Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
@samwalds.bsky.social
Fascinated by what I can "squeeze" out of plant cells under microscopes spiced up with synthetic biology. 🔬
PhDone 🌱 at JIC (UK), now a postdoc at the MPIPZ (Cologne, Germany). Sometimes too sarcastic. 🇪🇺🏳️🌈 he/him
https://linktr.ee/samwalds
PhDone 🌱 at JIC (UK), now a postdoc at the MPIPZ (Cologne, Germany). Sometimes too sarcastic. 🇪🇺🏳️🌈 he/him
https://linktr.ee/samwalds
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
Very excited to share my first solo Tansley Insight. An integrated view on the hydraulics of aboveground plant meristems, and the framework of my future work as part of this community #PlantScience
@newphyt.bsky.social
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
@newphyt.bsky.social
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
On growth and flow: hydraulic aspects of aboveground meristems
Water is essential for plant growth under both normal and stress conditions. Aboveground, two key meristems control plant development: the shoot apical meristem and the vascular cambium. Here, stem c...
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
November 17, 2025 at 7:26 AM
Very excited to share my first solo Tansley Insight. An integrated view on the hydraulics of aboveground plant meristems, and the framework of my future work as part of this community #PlantScience
@newphyt.bsky.social
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
@newphyt.bsky.social
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
Delighted to report that our group's passion project over the last 6+ years to make DNA cloning more accessible, efficient, and scalable using a software-assisted workflow called CloneCoordinate is now out in ACS Synbio!
pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
CloneCoordinate: Open-Source Software for Collaborative DNA Construction
Custom DNA constructs have never been more common or important in the life sciences. Many researchers therefore devote substantial time and effort to molecular cloning, aided by abundant computer-aide...
pubs.acs.org
November 21, 2025 at 7:40 PM
Delighted to report that our group's passion project over the last 6+ years to make DNA cloning more accessible, efficient, and scalable using a software-assisted workflow called CloneCoordinate is now out in ACS Synbio!
pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
Very happy to share that this paper is now online on @currentbiology.bsky.social !! 🥳🧪 Check out the final published verion here: www.cell.com/current-biol...
#mimuluspropaganda
#mimuluspropaganda
November 24, 2025 at 4:25 PM
Very happy to share that this paper is now online on @currentbiology.bsky.social !! 🥳🧪 Check out the final published verion here: www.cell.com/current-biol...
#mimuluspropaganda
#mimuluspropaganda
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
Understanding bioRxiv/medRxiv DOIs. How openRxiv assigns them, a changing prefix, and the embedded priority date in citations openrxiv.org/dois-for-pre...
Understanding DOIs for preprints: how openRxiv assigns and manages persistent identifiers - openRxiv
Digital object identifiers (DOIs) are a class of persistent identifier (PID) assigned to an object to ensure that it can always be uniquely identified and, ideally, accessed reliably. Each DOI is a un...
openrxiv.org
November 19, 2025 at 7:40 PM
Understanding bioRxiv/medRxiv DOIs. How openRxiv assigns them, a changing prefix, and the embedded priority date in citations openrxiv.org/dois-for-pre...
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
Getting ready for our #PlantGenomics courses! 🌱🔬
The course is almost full, so check out the details soon if you want to join and learn about the power of long-read sequencing and cloud-based data analysis.
Feel free to spread the word!
👉 www.izmb.uni-bonn.de/en/pbb/news#...
@puckerlab.bsky.social
The course is almost full, so check out the details soon if you want to join and learn about the power of long-read sequencing and cloud-based data analysis.
Feel free to spread the word!
👉 www.izmb.uni-bonn.de/en/pbb/news#...
@puckerlab.bsky.social
November 19, 2025 at 6:01 AM
Getting ready for our #PlantGenomics courses! 🌱🔬
The course is almost full, so check out the details soon if you want to join and learn about the power of long-read sequencing and cloud-based data analysis.
Feel free to spread the word!
👉 www.izmb.uni-bonn.de/en/pbb/news#...
@puckerlab.bsky.social
The course is almost full, so check out the details soon if you want to join and learn about the power of long-read sequencing and cloud-based data analysis.
Feel free to spread the word!
👉 www.izmb.uni-bonn.de/en/pbb/news#...
@puckerlab.bsky.social
I'm quite excited for mine to arrive. ✨
If you want one too, you still have a chance to go for it!
