Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

George Ghanim

@automnenine.bsky.social

470 followers 300 following 44 posts

Assistant Professor @ Princeton MolBio | From transposons to telomeres and back | bicycles and biochemistry https://ghanim.lab.princeton.edu

ghanim.lab.princeton.edu

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Pinned

George Ghanim @automnenine.bsky.social · Mar 7

Did you know that two jumping sequences (LINE-1 and Alu) make up nearly 30% of our genomes? Ever wonder how they jump into new genomic sites? We have some exciting discoveries to share new in @science.org on the structural mechanisms of LINE-1 retrotransposition (aka jumping 🧬➡️🧬) 🧪 #ScienceResearch

6 43 110

Reposted by George Ghanim

Lori Passmore @lapassmore.bsky.social · 11d

We have an open post-doc position in my group to study mRNA cleavage and polyadenylation using biochemical reconstitution and cryoEM.

Please get in touch if you are interested in joining this amazing team! 🔬🧬🤩
#RNA #cryoEM

51 55

Reposted by George Ghanim

MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology @mrclmb.bsky.social · 13d

Congrats to #LMBAlumni Juan B. Rodriguez Molina, former Investigator Scientist in the LMB's Structural Studies Division, newly appointed Assistant Professor in the Dept of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine
researchdirectory.uc.edu/p/1818215

3 7

George Ghanim @automnenine.bsky.social · 17d

Looks good! Looking forward to the preprint because i’m keen on how you did this.

Reposted by George Ghanim

Dimitry Tegunov @dtegunov.bsky.social · 25d

Important to remember the theoretical size limit is based on assumptions and a model that may or may not be complete. It isn't some indisputable universal truth.

Harry Low’s Lab @lowlab.bsky.social · 25d

‘We expect that this approach may be useful for cryo-EM analysis of other small particles near or below the theoretical size limit.’ 🤯

Oli Clarke @olibclarke.bsky.social · 26d

This one is a bit of a departure from the usual and definitely a work in progress!

We found that by using ab initio reconstruction at very high res, in very small steps, we could crack some small structures that had eluded us - e.g. 39kDa iPKAc (EMPIAR-10252), below.

Read on for details... 1/x

1 2 13

George Ghanim @automnenine.bsky.social · Sep 2

Hey thats me.

Rachael Kretsch @rachael-kretsch.bsky.social · Sep 2

We have restarted our global Nucleic Acid Strcuture webinar series to bring the expiremental and computational communities together to discuss new developments in the field. Join us this Thursday for the next webinar. Sign up to our mailing list here: groups.google.com/g/casp-rna-sig

2 7

Reposted by George Ghanim

Martin Pacesa @martinpacesa.bsky.social · Aug 27

Since when are vaults cool again? Loving it

bioRxiv Biochemistry @biorxiv-biochem.bsky.social · Aug 27

Structural flexibility of the human vault protein revealed by high-resolution cryo-EM and molecular dynamics simulations https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.08.26.672097v1

1 8

Reposted by George Ghanim

Cameron Myhrvold @cambearon.bsky.social · Aug 15

My lab has developed mSHINE, allowing for both highly multiplexed and portable nucleic acid detection. Very exciting work led by the talented @sijbren-kramer.bsky.social, who is off to do a PhD at Stanford at the end of the month!

Sijbren Kramer @sijbren-kramer.bsky.social · Aug 15

Multiplexed nucleic acid detection is critical for the surveillance of pathogens and mutations, but existing technologies either require extensive lab equipment or have low multiplexing. We built a portable microfluidic manifold for massively multiplexed CRISPR-based detection. (1/12)

A handheld microfluidic manifold for massively multiplexed CRISPR-based nucleic acid detection

Multiplexed methods for nucleic acid detection are immensely challenging to deploy outside of laboratory settings. Conversely, field-deployable methods are limited to low levels of multiplexing. Durin...

www.biorxiv.org

1 3

Reposted by George Ghanim

AJ te Velthuis @ajtevelthuis.bsky.social · Aug 8

Now out in Science Advances: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

www.science.org

2 8

George Ghanim @automnenine.bsky.social · Aug 7

😍😍😍

Brett Collins @brettcollins.bsky.social · Aug 6

Not my area at all, but how cool are these cryoEM structures of purely RNA-based assemblies!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

High resolution CryoEM maps of RNA assemblies

Reposted by George Ghanim

Carter Lab @carter-lab.bsky.social · Aug 5

Excited to share our latest work with @simonbullock11.bsky.social! We looked at how diverse mRNAs get selected for subcellular localization and it turns out that a single protein can recognize different RNA elements using shared features that weren’t apparent before.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

4 45 140

Reposted by George Ghanim

MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology @mrclmb.bsky.social · Aug 4

The LMB recently hosted a symposium to mark 50 years since Richard Henderson and Nigel Unwin published the structure of bacteriorhodopsin, the first 3D structure of a protein determined by #cryoEM.

Read about the event and find more photos here: www2.mrc-lmb.cam.ac.uk/the-structur...

#LMBNews 🧪🔬

Attendees of the recent bacteriorhopsin symposium, photographed from above.

Black and white photograph of Nigel Unwin and Richard Henderson sitting outside the LMB, 1991

Symposium attendees applauding in the LMB's Max Perutz Lecture Theatre.

