Alan Schulman
alanhschulman.bsky.social
Alan Schulman
@alanhschulman.bsky.social
Research Director emeritus, Institute of Biotechnology, Univ. Helsinki. Expert, GMO Panel, European Food Safety Authority. Plant genomics, genetics. TE genome dynamics, drought tolerance. Barley, oat, faba bean.
Some people will remember Thing from the Addams Family
A paper in Nature Communications describes a detachable robotic hand that can crawl and grab objects. The design enables tasks such as retrieving objects beyond normal reach and performing multi-object handling. go.nature.com/3NTbMh7 🧪
January 28, 2026 at 12:15 PM
Try this excuse if you get breathalyzed in a traffic stop.
A study in Nature Microbiology can inform future clinical interventions for auto-brewery syndrome, which is caused by gut microorganisms capable of producing ethanol that cause alcohol intoxication. go.nature.com/3NnRNXR #microsky #medsky 🧪
January 17, 2026 at 3:02 PM
Reposted by Alan Schulman
@kevinfolta.bsky.social writes:

“𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘜.𝘚. 𝘴𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘪𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘢𝘴 𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘰𝘤𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘵 𝘜𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘴𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘙𝘍𝘒 𝘑𝘳. 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘓𝘺𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘬𝘰 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦, [𝘦.𝘨.] 𝘳𝘦𝘫𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴, 𝘴𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘴, 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩…”
The Parallels between RFK Jr and Tofrim Lysenko: When Pseudoscience Infects National Leadership | Skeptical Inquirer
His nation’s leadership placed him in a position of profound influence that would impact the health of a nation. Once installed, he offered rapid solutions ...
skepticalinquirer.org
January 4, 2026 at 4:14 AM
Gene Editing, naturally!

Glad to share the results of our survey of consumers and farmers in Finland regarding their views of Gene Editing. The concept of "naturalness" turned out to be important. #geneediting #biotechnology #genomics
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Is gene editing natural and does it matter? A qualitative analysis of citizen-consumers’ and farmers’ views on the use of new genomic techniques in plants - Agriculture and Human Values
This study examines the notions of ‘naturalness’ in Finnish citizen-consumers’ and farmers’ perspectives, through ten focus group discussions, on genetic modification (GM) and new genomic techniques (...
link.springer.com
December 28, 2025 at 4:12 PM
Reposted by Alan Schulman
🌱 📢 8th Fascination of Plants Day 2026 is officially launched! Join us by organising interactive events engaging the public around the 18 May 2026 or as a participant.
More info: www.plantday18may.org 👉 bit.ly/4oVTuZw
#PlantsDay2026 #Plants #PlantScience
December 15, 2025 at 8:13 AM
A goldenberry (Physalis) with agronomic traits improved by gene editing! At least here in Finland, these delicious and healthful berries are pricey, so easier production would be welcome.
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Engineering compact Physalis peruviana (goldenberry) to promote its potential as a global crop
Goldenberry (Physalis peruviana) produces sweet, nutritionally rich berries, yet like many minor crops, is cultivated in limited geographical regions and has not been a focus of breeding programs for...
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
December 11, 2025 at 8:20 PM
Reposted by Alan Schulman
💡 EPSO welcomes the provisional agreement reached by the Trilogue on the legislative proposal for regulation of New Genomic Techniques (NGTs) in plants. EPSO offers to contribute on a scientific basis. 🌱

#PlantScience #Biodiversity #Food2030EU #Bioeconomy #LifeSciences 👉 bit.ly/48Mds37
December 9, 2025 at 10:30 AM
Reposted by Alan Schulman
Europe cannot afford to fall behind on innovation!
We join 25 EU agri-food organizations urging policymakers to conclude #NGTs trilogue talks now.
Science-based rules = resilient crops & global competitiveness. Act today! 🌱
euroseeds.eu/app/uploads/...
November 27, 2025 at 8:15 AM
Reposted by Alan Schulman
🌱📢EPSO wishes to encourage the development of ideas and imaginative thinking in #PlantScience and offers two awards to young scientists to present at the EPSO General Assembly Science Day on 17th June 2026. Submission deadline is 31.1.2026. 👉https://bit.ly/43cbx5Q.
November 3, 2025 at 8:50 AM
Soon, CDC will be listing protocols for exorcism.
CDC has overhauled its website to assert that “the claim ‘vaccines do not cause autism’ is not an evidence-based claim”
November 20, 2025 at 11:28 AM
Happy to have been a part of the worldwide effort to assemble a pan-genome and pan-transcriptome for oat! A great cereal crop with lots of health benefits. We hope this resource will advance oat quality improvement, resilience, and sustainability as well as provide a foundation for basic research.
A pangenome and pantranscriptome of hexaploid oat - Nature
A pangenome of oat, assembled from 33 wild and domesticated oat lines, sheds light on the evolution and genetic diversity of this cereal crop and will aid genomics-assisted breeding to improve product...
www.nature.com
November 10, 2025 at 2:23 PM
Watson's troubling B-side
A Sharon Begley byline, almost 5 years after her death.

Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."

Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
James Watson, dead at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers
James Watson, the co-discoverer of the structure of DNA who died Thursday at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers.
www.statnews.com
November 9, 2025 at 10:50 AM
Their longevity I've wondered about for a long time. Harder to decipher the lifespan of the Greenland Shark, maybe 500 yr.
Four subtle tweaks to an enzyme could help explain why naked mole rats’ can live for nearly 30 years, an unusually long lifespan for a creature its size.

The enzyme, cGAS, enhances the animal’s ability to repair genetic damage that leads to ageing.

🧪

www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Naked mole rats live for decades — genetic tweaks reveal insights into ageing
Four subtle changes to an enzyme might explain the hairless rodents’ longevity.
www.nature.com
October 11, 2025 at 9:40 AM
A mechanism that I and certainly many others have wondered about has now been revealed.
October 1, 2025 at 11:07 AM
Happy International Coffee Day. Here is a new EFSA study, but don't lose sleep over it.
☕ Happy #InternationalCoffeeDay

Coffee is loved worldwide — and caffeine, its key ingredient, boosts alertness in moderate amounts. But how much is safe? What are the risks?

Find out in our risk assessment: link.europa.eu/HMCRtV

#Caffeine #RiskAssessment #EFSA
October 1, 2025 at 10:44 AM
Who would have guessed? Why it's worth exploring the various branches of the tree of life.
September 26, 2025 at 11:39 AM
Reposted by Alan Schulman
How about we call genome edited crops "barely mutant"?

Seems to be a nice workshop below btw!
Registration to the 4th International Barley Mutant 🧬Workshop #IBMW26 has opened. More info ibmw26.wordpress.com
iBMW2026
iBMW2026
ibmw26.wordpress.com
September 26, 2025 at 11:11 AM
The perfect cacio e pepe, how to stop shoe odor, and zebra-stiped cows! arstechnica.com/science/2025...
Meet the 2025 Ig Nobel Prize winners
The annual award ceremony features miniature operas, scientific demos, and the 24/7 lectures.
arstechnica.com
September 20, 2025 at 10:21 AM
Reposted by Alan Schulman
🫛 SPECIAL ISSUE REVIEW 🫛

Johansson et al. ✍️

Redox-active molecules such as ROS, RNS, and RSS orchestrate legume responses to diverse (a)biotic stresses and symbioses, offering novel strategies to enhance crop resilience in changing environments.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...

#PlantScience 🧪
September 17, 2025 at 9:31 AM
Heads up on this one.
September 1, 2025 at 11:08 AM
Nice to see a genome assembly emerge for this barley wild relative. Hopefully, we'll learn how to improve barley's drought tolerance while maintaining yield.
September 1, 2025 at 10:59 AM
Reposted by Alan Schulman
"I’ve never heard as many colleagues saying things like 'CDC is dead’ as I have today," an agency employee told STAT.
www.statnews.com/2025/08/28/c...
Crisis within CDC is spilling into real world, experts say
"I’ve never heard as many colleagues saying things like 'CDC is dead’ as I have today," an agency employee told STAT.
www.statnews.com
August 29, 2025 at 3:32 PM
Reposted by Alan Schulman
I miss the old brand #CDC
August 28, 2025 at 10:00 PM
Reposted by Alan Schulman
Pangenome reveals structural variant-driven variation in expression of in winter oilseed rape. Framework enables population-scale SV-eQTL discovery beyond traditional SNP-based approaches - major advance for functional genomics.

Read more here:
Graphical pangenomics-enabled characterization of structural variant impact on gene expression in Brassica napus
rdcu.be
August 26, 2025 at 7:01 AM