Jesse M. Shapiro | Lightnews

Jesse Shapiro

@bjesseshapiro.bsky.social

1.7K followers 720 following 420 posts

Macrobe qui aime les microbes

http://www.shapirolab.ca/

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Jesse M. Shapiro is an American economist who has served as the George Gund Professor of Economics and Business Administration at Harvard University since 2022. He was previously the George S. and Nancy B. Parker Professor of Economics at Brown University from 2015 to 2019, and the Eastman Professor of Political Economy at Brown from 2019 to 2021. He received a MacArthur Fellowship in 2021. .. more

Economics 40%

Political science 16%

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Jesse Shapiro @bjesseshapiro.bsky.social · Jul 1

One of my favourite serendipitous results from the lab came about because we were long-read sequencing bacterial:

Vibrio cholerae, which is "supposed to" have TWO circular chromosomes (3 + 1 million base pairs) often has just ONE fused chromosome (4 Mbp).

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

(1/n)

Prevalent chromosome fusion in Vibrio cholerae O1 - Nature Communications

The pathogenic bacterium Vibrio cholerae typically has two circular chromosomes. Here, Cuénod et al. analyse 467 clinical isolates and identify several independent chromosome fusion events that are li...

www.nature.com

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro, Alan McNally

Josie Bryant @josiebryant.bsky.social · 4h

Really pleased to share the first paper to come out of the lab.
We found that hospital patients were frequently colonised with P. aeruginosa and that the same clone was shared between the gut and the lung.
The phylogenies indicate that the clones moved from lung->gut

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

High frequency body site translocation of nosocomial Pseudomonas aeruginosa - Nature Communications

Here, the authors report within-host diversity and body site translocation dynamics in hospital samples of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and reveal that body site sharing was likely due to within-patient tra...

www.nature.com

Reposted by Lisa W. Fazio, Jason Mittell, Jed A. Fuhrman , and 6 more Lisa W. Fazio, Jason Mittell, Jed A. Fuhrman, Peter Thorne, Jesse M. Shapiro, Benny Geys, Kevin Carey, Smith, Greg Linden

Dr. Stephanie @punkrockscience.bsky.social · 15h

Today’s xkcd made me cry.

In a good way.

xkcd.com/3172/

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro, Alessandro Rigolon

Robert Zaichkowski @rzaichkowski.bsky.social · 21h

A sad day for cyclists. Bill 60 - which prohibits the conversion of motor vehicle lanes to bike lanes (or any other prescribed purpose) - has passed Third Reading this morning which will kill various cycling projects in Toronto & across Ontario. #shame #BikeTO #BikeSky #TOpoli #ONpoli #VisionZero

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro

Jeremy B. Yoder 🧬📊🌿🏳️‍🌈🖖🏻 @jbyoder.org · 23h

Treating emergent traits of the microbiome like quantitative genetic traits of the host reveals how environmentally acquired symbionts can contribute to hosts' adaptation

Quantitative genetics of microbiome-mediated traits

Microbiomes, the complex communities of microorganisms associated with multicellular hosts, play a vital role in shaping host traits and fitness. But how d

buff.ly

Jesse Shapiro @bjesseshapiro.bsky.social · 1d

Likewise!

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro

Ted Johnson @halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy · 1d

When your kids don't need you as their chauffeur everyone is better off.

by bsky @tomflood.bsky.social

#bike #cycling #cyclinglife #commutebybike #NotJustBikes #urbanism #motonomativity #fuckcars #carfree #lowCar #walkability #walkablecities #peopleovercars […]

[Original post on mas.to]

A black-and-white line drawing of a coffee cup on a saucer, accompanied by text that reads: 'prioritizing youth mobility is prioritizing adult relaxing. When kids can walk/roll safely and independently, adults can enjoy some peaceful time to themselves.' The image emphasizes the benefits of safe, independent mobility for children, allowing adults to relax. Credit: Rovelo Creative.

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro, Alan McNally

Nature Portfolio @natureportfolio.nature.com · 3d

The findings of a study in Nature Medicine introduce microbial elements as a component of the brain tumor microenvironment and lay the foundation for future mechanistic and translational studies. go.nature.com/44bO314 #medsky #microbiome 🧪

This is figure 6, which shows intratumoral bacterial 16S signal correlates with the oral and gut microbiota of patients with brain tumor.

Reposted by Michael E. Mann, Elizabeth Saunders, Mark Petticrew , and 23 more Michael E. Mann, Elizabeth Saunders, Mark Petticrew, Axel Bruns, Jesse M. Shapiro, Scott L. Greer, Ian Miles, David Johnson, Rosemary A. Joyce, Martin Paul Eve, Bruce D. Baker, Robert C. Richards, Melanie C. Green, David R. Miller, Scott A. Imberman, Michael D. McDonald, Daryl Adair, Mark Priestley, Sam Kamin, Seth Masket, Christina Pagel, Olivier Mannoni, Aviel Roshwald, David Darmofal, Peter Jacobs, Steven H. Seggie

The New York Times @nytimes.com · 3d

Breaking News: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said he personally instructed the CDC to abandon its position that vaccines do not cause autism. The move underscores his determination to challenge scientific orthodoxy — in this case, that vaccines save lives — and bend the health department to his will.

