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Burcu Darst

@burcudarst.bsky.social

130 followers 160 following 11 posts

Genetic Epidemiologist, Assistant Professor, Fred Hutch Cancer Center

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Burcu Darst @burcudarst.bsky.social · Dec 17

Excited to share our work showing that a prostate cancer PRS was associated with upgrading on active surveillance (HR~2, comparing top v bottom PRS quintiles), along w/ higher %cancerous biopsy cores, smaller prostate volume, and higher PSA density, which can suggest risk of aggressive disease.

Polygenic Risk Score and Upgrading in Patients With Prostate Cancer Receiving Active Surveillance

This cohort study examines the association between a polygenic risk score and risk of upgrading and other prostate tumor features in patients with prostate cancer receiving active surveillance.

jamanetwork.com

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Burcu Darst @burcudarst.bsky.social · 3d

Further, while PRS are highly predictive of T2D risk across populations, more work is needed to ensure equitable clinical utility.

HUGE thank you to the many collaborators across many cohorts and biobanks who made this work possible! (3/3)

Burcu Darst @burcudarst.bsky.social · 3d

Our findings suggest that across populations, PRS have the potential to inform early interventions for T2D and risks of T2D complications and comorbidities. However, it is important to consider contexts to interpret PRS, as T2D PRS performance varies based on demographic and lifestyle factors. (2/3)

Burcu Darst @burcudarst.bsky.social · 3d

Excited to share our recent work characterizing a type 2 diabetes (T2D) polygenic risk score (PRS) in a collaboration that included 244,637 T2D cases and 637,891 controls, led by @boyaguo.bsky.social! (1/3)

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

Polygenic risk score for type 2 diabetes shows context-dependent effects across populations - Nature Communications

Polygenic risk scores can help identify individuals at higher risk of type 2 diabetes. Here, the authors characterise a multi-ancestry score across nearly 900,000 people, showing that its predictive value depends on demographic and clinical context and extends to related traits and complications.

www.nature.com

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Naguib Mechawar @naguibmechawar.bsky.social · 14d

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Iris Jia @tongqiu.bsky.social · 16d

Fred Hutch Girls Who Code is rolling again with another session on computational biology! Please share the word with high school students and educators

📅 Tuesdays 4:30-6pm, Oct 14 - Dec 2
📍 Fred Hutch (in-person)
🎯 Small groups, comp bio & fun

Apply by Oct 10: form.jotform.com/fredhutch/fr...

Fred Hutch Girls Who Code Fall 2025 Application

Please click the link to complete this form.

form.jotform.com

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Javier Apfeld @javierapfeld.bsky.social · 17d

New cures feel sudden, but the seeds were planted decades ago by basic scientists.

Which seeds will turn into cures? Unpredictable looking forward, a straight line looking back. 🧪🧬 🧵

Huntington's disease successfully treated for first time

One of the most devastating diseases finally has a treatment that can slow its progression and transform lives, tearful doctors tell BBC.

www.bbc.com

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Mike Inouye @mikeinouye.bsky.social · 22d

PRS are well know to have variable performance across ancestries, frequently with a European bias. We looked closely at fairness of PRS for CVD risk prediction, both with PRS on it's own and in an integrated risk score...

Our results were surprising... 👉 www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1...

Current polygenic risk scores are unlikely to exacerbate unfairness in cardiovascular disease risk prediction

Background: Current cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk prediction models place many individuals in an intermediate risk category where clinical decision-making remains uncertain, highlighting a critica...

www.medrxiv.org

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sducrocq.bsky.social @sducrocq.bsky.social · 20d

Best of both worlds: You can pass a Linux command to data.table
jozef.io/r917-fread-c...

How data.table's fread can save you a lot of time and memory, and take input from shell commands - Jozef's Rblog

In this post we write about experience with data.table's fread for reading tabular data from text files such as .csvs and how it compares to other packages like readr or base R.

jozef.io

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Ian Sudbery @iansudbery.bsky.social · 29d

This is now the third year that I'm reminded how greatful I am to @jkpritch.bsky.social when I'm preparing my human genetics lectures, for An Owner's Guide to the Human Genome (web.stanford.edu/group/pritch...). It really is the textbook we are all missing. Its crazy no real alternative exists.

An Owner's Guide to the Human Genome

web.stanford.edu

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Haky Im @hakyim.bsky.social · 29d

I'm hiring a computational biologist interested in complex trait genetics using deep learning approaches. Reach out to me, if interested.

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Peter Kraft @peter-kraft.bsky.social · Sep 8

This was neat work by @nmancuso.bsky.social et al developing and benchmarking a new multi-ancestry fine-mapping method (“SuShiE”). I learned something about the performance of pooled v stratified analyses but still have some Qs. 1/n

Nature Genetics @natgenet.nature.com · Jul 21

📢OUT TODAY @natgenet.nature.com

📰Improved multiancestry fine-mapping identifies cis-regulatory variants underlying molecular traits and disease risk.

By @zeyunlu.bsky.social, @nmancuso.bsky.social and colleagues.

⬇️

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

Improved multiancestry fine-mapping identifies cis-regulatory variants underlying molecular traits and disease risk - Nature Genetics

SuShiE is a multiancestry fine-mapping method for molecular quantitative trait loci that leverages linkage disequilibrium heterogeneity to improve resolution, infer cross-ancestry effect size correlat...

www.nature.com

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Gov. Bob Ferguson @governorferguson.bsky.social · Sep 5

Our Department of Health issued a Standing Order for the COVID-19 vaccine today, as we work to ensure that all Washingtonians 6 months or older have access to these vaccines.

