Alex Cagan
@atjcagan.bsky.social
1.1K followers 700 following 28 posts
Researching somatic evolution at the University of Cambridge and Wellcome Sanger Institute. Also a scientific illustrator.
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atjcagan.bsky.social
This is a fantastic opportunity to do exciting research on comparative somatic evolutionary genomics as part of a great team. I've collaborated with Peter for many years and highly recommend this position! Please email Peter if you'd like to learn more, including a copy of your CV.
psudmant.bsky.social
The Sudmant lab at UC Berkeley is seeking a postdoc to work on a fully funded NIH project to understand differences in DNA repair and somatic mutation across the primate tree of life. Please spread widely to those who may be interested aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF05052
Postdoctoral Scholar – Genomics, Aging, Somatic Mutation, Structural Variation, Evolution , Cancer – Integrative Biology
University of California, Berkeley is hiring. Apply now!
aprecruit.berkeley.edu
atjcagan.bsky.social
Love seeing methodical comparisons of preservation protocols like this! Great to know for the future
atjcagan.bsky.social
Thanks @trevorgraham.bsky.social it was an honour to participate in this great workshop with such an engaged and diverse cohort in a rapidly growing community
Reposted by Alex Cagan
trevorgraham.bsky.social
Closing keynote from the fabulous @atjcagan.bsky.social on "The impossibility of whales" discussing somatic mutagenesis across species. Brilliantly delivered and exceptionally illustrated talk, as anyone who knows Alex's work would expect! #EBECancer25
@eventswcs.bsky.social
atjcagan.bsky.social
Thanks @amyboddy.bsky.social for the invitation to run this workshop on where ideas come from in science, barriers to creativity and how to overcome them. Great discussion from the group! I'm a convert to 'night science' @urialonlab.bsky.social
amyboddy.bsky.social
Late night session on how to think of good ideas!! #EBECancer25 @atjcagan.bsky.social discusses the creativity in science & helped us practice different ways to think and talk about our science.
Reposted by Alex Cagan
atjcagan.bsky.social
A new review paper for those interested in how comparative approaches are informing cancer research. Advances in genomic resources for non-traditional model organisms (whales, bats, and beyond!) is set to transform our ability to gain insights from cancer resistant species.

doi.org/10.1038/s415...
Advancing cancer research via comparative oncology - Nature Reviews Cancer
Comparative oncology combines evolutionary biology, ecology, veterinary medicine and clinical oncology to better understand cancer, for example, by identifying the molecular and cellular mechanisms un...
doi.org
atjcagan.bsky.social
Another great Sanger Sketcher to follow for summaries of research talks @isabellease.bsky.social
isabellease.bsky.social
Shawn Fayer at #VariantEffect25
Reposted by Alex Cagan
jkpritch.bsky.social
Elegant new theory on polygenic adaptation by Will Milligan, Laura Heyward, and Guy Sella.
biorxiv-evobio.bsky.social
When should adaptation arise from a polygenic response versus few large effect changes? https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.05.15.654234v1
Reposted by Alex Cagan
dingdingpeng.the100.ci
Thanks to everybody who chimed in!

I arrived at the conclusion that (1) there's a lot of interesting stuff about interactions and (2) the figure I was looking for does not exist.

So, I made it myself! Here's a simple illustration of how to control for confounding in interactions:>
atjcagan.bsky.social
Had a lot of fun designing this special double issue cover on long reads with @genomeresearch.bsky.social
genomeresearch.bsky.social
Last night of another great #BOG25! Thanks to everyone who came to chat with us at our Meet the Editors sessions. Had a great year putting together this special double issue! Now, on to the next! #somaticmosaicism @genomeresearch.bsky.social @cshlmeetings.bsky.social
Reposted by Alex Cagan
magdalenaskipper.bsky.social
“A rising wave of white nationalism in many parts of the globe could threaten the progress that has been made in science — and broader society — towards a more equitable world

As scientists and members of the public, we must push back against this threat”
🧪

www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Eugenics is on the rise again: human geneticists must take a stand
Scientists must push back against the threat of rising white nationalism and the dangerous and pseudoscientific ideas of eugenics.
www.nature.com
Reposted by Alex Cagan
nizet.bsky.social
B͓̊å͓c͓̊t͓̊e͓̊r͓̊i͓̊å͓l͓̊ s͓̊ů͓g͓̊å͓r͓̊ f͓̊ů͓e͓̊l͓̊s͓̊
c͓̊å͓n͓̊c͓̊e͓̊r͓̊ r͓̊i͓̊s͓̊k͓̊

Study in 𝘕𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 finds ADP-HEPTOSE, a bacterial sugar produced by Gram- gut flora, leaks into the bloodstream with age, activating NF-κB, giving pre-leukaemic blood cells a growth edge, and triggering dangerous clonal haematopoiesis

Starczynowski Lab U Cincinnati
Microbial metabolite drives ageing-related clonal haematopoiesis via ALPK1 - Nature
ADP-heptose binds to ALPK1, triggering transcriptional reprogramming and NF-κB activation, endowing pre-leukaemic cells with a competitive advantage due to excessive clonal proliferation.
www.nature.com
atjcagan.bsky.social
The honor was all mine! Great to see you again Dmitri
atjcagan.bsky.social
Happy to have contributed to this great collection of articles!
atjcagan.bsky.social
I had a great time working with @genomeresearch.bsky.social on these two covers that combine to form a single image for part 1 and 2 of their long-read sequencing special issues
ahoischen.bsky.social
Amos many thanks to the greatly talented @atjcagan.bsky.social for the cool cover art — part1&2 nicely matching!
genomeresearch.bsky.social
Part 1 and 2 of the Long-read sequencing Special Issues are now live! tinyurl.com/Genome-Res-LRS
Reposted by Alex Cagan
ahocher.bsky.social
The MIMIC lab is hiring a Postdoctoral Research Associate to join my team at @Cambridge_Uni!
Exploration and engineering DNA-mimicking proteins (wet-lab position.) 🧬
Details: www.jobs.cam.ac.uk/job/50652/
Please get in touch / circulate !
Research Associate (Fixed Term) - Job Opportunities - University of Cambridge
Research Associate (Fixed Term) in the Department of Genetics at the University of Cambridge.
www.jobs.cam.ac.uk
Reposted by Alex Cagan
aidaandres.bsky.social
Interested in a starting PI position at University College London to work on Genetics, Evolution or the Environment? My department has opened the call for expressions of interest for sponsorship of independent fellowship applications.

www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/...
UCL – University College London
UCL is consistently ranked as one of the top ten universities in the world (QS World University Rankings 2010-2022) and is No.2 in the UK for research power (Research Excellence Framework 2021).
www.ucl.ac.uk
atjcagan.bsky.social
Fascinating and thought provoking thread thanks for sharing!
atjcagan.bsky.social
An excellent postdoc opportunity with Adrian Baez-Ortega at the University of Cambridge on the genomics of transmissible cancer.

Adrian is a brilliant scientist and mentor, this is a fantastic opportunity I strongly recommend.