Walter Chazin
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chazinwalter.bsky.social
Walter Chazin
@chazinwalter.bsky.social
52 followers 29 following 12 posts
Structural Biologist, Professor, Basketball player on the IL until I get that knee placement.
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Reposted by Walter Chazin
asbmb.bsky.social
NIH supported more than 407,000 jobs in 2024. Research funding strengthens communities. Join ASBMB in highlighting the value of basic research: www.asbmb.org/advoca....
#ScienceServesUsAll #ASBMBAdvocates
Text states in 2024, NIH funding supported over 407,000 jobs nationwide.
December 4, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
vanderbiltcsb.bsky.social
Kate Clowes Moster, of the Chuck Sanders lab, is the winner of the 2026 Dr. Anne Karpay Award in Structural Biology!
bit.ly/2026-karpay

@vubasicsciences.bsky.social @vanderbiltvicb.bsky.social @vandybiomed.bsky.social
November 14, 2025 at 1:57 PM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
pbump.com
Extremist murders by ideology, 2013 to 2022. www.pbump.net/o/reassessin...
September 13, 2025 at 2:38 AM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
elizabethjacobs.bsky.social
These statements about corruption in science are egregious lies. Kennedy is a tsunami of anti-science propaganda.

This isn’t just a moral injury to scientists, it is downright dangerous.

It is devastating that the U.S. Senate is permitting this.
September 4, 2025 at 3:46 PM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
donmoyn.bsky.social
Full resignation letter from Demetre C. Daskalakis, a CDC leader, does not hold back.
"The recent shooting at CDC is not why I am resigning. My grandfather, who I am named after, stood up to fascist forces in Greece and lost his life doing so. I am resigning to make him and his legacy proud."
My resignation letter from CDC. Dear Dr. Houry, I am writing to formally resign from my position as Director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), effective August 28, 2025, close of business. I am happy to stay on for two weeks to provide transition, if requested. This decision has not come easily, as I deeply value the work that the CDC does in safeguarding public health and am proud of my contributions to that critical mission. However, after much contemplation and reflection on recent developments and perspectives brought to light by Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., I find that the views he and his staff have shared challenge my ability to continue in my current role at the agency and in the service of the health of the American people. Enough is enough. While I hold immense respect for the institution and my colleagues, I believe that it is imperative to align my professional responsibilities to my system of ethics and my understanding of the science of infectious disease, immunology, and my promise to serve the American people. This step is necessary to ensure that I can contribute effectively in a capacity that allows me to remain true to my principles. The recent change in the adult and children’s immunization schedule threaten the lives of the youngest Americans and pregnant people. The data analyses that supported this decision have never been shared with CDC despite my respectful requests to HHS and other leadership. This lack of meaningful engagement was further compounded by a “frequently asked questions” document written to support the Secretary’s directive that was circulated by HHS without input from CDC subject matter experts and that cited studies that did not support the conclusions that were attributed to these authors. Having worked in local and national public health for years, I have never experienced such radical non-transparency, nor have I seen such unskilled manipulation of data to achieve a political end rather than the good of the American people. It is untenable to serve in an organization that is not afforded the opportunity to discuss decisions of scientific and public health importance released under the moniker of CDC. The lack of communication by HHS and other CDC political leadership that culminates in social media posts announcing major policy changes without prior notice demonstrate a disregard of normal communication channels and common sense. Having to retrofit analyses and policy actions to match inadequately thought-out announcements in poorly scripted videos or page long X posts should not be how organizations responsible for the health of people should function. Some examples include the announcement of the change in the COVID-19 recommendations for children and pregnant people, the firing of scientists from ACIP by X post and an op-ed rather than direct communication with these valuable experts, the announcement of new ACIP members by X before onboarding and vetting have completed, and the release of term of reference for an ACIP workgroup that ignored all feedback from career staff at CDC. Their desire to please a political base will result in death and disability of vulnerable children and adults. Their base should be the people they serve not a political voting bloc. I have always been first to challenge scientific and public health dogma in my career and was excited by the opportunity to do so again. I was optimistic that there would be an opportunity to brief the Secretary about key topics such as measles, avian influenza, and the highly coordinated approach to the respiratory virus season. Such briefings would allow exchange of ideas and a shared path to support the vision of “Making America Healthy Again.” We are seven months into the new administration, and no CDC subject matter expert from my Center has ever briefed the Secretary. I am not sure who the Secretary is listening to, but it is quite certainly not to us. Unvetted and conflicted outside organizations seem to be the sources HHS use over the gold standard science of CDC and other reputable sources. At a hearing, Secretary Kennedy said that Americans should not take medical advice from him. To the contrary, an appropriately briefed and inquisitive Secretary should be a source of health information for the people he serves. As it stands now, I must agree with him, that he should not be considered a source of accurate information. The intentional eroding of trust in low-risk vaccines favoring natural infection and unproven remedies will bring us to a pre-vaccine era where only the strong will survive and many if not all will suffer. I believe in nutrition and exercise. I believe in making our food supply healthier, and I also believe in using vaccines to prevent death and disability. Eugenics plays prominently in the rhetoric being generated and is derivative of a legacy that good medicine and science should continue to shun. The recent shooting at CDC is not why I am resigning. My grandfather, who I am named after, stood up to fascist forces in Greece and lost his life doing so. I am resigning to make him and his legacy proud. I am resigning because of the cowardice of a leader that cannot admit that HIS and his minions’ words over decades created an environment where violence like this can occur. I reject his and his colleagues’ thoughts and prayers, and advise they direct those to people that they have not actively harmed. For decades, I have been a trusted voice for the LGBTQ community when it comes to critical health topics. I must also cite the recklessness of the administration in their efforts to erase transgender populations, cease critical domestic and international HIV programming, and terminate key research to support equity as part of my decision. Public health is not merely about the health of the individual, but it is about the health of the community, the nation, the world. The nation’s health security is at risk and is in the hands of people focusing on ideological self-interest. I want to express my heartfelt gratitude for the opportunities for growth, learning, and collaboration that I have been afforded during my time at the CDC. It has been a privilege to work alongside such dedicated professionals who are committed to improving the health and well-being of communities across the nation even when under attack from within both physically and psychologically. Thank you once again for the support and guidance I have received from you and previous CDC leadership throughout my tenure. I wish the CDC continued success in its vital mission and that HHS reverse its dangerous course to dismantle public health as a practice and as an institution. If they continue the current path, they risk our personal well-being and the security of the United States.
August 28, 2025 at 1:01 AM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
altcdc.altgov.info
This isn't a walkout. It's a clap out - a way we have often supported our leaving leaders. Staff are taking admin leave for it.