I will do everything in my power to protect our residents with policies still based in rigorous science.

Washington State Department of Health @doh.wa.gov · Sep 5

We have issued a Standing Order for the COVID-19 vaccine, making it easier for WA residents to get vaccinated. Read more at doh.wa.gov/newsroom/doh...

DOH confirms COVID-19 vaccine position with new Standing Order

For immediate release: September 5, 2025 (25-104) Contact: DOH Communications

doh.wa.gov

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UCSC Genome Browser @genomebrowser.bsky.social · Sep 5

Please take a moment to tell us how you use the Genome Browser: surveymars.com/q/mnb...

Your feedback supports future improvements and our continued funding.

UCSC Genome Browser User Satisfaction Survey | SurveyMars

I have posted a survey titled 'UCSC Genome Browser User Satisfaction Survey' on SurveyMars. Please help me by filling it out. Thank you very much!

surveymars.com

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Arun Durvasula @arundurvasula.bsky.social · Sep 2

Excited to share our latest manuscript, "Exposure accumulation drives age-dependent disease architectures and polygenic risk scores," led by Xilin Jiang: www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1...

I am attempting an explainer thread for the first time here:
(I am usually too exhausted to post one)

Exposure accumulation drives age-dependent disease architectures and polygenic risk scores

Our understanding of the dependence of the genetic and environmental architecture of common diseases on age is incomplete. Here, we use longitudinal data to quantify age-dependent genetic and environm...

www.medrxiv.org

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Carl Zimmer @carlzimmer.com · Sep 2

Yesterday the president demanded that evidence about Covid vaccines be shown to the public. Today @apoorvanyt.bsky.social & I run through some of the studies made public over the past 4+ years that show that the vaccines work. Gift link: nyti.ms/46k17Tq

nyti.ms

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Fred Hutch @fredhutch.org · Aug 24

You're invited to the 3rd Annual BACPAC #ProstateCancer Community Research Symposium — a free event hosted by Fred Hutch Cancer Center and @uwmedicine.bsky.social, in collaboration with BACPAC and ZERO Prostate Cancer.

Register: https://bit.ly/4fSYyv5

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W. Joel Schneider @w-joel-schneider.bsky.social · Aug 20

Now on CRAN, ggdiagram is a #ggplot2 extension that draws diagrams programmatically in #Rstats. Allows for precise control in how objects, labels, and equations are placed in relation to each other.
wjschne.github.io/ggdiagram/ar...

Trigonometric functions and a unit circle

A bivariate change model with structured residuals

A hierarchical model of cognitive abilities

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Lorenzo Lorenzo-Luaces, PhD @lluaces.bsky.social · Aug 20

ATTN: Robert Wood Johnson has money to support “canceled” research on racial-indigenous health equity

www.rwjf.org/en/grants/ac...

Rapid Response: Reinvesting in Racial and Indigenous Health Equity Research

The purpose of this call for proposals is to meet the current moment by supporting timely, actionable health equity research that has been interrupted by shifts in federal funding.

www.rwjf.org

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Sam Yeaman @samyeaman.bsky.social · Aug 20

I'm looking to recruit a PhD student to study patterns of local adaptation and introgression across the spruce hybrid zone in the Rockies near Calgary. Projects can include field work, bioinformatics, pop gen theory, or comparison to plant/ conifer species
yeamanlab.weebly.com/uploads/5/7/...

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Caroline Hu @hudrewthis.bsky.social · Aug 20

Seeking scientist volunteers for this fall! Want to practice science communication and help author a 🌟comic🌟 about your research? I need collaborators for the next cohort of SciComm & Comics art and design students. All countries and scientific fields eligible.

An anole extends its dewlap, which says "call for scientists!"

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Lucy D’Agostino McGowan @lucystats.bsky.social · Aug 20

We are hiring into 3 (THREE!) tenure track lines this year at Wake Forest — if you’re looking please reach out, I love chatting about our department! We are a vibrant group that love & embrace the teacher-scholar model 👩‍🏫

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Roshni Patel @roshnipatel.bsky.social · Aug 18

happy to say my new department is hiring an associate/full professor: academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/30328

please apply!

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Max-Planck-Gesellschaft @maxplanck.de · Aug 1

Director at Max Planck - a unique position! The Open Call for Expressions of Interest in Max Planck Directorships is open now and can be submitted by the 31st of October 2025. ➡️ mpg.de/directors - Please share the Open Call among potential candidates.

Open Call for Expressions of Interest in Max Planck Directorships:
Expressions of interest can be submitted until 31 October 2025.

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Mike Inouye @mikeinouye.bsky.social · Aug 3

ICYMI it's not a Max Planck directorship but still a great opportunity to join an exciting research environment down under 😁 bsky.app/profile/mike...

Mike Inouye @mikeinouye.bsky.social · Jul 25

📣📣 Cool job alert! The @bakerresearchau.bsky.social is recruiting up to 2 new PIs in Biomedical Data Science 👉 www.seek.com.au/job/85989791...

You’d join an awesome institute in an incredible city (Melbourne, Australia) as well as partnerships like with @cam.ac.uk… you’ll also get to work with me 😁

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Jacquelyn Gill @jacquelyngill.bsky.social · Jul 30

Are you an early-career biologist or ecologist who would benefit from an invited seminar? Would you like to come to UMaine next fall or spring to give a talk? Leave a brief comment with some info about what you do. I'm co-hosting our seminar series again, and am filling out our rosters.

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