Venkat Rao
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venkyrao.bsky.social
Venkat Rao
@venkyrao.bsky.social
510 followers 770 following 18 posts
Currently Postdoc @ UVA, working on 🐸, interested in cilia, cytoskeleton, and development.BSc, MSc, University of Mumbai| PhD-UM-DAE CEBS| Postdoc 1-Instem, Bengaluru.
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Reposted by Venkat Rao
cilialab.bsky.social
We must have been #ExtraNice this year- our #cilia & #centrosome 🧪 community- 🎅 Santa just dropped the 1st session of 2026 line-up @bscb-official.bsky.social @gensocuk.bsky.social @ukcilianetwork.bsky.social e-symposia- www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/bscb-genso... See you on the other side! Happy Holidays!
BSCB GenSoc UK Cilia and Centrosome Network e-Symposia Series
BSCB GenSoc UK Cilia and Centrosome Network e-Symposia Series
www.eventbrite.co.uk
December 24, 2025 at 10:59 AM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
biorxiv-biophys.bsky.social
Robust ciliary flows protect early Xenopus embryos from pathogens independent of multiciliated cell patterning https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.19.694354v1
December 22, 2025 at 10:48 AM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
eurocilia.bsky.social
🌍 Cilia2027 | Mar 8–12, 2027 | 📍 Stresa, Lake Maggiore, Italy

Join the global cilia community for science, collaboration & discovery (+ fun!!).

#Cilia2027 #CiliaBiology
Cilia2027, the 7th European Cilia Conference to be held in Italy from March 8th- 12th, 2027.
December 16, 2025 at 3:29 PM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
plosbiology.org
CDKL5 Deficiency Disorder (CDD) leads to seizures & intellectual disability. This study shows that #Chlamydomonas CDKL5 kinase is activated by the LF2/CDK20 kinase; CDKL5 in turn regulates #intraflagellar transport via protein abundance & phosphorylation #cilia @plosbiology.org 🧪 plos.io/45490eP
Top: lf5 mutant cells untransformed, or expressing CDKL5-GFP, CDKL5K33R-GFP, CDKL5S162A,T164A,Y166A-GFP, or CDKL5Y166F-GFP, and lf2 mutant cells expressing CDKL5-GFP were stained for flagella (acetylated tubulin, red) and CDKL5 (GFP, green top panels, gray in bottom panels). The cell bodies of all strains are green (or gray) due to autofluorescence. Wild-type CDKL5-GFP concentrates at the basal end of the flagellar shaft (arrows). Note that all of the mutant CDKL5 proteins lack the major enrichment at the basal end of the flagellum but continue to show punctate stain along the flagellar shaft. Scale bar, 5 µm. Z projection of slices taken at 0.5-µm intervals. Bottom: Larger version of the first image in the top row.
December 15, 2025 at 5:28 PM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
biologists.bsky.social
We are also featuring developmental biologist K. Vijayraghavan, a @dev-journal.bsky.social Advisory Board member and a Development and @biologyopen.bsky.social author, as an extraordinary biologist this week. #100biologists
@kvijayraghavan.bsky.social
Headshot of K. Vijayraghavan, to the left, text to the right 100 extraordinary biologists K. Vijayraghavan K. VijayRaghavan is a Development Advisory Board member and a Development and Biology Open author. He serves as a Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India and is a Distinguished Professor at the National Centre for Biological Sciences, India, investigating the development and function of neural circuits. #100biologists #biologists100
December 14, 2025 at 2:05 PM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
plosbiology.org
How does C2CD3 contribute to distal appendage formation in centrioles? @centriolelab.bsky.social show that C2CD3 acts as a central architectural organizer of the distal #centriole, bridging the luminal distal ring complex & peripheral appendage sites @plosbiology.org 🧪 plos.io/496XZuH
C2CD3 localizes to a ring structure observed in the lumen of the distal centriole by in situ cryo-electron tomography. Top: Confocal image of an expanded mouse photoreceptor cell immunolabeled for tubulin (magenta) and C2CD3 (green). DC, daughter centriole; BB, basal body; TZ, transition zone; CC, connecting cilium. Scale bar: 500 nm. Middle: In situ cryo-tomogram slices taken along the longitudinal axis of the centriole and connecting cilium. White arrowheads indicate microtubule triplets, black arrowheads indicate microtubule doublets, orange arrowheads mark the luminal ring structure, and yellow highlights the membrane. Scale bar: 50 nm. Bottom: Model of the architecture of the distal region of the human centriole.
December 10, 2025 at 9:10 AM
venkyrao.bsky.social
Starting in a few mins.!! #Cellbio2025
venkyrao.bsky.social Venkat Rao @venkyrao.bsky.social · 17d
Curious about what’s new in cilia/ciliated cells? Come find out at mini-symposium: Cilia Biogenesis, Structure & Function at #CellBio2025 @ASCBiology! Organised by Karl Lechtrek, Caroline Ott, Martin Engelke & @caylajewett.bsky.social — marking 25 years of cilia-in-disease discovery.
Mini symposium Mini symposium speaker line up
December 7, 2025 at 8:54 PM
venkyrao.bsky.social
Curious about what’s new in cilia/ciliated cells? Come find out at mini-symposium: Cilia Biogenesis, Structure & Function at #CellBio2025 @ASCBiology! Organised by Karl Lechtrek, Caroline Ott, Martin Engelke & @caylajewett.bsky.social — marking 25 years of cilia-in-disease discovery.
Mini symposium Mini symposium speaker line up
December 6, 2025 at 11:22 PM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
babliadhikary.bsky.social
Attending #Cellbio2025?
I am presenting two posters, stop by if you are interested in epithelial dynamics.
Looking forward to all the amazing conversations and feedback!!
December 6, 2025 at 10:06 PM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
biorxiv-cellbio.bsky.social
SPEF1 mediates assembly of the central pair microtubule complexes in cilia of Tetrahymena. https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.03.689828v1
December 4, 2025 at 7:30 AM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
yanivelkouby.bsky.social
Now out from our lab in @currentbiology.bsky.social!