The proceeds go to support @skypeascientist.bsky.social outreach! squidfacts.bigcartel.com
If you want one too, you still have a chance to go for it!
The proceeds go to support @skypeascientist.bsky.social outreach! squidfacts.bigcartel.com
This year we have sold 31% of the advent calendars that we sold last year 😓
The art is so pretty and colorful 🥺
The facts are so good 🥺
Eels are so cool 🥺
Get an eel facts advent calendar at EelFacts.net
The art is so pretty and colorful 🥺
The facts are so good 🥺
Eels are so cool 🥺
Get an eel facts advent calendar at EelFacts.net
November 18, 2025 at 5:47 PM
I'm quite excited for mine to arrive. ✨
If you want one too, you still have a chance to go for it!
The proceeds go to support @skypeascientist.bsky.social outreach! squidfacts.bigcartel.com
If you want one too, you still have a chance to go for it!
The proceeds go to support @skypeascientist.bsky.social outreach! squidfacts.bigcartel.com
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
We’re #hiring! Our #IMPRS @mpipz.bsky.social & @unicologne.bsky.social recruits 4 PhD students. We look for candidates with a keen interest in experimental & computational plant biology to join us in 2026!
Find details at www.mpipz.mpg.de/imprs/imprs-... and apply by Jan 5.
#PlantSciJobs
Find details at www.mpipz.mpg.de/imprs/imprs-... and apply by Jan 5.
#PlantSciJobs
November 17, 2025 at 9:00 AM
We’re #hiring! Our #IMPRS @mpipz.bsky.social & @unicologne.bsky.social recruits 4 PhD students. We look for candidates with a keen interest in experimental & computational plant biology to join us in 2026!
Find details at www.mpipz.mpg.de/imprs/imprs-... and apply by Jan 5.
#PlantSciJobs
Find details at www.mpipz.mpg.de/imprs/imprs-... and apply by Jan 5.
#PlantSciJobs
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
🌍Open call: Junior Group Leader positions!
Join a world-class biomedical research institute at the heart of the Vienna BioCenter, where curiosity drives discovery.
Lead your own lab, pursue bold ideas, and shape the future of science at the IMP: www.imp.ac.at/career/open-...
Join a world-class biomedical research institute at the heart of the Vienna BioCenter, where curiosity drives discovery.
Lead your own lab, pursue bold ideas, and shape the future of science at the IMP: www.imp.ac.at/career/open-...
November 10, 2025 at 1:26 PM
🌍Open call: Junior Group Leader positions!
Join a world-class biomedical research institute at the heart of the Vienna BioCenter, where curiosity drives discovery.
Lead your own lab, pursue bold ideas, and shape the future of science at the IMP: www.imp.ac.at/career/open-...
Join a world-class biomedical research institute at the heart of the Vienna BioCenter, where curiosity drives discovery.
Lead your own lab, pursue bold ideas, and shape the future of science at the IMP: www.imp.ac.at/career/open-...
Looking to move out of the USA and to Germany for a postdoc, as you can't conduct your work in the USA under the current political restrictions? (e.g visa issues, funding cuts, etc.)
The state of Baden-Württemberg funds novel postdoc fellowships for this:
www.uni-konstanz.de/zukunftskoll...
The state of Baden-Württemberg funds novel postdoc fellowships for this:
www.uni-konstanz.de/zukunftskoll...
Early Career Rescue Fellowship
www.uni-konstanz.de
November 14, 2025 at 2:37 PM
Looking to move out of the USA and to Germany for a postdoc, as you can't conduct your work in the USA under the current political restrictions? (e.g visa issues, funding cuts, etc.)
The state of Baden-Württemberg funds novel postdoc fellowships for this:
www.uni-konstanz.de/zukunftskoll...
The state of Baden-Württemberg funds novel postdoc fellowships for this:
www.uni-konstanz.de/zukunftskoll...
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
Check out our story in @plosbiology.org about how a nonrandom, clustered giant cell pattern forms in the sepal and leaf epidermis! It has been a great journey with @gweissbart.bsky.social, Frances Clark, Xihang Wang, @roederlab.bsky.social and co-authors.
journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...
journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...
