Evolutionary Virologist/Immunologist, Asst. Professor @UTSWimmuno
Dallas, TX
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Our New: Going places -- us with Steve Baker @sfbkr.bsky.social (now @LoyolaStritch)
...how trafficking to and from #mitochondria can shape infection outcomes as part of @JVirology New Voices in Virology journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128…
sfbkrlab.org/ @UTSWMedCenter @utswnews
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Dustin Hancks retweeted
A new/old SARS-CoV-2 paper for us is now in @NatureComms
nature.com/articles/s41467-0…
We submitted first in 2023 and due to a variety of reasons, it is now out, in 2026.
The manuscript details our look into conserved SARS-CoV-2 Omicron mutations outside the receptor binding domain.
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Our newest: Antiviral & inflammatory proteome is regulated by a logic timer imparted by #mitochondria activity...what if mitos. were not co-opted for "energy" but host defense?...implications for non-infectious diseases biorxiv.org/content/10.64898… @biorxivpreprint #viruses #evolution
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Dustin Hancks retweeted
ONLINE NOW in @CellCellPress: @PeterLyLab has discovered large pieces of DNA can transfer directly between human cells & that DNA can persist, change how the recipient cell functions. Read more about this #relentlessdiscovery ⬇️ cri.utsw.edu/human-cells-can…
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The plot thickens...our thoughts on #mitochondria and metabolism during infection. TL;DR, Maybe sensing of mito. dysfunction evolved as an important signal to cue progression of immune states. @ASMicrobiology @mbiojournal
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128…
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Dustin Hancks retweeted
Mitochondria do more than power cells; they shape antiviral immunity. This new #mBio mGem offers insights into metabolic rewiring during infection. doi.org/10.1128/mbio.02501-2… #immunology #virology #mitochondria #immunometabolism
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Divide and conquer: antiviral restriction of #influenza A virus
by a novel ISG15 spliceform by @sfbkr.bsky.social and Co..the plot thickens #genesInPieces
biorxiv.org/content/10.64898… @biorxivpreprint @biorxiv_micrbio
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Switches: New..lots of protein-coding mRNAs encode #miRNA ..former Ph.D. student's last hurrah building on our #mitochondria C15orf48/miR-147b stuff bmcgenomics.biomedcentral.co…
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Dustin Hancks retweeted
We’re delighted to invite the @UTSWMedCenter community to the Annual SURF & Amgen Scholars Research Symposium on August 6!
Join us as we celebrate the accomplishments of our scholars and showcase the impactful research they’ve conducted this summer. @UTSWGradSchool @RTPatUTSW
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Dustin Hancks retweeted
Attending the Amgen Scholars North America Symposium was a rewarding & inspiring experience. The talent of the Amgen Scholars is truly spectacular. We thank @AmgenFoundation for their continued commitment to providing opportunities to our future scientific leaders. @UTSWMedCenter
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Dustin Hancks retweeted
Very proud to have our lab's first work published in @cellhostmicrobe!
In this work, we use functional metagenomics to find phage defenses from human and soil microbiomes!
Congrats to first author @luis840alberto !
cell.com/cell-host-microbe/f…
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My lab’s first preprint!
We used functional metagenomics to identify phage defenses in human and soil microbiomes. We scaled these selections while maintaining accuracy, enabling us to examine 9 habitats for defense elements against 7 phages.
biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/…
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Dustin Hancks retweeted
Everything you wanted to know about oxidized lipids & immunity, in one review. We explain how oxidized lipids impact inflammation, dendritic cells, anti-tumor immunity and more.
Kudos to Joon Choi for his exceptional work.
@harvardmed @BostonChildrens
royalsocietypublishing.org/d…
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shine bright: sweet new set of gfp flu reporter viruses from @BakerLabLBRI biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/…
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Dustin Hancks retweeted
Why do some genetic mutations devastate specific tissues while sparing others?
We explore this question in GGC repeat disorders, revealing a mechanism linking protein aggregation to tRNA splicing failure in the brain.
🧵 on our new paper in Science:
🔗 science.org/doi/10.1126/scie…
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Dustin Hancks retweeted
A great line-up of speakers for Cell Symposia Multifaceted Mitochondria June 2026 in Glasglow! Check it out and register early: cell-symposia.com/mitochondr… @KivancBirsoy @RutterLab @jourdainlab and more! #mitochondria @CellPressNews
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Newest: Virologs mark #RNA metabolism as an evolutionary battleground during infection - Collaboration w/Chris Sullivan & Kayla Szymanik @PLOSPathogens journals.plos.org/plospathog…
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Dustin Hancks retweeted
From PLOS Pathogens - Viral piracy of host RNA phosphatase DUSP11 by avipoxviruses
buff.ly/lAnagqk #bwfpath
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Dustin Hancks retweeted
Happy to share our latest preprint from 1st author & @IGGPenn PhD student @vazquez_marrero on how GM-CSF potentiates cytokine production in human monocytes during bacterial infection! Congrats to Victor, his undergrad mentees Allyson Lu & @DreslerMV, & postdoc @mikelhaggadone!
GM-CSF engages multiple signaling pathways to enhance pro-inflammatory cytokine responses in human monocytes during Legionella infection biorxiv.org/cgi/content/shor… #biorxiv_immuno
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Dustin Hancks retweeted
(1/6) Our new paper is out (OA): Host species-specific activity of the poxvirus PKR inhibitors E3 and K3 mediate host range function | Journal of Virology journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128…
It took 15 years from our initial discovery that human and mouse PKR were sensitive, whereas ...
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