1 10 57

Reposted by George Ghanim

Coleen Murphy @ctmurphy1.bsky.social · Jul 30

I somehow missed this piece about Jon in my lab: molbio.princeton.edu/news/2025/jo...

Jonathan St. Ange Receives Fulbright U.S. Student Award for 2025-2026

Jonathan St. Ange, a Ph.D. Student in Molecular Biology at Princeton University, has received a Fulbright U.S. Student Program award to conduct research in Molecular Biology in France for the 2025-202...

molbio.princeton.edu

2 17

George Ghanim @automnenine.bsky.social · Jul 31

Yes! ... but what's a semi-autoloader?

1 1

George Ghanim @automnenine.bsky.social · Jul 18

I just got it. This is great.

Chao Qi @qcxy8886.bsky.social · Jul 17

The best cover🥰, paired cats & paired helical filaments.

Reposted by George Ghanim

Gael Cristofari @retrogenomics.bsky.social · Jul 11

🦟 Bioinformatics Research Scientist position open in my lab in Nice (FR) to study Aedes mosquito retrotransposons & their interactions with arboviruses collab w/ @salehlabparis.bsky.social & @lambrechtslab.bsky.social
Apply: euraxess.ec.europa.eu/jobs/359830
Please boost! #ArboRetro #Bioinformatics

25 26

Reposted by George Ghanim

John Rubinstein @johnrubinstein.bsky.social · Jul 12

Returned from a wonderful symposium in honour of the 50th anniversary of Richard Henderson's and Nigel Unwin's 1975 paper on the structure of bacteriorhodopsin - the paper that started the field of membrane protein structural biology.
Also fulfilled my dream of ringing the LMB seminar bell.

At Darwin College:
Richard Henderson
Jacqueline Milne
Sriram Subramanian
Nigel Unwin
David Barford
Da-neng Wang
John Rubinstein

John ring's the LMB seminar bell to call the audience back in after a coffee break.

3 7 60

Reposted by George Ghanim

Kelly Nguyen @kellythd-nguyen.bsky.social · Jul 11

Highly collaborative efforts that involved 6 lab members and the labs of @yiliangding.bsky.social and @rdaslab.bsky.social. We uncovered a telomerase dimer and its potential role in telomere maintenance.

MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology @mrclmb.bsky.social · Jul 11

Sebastian Balch, Zala Sekne & Elsa Franco-Echevarría in @kellythd-nguyen.bsky.social's group have confirmed the existence of dimeric telomerase and illustrated how it is key to telomere maintenance:
www2.mrc-lmb.cam.ac.uk/first-struct...

#LMBResearch @yiliangding.bsky.social @rdaslab.bsky.social 🧪

Structure of telomerase dimer with key catalytic codes and H/ACA RNPs highlighted with schematic illustrating how dimer disruption leads to shortened telomeres and disease mutations of the dimers causes premature ageing diseases

1 17 59

George Ghanim @automnenine.bsky.social · Jul 8

Hurray! 🥳🎉🥂

Sjors Scheres @sjorsscheres.bsky.social · Jul 7

Many congratulations to Dr Kiarash Jamali @kjamali.bsky.social for successfully defending his PhD thesis today! 🥳 Also many thanks to Jonas Adler and Randy Read for examining him. I expect great things from Dr Jamali in his career, so do keep an eye on him. #ModelAngelo

George Ghanim @automnenine.bsky.social · Jul 5

I wish I could bookmark this thread 1) as a reference and 2) to look at every now and again.

Reposted by George Ghanim

Basil Greber @bjgreber.bsky.social · Jun 27

Goodbye Nucleic Acids GRC, goodbye Tuscany - this was great! Thanks to Jane Jackman and Brandt Eichman for organising this fantastic conference!

The town of Barga in Italy illuminated by the evening sun.

1 2 8

Reposted by George Ghanim

Ädam Ligeralde @aktaguy.bsky.social · Jun 26

Calling all structural biologists in the NYC metro area! The nysbdg.bsky.social is back for in-person events!

Register here 👉🏼 buff.ly/dGmJeau

I look forward to seeing you there! 😎

#structuralbiology #cyrstallography #cryoEM #NMR
#chromatography #proteinpurification #AKTAsystems

4 2

Reposted by George Ghanim

berkeleyMCB @berkeleymcb.bsky.social · Jun 18

Congratulations to Dirk Hockemeyer on his promotion to MCB Professor of Cell Biology, Development and Physiology! 👏🎉
mcb.berkeley.edu/news-and-eve...

1 1

George Ghanim @automnenine.bsky.social · Jun 16

In Barbara we trust!

Molly Gale (Gale-Hammell Lab) @mollygale.bsky.social · Jun 16

🧬🌽 Happy Transposon Day! 🌽🧬

Today we celebrate the birthday of Barbara McClintock - scientist extraordinaire and discoverer of jumping genes. Still the only woman to have an unshared Nobel Prize in the biomedical sciences #TransposonDay2025

Reposted by George Ghanim

ravindra-raut.bsky.social @ravindra-raut.bsky.social · Jun 16

🧬Happy Transposon Day!

🎉Each year on the 16th of June we commemorate the birthdate of the founder of transposable element research, Barbara McClintock (1902-1992).

#TransposonDay2025 #MobileDNAjournal

16 55

George Ghanim @automnenine.bsky.social · Jun 14

Keeping the dream alive.