An mTOR-Stat3-Stathmin pathway controls #centrosome and #microtubule dynamics for #oocyte polarization

www.cell.com/current-biol...
November 26, 2025 at 7:01 PM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
ebrahim-lab.bsky.social
Very excited to share the latest work from our lab in @insight.jci.org, highlighting a role for the #septin #cytoskeleton in protecting against "leaky gut", by recruiting non-muscle myosin II and stabilizing the tight junction.

Credit to @dominikrobak.bsky.social for the stunning cover image!
insight.jci.org JCI insight @insight.jci.org · Nov 24
This issue’s Cover: @ebrahim-lab.bsky.social @dominikrobak.bsky.social& team report on the septin cytoskeleton at apical junctions of intestinal epithelial cells, whereby it maintains barrier integrity & protects from inflammation: insight.jci.org/articles/vie...
November 24, 2025 at 6:01 PM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
monicabettencourt.bsky.social
Last call! Applications for the @crg.eu International PhD Programme 2025 in beautiful Barcelona close next week! Join us and our inspiring colleagues at the CRG - an exceptional environment for discovery, creativity, and scientific growth.
Apply here: www.crg.eu/en/content/t...
November 22, 2025 at 1:36 PM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
alanbrownhms.bsky.social
Our lab is seeking a Postdoctoral Fellow. The position is intentionally broad, as we are looking for outstanding researchers from diverse scientific backgrounds to advance our understanding of cilia and ciliopathies: academicpositions.harvard.edu/postings/15526
HMS - Postdoctoral Fellow in BCMP, Brown Lab
We invite applicants for a postdoctoral fellow position in the Brown lab at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts. The Brown lab uses structural, biophysical, and biochemical approaches to d...
academicpositions.harvard.edu
November 18, 2025 at 8:05 PM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
mick-lab.bsky.social
Thrilled to share "in situ APEX activation" (iAPEX), a proximity labeling technology for subcellular #proteomics applied to primary #cilia. iAPEX uses an enzymatic cascade, in which a D-amino acid oxidase locally produces H2O2 to activate ascorbate peroxidase.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
An enzymatic cascade enables sensitive and specific proximity labeling proteomics in challenging biological systems - Nature Communications
Proximity labeling allows proteomic mapping of subcellular structures. Here, Sroka et al. develop in situ APEX activation (iAPEX) to overcome limitations of labeling specificity and H2O2 toxicity, app...
www.nature.com
November 14, 2025 at 8:07 PM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
loukillab.bsky.social
The Loukil Lab has an opening for a Postdoctoral Researcher to study primary cilia in the brain and their roles in neurological disease.
If you or someone you know might be interested, please share or reach out! 🧠✨
#Neuroscience #Cilia #Postdoc #neuro #SFN