And wow, what an amazing and inspiring show of community support. 💚🥹💚

The US Public Health Service (uniform: service dress blues) will be holding a salute send-off now.
August 28, 2025 at 7:37 PM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
skippjon1.bsky.social
August 29, 2025 at 5:02 AM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
fusionconf.bsky.social
⏰Early Bird and Talk Submission Deadline closing soon - Tuesday 26th August 2025
📣Don’t miss your chance to be part of the amazing #DRRSC26 meeting.
👉 Click here for further details & registration: bit.ly/46YQZjW
August 19, 2025 at 12:04 PM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
hypothesisfund.bsky.social
2/ How do viruses spread w/o bursting💥 & killing host cells? Awardee @drstarbird.bsky.social aims to discover the mechanisms of an understudied driver of viral spread-which could change the future of virology research!
🍾Congrats Dr. Starbird! @unc-bcbp.bsky.social
🙏 #HFScout @harmitmalik.bsky.social
June 17, 2025 at 4:40 PM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
chrisgeidner.bsky.social
I go to bed tonight proud to know how many people are willing to stand up for what’s right — and how few are willing to rally for his hate.

Night, all, and let us try to be good to one another — and ourselves.
June 15, 2025 at 4:21 AM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
bakerdphd.bsky.social
"In a May 21...recording..., Provost Robin Forman said that when Tulane leadership met with elected officials in April, they were pressed as to why “‘Tulane has taken a stand on the chemical industry as harming communities’,” and this “left people feeling embarrassed and uncomfortable.” "
Tulane scientist resigns citing university censorship of pollution and racial disparity research
A Tulane University researcher has resigned, citing censorship from university leaders. Kim Terrell, a researcher with the Tulane Environmental Law Clinic, resigned Wednesday, saying in a letter the u...
apnews.com
June 12, 2025 at 12:16 AM
chazinwalter.bsky.social
Please join me and thousands of others who have signed this petition in support of the NIH staff who are pushing back. This is one of the pathways that we can fight for what is right. actionnetwork.org/forms/add-na...
ADD YOUR NAME: Sign the Open Letter in Support of NIH Staff
Join the courageous and committed National Institutes of Health (NIH) public servants by adding your name now.
actionnetwork.org
June 10, 2025 at 2:25 AM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
briantylercohen.bsky.social
GOP Sen. Joni Ernst responds to voters saying that cutting Medicaid will kill them: “Well, we all are going to die.”
May 30, 2025 at 2:27 PM
chazinwalter.bsky.social
I just signed this letter. I encourage everyone to examine for yourself.
actionnetwork.org/petitions/op...
Sign The Open Letter to Stand Up For Science Now!
Science is under siege. Trump’s latest Executive Order calls for politically appointed science commissars to evaluate research. Join us in adding your name to our open letter condemning Trump’s escala...
actionnetwork.org
May 26, 2025 at 10:56 PM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
orlandoscharer.bsky.social
Excited to share our latest preprint by @mihyun-kim.bsky.social showing how DNA incision activities in nucleotide excision are regulated to ensure genomic stability. We show that interactions between TFIIH and XPG control the 5' incision by ERCC1-XPF. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Excited to share our latest preprint by @mihyun-kim.bsky.social. Our works adds another piece to the puzzle how DNA incision activities in DNA repair pathways are regulated to ensure genomic stability. https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.05.20.655039v1
May 25, 2025 at 12:48 PM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
vandybiomed.bsky.social
Want to learn about lots of careers at once? Want to network with people in those fields? Registration for ASPIRE's famous Career Symposium is open for one more day!!
medschool.vanderbilt.edu/career-devel...
2025 ASPIRE Annual Career Symposium: “A Kaleidoscope of Biomedical Science Careers”
Join us in-person explore the many paths a biomedical science PhD can take! A Kaleidoscope of Biomedical Science Careers Friday, May 30, 2025 Student Life Center Registration is now open!Please comple...
medschool.vanderbilt.edu
May 15, 2025 at 3:31 PM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
stephanieaw.bsky.social
Join us for the 2nd Macromolecular Conformational Ensembles Conference on June 9th/10th at UCSF. The most compelling questions in structural biology cannot be effectively addressed using only a single structure. conformationalensembles.github.io @fraserlab.bsky.social
Conformational Ensemble
conformationalensembles.github.io
March 31, 2025 at 1:41 PM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
nmrkaygee.bsky.social
Basic science saves lives and fuels the economy, which is why I’m advocating for:

