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Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

@walterwchen.bsky.social

760 followers 290 following 61 posts

Postdoc in Ralph DeBerardinis' Lab and Neonatologist at UT Southwestern (UTSW) via Harvard/MIT MD-PhD, Harvard Pediatric Residency, UTSW Neonatology Fellowship | STAT Wunderkind, ASCI E-Gen Award, BWF CAMS Studying #metabolism, #mitochondria, #peroxisomes

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Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD @walterwchen.bsky.social · Jun 18

Honored to receive @bwfund.bsky.social Career Award for my research on #mitochondria #peroxisomes and be 1st neonatologist awardee! The $700K for starting my lab will enable exciting research on #organelles #metabolism to help medicine’s smallest patients. #neonatal www.bwfund.org/news/bwf-ann...

BWF Announces 2025 Career Awards for Medical Scientists - Burroughs Wellcome Fund

The Burroughs Wellcome Fund is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2025 Career Awards for Medical Scientists (CAMS). This award supports early-career physician-scientists as they transition from...

www.bwfund.org

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Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD @walterwchen.bsky.social · 5d

Excited to present my research at the upcoming University of Utah Rising Stars Symposium and meet fellow scientists who love metabolism! @cri-utsw.bsky.social @rjdlab.bsky.social

uofunuip.bsky.social @uofunuip.bsky.social · Sep 8

Please join us for the Diabetes and Metabolism Research Center (DMRC) 2025 Rising Stars in partnership with the Mountain West Prevention Center (MW-PRC). This is a multi-departmental effort, aligned with the University of Utah’s synergistic approach to amplify voices and foster connections

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Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD @walterwchen.bsky.social · 7d

Big congrats and welcome! Looking forward to seeing you around campus and your future science!

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Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

Nils Burger @nilsburger.bsky.social · 7d

Excited to share that I’ve started my lab as an assistant professor at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. 
Thank you to all the mentors, friends, and colleagues who have supported me throughout the years!

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Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

echouchani.bsky.social @echouchani.bsky.social · 20d

First post here! Excited to share a new paper and online resource from our lab published today. We developed a mass spectrometry approach that leverages genetic diversity to systematically nominate functional relationships between metabolites and proteins.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Covariation MS uncovers a protein that controls cysteine catabolism - Nature

A mass spectrometry-based approach globally identifies protein regulators of metabolism and reveals the role of LRRC58 in controlling cysteine catabolism.

www.nature.com

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Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

Irfan Lodhi @lodhilab.bsky.social · 21d

Happy to share our new paper in @nature.com led by staff scientist Xuejing Liu. We report identification of a UCP1-independent pathway of brown fat thermogenesis involving ATP-consuming metabolism of BCFA in peroxisomes. #Obesity #T2D
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

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Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

Peter Ly @peterlylab.bsky.social · 28d

Excited to join the @cri-utsw.bsky.social community to advance discoveries in genome instability. We are grateful to UTSW Pathology for 6 wonderful years.

🚨 We are also recruiting motivated postdocs to study how mitotic errors and aberrant nuclear structures drive cancer genome evolution—join us!

Children's Research Institute at UT Southwestern @cri-utsw.bsky.social · 28d

WELCOME to the Institute, @peterlylab.bsky.social! Dr. Ly studies how cells maintain genomic integrity and how dysregulation of these processes impacts human health. 🧪Learn more about his research 👉 cri.utsw.edu/faculty/pete... #relentlessdiscovery

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Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

Jordan Ray @jordanray.bsky.social · 28d

I am excited to share my graduate work in the Sabatini and @bartellab.bsky.social labs. Since their discovery, we have known lysosomes possess RNase activity; however, their substrates were not known. Surprisingly we find specific RNAs are targeted for degradation! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Lysosomal RNA profiling reveals targeting of specific types of RNAs for degradation

Autophagy targets a wide variety of substrates for degradation within lysosomes. While lysosomes are known to possess RNase activity, the role of lysosomal RNA degradation in post-transcriptional gene...

www.biorxiv.org

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Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD @walterwchen.bsky.social · Aug 19

Woo!! Congrats Zheng!! 🎉🎉

Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

Nature Cell Biology @natcellbio.nature.com · Aug 14

🍹 @walterwchen.bsky.social et al show that PEX39 cooperates with PEX7 in the peroxisomal import of proteins containing a PTS2 site and uncover an (R/K)PWE motif in PEX39 and PEX13 that binds to PEX7 and facilitates the import of PTS2-containing proteins.
bit.ly/4lmjv2l

PEX39 facilitates the peroxisomal import of PTS2-containing proteins - Nature Cell Biology

Chen et al. show that PEX39 cooperates with PEX7 in the peroxisomal import of proteins containing a PTS2 site and uncover an (R/K)PWE motif in PEX39 and PEX13 that binds to PEX7 and facilitates the im...

bit.ly

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Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD @walterwchen.bsky.social · Aug 12

Big congrats Nick!!! 🎉🎉

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Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

Nick Burton @nickburton.bsky.social · Aug 12

I’m really beyond thrilled to be included in this years Pew Biomedical Scholars cohort and to be able to meet all the incredible scientists in this program. I was in Scott Kennedy’s lab when he was a Pew Scholar and never thought I’d be lucky enough to also be one! www.pew.org/en/about/new...

