I am giving a "Crash Course in Embryo Development" for the general public (no science background needed! pitched around GCSE-level) in London on 21st May www.crick.ac.uk/whats-on/cri... We'll dip into development, with a splash of embryo models, and a pinch of ethics. And it's free! Book online 👍
Beyond proteins and DNA, #lipids are emerging as key players in nuclear biology - shaping nuclear envelope dynamics, mechanosensing, gene regulation and genome stability.
Our new Perspective highlights recent advances, open questions, and future directions 👉 journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...
It was a pleasure to speak to @harmitmalik.bsky.social and feels very hopeful to have people like him as leaders in science
journals.biologists.com/dmm/article/...
How important do you feel discovery research and ‘basic’ science is for understanding disease? Well, I have a little bit of a biased view on the topic, since I'm a basic scientist myself. The lab has made more and more discoveries with very strong therapeutic implications, and often people ask me why we are not pursuing these further ourselves. Part of it is that I think about this very much as an ecosystem. People have different skills – I have colleagues who are very good at the application side of things and I have other colleagues, including people in my lab, who are very good at the basic science. There are a lot of very smart people at every stage in the ecosystem and, sometimes, we have to acknowledge that we can't all be experts in every step. A lot of basic science discoveries will end up having profound implications in the clinic – if you don't have the full imagination about how to get it there, that's okay, because you're still a very important piece of the jigsaw puzzle and other people can help. If the basic science discoveries didn't exist, then it's quite possible that the well would run dry. We cannot simply rely on the idea that the therapies currently in clinical trials are going to be enough because we already know that – for diseases, such as cancer, and with rapidly evolving viruses – there needs to be a constant influx of new ideas to stay ahead of the arms race. I'd also make a plug for the fact that, ultimately, we are all interested in human disease, but disease research in humans is not ethical or possible. This is why creating and studying model organisms in a high-throughput, low-investment context is incredibly important. We cannot just say ‘okay, we're going to stop work on anything that is not related to human research’, because – actually – it's all relevant to humans.
Do you think basic science is particularly threatened by cuts to funding? Science itself is quite uncertain. We do experiments wondering if they will even work. It's discovery, and you don't know where it's going to lead. It could lead to a billion-dollar company, something like mRNA vaccines or CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing, or it could simply be something that interests you. Sometimes it might appear esoteric from the outside, but there are very smart people dedicated to this work. We shouldn't lose sight of the fact that most of this work is paid for by taxpayers, but funding uncertainty creates a very unstable foundation. If the foundations are weak, people are going to get much more conservative about the science that they're doing and worry that ‘blue-skies research’ is not worth pursuing because it won't get funded. And that would be a mistake because all innovation in science really originates from blue-skies, basic research. The second thing that uncertainty does is send a message to our young trainees – who are our future – that this is not a career option that will provide professional and personal stability. I worry that this kind of uncertainty will mean we lose an entire generation of people, and that would be a loss we might not be able to overcome.
I was interviewed by @katiepickup.bsky.social recently for @dmmjournal.bsky.social. This has a little bit of my background, a little bit on science and mentoring, and a little bit (ok, more than a little bit) on funding in science.
Check it out at: journals.biologists.com/dmm/article/...
Excited to be heading to Paris next week for @embo.org Structure and Function of the #Cytoskeleton! Please say hi if you're around and want to chat about publishing, @jcellsci.bsky.social or any of @biologists.bsky.social grants and community initiatives!
share.google/P4XMcNbsHnog...
Tote bag, lunch bag, travel mug, postcards, stickers, coaster, charging cable
Are you attending @bsdb.bsky.social 2026: Molecules to Morphogenesis in Warwick this week? Visit our stand to complete our quick survey and be in with a chance of winning a special goodie bag.
Soumyashree Das
Transitions in development – an interview with Soumyashree Das
We caught up with Soumyashree from @ncbsbangalore.bsky.social to talk about her research on vascular development and regeneration, and her experience establishing a new lab under pandemic conditions: doi.org/10.1242/dev....