➡️NIH & NSF to spend FY25 funds
➡️$51.3B for NIH, $9.9B in FY26
➡️Restoration of many canceled NIH & NSF grants

Act now. Contact your lawmakers today: asbmb.quorum.us/campaign/123....
#ScienceServesUsAll #ASBMBAdvocates
Urge Congress to re-establish the U.S. as the Leader in Innovation
American Society For Biochemistry And Molecular Biology
asbmb.quorum.us
May 14, 2025 at 7:11 PM
chazinwalter.bsky.social
You hit the nail on the head- the danger of proliferating misconceptions at its finest.
lindorfflarsen.bsky.social Kresten Lindorff-Larsen @lindorfflarsen.bsky.social · May 4
While this paper looks interesting, let me just say (again) that (essentially all) NMR ensembles in the PDB are NOT thermodynamic ensembles or meant to represent these. They are "uncertainty ensembles" and using them to benchmark machine learning (or other) models of dynamics is not a good idea.
May 7, 2025 at 2:23 AM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
drlizziemanning.bsky.social
We did a Canada!
Conservative opposition party suffers devastating defeat and their leader loses his seat
chaser.com.au The Chaser @chaser.com.au · May 3
The US has successfully tilted another country's election.

Read more: chaser.com.au/national/don...
Donald Trump liberates Australia from Peter Dutton
May 4, 2025 at 5:36 AM
chazinwalter.bsky.social
I was delighted to read these words. Kudos to Harvard for standing up for what's right. I hope this starts a new trend for university's to follow.
www.harvard.edu/president/ne...
The Promise of American Higher Education
No government—regardless of which party is in power—should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue
www.harvard.edu
April 16, 2025 at 2:09 AM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
drstarbird.bsky.social
Our lab was featured in an NHK-World news story on the impact of science cuts, including how they are trying to change the narrative on DEI.

www.linkedin.com/posts/chryst...
Our lab was featured in an NHK-World Japan news story on the impact of… | Chrystal Starbird
Our lab was featured in an NHK-World Japan news story on the impact of cuts in science, including how they're working to change the narrative on DEI. Diversity, equity, and inclusion does not mean...
www.linkedin.com
April 11, 2025 at 5:59 PM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
dnacurtain.bsky.social
I am a professor at Columbia University. All of the student NIH training grants have been canceled and now there are reports that ALL funding will be frozen. Why are Universities not banding together and speaking out publicly and forcibly about governmental attacks on biomedical research?
April 11, 2025 at 4:53 PM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
julianstreit.bsky.social
Excited to share our new preprint presenting mechanistic details of how proteins fold on the ribosome. With co-first author @sammyhschan.bsky.social , @twlodarski.bsky.social , Alkistis Mitropoulou, Lisa Cabrita, and John Christodoulou.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
#proteinfolding #compchem #NMR
April 11, 2025 at 7:50 PM
Reposted by Walter Chazin
nytimes.com
President Trump has frozen billions of dollars in federal funds in an attempt to rid higher education of what he calls its woke ideology. Our reporter spoke to the president of Princeton University, Christopher L. Eisgruber, who has vowed to fight.

Listen to "The Daily."
The University President Willing to Fight Trump
Christopher L. Eisgruber of Princeton University talks about the administration’s move to freeze billions of dollars in funding to higher education institutions.
www.nytimes.com
April 9, 2025 at 11:37 AM