Don't miss this opportunity to help shape priorities and goals for the next five years at NIH. I reported on this week's webinar (including a fun Q&A session) as well as how you can still give your feedback:

salisburys-take.beehiiv.com/p/upcoming-n...

Will Gene Patents Come Back from the Dead? A bipartisan bill in the current session of Congress aims to redefine patent eligibility in a way that could be devastating for patients in the era of genetic medicine.

When I heard that gene patents might roar back to life, I thought it was a joke. It wasn't. Here's an update on a bill in Congress trying to broaden patent guidelines in ways that would really harm patients.

salisburys-take.beehiiv.com/p/will-gene-...

Why Genetic Test Results Require So Much Interpretation If you’ve gotten genetic test results (or you might get one in the future), you should know what goes on behind the scenes to bring you that report.

At @theacmg.bsky.social meeting I heard a lot about the challenges of choosing which variants to report from genetic testing. It's important to understand why this interpretation is so tough, and how we should think about those results as patients.

salisburys-take.beehiiv.com/p/why-geneti...

News Roundup: Super-Ager Brains, Cancer’s Link to Obesity, and More Also this week: new insights into long Covid, reducing HIV infections, and what makes our cells tick

Lots going on this week: age-proof brains, long Covid, reduced HIV infections, and much more. I've got a quick roundup to catch you up.

salisburys-take.beehiiv.com/p/news-round...

Today’s Assault on Vaccines Threatens Tomorrow’s Miracle Cures From slashed funding to an FDA playing politics, we are at risk of losing the best tools we have for staying safe.

The vaccine field has really taken a pummeling in the last couple of weeks, so that's my focus for this week's story. We have so much to lose if we let these resources and expertise slip away.

salisburys-take.beehiiv.com/p/today-s-as...

Pharmas Look to Rein in Drug Costs with Lab Automation New technologies make it possible to test drug candidates faster, and avoid costly clinical trials for drugs that won’t make it to market

At SLAS 2026, there were great demonstrations of how lab automation is supporting better, faster, and more cost-effective results in drug discovery and development. I wrote a high-level take on why this matters for drug costs in the long run.

salisburys-take.beehiiv.com/p/pharmas-lo...

New Studies Link Our Microbiome to Cancer Treatment Response and Tooth Decay Trillions of bacteria, viruses, and fungi call us home — and some of them keep us healthier.

A plethora of microbiome news this week! The latest Salisbury's Take focuses on fecal microbial transplants to boost immunotherapy results, plus new findings in dental health related to microbial populations and our genes.

salisburys-take.beehiiv.com/p/new-studie...

Postdoctoral position - Synthetic Biology / Bacterial Immunity - Research The Bikard lab at Institut Pasteur in Paris is seeking to hire postdoctoral researchers. We are investigating bacteria / bacteriophages interactions, and the genetic innovation that happens at this in...

🚨 Hiring Alert! 🚨My lab at Institut Pasteur is recruiting several Postdocs! We have exciting open projects in: 🦠 Synthetic Biology and🛡️ Bacterial Immunity. Come do great science with us in the middle of Paris! 🇫🇷🥐 research.pasteur.fr/en/job/postd...

Nominate the next Microbiome Medal Laureate | Penn State University The One Health Microbiome Center is seeking nominations for the next Microbiome Medal scholar, an honor established in 2025 to recognize outstanding contributions to scientific discovery and service.

We’re looking for the discoverers and the ones who inspire a generation of scholars. Nominations are now open for the @psumbiome.bsky.social 2026 Microbiome Medal —the highest honor for extraordinary contributions to the global scientific community. Submit by April 10.

www.psu.edu/news/researc...

@science.org is looking for a new research editor to handle papers in the field of next-generation #medicine! Spread the word!!!

bit.ly/4bWOJfn

News Roundup: How We Dodge the Common Cold, and More In other news, scientists eavesdrop on cellular activity, and the U.S. public health situation declines

Will you dodge that pesky cold or get a really nasty bout? Scientists grew nasal tissue in the lab to learn more about how our bodies defend against infection. That and more in this week's news roundup for Salisbury's Take:

salisburys-take.beehiiv.com/p/news-round...

Cancer Survival Stats Reach Highest Rate Since Analysis Began Key takeaways about the promising new report from the American Cancer Society

It's amazing to see five-year cancer survival rates reach an all-time high. I dug into the trends behind this new milestone:

salisburys-take.beehiiv.com/p/cancer-sur...

Open Science Operations Associate Join Astera as an Open Science Operations Associate! Support open science programs, connect with researchers, and help accelerate scientific progress. In-person, based in Emeryville, CA.

New job alert!

If you're passionate about open science, organized, enthusiastic about meeting new people doing exciting work in this space, and want to nerd out with me on all the ways we can move the needle on open science @asterainstitute.bsky.social, apply now!

jobs.ashbyhq.com/astera/f085e...

It was an honor to cover such an awesome and important study on genetic literacy!

