Alex Ensminger
@legionella.bsky.social
700 followers 590 following 45 posts
Associate Professor, University of Toronto Depts of Biochemistry, Molecular Genetics Legionella, Metaeffectors, Phage, Toxin-Antitoxin systems Former Tufts Postdoc, MIT PhD My id lives on a lake north of Ann Arbor, Michigan ensmingerlab.com
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legionella.bsky.social
Sorry for the late reply ‪@superbug-slayer.bsky.social ‪@roblavigne.bsky.social‬. Here's a Legionella phage & it likely shaped the emergence of Legionnaires' in the first place! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... (cryoEM w/ @smlea.bsky.social @justindeme.bsky.social). #phage #legionella #legionnaires
A Twitter conversation from 2019 in search of the elusive Legionella phages.
Reposted by Alex Ensminger
rna-ken.bsky.social
Open rank tenure-track position in comp bio at the University of Montreal. Great environment, great position. @futurepislack.bsky.social

medecine.umontreal.ca/wp-content/u...
medecine.umontreal.ca
Reposted by Alex Ensminger
erinrgreen.bsky.social
Job alert ‼️ UChicago Micro is hiring! Open to tenured/tenure track faculty at all levels in any area of microbiology. Come join our amazing and growing department. apply.interfolio.com/174404
legionella.bsky.social
The bottle is an amber boston bottle... maybe 1 oz? (we use them for whisky tastings all the time). I think that the cap is phenolic rod cap based on googling.
www.thecarycompany.com/phenolic-rod...
legionella.bsky.social
"New Scan Ai Colony Counters:
A.I.-Powered Precision for Colony Counting"
Reposted by Alex Ensminger
Reposted by Alex Ensminger
lapassmore.bsky.social
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
legionella.bsky.social
The boat and dock are out of the water :( but had a nice weekend in Michigan. Thanks to @farmgirlphd.bsky.social, expert boat driver.
Reposted by Alex Ensminger
garushyants.bsky.social
hey bluesky 👋 visa hurdles mean I’m looking for opportunities outside the US. I’m a computational biologist (bacterial + phage genomics, postdoc in Koonin’s group @ NIH). I am interested in teaming up on funding apps. reach out if this resonates!
Reposted by Alex Ensminger
iamshef.bsky.social
I can't say enough about how amazing the #peerreview program truly is. If you're an #earlycareer researcher - this is an incredible opportunity.
#genetics
genetics-gsa.bsky.social
🚨 Apply now for GSA’s Peer Review Training Program! Work with a mentor to review manuscripts, give constructive feedback & gain insider knowledge of publishing. 🗓 Deadline: Sept 30, 2025 🔗 buff.ly/o9mNLim
Reposted by Alex Ensminger
farmgirlphd.bsky.social
Congrats to my better half @legionella.bsky.social and his lab and collaborators on this cool discovery! TLDR, they've identified and re-animated a bacteriophage of Legionella pneumophila, a bacteria long thought to not be susceptible to phage attack. Check it out! 🦠
legionella.bsky.social
Sorry for the late reply ‪@superbug-slayer.bsky.social ‪@roblavigne.bsky.social‬. Here's a Legionella phage & it likely shaped the emergence of Legionnaires' in the first place! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... (cryoEM w/ @smlea.bsky.social @justindeme.bsky.social). #phage #legionella #legionnaires
A Twitter conversation from 2019 in search of the elusive Legionella phages.
legionella.bsky.social
Sorry for the late reply ‪@superbug-slayer.bsky.social ‪@roblavigne.bsky.social‬. Here's a Legionella phage & it likely shaped the emergence of Legionnaires' in the first place! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... (cryoEM w/ @smlea.bsky.social @justindeme.bsky.social). #phage #legionella #legionnaires
A Twitter conversation from 2019 in search of the elusive Legionella phages.
legionella.bsky.social
From outside the Isberg lab, circa 2010. Artist unknown.
A cartoon of three amoebae sitting around a table. One, wearing glasses, appears to be smoking.
legionella.bsky.social
Independence Lake, Michigan - Aug 26, 2025.
A large rainbow over a lake.
Reposted by Alex Ensminger
dudinlab.bsky.social
+1 here.