Pew Awards 22 Researchers Biomedical Science Grants

www.pew.org

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Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

Tony (Yichi) Zhang @tonyzhangphd.bsky.social · Aug 7

Happy to announce that I was awarded a pathway to independence award (K99) from the NCI/NIH today to work on studying whole-body metabolism driving cancer cachexia. None of this would be possible without support from @damonrunyon.org, @transactivator.bsky.social and @mvhlab.bsky.social.

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Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

Ryan Flynn @raflynn5.bsky.social · Aug 6

RNA N-glycosylation enables immune evasion and homeostatic efferocytosis by chemically caging acp3U. Excited to report this work lead by Vinnie @vinnieviruses.bsky.social and in collaboration with @vijayrathinam.bsky.social in @nature.com www.nature.com/articles/s41...

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Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

Sarah Cohen @cohenlaboratory.bsky.social · Aug 4

I’m extremely honored to be recognized with the WICB Junior Research Award. ASCB and WICB have been key to my career development since I attended my first annual meeting in 2005. Congrats to the other awardees!

American Society for Cell Biology @ascbiology.bsky.social · Aug 4

Meet the 2025 ASCB Award Winners—trailblazing scientists honored for research, mentoring, education, and innovation. Celebrate excellence across all career stages in cell biology. Read more: www.ascb.org/society-news...

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Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

Daniel Drucker @danieljdrucker.bsky.social · Aug 4

A new tragedy for the Endocrine community An outstanding scientist leaves us too soon

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Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

Uri Manor @manorlaboratory.bsky.social · Aug 4

I am unspeakably humbled and grateful for this honor - to "wear" Goeddel's name is simply insane. I can only promise to do my best to do it justice.

ONWARDS!!!

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Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

ASolmonson @asolmonson.bsky.social · Aug 4

Our lab has derived over 50 trophoblast organoid lines to better understand how chronic conditions like hypertension and obesity influence placental development and metabolism. (Check out this figure made with @biorender.bsky.social)

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Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD @walterwchen.bsky.social · Aug 2

Big thanks to Jianguo Wu, Min Zhuang, @natcellbio.nature.com for a great News and Views on our work and that of Michael Skowyra, Tom Rapoport.

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Pieces of the peroxisomal import puzzle - Nature Cell Biology

Peroxisomes are single membrane-bound organelles containing numerous enzymes to perform metabolic functions. However, our view of peroxisomal protein import has remained incomplete. Two recent studies...

www.nature.com

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Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

Ondine Cleaver @ondinecleaver.bsky.social · Aug 1

Happy to share our work on the role of biomechanical PULSATILITY on lung vessels.

Following surgery to alleviate overload in kids with single ventricle hearts, lung arteries form AVMs. #DevBio #EndothelialCell #CHD

Beautiful work from Steve Spurgin. #DevBio 🫁 🫀 ❤️‍🩹

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

Pulsatile flow dynamics determine pulmonary arterial architecture

BACKGROUND Single ventricle congenital heart disease (SV-CHD) is a uniformly lethal condition. Survival depends upon the Glenn surgery, which shunts venous blood directly to the pulmonary arteries wit...

www.biorxiv.org

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Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD @walterwchen.bsky.social · Jul 30

Thank you very much Vijay!!

Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD @walterwchen.bsky.social · Jul 30

Much thanks Jason!!

Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD @walterwchen.bsky.social · Jul 30

Wonderful collaboration with you Daniel!!

Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

Daniel Wendscheck @dwendscheck.bsky.social · Jul 30

Major part of my PhD thesis is finally online! Thanks to everyone involved 🙏 @walterwchen.bsky.social @rjdlab.bsky.social @tmoeckli.bsky.social @hirakdas.bsky.social and the entire @warscheidlab.bsky.social #peroxisomes #Massspec #proteomics

Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg @uni-wuerzburg.de · Jul 30

#Biochemistry: #PEX39, a newly discovered #peroxin protein, transports enzymes into #peroxisomes like a relay racer. New paper @natcellbio.nature.com – congratulations to @dwendscheck.bsky.social @warscheidlab.bsky.social et al!
➡️ www.uni-wuerzburg.de/en/news-and-...

Like a relay racer: The protein PEX39 (purple) carries enzymes (yellow) like a baton to the peroxisomes. There, the cargo is transported through the membrane by another PEX protein. (Image: Daniel Wendscheck / University of Würzburg)

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Reposted by Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD

Children's Research Institute at UT Southwestern @cri-utsw.bsky.social · Jul 30

ONLINE NOW in @natcellbio.nature.com: CRI's @rjdlab.bsky.social Lab postdoc @walterwchen.bsky.social & international colleagues have discovered the first new human peroxin in 20 years. Read more ⬇️ cri.utsw.edu/deberardinis... #relentlessdiscovery 🧪

DeBerardinis Lab discovers first human peroxin in 20 years - Children's Medical Center Research Institute (CRI) | Dallas Texas

CRI researchers, international colleagues identify PEX39, which facilitates peroxisomal protein import PEX39 is the first new human peroxisomal biogenesis protein, a peroxin or PEX, to be identified i...

cri.utsw.edu

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Walter W. Chen, MD, PhD @walterwchen.bsky.social · Jul 30

Complementary work also from the Rapoport Lab
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Import mechanism of peroxisomal proteins with an N-terminal signal sequence - Nature Cell Biology

Skowyra and Rapoport find that peroxisomal proteins with N-terminal PTS2 signals are imported through a nuclear pore-like conduit by PEX7 and a receptor. PEX7 then returns through the same conduit and...