On behalf of 108 colleagues and friends from 11 countries, thrilled to share the first paper from our 100 #Diatom Genomes Project (100DGP). Just out @PLOSBiology | @micronorwich | @uniofeastanglia |@jgi doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio…

The mesopelagic as a niche for diatoms adapted to low blue light and high pressure? Check out our new preprint led by Zenghu Zhang, @yongyu_zhang and others at #CAS QIBEBT in Qingdao. #diatoms #Chaetoceros biorxiv.org/content/10.64898…

Today in @Nature we report how AI-guided redesign enhances protein evolution. Integrating ProteinMPNN sequence design with autonomous laboratory evolution, we establish a workflow to engineer enzymes with improved properties over those evolved from natural proteins. Redesigned starting points consistently evolve an expanded fitness landscape, reaching new function with higher activity, specificity, and stability than their natural counterparts. drive.google.com/file/d/1C-Q… 1/14

Do eukaryotes need introns? Seems like they don’t. Very nice use of synthetic genome engineering in yeast to remove all introns and lose the splicosome. cell.com/cell/abstract/S0092…

Excited to share our new preprint co-led with Hwan Su Yoon and Hocheol Kim. The genomic basis of evolutionary stasis in the 500-million-year-old red #seaweed genus Ahnfeltia. A living fossil in coastal oceans. It also appears to be an ocean cactus... biorxiv.org/content/10.64898…

The @SchulichMedDent at @WesternU invites applications for a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair (CRC) in Mass Spectrometry ‘Omics for Novel Therapeutics. uwo.ca/facultyrelations/care…

Huge day in K-lab! @Daniel_Nucifora successfully defended his PhD thesis titled “Acholeplasma laidlawii as a New Platform for Creating Synthetic Cells.” Congratulations, Dr. Nucifora!

Thank you @NSERC_CRSNG for sponsoring this work @SchulichMedDent

Awesome new synthetic biology paper in Nature today led by Bolin An (SIAT) and Zijay Tang (Harvard/MIT) on cell fate gene circuits that specialise cell progeny to different tasks and control their population ratios. This is the most #synbio paper ever! nature.com/articles/s41586-0…

Reminder that next seminar is today at 1:30 pm ET

Foggy morning ⁦@WesternU⁩

Excited that our latest diatom engineering research @SchulichMedDent was highlighted by CTV News London! Congrats @ejlwalker and all authors. ctvnews.ca/london/article/fr…

Just out @NatureComms Our new paper led by @KarasLab with our help (Thalassiosira pseudonana). Breaking the cell wall for efficient DNA delivery to #diatoms @NorwichResearch @uniofeastanglia @UEAResearch nature.com/articles/s41467-0…

Seminar on the fascinating coral-algae endosymbiosis, by the experts Professor Virginia Weis and Dr Maria Ruggeri from Oregon State University starts in 10 minutes. Zoom link: stanford.zoom.us/j/991899049…

I’m excited to share that our department @westernuBiochem @SchulichMedDent is hiring Canada Research Chair (CRC) Tier 1 in Metabolomics for Novel Therapeutics uwo.ca/facultyrelations/care…

Thanks to KAUST Discovery for this great write-up on our work. Algae and the Chocolate Factory! @MLPMasson @ASU_AzCATI Prof. Peter Lammers, @Barbara_C_F @MikeD_Fox @KAUSTCoreLabs @MarsGlobal discovery.kaust.edu.sa/en/ar… Beautiful image by @HenoHwang

#WesternU welcomes The Canada Impact + Chairs program launched by Minister Joly yesterday. This program will help attract the best and brightest to support innovation, knowledge translation and new discoveries that drive social and economic growth.