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Sonya Widen

@sonyawiden.bsky.social

270 followers 360 following 44 posts

🇨🇦Postdoc in the Burga lab at the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology (IMBA)🇦🇹. Developmental biologist turned selfish gene/mobile genetic element/virus enthusiast, working in nematodes at the interface of them all!

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Sonya Widen @sonyawiden.bsky.social · 7d

Together with my wonderful cohort of @dev-journal.bsky.social PI fellows, we offer our perspectives about exciting questions to be tackled in the future of developmental biology! 🧬 🧪🔬Inspired by any of the ideas? Reach out to us!

MwahahahahahadScientist @mads100tist.bsky.social · 8d

It's online! In this series of perspectives @dev-journal.bsky.social, yours truly talks about the exciting open questions and many things to do in the field of dev bio and neuroscience #DevBio🧪 #PIsOfTomorrow journals.biologists.com/dev/article/...

Pathway to Independence: a forecast for the future of developmental biology

ABSTRACT. In 2022, Development launched its Pathway to Independence (PI) programme, aimed at supporting postdocs as they transition to their first independent position. In 2025, we welcome our third c...

journals.biologists.com

Sonya Widen @sonyawiden.bsky.social · 7h

Amazing news! Congrats Alex 🥳

Reposted by Sonya Widen

Jacob Schreiber @jmschreiber91.bsky.social · 1d

Now that I'm settled in at @umasschan.bsky.social, I'm hiring at all levels: grad students, post-docs, and software engineers/bioinformaticians!

The goal of my lab is to understand the regulatory role of every nucleotide in our genomes and how this changes across every cell in our bodies.

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Sonya Widen @sonyawiden.bsky.social · 1d

10/10 science, 11/10 gifs 🙌

Reposted by Sonya Widen

Development @dev-journal.bsky.social · 1d

Pathway to Independence: a forecast for the future of developmental biology

In this Perspective, each of our 2025 Pathway to Independence Fellows discuss future outlooks for #DevBio and how their work will contribute to this exciting new era.

journals.biologists.com/dev/article/...

Picture of the title of the article and author list (2025 PI fellows) Chee Kiang Ewe, Max S. Farnworth, Anzy Miller, Joaquı́n Navajas Acedo, Marlies E. Oomen, Giulia Paci, Sonya A. Widen and Toshimichi Yamada

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Sonya Widen @sonyawiden.bsky.social · 4d

Very curious what they did for the person who won it for research showing that dogs poop preferentially facing along the N/S magnetic axis of the earth

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Sonya Widen @sonyawiden.bsky.social · 5d

Censorship has gone too far

Reposted by Sonya Widen

Institute of Molecular Biotechnology @imbavienna.bsky.social · 6d

Congratulations to Sakurako Nagumo Wong, former PhD student in Jürgen Knoblich’s lab, who was awarded the 2025 Rabitsch Award for her remarkable contributions to the study of human cortical development and neurodevelopmental disorders. Read more: https://imba.science/4gPHh6l

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Sonya Widen @sonyawiden.bsky.social · 6d

So proud of Dr. Saku Wong (@saku-wong.bsky.social) for her beautiful doctoral work that this morning won her this year’s Kirsten P. Rabitsch award! Each year, this award recognises the most promising PhD student from @impvienna.bsky.social or @imbavienna.bsky.social and it is so well deserved 🥹🔬🧠

Saku, post-award talk, proudly holding her framed Rabitsch award certificate 👩🏻‍🔬

Saku on stage at the IMP for her Rabitsch award talk, with a packed acknowledgements slide because great science never happens in isolation!

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Sonya Widen @sonyawiden.bsky.social · 7d

Sad to see this morning that it didn’t happen lol

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Reposted by Sonya Widen

Jennifer Molidor @jennifermolidor.bsky.social · 7d

At a time when we need more of her and less of the rest, it is our great loss.

Eternally grateful for the kindness with which she lived by example, her revolutionary study of chimpanzees that shifted scientific understanding of animals and nature, and decades of advocating for a humane world.

My hero Jane Goodall. Text reads 1934-2025.

Jane Goodall comforts a frightened chimpanzee, early in her career, in Gombe National Park.

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Sonya Widen @sonyawiden.bsky.social · 7d

“Above all, we must realise that each of us makes a difference with our life. Each of us impacts the world around us every single day. We have a choice to use the gift of our life to make the world a better place - or not to bother.”

www.theguardian.com/science/2025...

Jane Goodall, world-renowned primatologist, dies aged 91

Jane Goodall Institute says ‘tireless advocate’ for natural world died in California during US speaking tour

www.theguardian.com

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Sonya Widen @sonyawiden.bsky.social · 7d

MwahahahahahadScientist @mads100tist.bsky.social · 8d

Pathway to Independence: a forecast for the future of developmental biology

journals.biologists.com

Sonya Widen @sonyawiden.bsky.social · 8d

The german word for turtle is literally translated “shield toad”. This pleases me frequently

Sonya Widen @sonyawiden.bsky.social · 8d

Who defines the distinction between defect and difference?