RFK Jr. Says He Instructed CDC to Change Vaccines and Autism Language on Website

In an interview, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. cited gaps in vaccine safety research. His critics say he is ignoring a larger point: Vaccines save lives.

nyti.ms

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro

ScarletCoral @scarletcoral.ca · 4d

Removing a bike lane during winter so people can store their private proprety on public space

#polmtl #velomtl #outremont #bikemtl #mtlpoli

@davewalker.bsky.social's drawing still resonates⤵️

bsky.app/profile/dave...

Black and white cartoon, with title 'Storage of private property in the street'. Picture of a row of terraced houses with five captioned items in front, with captions as follows:
Some lovely patio furniture? Not really the done thing.
The garden shed? Various curtains would twitch.
Some boxes of odds and ends that wouldn't fit in the loft? Frowned upon.
A wardrobe full of clothes? Outrage on local Facebook group.
Your car? Absolutely fine.
Separate panel below the main drawing.
Woman on bike, with child: 'Could a cycle lane be put in so we can ride to school safely?'
Man, with clipboard: 'I'm sorry - the parked cars mean there just isn't any room'.

Jesse Shapiro @bjesseshapiro.bsky.social · 4d

Awesome to see this out!!

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro, Alan McNally

Michael Baym @baym.lol · 4d

Hot off the press! Our latest paper led by @fernpizza.bsky.social, understanding how plasmids evolve inside cells. These small, self-replicating DNA circles live inside bacteria and carry antibiotic resistance genes, but also compete with one another to replicate. 1/
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Intracellular competition shapes plasmid population dynamics

From populations of multicellular organisms to selfish genetic elements, conflicts between levels of biological organization are central to evolution. Plasmids are extrachromosomal, self-replicating g...

www.science.org

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro, Simon Roux, José R. Penadés , and 1 more Jesse M. Shapiro, Simon Roux, José R. Penadés, Alan McNally

Ellinor Alseth @ellinoralseth.bsky.social · 5d

Very happy to see this piece out in @plosbiology.org, on the bacterial immune systems and microbial communities. It was a great team effort with Rafael Custodio, @brockhurstlab.bsky.social , @brownlab.bsky.social, and Edze Westra! 🦠🧫 #phagesky #mevosky

journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...

Bacterial immune systems as causes and consequences of microbiome structure

Bacterial immune systems have evolved in response to diverse molecular "parasites", yet their ecological roles remain poorly understood. This Essay explores how interactions between mobile genetic ele...

journals.plos.org

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro, Alan McNally, William G. Wade

Louis-Marie Bobay @lbobay.bsky.social · 6d

Our latest paper is out with @adiop.bsky.social and @gmdouglas.bsky.social. We analyzed the extent of homologous recombination between bacterial species (introgression) and how it affects species borders (it can vary a lot depending on the approach used to classify species!). rdcu.be/eQAMf

Introgression impacts the evolution of bacteria, but species borders are rarely fuzzy

Nature Communications - It is commonly thought that bacterial species borders tend to be fuzzy, due to frequent exchange of DNA. Here, Diop et al. quantify the patterns of gene flow between core...

rdcu.be

Reposted by Julian Parkhill, Brigitte Nerlich, Jesse M. Shapiro

EMBL-EBI @ebi.embl.org · 7d

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a growing health threat, making infections harder to treat and complicating routine medical care.

EMBL-EBI’s new AMR portal brings together laboratory resistance data and bacterial genomes in one open platform.

#WAAW2025 #ActOnAMR

www.ebi.ac.uk/about/news/t...
🧬💻

A new gateway to global antimicrobial resistance data

New online portal connects bacterial genomes with experimental resistance data to support antimicrobial resistance research.

www.ebi.ac.uk

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro, Catherine J. Frieman, Jesse R. Lasky

Ezekiel Bones @jjofbc.bsky.social · 7d

fake evo-psych has cooked a lot of people's brains

Reposted by Ben C. Sheldon, Peter Thorne, Jesse M. Shapiro , and 2 more Ben C. Sheldon, Peter Thorne, Jesse M. Shapiro, Stacie B. Dusetzina, Anne Hilborn

Jeremy B. Yoder 🧬📊🌿🏳️‍🌈🖖🏻 @jbyoder.org · 10d

This has gotten surprisingly little attention — it's not even on the front page of @science.org right now — but it's really hard to describe what the SAFE Research Act would do to US science and scientists without sounding insane

www.science.org/content/arti...

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro, Smith

Kristian G. Andersen @kgandersen.bsky.social · 10d

A new approach to pandemic preparedness:

1️⃣ Stop preparing for pandemics
2️⃣ Rewrite history of the last major pandemic
3️⃣ Go to the gym

Simple - 🤷‍♂️.

www.city-journal.org/article/nih-...

