dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab

microbial metalloenzymes: a tragicomedy; or, a friday night in lab.

weird microbial chem fan & assistant prof @Pitt_Chemistry
alum @BalskusLab @RosenzweigLab

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

(...I've got the same name on the blue site. There're quite a few bioinorganic chemists, chemical biologists, microbe-wranglers, natural product collectors, and enzyme enthusiasts there already, and "starter packs" if you want to (re)find people easily...)

[Oriana Fisher @OFisherLab]

We're hiring a postdoc! Have (or expect to soon have) a PhD in a biochem/structural bio related discipline? Interested in studying bacterial copper usage and transcriptional regulation? Apply here: https://t.co/H5cnGMmlHu

[Journigan Lab, Pitt ⌬ @JourniganVelvet]

🥼🧪Our opening for a research technician is now live! 🌟🌟We'd love to have you join us. Apply here: https://t.co/rDofz0R1pS

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

...and if you're interested in microbial chemical biology but are looking for something on the West Coast instead, the Dassama Lab is also hiring.

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

If you're interested in microbial chemical biology and looking for a research technician position, the Kenney Lab at Pitt is hiring. You'd be working with weird new (metallo)enzymes, weird microbes, and weird new natural products. Fill out an app here: https://t.co/X2XM3thZn5

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

@RosenzweigLab @SmithLabUMBC @lmkdassama ...man, that pink office was one of my first memories of the lab. I feel adrift in this strange new world... (Looks very nice though - hope Team Rosenzweig loves the new digs!)

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

@danudwary @MWMullowney @satriaphd This looks exciting! How tied are results going to be to antiSMASH/etc. detection / will we be able to fish up BGCs using custom parameters? Just asking as someone who keeps finding themselves in the dark corners of the natural product biosynthesis world...

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

(Keep an eye out for our paper on some fun - if occasionally frustrating! - compounds and enzymes in what will hopefully be the not-exceedingly-distant future!)

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

While I'll really miss working with @PallasChou as she heads off to @ChemSysBio, she finished up with a bang: telling the entire graduating Harvard class (!!!) about how amazing enzymes are!

[Pallas Chou @PallasChou]

Honored to deliver Harvard’s Senior English Address on the beauty of enzymes and how they parallel our lived experiences. Grateful for time at @BerkeleyLab, @BalskusLab, and @jbei which fostered my love for enzymes.
Speech: https://t.co/hRlXDU9c6m
#commencement #harvard #enzymes

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

@hualiang2018 @YaleMicroPath @YaleWestCampus Congrats! I loved getting to hear about your work at the MSI symposium - absolutely reach out if you ever want to chat about microbial metal homeostasis!

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

antiSMASH: now with more methanobactins! (not that i'm not excited for other reasons too, of course.)

[Zach Reitz @ZachReitzPhD]

With the release of antiSMASH v 7.0.0, there's major improvements in metallophore BGC prediction!

-NRPS metallophore classification
-Detection of three new metallophore classes
-Actinobacterial transcription factor binding site prediction to infer BGC function

More info: 🧵👇

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

Super psyched to see this (and its companion paper) finally make make it out! Lovely protein structures, crazy natural product biosynthetic pathways, and a glimpse of how the enzyme family as a whole operates - what's not to like?!

[Jose A Velilla @JoseAVelilla2]

Our paper on the structure of ClbP is out. Great summary in this thread. Very grateful to my mentor @RachelleGaudet and great collaborators @BalskusLab, @MatthewRVolpe, @kenneylab, and Richard Walsh at @HC2EM.

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

@thecopperdoctor A related classic: "Whoops, there was an issue with the fraction collector valve and the protein is all in the waste? Just reload the superloop (and dilute, if the waste had imidazole)..."

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

...submitted my first batch of faculty apps last night, and I'll admit it feels a little surreal. OK, a lot surreal.

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

@ZachReitzPhD @MraDll @ActinoLab Though I totally understand the impetus, "NRPS" has been associated with a single type of enzyme system for so long that it seems potentially confusing to use this nomenclature for very different enzymes. (The PKS terminology parallels also fall apart for types IV & V.)

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

@ZachReitzPhD ...I don't think it would be inaccurate to say that there was a certain amount of pain involved, no. "I mean, it (very) eventually drove me to learn how to use R!"

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

An excellent summary of current strategies for metallophore genome mining (with some important words of caution about the limitations of existing tools.) There's still no real replacement for spending a bunch of time staring at genomes, unsurprisingly!

[Zach Reitz @ZachReitzPhD]

Check out my new perspective on metallophore genome mining, just published in Current Opinion in Biotechnology! We highlight the latest #Bioinformatics techniques and envision what’s next for the field. For a TL;DR, see below (🧵 1/n)
https://t.co/a96M4xUi6r

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

@SmithLabUMBC @thecopperdoctor Oh _no_. What an absolute nightmare!

[Oriana Fisher @OFisherLab]

A postdoc position is available in our lab @LehighChem, studying bacterial copper acquisition and regulation! Experience in biochemistry, X-ray crystallography and/or microbiology preferred. #chempostdoc

[dr. g. e. kenney is probably in lab @kenneylab]

I'll be presenting in tomorrow's session - tune in for my stories about investigating new enzyme families (particularly those involved in natural product biosynthesis), and stay for biochemistry talks from several other fellows!