Celebrate #InternationalWomensDay with us and read interviews with women leaders in disease biology research:
Peggy Goodell on stem cells and ageing in the blood: doi.org/10.1242/dmm....
Sadaf Farooqi on investigating the genetics underpinning obesity: doi.org/10.1242/dmm....
Really interesting article about fracture in developing tissues. For a deep dive into examples across species, you can also check out @rashmi-priya.bsky.social and @torres-sanchez.bsky.social's recent Review in Development @dev-journal.bsky.social
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journals.biologists.com/dev/article/...
A photograph of mountains and a valley taken from Tunnel Mountain in the town of Banff, Canada
Excited to be returning to Banff next week for @keystonesymposia.bsky.social Ubiquitin Family in Biology & Disease #KSUbiquitin26 🏔️❄️
Please come and chat to learn more about our not for profit journals @jcellsci.bsky.social and @dmmjournal.bsky.social or @biologists.bsky.social initiatives!
Our latest with @torres-sanchez.bsky.social journals.biologists.com/dev/article-...
Breaking isn’t always a bad thing! Think of birth, seed release...
We highlight how living tissue not only tolerates fractures but actively fracture to grow, shape, reproduce, or adapt – across species and scales.
My UK visit kicked off with deeply stimulating science at the @biologists.bsky.social workshop on Whole Genome Doubling. Check out more in our recent post on @the-node.bsky.social. Many thanks to @mateusolisboa.bsky.social and @katiepickup.bsky.social!
thenode.biologists.com/decoding-who...
Read this article to hear from a mix of researchers about some really cool ways cell biology can be used to fight the climate crisis! Inspiration came from the fantastic @cells4planethealth.bsky.social EMBO Workshop in April last year
Do have a read of this call to action from a fantastic bunch of ECRs working in the cell biology-climate space @cells4planethealth.bsky.social
It's full of lots of important ideas to support future research and researchers who want to use cell biology to help reach a more sustainable future
I really enjoyed talking to Peggy - it was great to revisit the world of DNA methylation and stem cells as well as learn more about the blood and ageing 🩸
Journal of Cell Science @jcellsci.bsky.social is recruiting an enthusiastic and motivated Reviews Editor. An exciting opportunity for a talented scientific editor to make a contribution to an important journal in the field of #cellbiology. Deadline 2 Feb.
More at: www.biologists.com/about-us/wor...
Headshot of Saanjbati Adhikari, to the left, text to the right 100 extraordinary biologists Saanjbati Adhikari Saanjbati Adhikari is a Development Reviews Editor and previously a Cross-Title Features Editor across our journals for the Company’s 100-year anniversary. Saanjbati started as a preLighter during her PhD at Queen Mary University of London, UK, where she investigated the molecular characterisation of Astrin. #100biologists #biologists100
Last but certainly not least, our final extraordinary biologist featured is Saanjbati Adhikari, a @dev-journal.bsky.social Reviews Editor, a Cross-Title Features Editor for our 100-year anniversary and a former preLighter @prelights.bsky.social. #100biologists
The dangers of PFAS #ForeverChemicals are becoming increasingly apparent - check out @dmmjournal.bsky.social's new special focus for some great articles from experts in this area about what we know so far and how we can better understand the health risks
share.google/RKcShIEkYFjS...
The Company of Biologists 100 logo to the left and QR code to the right. Cartoon depiction of Claire Moulton, to the left, text to the right 100 extraordinary biologists Claire Moulton Claire Moulton, previously our Publisher, is the Company’s first ever Chief Executive Officer. Claire is responsible for setting the Company’s strategic plan, championing quality publishing and community support. Claire led the creation of The Forest of Biologists, now in its fourth year, as a biopositive publishing initiative. #100biologists #biologists100
We are also highlighting Claire Moulton, previously our Publisher and @biologists.bsky.social's first ever CEO, who led the creation of The Forest of Biologists, as an extraordinary biologist this week. #100biologists
Pathway to Independence Support postdocs on the job market Line drawing of a person at a bench transitioning to working at a desk Development
Apply for our Pathway to Independence (PI) programme, supporting postdocs in #devbio and #stemcell research during the transition to their first group leader position: www.biologists.com/grants/devel...