This is an incredibly important conversation and one that is close to my heart. A moving and eloquent article, from top to bottom.

Bethan Clark @bethanclark.bsky.social · 8d

I wrote something on developmental biology and disability and put it up on the node last night:

thenode.biologists.com/developmenta...

I've been nervous to share because some of it veers a bit personal but they are thoughts that won't stay quiet. Would love to know what people think about it!

Developmental Biology and Disability - the Node

Hopeful monsters. Morphospace. Mutation. Natural variation. Mutagenesis screens. Polymorphism. Deformity. Phenotype. Disease. Adaptation. Anomaly.

thenode.biologists.com

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Sonya Widen @sonyawiden.bsky.social · 18d

Thank you! 🥹

Sonya Widen @sonyawiden.bsky.social · 19d

I want one just for the history 🥹

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Reposted by Sonya Widen

Julius Brennecke @juliusbrennecke.bsky.social · 29d

Close inter-lab collaborations with shared PhD students and postdocs are the future!
Julia is the hero of this work, she is currently looking for postdoc labs …

Institute of Molecular Biotechnology @imbavienna.bsky.social · 29d

📰 New paper alert!

In a collaborative project with the lab of Clemens Plaschka at the IMP, the lab of Julius Brennecke has revealed how PIWI proteins kickstart transposon silencing in reproductive cells.

The findings are published in Molecular Cell: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Vienna BioCenter @viennabiocenter.bsky.social · Sep 8

How cells lock down “jumping genes”:
Researchers from IMBA and IMP identify the first protein interactions that trigger PIWI–piRNA–mediated transposon silencing, using AlphaFold predictions, genetics, biochemistry and cell biology.
Read more: www.viennabiocenter.org/about/news/t...

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Reposted by Sonya Widen

Kranzusch Lab @kranzuschlab.bsky.social · Sep 5

How can we understand the earliest events in evolution of eukaryotic immunity? @yao-li.bsky.social reports incredible molecular fossils of complete bacterial-like operons in eukaryotes that illuminate how animal immunity was first acquired from anti-phage defense

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

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Sonya Widen @sonyawiden.bsky.social · Sep 5

Thanks to Katie Pickup (@katiepickup.bsky.social) for chatting with me about my scientific journey and what’s next in the future! If you’re curious about what I do, where I’m heading, and why I used to sleep with a chicken, check out my interview with Development (@dev-journal.bsky.social) below! 🧬

Development @dev-journal.bsky.social · Aug 27

Pathway to Independence – an interview with Sonya Widen

In this interview, @sonyawiden.bsky.social talks about her research interests in genome evolution, hopes for the Pathway to Independence programme and plans for her future lab.

journals.biologists.com/dev/article/...

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Sonya Widen @sonyawiden.bsky.social · Aug 20

Yup came here to do the same lol

Reposted by Sonya Widen

Society for Developmental Biology @socdevbio.bsky.social · Aug 19

📚 Wishing all developmental biologists an AMAZING new academic year! 🚀 Boost your teaching & learning with SDB CoRe: a FREE, peer-reviewed online database of stunning images, movies & diagrams for all things development! 🌱🐣🦎 Explore here: www.sdbcore.org 🌟 #DevBio

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Reposted by Sonya Widen

Akanksha Thawani, PhD @akankshathawani.bsky.social · Aug 19

Extremely excited to share that I’m joining Columbia University @columbiauniversity.bsky.social as an Assistant Professor!

We will explore how the mobile genome works—how transposons shape us, our DNA and how they can be harnessed to build useful technologies. #NewPI #RNAsky #TEsky

thawanilab.org

The Thawani Lab at Columbia University

The Thawani Lab at Columbia University describing their research on mobile genome, cryo-electron microscopy and genome engineering

thawanilab.org

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Reposted by Sonya Widen

Molecular Biology and Evolution @molbioevol.bsky.social · Aug 15

Sarre, @alexdemendoza.bsky.social et al. study the evolution of methyltransferases and the roles of cytosine methylation in underexplored eukaryotes, revealing a rich ancestral eukaryotic repertoire and an important role for lateral gene transfer.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msaf176

#evobio #molbio

Repressive Cytosine Methylation is a Marker of Viral Gene Transfer Across Divergent Eukaryotes

Abstract. Cytosine DNA methylation patterns vary widely across eukaryotes, with its ancestral roles being understood to have included both transposable ele

doi.org

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Reposted by Sonya Widen

John Hawks @johnhawks.net · Aug 13

I'm absolutely cackling that they developed a tool for analyzing ONE MILLION GENOMES and they named it DR EVIL

Well played

www.cell.com/ajhg/fulltex...

Estimation of demography and mutation rates from one million haploid genomes

Samples of millions of genomes provide substantial information about recent demography and mutation, but standard population-genetic methods make assumptions not met in these data. We introduce DR EVI...

www.cell.com

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Reposted by Sonya Widen

Mark A. Hanson @hansonmark.bsky.social · Aug 14

A reminder you/your lab can support FlyBase at Cambridge through the following link. Every bit helps. Please share if you yourself can't donate.

www.philanthropy.cam.ac.uk/give-to-camb...

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