neurojobs.sfn.org/job/39311/po...
Postdoctoral Position in Cilia-Neuroscience, Sanford Research Institute - Sioux Falls, South Dakota job with Sanford Research Institute | 39311
Join a team combining molecular neuroscience, mouse genetics, and advanced imaging to pioneer discoveries at the underexplored cilia–brain interface.
neurojobs.sfn.org
November 7, 2025 at 9:44 PM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
jcellsci.bsky.social
Amanda Smith, Lawrence Ostrowski and colleagues find that lipid nanoparticle-encapsulated Dnai1 mRNA rescues ciliary activity in primary ciliary dyskinesia mouse cell models.
#JCSciliaSI
journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...
November 5, 2025 at 10:23 AM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
horanilab.bsky.social
I am excited to share our preprint on the use of machine learning to identify abnormal cilia function. I am proud of Nicholas Hadas, a talented PhD candidate, for his hard work in compiling the code and preparing this manuscript.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Machine Learning Analysis of Cilia-Driven Particle Transport Distinguishes Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia Cilia from Normal Cilia
Rational. Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) is a genetic condition that results in dysmotile cilia and abnormal mucociliary clearance. Despite advances in understanding the pathogenesis of PCD, diagnos...
www.biorxiv.org
November 4, 2025 at 2:09 PM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
socdevbio.bsky.social
🐸 Xenopus laevis 💚 The frog that shaped modern developmental biology! ✨ Xenopus embryos have revealed how the body axis forms, cells choose their fate, and tissues self-organize during early development 📹 Video by Bioquest Sudio and Xenbase #ModelMonday #DevBio
November 3, 2025 at 8:01 PM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
jcellsci.bsky.social
Yongli Zhang, Xuecheng Li, Zhengmao Wang and Junmin Pan find that SAXO proteins stabilise axonemal microtubules by reducing tubulin turnover to regulate ciliary length and assembly, without affecting ciliary motility.
#JCSciliaSI
journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...
Figure showing that loss of SAXO1-3 does not significantly impact axonemal tubulin PTMs or the overall ciliary proteome.
October 28, 2025 at 10:05 AM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
jcellsci.bsky.social
Taiju Fujii, Norihito Murai, Kazuhisa Nakayama and colleagues find that β-arrestin connects the BBSome and GPR161, mediating the export of GPR161 from cilia upon Hedgehog signalling activation.
#JCSciliaSI
journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...
Figure showing suppression of the induced export of GPR161 by GRK2 inhibition.
October 27, 2025 at 10:31 AM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
guille-rochelle.bsky.social
We have PhD and Postdoc positions open in our group. Join us in Lausanne to explore how cells pull off extreme shape changes and how cilia drive biological flows.

You can find more details on the projects available and how to apply in our website:

www.epfl.ch/labs/lpl/joi...
Join us !
We are looking for creative and motivated scientists at to join the group. We are recruiting candidates from various scientific backgrounds including, but not limited to: biophysics, physics, biochemi...
www.epfl.ch
October 15, 2025 at 11:20 AM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
xenbase.bsky.social
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Course - Cell & Developmental Biology of Xenopus: Gene Discovery & Disease, April 7 - 21, 2026. Application Deadline: January 16, 2026 xenbase.org/xenbase/doNe... #science #devbio #xenopus #frogs
October 14, 2025 at 9:24 PM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
epimechfc.bsky.social
Singh, A., Thale, S., Leibner, T., Lamparter, L., Ricker, A., Nüsse, H., Klingauf, J., Galic, M., Ohlberger, M., & Matis, M. (2024). Dynamic interplay of microtubule and actomyosin forces drive tissue extension. Nature communications, 15(1), 3198. #EpithelialMechanics
buff.ly/Nwi5TVv
October 13, 2025 at 7:02 PM
Reposted by Venkat Rao
babliadhikary.bsky.social
PAK4 dynamics at actively remodeling vertices 🌟 ⚡👀

Check out our recent preprint
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
October 6, 2025 at 4:43 PM