Application deadline: 2 February 2026.
It was lovely speaking to @harmitmalik.bsky.social for @dmmjournal.bsky.social Infectious Disease Special Issue. We chatted about his work on host-viral evolution, the importance of blue-skies research and his approach to creating a supportive lab environment
journals.biologists.com/dmm/article/...
We are highlighting Jane Francis, Director of the British Antarctic Survey, UK, who also delivered a plenary lecture at the Biologists @ 100 conference, as an extraordinary biologist. #100biologists @bas.ac.uk
Great panel discussion @helloeacr.bsky.social on the future of #CancerNeuroscience and the importance of balancing multiple disease models. This recent @dmmjournal.bsky.social Perspective from Eva Hernando provides a great exploration of pros and cons of metastasis models
tinyurl.com/dmm-metastas...
Poster of the 100-year history of The Company of Biologists.
1925: On this date, 100 years ago, The Company of Biologists is founded by George Parker Bidder III. Throughout today, we will be posting some of our key milestones. Read more about the past 100 years at bit.ly/3WnTVA1.
Photo of the Guggenheim museum in Bilbao in golden morning light with red autumn trees in the background.
Photo of red autumn trees in front of a building reflected in the river.
Excited to be in beautiful Bilbao for @helloeacr.bsky.social Cancer Neuroscience this week on behalf of @dmmjournal.bsky.social. Looking forward to learning more about interactions between tumours and the nervous system #EACR
Lab’s 1st preprint!
Menstruation is understudied due to societal taboos + a biological challenge: mice (a key system for research + drug discovery) don’t menstruate.
@cagricevrim.bsky.social made menstruating mice + used them to discover early events in menstruation.
He is on the job market!
Picture of Azim Surani in a dark blue jumper and light blue collared shirt sitting by a microscope.
An Interview with Azim Surani
Ashley Moffett and @geraldinejowett.bsky.social spoke to Azim, recipient of both the 2025 Kyoto Prize and 2026 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize, about his non-traditional and inspirational route into academia:
journals.biologists.com/dev/article/...
It was lovely talking to you. Your chicken story is a fun fact that's going to be pretty hard to beat!
Thanks to Katie Pickup (@katiepickup.bsky.social) for chatting with me about my scientific journey and what’s next in the future! If you’re curious about what I do, where I’m heading, and why I used to sleep with a chicken, check out my interview with Development (@dev-journal.bsky.social) below! 🧬
FocalPlane features... meets preLights Thursday 4 September 2025, 14:00 BST (UTC+1) FocalPlane logo Picture of Carmen Rodilla-Ramírez T cell protrusions enable fast, localised initiation of CAR signalling Carmen Rodilla-Ramírez (Freie Universität Berlin) Picture of Eva Mejia-Ramirez Targeting RhoA activity rejuvenates aged hematopoietic stem cells Eva Mejia-Ramirez (The Bellvitge Institute for Biomedical Research) preLights logo Hosted by preLighters Felipe Del Valle Batalla and Vibha Singh @focalplane.bsky.social @prelights.bsky.social #FocalPlaneFeatures #preprints
#FocalPlaneFeatures meets @prelights.bsky.social
@fadelvalle.bsky.social & Vibha Singh have picked 2 fantastic #cellbio preprints & will be presenting their preLights alongside research talks from @probablycarmen.bsky.social & Eva Mejia-Ramirez.
Register: focalplane.biologists.com/2025/08/20/f...