A common pathway controls cell size in the sepal and leaf epidermis leading to a nonrandom pattern of giant cells
Arabidopsis leaf epidermal cells have a wide range of sizes and ploidies, but the mechanisms patterning their size and spatial distribution remain unclear. This study shows that the pathway controllin...
journals.plos.org
November 12, 2025 at 9:33 AM
Check out our story in @plosbiology.org about how a nonrandom, clustered giant cell pattern forms in the sepal and leaf epidermis! It has been a great journey with @gweissbart.bsky.social, Frances Clark, Xihang Wang, @roederlab.bsky.social and co-authors.
journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...
journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
BREAKING: European Sleeper will start a Paris-Berlin sleeper train from 26 March 2026, after Nightjet pulls out in December.
It'll run via Brussels (with Eurostar connection from London) 3 times a week. This + existing train = Brussels-Berlin 6 times a week. www.europeansleeper.eu/paris
It'll run via Brussels (with Eurostar connection from London) 3 times a week. This + existing train = Brussels-Berlin 6 times a week. www.europeansleeper.eu/paris
November 12, 2025 at 7:16 AM
BREAKING: European Sleeper will start a Paris-Berlin sleeper train from 26 March 2026, after Nightjet pulls out in December.
It'll run via Brussels (with Eurostar connection from London) 3 times a week. This + existing train = Brussels-Berlin 6 times a week. www.europeansleeper.eu/paris
It'll run via Brussels (with Eurostar connection from London) 3 times a week. This + existing train = Brussels-Berlin 6 times a week. www.europeansleeper.eu/paris
I, for one, am very pro having a lama to hug at all future conferences.
🦙
🦙
Things I was not even remotely expecting to do today at #EntSoc25: hug a llama. 😊
It was a true pleasure to meet Caesar the No Drama Llama and his human assitants.
Thank you for all the good work you do, Ceasar.
It was a true pleasure to meet Caesar the No Drama Llama and his human assitants.
Thank you for all the good work you do, Ceasar.
November 11, 2025 at 7:01 PM
I, for one, am very pro having a lama to hug at all future conferences.
🦙
🦙
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
Hi fellow PIs, how do you feel with all the leadership / managing tasks that were bestowed onto you at some point? Did you get formal training? Did you seek any training? Are you following any principles/guidance or are you just winging it and hope for the best?
November 11, 2025 at 7:54 AM
Hi fellow PIs, how do you feel with all the leadership / managing tasks that were bestowed onto you at some point? Did you get formal training? Did you seek any training? Are you following any principles/guidance or are you just winging it and hope for the best?
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
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.
🧪🧬🧫
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 8, 2025 at 1:39 PM
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.
🧪🧬🧫
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.
🧪🧬🧫
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
Postdoc position in my lab in Cologne starting early next year or latest in spring to get this exciting project started.
jobportal.uni-koeln.de/ausschreibun...
jobportal.uni-koeln.de/ausschreibun...
jobportal.uni-koeln.de
November 2, 2025 at 10:27 AM
Postdoc position in my lab in Cologne starting early next year or latest in spring to get this exciting project started.
jobportal.uni-koeln.de/ausschreibun...
jobportal.uni-koeln.de/ausschreibun...
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
Very excited to finally share my PhD paper, about advancing #chloroplast #synbio through high-throughput plastome engineering of #Chlamydomonas.
Huge thanks to the whole team!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Huge thanks to the whole team!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
November 3, 2025 at 4:26 PM
Very excited to finally share my PhD paper, about advancing #chloroplast #synbio through high-throughput plastome engineering of #Chlamydomonas.
Huge thanks to the whole team!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Huge thanks to the whole team!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
Nominations for the Darbaker Prize close TOMORROW, November 1!
This joint award from the Botanical Society of America and the Phycological Society of America recognizes excellence in research on microscopic algae.
💰 Award increased to $2500!
botany.org/home/awards/...
#BSAwards
This joint award from the Botanical Society of America and the Phycological Society of America recognizes excellence in research on microscopic algae.
💰 Award increased to $2500!
botany.org/home/awards/...
#BSAwards
October 31, 2025 at 6:18 PM
Nominations for the Darbaker Prize close TOMORROW, November 1!
This joint award from the Botanical Society of America and the Phycological Society of America recognizes excellence in research on microscopic algae.
💰 Award increased to $2500!
botany.org/home/awards/...