NIH Directors: The World Needs a New Pandemic Playbook

The old one failed to cope with Covid and may even have caused it.

www.city-journal.org

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro, Simon Roux

Cameron Thrash @jcamthrash.bsky.social · 11d

Introgression impacts the evolution of bacteria, but species borders are rarely fuzzy www.nature.com/articles/s41... #jcampubs

Introgression impacts the evolution of bacteria, but species borders are rarely fuzzy - Nature Communications

It is commonly thought that bacterial species borders tend to be fuzzy, due to frequent exchange of DNA. Here, Diop et al. quantify the patterns of gene flow between core genomes across 50 major bacte...

www.nature.com

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro

Will Ratcliff @wcratcliff.bsky.social · 11d

Let me use this as an opportunity to talk about Jordi et al's very cool paper, now out in PNAS 🧪:

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...

You can read our news and views here: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro, Amir Attaran

Kai Kupferschmidt @kakape.bsky.social · 12d

I’ve been in Toronto at the #astmh meeting these past few days and last night some very good news was presented here: A new malaria drug has proven efficacious in a large trial and could soon be approved.🧪
My story in @science.org (and 🧵on why it's important to come):
www.science.org/content/arti...

‘A sigh of relief’: New malaria drug succeeds in large clinical trial

As existing drugs falter because of resistance, the world gets a backup—but hard choices loom on how to use it

www.science.org

Reposted by Jonathan A. Eisen, Jesse M. Shapiro

Sean Gibbons 🦠💩 @gibbological.bsky.social · 12d

📣 Join us for the 2025 @isbscience.org Virtual Microbiome Symposium, focused on "Gut Microbial Metabolites and Their Impact on Host Systems".

co-director - @flash-point.bsky.social 🦠💥

It's free, & we have an amazing line-up of speakers!

Dec. 12th. Please share!

isbscience.org/2025-isb-vir...

2025 ISB Virtual Microbiome Symposium - Institute for Systems Biology (ISB)

Symposium Schedule All presentation times are shown in Pacific Daylight Time (GMT -07:00 / UTC -07:00) Time Talk / Session 9:00 Welcoming remarks by Sid Venkatesh Session One: Neural Effects

isbscience.org

Reposted by Jonathan A. Eisen, Jesse M. Shapiro, Simon Roux

Alex Crits-Christoph @acritschristoph.bsky.social · 12d

Very happy to share our recent work @cultivarium.bsky.social on genetic tools for Ideonella sakaiensis, a (Betaproteo-)bacterium that degrades PET plastic.

We identified a plasmid vector for the strain and generated a large RB-TnSeq library, screening for genes impacting plastic degradation.

Figure 2. PET screen results and RB-TnSeq gene fitness results

Jesse Shapiro @bjesseshapiro.bsky.social · 13d

One of the highlights of #ASTMH2025: Introducing colleagues from around the world to Canadian bill-splitting technology. We are a world leader on this if nothing else.

A group of smiling people around a restaurant table.

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro

ASTMH @astmh.bsky.social · 13d

Yesterday, Canada lost its measles elimination status. Dr. Angela Rasmussen, virologist at the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO) at the University of Saskatchewan, spoke to CBC News at #TropMed25 about what this means for Canada and the rest of the world: www.cbc.ca/player/play/...

Canada loses its measles elimination status

Canada has lost its measles elimination status after a sustained outbreak of the disease that's lasted more than a year, leading to more than 5,000 infections and the death of two babies.

www.cbc.ca

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro

Canadian Paintings @canadianpaintings.bsky.social · 14d

For What?
Frederick Varley
1918

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro

Jonathan Eisen @phylogenomics.bsky.social · 14d

When I was in graduate school my life and carreer were completely transformed by a seminar I attended at Stanford by Dr. Hamilton Smith. In the talk he discussed how TIGR was sequencing whole genomes of organisms. Here is a scan of P1 of my notes. 1/n

Reposted by Jesse M. Shapiro

Helen Branswell 🇨🇦 @helenbranswell.bsky.social · 15d

As expected, Canada has lost its measles-free status because of the long-running outbreak there. With it goes the #measles elimination status of the entire zone of the Americas, the only division of the #WHO to ever have achieved measles elimination. www.statnews.com/2025/11/10/m...

Canada loses measles elimination status — as does the entire Americas region

Canada has formally lost its measles elimination status, the country’s public health agency announced, triggering the loss of that status throughout all of the Americas.

www.statnews.com

Jesse Shapiro @bjesseshapiro.bsky.social · 15d

If you’re at @astmh.bsky.social #ASTMH2025 check out our session today on Enteric Pathogen Genomics & Evolution (room 717, 16:30) featuring @ksbakes.bsky.social on Shigella, plus 2 other great talks on V. cholerae phages, and Salmonella!