Tenure Track Professorship (W1 with Tenure Track to W3) in “Molecular Biology" (f/m/d) - Heidelberg job with Universität Heidelberg | 12850668 The Center for Molecular Biology of Heidelberg University (ZMBH) and the Faculty of Biosciences invite applications for a   Tenure Track Professors...

We are recruiting a tenure track professor in the broader area of molecular biology @zmbh.uni-heidelberg.de at Heidelberg University! www.nature.com/naturecareer... Please share and apply!

Lifeline Donor Spotlight: Meredith Salisbury Meredith Salisbury isn’t a Chicagoan—she lives in Somerset, New Jersey. But 790 miles couldn’t keep her from finding a home in the PAWS community.

If you know me then you know I hate being in the spotlight. But I'm suffering through it today for a great cause - the amazing animal shelter PAWS Chicago.

Check it out: www.pawschicago.org/news-resourc...

Looking for a postdoc in computational biology? We are looking for a postdoc candidate apply for the fellowship 'Juan de la Cierva' for a project on long-read transcriptomics, multiomics, spatial transcriptomics, single-cell long-reads. Deadline is approaching!! (December 10th)

Microscopy Bat signal!

I want to compile a list of biological samples that demonstrate microscope capabilities, including the reagents to generate them. Please send me anything you know of!! Beads are great for QC, but there's a different teaching benefit with biology. 1/n

His lab was humming with discovery. After one year under Trump, it’s almost silent John Quackenbush built a lab that is at the forefront of human genetics research and bioinformatics. Trump administration cuts have put it in danger of collapse.

Don't miss this brilliant coverage of the effects of brutal cuts to biomedical research funding from @statnews.com. Part of a series, this piece is a great deep dive into the amazing lab of @johnquackenbush.bsky.social - and the ramifications of funding loss.

www.statnews.com/2025/12/05/r...

For Pediatric Cancer, Genomic Profiling Helps Guide Patient Care Newly released progress report from cancer research group emphasizes how much has been accomplished — and how much remains to be done

Great to see the new pediatric cancer progress report from @theaacr.bsky.social. I reported on that and some related info on cancer genomic profiling from this year's #AMPath25 meeting in my latest article:

salisburys-take.beehiiv.com/p/for-pediat...

Bird Flu Update: H5N1 Virus Still Widely Circulating This strain of avian influenza is still running rampant, but thankfully it has not yet evolved to enable respiratory transmission

It isn't too common these days to get real insight into the state of the H5N1 avian influenza outbreak here in the U.S. - that's why I really enjoyed a recent talk about it at the annual #AMPath25 meeting. Wrote it up for this week's newsletter:

salisburys-take.beehiiv.com/p/bird-flu-u...

$100 Million Grant Awarded for the Prevention of Infectious Disease Outbreaks Winners of the unique MacArthur Foundation grant competition are already helping to prevent pandemics

Delighted to report on the MacArthur Foundation's $100 million grant awarded to the Sentinel project, co-led by Pardis Sabeti and Christian Happi. It aims to enable infectious disease surveillance and prevent future pandemics. salisburys-take.beehiiv.com/p/100-millio...

Kitty cannoli.

Beating the Odds: How People Stay Healthy When Their Genomes Should Be Causing Disease With massive data dive, scientists look for clues about why some people with disease-causing genetic variants remain healthy

In rare cases, people with severe disease-causing genetic mutations never actually get sick. What's up with that? I reported on a new study from the gnomAD team that aimed to find an answer.

salisburys-take.beehiiv.com/p/beating-th...

Stained axons

@andreaserio.bsky.social and I are recruiting a postdoc to lead an exciting MNDA-funded project using multi-omics to study long axons in motor neurons and how they shape susceptibility to #ALS.

Get in touch for any questions and apply by 2 December:
my.corehr.com/pls/kclrecru...

Are you looking for a #tenuretrack or #openrank job in #biostatistics or #statistics? @fredhutch.org is hiring! Seattle is a wonderful place to grow your career; the bio/stat & science scene here is world-class; and you will work w/ amazing UW Biostat students. Apply!
apply.interfolio.com/176402

NJ Voter Information Portal NJ Voter information about the Elections.

New Jersey today is Election Day! Your voice is your vote. To find your polling place or get help go to vote.nj.gov

Brilliant or Bumbling? AI Tools Aren’t Quite Ready for Genetic Diagnosis Large language models show promise as an assistant to clinical experts, but they’re not ready for prime time

At #ASHG25 there were some great talks about assessments of the potential for using AI tools in clinical genetics diagnosis. The results were a mixed bag, which I wrote about here: salisburys-take.beehiiv.com/p/brilliant-...

Even in the chaos of biomedical research right now it was wonderfully reassuring to see Francis Collins speaking at #ASHG25.

Simons Postdoctoral Fellowships in Plant Biology Simons Postdoctoral Fellowships in Plant Biology on Simons Foundation

Great new postdoc fellowship for foundational plant research.
If you’re into genetics and genomics of plant reproductive evolution or adaptive convergence (incl in the cool and charismatic nightshades!) I’d be happy to talk about possible projects!
www.simonsfoundation.org/grant/simons...