#BSAwards
This joint award from the Botanical Society of America and the Phycological Society of America recognizes excellence in research on microscopic algae.
💰 Award increased to $2500!
botany.org/home/awards/...
#BSAwards
Seemingly everyone in my extended friendship and social circles:
Getting married, buying an apartment/house, and/or having babies.
Versus me, telling them my exciting news:
“So, I’m making this really cool set of plasmids…”
🙃
Getting married, buying an apartment/house, and/or having babies.
Versus me, telling them my exciting news:
“So, I’m making this really cool set of plasmids…”
🙃
October 26, 2025 at 12:01 PM
Seemingly everyone in my extended friendship and social circles:
Getting married, buying an apartment/house, and/or having babies.
Versus me, telling them my exciting news:
“So, I’m making this really cool set of plasmids…”
🙃
Getting married, buying an apartment/house, and/or having babies.
Versus me, telling them my exciting news:
“So, I’m making this really cool set of plasmids…”
🙃
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
If you’re fed up with MacOS, here’s a really nice Linux version that runs on recent Macs. Super easy installation.
Run in terminal:
curl alx.sh | sh
Run in terminal:
curl alx.sh | sh
October 24, 2025 at 1:34 PM
If you’re fed up with MacOS, here’s a really nice Linux version that runs on recent Macs. Super easy installation.
Run in terminal:
curl alx.sh | sh
Run in terminal:
curl alx.sh | sh
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
Please repost:
What are the current costs of kit-based RNA extractions per sample? Qiagen quoted my grad student a "discount" that came to $10/sample. That seemed /way/ too high
What are the current costs of kit-based RNA extractions per sample? Qiagen quoted my grad student a "discount" that came to $10/sample. That seemed /way/ too high
October 22, 2025 at 11:43 PM
Please repost:
What are the current costs of kit-based RNA extractions per sample? Qiagen quoted my grad student a "discount" that came to $10/sample. That seemed /way/ too high
What are the current costs of kit-based RNA extractions per sample? Qiagen quoted my grad student a "discount" that came to $10/sample. That seemed /way/ too high
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
Imagine: you are visiting a colleague's office, or a conference room, and you want to explain something. You turn to the chalkboard and <GASP> you are struck by the sight of this. CAN YOU EVEN DO SCIENCE WITH THIS? Unlikely. Better to be prepared.
October 23, 2025 at 8:28 AM
Imagine: you are visiting a colleague's office, or a conference room, and you want to explain something. You turn to the chalkboard and <GASP> you are struck by the sight of this. CAN YOU EVEN DO SCIENCE WITH THIS? Unlikely. Better to be prepared.
The automatic assumption from Adobe Acrobat that I would like to have their AI "help" me read paper PDFs has driven me slightly mad.
Thankfully, it is simple to turn it off.
(Even if I would prefer that one would need to actively turn it on, instead of off.)
helpx.adobe.com/uk/acrobat/u...
Thankfully, it is simple to turn it off.
(Even if I would prefer that one would need to actively turn it on, instead of off.)
helpx.adobe.com/uk/acrobat/u...
October 20, 2025 at 4:12 PM
The automatic assumption from Adobe Acrobat that I would like to have their AI "help" me read paper PDFs has driven me slightly mad.
Thankfully, it is simple to turn it off.
(Even if I would prefer that one would need to actively turn it on, instead of off.)
helpx.adobe.com/uk/acrobat/u...
Thankfully, it is simple to turn it off.
(Even if I would prefer that one would need to actively turn it on, instead of off.)
helpx.adobe.com/uk/acrobat/u...
Reposted by Sebastian Samwald (Basti) he/him
JOB ALERT! We are looking for a LAB MANAGER (7-year position!) to help us build the MOLECULAR BIODIVERSITY lab in our @terra-cluster.org at @unituebingen.bsky.social. Are you a NGS wet lab expert, and you like the idea of supporting research on natural biodiversity, then apply!
Please re-post!
Please re-post!
October 17, 2025 at 11:51 AM
JOB ALERT! We are looking for a LAB MANAGER (7-year position!) to help us build the MOLECULAR BIODIVERSITY lab in our @terra-cluster.org at @unituebingen.bsky.social. Are you a NGS wet lab expert, and you like the idea of supporting research on natural biodiversity, then apply!
Please re-post!
Please re-post!