymunson4.bsky.social and I have a commentary in @natcellbio.nature.com on recent attacks on DEI in biomedical research: "If scientific research, especially biomedical research, is meant to serve everyone, then it requires that everyone has an opportunity to participate"

Survey for neuroscience PhD students: If you're a neuroscience or neuro-related PhD student, and you're so inclined, please take this short survey from a colleague of mine. uci.questionpro.com/NeuroIFESgra... And/or pass it on to other neuro PhD students.

PREACH! www.nature.com/articles/s41...

High levels of Cas9 are toxic in sensory neurons. Reducing Cas9 levels with uORFs avoids toxicity and is compatible with efficient editing. From @thompsonpeerlab.bsky.social. Fly lines @vdrc-flies.bsky.social #CRISPR #Drosophila www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Just sat through the 1st of 5 webinars on "Raising a Resilient Scientist" from NIH OITE (Office of Intramural Training and Education). I've done lots of mentorship training. This one, on communication skills, was a step above. Highly recommended for PIs. www.training.nih.gov/raising-a-re...

We cannot scicomm our way out of this, part …I-don’t-know-I’m-tired-of-counting

I'm looking forward to participating in this interactive, family-friendly panel designed to make neuroscience accessible and exciting for all:

URGENT: FlyBase has lost practically all its funding overnight; even user fees are tied up in denied grant funding. 🤬🤯 Any lab using @flybase.bsky.social please donate using the link in post below. This incredible community, on whose backs our #Drosophila labs depend, can't be left out to dry.

Did you know? 🧪 "The Interactive Fly" is a wonderful website hosted by @socdevbio.bsky.social where you can learn about their development, the history of gene discovery/name, and it is full of super useful resources for the #DevBio community 🪰https://www.sdbonline.org/sites/fly/aimain/1aahome.htm

Fantastic visit from @marthabhattacharya.bsky.social to UC Irvine’s Dept of Developmental and Cell Biology yesterday. Beautiful science, studying the role of a transmembrane protein across many model systems. Thanks for visiting!

Today I received the 'Committee Spotlight Award' from the @ucirvine.bsky.social Women's Center for Success at the Dynamic Women Awards. What an honor! Thank you to the people who nominated me for this recognition, including Belén Torrado.

I loved training as part of the Boston C elegans research community. The generosity and curiosity were infectious.

Things giving me hope these days: seeing all the undergrads presenting their research. Our lab has 4 undergrads presenting today. I’m proud of them and their grad student mentors. @ucirvine.bsky.social @ucibiosci.bsky.social Happy UROP day.

Congratulation, Dr Prange!! @sciencey-syd.bsky.social

Defense tomorrow! @sciencey-syd.bsky.social

In this midst of everything, I'm delighted to share that I've been selected for the Tom Angell Fellowship Award from the UCI Graduate Division. Award recipients demonstrate outstanding mentorship by going above and beyond their normal duties to create new opportunities to mentor UCI students.

This week’s main story is about the budget and staffing cuts being made to public health agencies in the U.S. under RFK Jr.’s leadership, how those cuts will impact all of us, and some foolproof ideas for what scientists can do in the absence of totally superfluous stuff like, y’know, centrifuges.

If using Bloomigton #Drosophila Stock Center stocks, pls. acknowledge them & their NIH funding (P40 OD018537). Papers listing this no. are being harvested as evidence. We massively depend on the @bdsc.bsky.social & they need our support in these dire times! @flybase.bsky.social @fly-eds.bsky.social

Satellite EMBO Neurocytoskeleton #neurocyto2025 meeting at Torres del Paine? Went on an amazing hike with Karolina Kowalska and Jonas Vlasak from Daniel Rozbesky's lab. Then ran into @roylab-ucsd.bsky.social and @m1singh.bsky.social the next day. Great to see colleagues in beautiful places!

Published an op-ed for @cnn.com: “Nobel laureate: I owe America my success. Today, its scientific future is in danger.” A personal reflection on what’s at stake as science funding gets slashed. I’d be grateful if you could amplify both in and beyond the science world. www.cnn.com/2025/04/09/h...

