The Snarky Scientist

I write biology research papers (cancer, genes & stem cells), computer programs & stupid things on the internet. Words are mine & vary in snark/sincerity ratio.

[The Snarky Scientist @SnarkyScientist]

.@IwriteOK @why_sophie_why Well done, but if y'all need someone in a parasocial relationship with BtB, a professional obsession with epigenetics, and the face for podcast-consulting, I humbly offer myself as your 40%.

[The Snarky Scientist @SnarkyScientist]

What is the culturally accepted maximum letter for figure panels? Asking for a friend who might be up to "V." And then "R."

[The Snarky Scientist @SnarkyScientist]

If your favorite part of college was the panicked, all-night rewriting of a make-or-break 15000-word paper a day before the deadline, maybe academic science is for you.

[The Snarky Scientist @SnarkyScientist]

Is there a word in German for "the regret a scientist feels for leaving out a figure or table from a publication that would've allowed said scientist to refer to said publication instead of having to reconstruct it every damn time forever and ever?"

[The Snarky Scientist @SnarkyScientist]

Fair play to Liane Reif-Lehrer for a killer #grantwriting handbook, but I disagree with her claim that "Awkward adults do not tend to do well in a laboratory situation." (Cites: every one of my labs, et. the literal mirror.)

[The Snarky Scientist @SnarkyScientist]

Are family curses inherited genetically or epigenetically? #TurningRed

[Brian J. Abraham @TheAbraLab]

Analyzing sequencing data can be hard, especially if you don't have a seasoned analyst or heavy-duty hardware. So @Modupeore_A built a portable, modular, automated, cloud (and more) pipeline to do the most common ChIP-Seq/CUT&RUN-Seq analyses for about $20 per sample.

[St. Jude Research @StJudeResearch]

Cancer patients with high-risk neuroblastoma often benefit from retinoic acid treatment. Read latest on how the drug works and what that means for the future of cancer treatment. https://t.co/v3WSrRvYDE
@ScienceAdvances @TheAbraLab

[The Snarky Scientist @SnarkyScientist]

We get a lot of #DrFauci in soundbytes and blips and quips, but, as part of @MITBiology, he got to give a thorough, pan-pandemic update on the science of #COVID19 https://t.co/dDO2xOiIgl

[St. Jude Research @StJudeResearch]

St. Jude President and CEO Dr. James R. Downing pleads for parents to choose to mask their children in school as COVID-19 cases soar in Memphis. https://t.co/BLNGq9t58l @asainz22 @AP @usnews

[Brian J. Abraham @TheAbraLab]

A great description of our new paper showing the interplay between genetics and the environment in human traits and disease. Missed signals add up over a lifetime and can manifest later as big deals. https://t.co/r6PPo1WZrb

[Brian J. Abraham @TheAbraLab]

Multiple lab-based faculty opportunities at @StJudeResearch now open for applicants. Assistant, Associate, and Full Member positions are being filled as part of a major expansion. Apply here: https://t.co/L6ztYatukQ

[Brian J. Abraham @TheAbraLab]

I'll be doing some fun learning in this next week-plus. #cshlepich20 starts tomorrow, and the @StJudeResearch transcription therapy symposium next THU: https://t.co/uILkXlP3r3

[The Snarky Scientist @SnarkyScientist]

I'm gonna call it "hematopoyeetsis" from now on. And no one can stop me.

[Ann Boija @BoijaAnn]

Check out our new paper on how clinically important drugs are concentrated in nuclear condensates. So much fun doing this study together @IsaacAKlein, @youngricka and all collaborators. https://t.co/aQtprLa8il

[The Snarky Scientist @SnarkyScientist]

Adam Durbin compares two histone acetyltransferase cousins: EP300 and CBP. They look similar, do similar jobs, but neuroblastoma cells need EP300 and don't really need CBP. Joined @JunQiLab to build EP300-selective PROTAC, JQAD1. It kills neuroblastoma cells. #KScancerepigenetics

[The Snarky Scientist @SnarkyScientist]

.@BanaszynskiLab shows curious result: in absence of histone protein H3.3, the acetyltransferase that modifies it, p300, is still at the genomic locus, but it doesn't add the acetyl mark to remaining histones. Maybe H3.3 stimulates p300 to do its job without being on DNA. #KSgene

[The Snarky Scientist @SnarkyScientist]

@EKFarley .@EKFarley shows tissue-specific expression is conferred by slightly sub-optimal transcription factor-binding sequences. Core motifs confer ability to bind but flanking sequences govern output, and "subtle" spacing between motifs strongly affects output #KSgene

[The Snarky Scientist @SnarkyScientist]

.@ekfarley starts last day at #KSgene with a big problem in development: "Enhancers direct when and where genes are expressed, but we don't know how enhancer DNA sequences encode this activity." She's screened 2.5 million sequences in Ciona (sea squirt genus) seeking rules.