Reach us out early enough !
Getting funding and personal timelines aligned rarely happens over night !
gautamdey.bsky.social
Final year PhD students, I know you’re desperately trying to finish experiments/revisions/submissions/write a thesis & just survive - but please spare a few minutes to apply to your dream postdoc labs.

It easily takes A YEAR from first contact, even if everything goes to plan on both sides.
Reposted by Alex Ensminger
aaamodeo.bsky.social
My Department (Biology) at @dartmouthartsci.bsky.social is hiring this year! We have an opening for a Tenure Track Cell and/or Molecular biologist (broadly defined).

Please share with your trainees/labmates/friends and reach out if you have questions.

apply.interfolio.com/171625
Apply - Interfolio {{$ctrl.$state.data.pageTitle}} - Apply - Interfolio
apply.interfolio.com
legionella.bsky.social
From former PhD Student Jordan Lin (now a postdoc w/ Ami Bhatt), in which we describe a contact-dependent, cell-extrinsic response to genotoxic stress. #MicroSky.

A bacterial toxin-antitoxin system involved in an unusual response to genotoxic stress | EMBO reports www.embopress.org/doi/full/10....
A bacterial toxin-antitoxin system involved in an unusual response to genotoxic stress | EMBO reports
imageimageThe GndRX system in Legionella pneumophila is a predicted toxin-antitoxin module that causes death during DNA stress. GndRX has non-canonical functionality and appears to be the consequence ...
www.embopress.org
Reposted by Alex Ensminger
redrockcity.bsky.social
Elio Schaechter was one of my heroes. His 1958 paper with Ole Maaløe and Niels Kjeldgaard (fondly known as “SMK”) is a North Star for so much work in my group. A wonderful scientist, great communicator, and a very kind person. May his memory be a blessing.
Elio Schaechter and Petra in San Diego
legionella.bsky.social
Adventures in owning a 32-yo Malibu Flightcraft...

You don't need to be a boat mechanic to guess which of these water pump impellers was old, which is new, and why the engine was overheating last week.

Also, thanks to Amazon.com and youtube, I had the boat running again in less than 24 hours.
Two inboard water pump housings with rubber impellers. The left one has totally disintegrated whereas the right one is brand new.
Reposted by Alex Ensminger
nizet.bsky.social
Saddened to learn of the passing of Moselio "Elio" Schaechter—Distinguished Professor at Tufts, SDSU and UCSD—humanist and visionary leader in the fields of microbiology and scientific communication—mentor, friend, and inspiration to me and so many others

Small Things Considered
Big Things Achieved
Reposted by Alex Ensminger
alanakinrich.medsky.social
The only time I diagnosed legionella pneumonia is when I was a resident in NYC, a man came in with cough/fever, said he was an AC repairman, and that his boss told him to go get checked for legionnaires. It was like a test question walked in as a patient and then also gave me the right answer.
ryanmarino.bsky.social
Legionnaires’ disease does not spread person to person, and comes from contaminated water in things like plumbing and water appliances (ice/water dispensers, spas, etc), air conditioning systems & even bad ventilation. Without public health there would be no way to identify and treat these outbreaks
1 dead and at least 22 sick from Legionnaires' disease cluster in New York City
One person is dead and at least 22 people have become sick from a Legionnaires’ disease cluster in New York City since last Friday, health officials said.
abcnews.go.com
Reposted by Alex Ensminger
natmicrobiol.nature.com
#Review

A discussion on the processes driving bacterial evolution and emergence of pathogenesis within hosts, the importance of understanding within-host genetic diversity, and the implications for transmission analysis and infectious disease control.

#MicroSky 🦠

www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Within-host bacterial evolution and the emergence of pathogenicity - Nature Microbiology
In this Review, Tonkin-Hill et al. discuss the processes driving bacterial evolution and emergence of pathogenesis within hosts, the importance of understanding within-host genetic diversity, and the ...
www.nature.com
legionella.bsky.social
Layman's summary: if you thought Canada‬ would position itself to support and foster scientific innovation during these unsettled times, you were mistaken.
legionella.bsky.social
The #CIHR Microbiology and Infectious Disease panel had a 13% success rate in Project Grant decisions released last week. Overall success was just over 15% across all panels. Worst success rate in recent memory. This is not what seizing the moment or investing in the future looks like.🇨🇦📉 #canpoli.