Meeting with new and reconnecting with old colleagues in Santiago today. Thank you to my host, Evelyn Avilés!!

Having a great time at the EMBO Neurocytoskeleton meeting #neurocyto2025. Fantastic meeting in Chile!

This article does a great job describing the lives of young American scientists: “You roll up your sleeves, try to make or discover something useful and then let the scientific community try to punch holes in your work to make sure that it’s sound”

FACULTY JOB ALERT! The Albert Einstein Dept of Neuroscience is hiring a new assistant professor in any area of neuroscience! We have funds specifically earmarked for this search. #Neuroscience #AcademicJobs #NeuroSky Job just posted: faculty-einstein.icims.com/jobs/17175/f... Please share widely!!

Disastrous.

Fun with worms on @WIRED www.wired.com/story/openwo... We've been thinking about how #celegans can revolutionize science again, together with @kordinglab.bsky.social @eboyden3.bsky.social @wormsense.bsky.social and many other (also find our preprint on #arXiv)

This is the best summary I’ve seen so far

UC Irvine is currently hiring for 2 open faculty positions in stem cell biology and regenerative medicine (one Asst/Assoc Prof and one Assoc/Full Prof). Apply at: recruit.ap.uci.edu/JPF09408. Although the final deadline is Jun 30, please apply prior to Fri Mar 28 to be given full consideration.

Opinion piece in the @scsentinel.bsky.social by me, @carpenterlab.bsky.social and Carol Greider: Trump is turning off the lights on biomedical research: Why it matters for Santa Cruz www.santacruzsentinel.com/2025/03/20/g...

My grad student Sydney @sciencey-syd.bsky.social did a great job at the @ucirvine.bsky.social Grad Slam 3 minute thesis finals, and came in 2nd place for the whole university! So proud!

This isn't about Columbia - this is the White House trying to exert control over everyone and everything, using federal $ as a tool. The administration is destroying US science and ruining careers of thousands of students and researchers just to show that they are all-powerful and everyone must obey

this should clue professors in to where their power lies, the power that admin can't easily thwart: when ICE is known to be on your campus, move classes online. it's an easy action to take. say you're sick or whatever.

UCI Anteaters standing up for science today!

DEI is under attack, but the stakes are higher than many realize. Universities *must stand firm* in defending it. I lay out why in my latest piece for Nature. Silence is complicity. Without DEI, we fail our students, our research, and our future. www.nature.com/articles/d41... 🧪

Working on a story for @sfchronicle.com about the administration's impacts to science, including #NIH and #NSF funding. Hoping to chat with early-career scientists, especially grad students and postdocs, about how you've been affected. Thanks! Signal: jacklee.55

For the Idaho Statesman 🥔, Professor Melanie Samuel explains how science funding drives cures for diseases like Alzheimer’s and cancer— and the devastating impact of mass firings in Health & Human Services. Happy Homecoming 🧪🧬🔬🏠 www.idahostatesman.com/opinion/read...

A slide I've been working on to illustrate the combined impact of the current multipronged attacks on biomedical research funding. Besides more curse words, what am I missing?

I’d be interested in Laura’s take on ways to do this but one great strategy I saw at both Rutger’s and UCI is sponsoring an event to organize people to call their representatives, with snacks, scripts and community.

Another good analogy for explaining what indirect costs are for research grants: if you’re paying for college, direct costs are like tuition while indirect costs are like room & board.

Today they went nuclear. Imagine all firefighters were told "You all still have salaries, but as of today the government will no longer pay for building maintenance, firetruck maintenance and repair, hydrant upkeep, or admin assistants." That's what they're doing to US universities.

In California NIH FUNDING: $5.31 B JOBS SUPPORTED: 55,949 ECONOMIC ACTIVITY SUPPORTED: $13.55 B KEEP IT GOING

holy sheeet " Pursuant to this Supplemental Guidance, there will be a standard indirect rate of 15% across all NIH grants for indirect costs in lieu of a separately negotiated rate for indirect costs in every grant."

Inspired by this post, I'm hosting a phonebank at UC Irvine next week. Join if you're interested!