Reposted by Ashley AlbrightPravrutha Raman @pravrutharaman.bsky.social · 08/10/2026Now that we have moved coasts, I am thrilled to share that the ChromEvo (Raman) lab is officially open at UMass Boston 🎉 We ask how CHROMatin EVOlution leads to functional innovation and we are hiring at multiple levels. Read on and share with folks who maybe interested chromevoramanlab.github.io 412555
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 08/09/2026Not only is @wallaceucsf.bsky.social an innovative scientist, but he's a wonderful human being. I can't think of anyone more deserving of this award and I am so grateful to have such an amazing postdoc advisor!! 020
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightDrug Monkey @drugmonkey.bsky.social · 25/08/2026From literacy for children to helping make the covid vaccine a reality, Dolly Parton was just a damn good person. A sad day. Rest in Power. 16711
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightAmadi Lovelace @amaditalks.bsky.social · 25/08/2026Remember that if you got the Moderna Covid vaccine, you have Dolly Parton to thank, she gave the largest individual contribution toward their research to make it possible. 46149404072
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightEPIGENETIC HULK @epigenetichulk.bsky.social · 19/08/2026HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! EPIGENETIC HULK LIKE THIS SMASH! NO SMASH NOTES! www.cell.com/cell-genomic...cell.comSingle-cell 3D genome imaging shows super-enhancer hubs are rare, nonspecific, and neither necessary nor sufficient for transcriptional burstingSuper-enhancers have been proposed to cluster in the nucleus when compared to other genomic elements. Le et al. found that super-enhancer clustering was rare and driven by non-specific interactions. P... 24913
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 19/06/2026Already realized I messed up and stopped counting the number of posts 😅 I'll just add some tags while I'm here. #protistsonsky #stentor #pondscum #science #kthxbye 010
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 19/06/2026Gosh, another shoutout to my #NIHMOSAIC and @ascbiology.bsky.social community. Science (and life in general let's be real) is hard, but again good people make everything so much better. I'm gonna stop rambling now before I cry again, AMA about weird cells!! 110
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 19/06/2026Also, shout out to @connieyan.bsky.social, @davidangeles.bsky.social, Yina, Tatyana, and Jamarc for being total SUPERSTARS 🤩 AND huge acknowledgement to Marshall Lab alum @mmslabodnick.bsky.social for pioneering so much of the Stentor work that even makes this possible! 240
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 19/06/2026There's no way I could ever give enough thank yous to everyone involved, but especially @wallaceucsf.bsky.social. Being a postdoc in academia is hard, but having a truly amazing person and advisor makes it so much better (and FUN!). If I'm 10% as awesome, I'm a success. 100% on Halloween tho 130
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 19/06/2026A single cell can encode spatial information through regionalized mRNA, and microtubules help maintain that pattern. Stentor are an amazing system, and I plan to continue decoding the rules of intracellular positional identity! Next 🛑: what is UP with the nucleus? 131
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 19/06/2026[9/n] There wasn't just an apparent loss of global polarity, many transcripts became enriched in the opposite half after knockdown of β-tubulin/dynein. This suggests microtubules act as tracks for mRNAs in Stentor. Unlike in other systems, we can dissect this mechanism quite literally. 100
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 19/06/2026[8/n] What maintains regionalization? We disrupted the microtubule cytoskeleton (via RNAi of β-tubulin or dynein) and went beyond single-cell RNA-seq with half-cell RNA-seq. 🙃 When we projected knockdown data onto the control PC space, the anterior/posterior separation disappeared. 100
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 19/06/2026[7/n] RNAi knockdown of posterior-enriched MYB transcription factor genes caused cells to fail to regenerate their posterior after bisection. Regionalized mRNA -> regionalized function. These genes appear to be part of what defines posterior identity. 110
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 19/06/2026[6/n] Yes! mRNAs are regionalized within this single cell. We found distinct sets of transcripts enriched in the anterior half vs. the posterior half. The cell is not a homogenous soup of RNA. It has molecular geography 🗺️ 100
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 19/06/2026[5/n] We physically bisected individual Stentor cells into anterior and posterior halves, then did bulk RNA-seq on each. This simple, but elegant idea let us map which transcripts were enriched at each pole of the cell. 100
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 19/06/2026[4/n] Full circle moment: as a grad student I used single-nucleus RNA-seq to map gene expression across a pre-cellularization Drosophila embryo, clustering nuclei by position. Now we're asking the same question, but in a ciliate and the positions are halves we cut apart with a needle.journals.plos.orgSingle-nucleus RNA-sequencing in pre-cellularization Drosophila melanogaster embryosOur current understanding of the regulation of gene expression in the early Drosophila melanogaster embryo comes from observations of a few genes at a time, as with in situ hybridizations, or observat... 100
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 19/06/2026[3/n] Stentor coeruleus is a single-celled ciliate ~1 mm in length, with a defined anterior-posterior axis. Cut it in half and each piece regenerates perfectly. It's complex like an embryo, which makes it a dream model for studying how cells organize themselves. 100
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 19/06/2026[2/n] How does a single cell know which end is which? We used a giant wacky protist that lives in ponds (we grow it in pyrex tupperware lol) and allows us to perform microsurgeries, to ask whether mRNA regionalization could provide positional information within a single cell. 121
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 19/06/2026[1/n] Our preprint-in-progress on RNA regionalization in Stentor is no longer in progress! Now @pnas.org 🥳 Turns out a single cell isn't a homogenous soup… it has molecular geography, including things like regionalized transcription factors. Think bicoid, but in a ciliate.pnas.orgGenome-wide analysis of mRNA regionalization in a giant single cell | PNASThe molecular mechanisms that produce cell structure are poorly understood. The giant ciliate Stentor coeruleus is a unicellular model organism who... 14616
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 06/05/2026Pacifica, CA! Not too far south from SF, it's a great lil beach town and I actually have a place with a yard instead of a tiny SF apartment. ...but this beach front taco bell is about 4 minutes from my house and I may or may not visit at least once a week. 010
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 06/05/2026paper revision cram session with my bestie @wallaceucsf.bsky.social at one of the most beautiful places in the world I'm happy to talk about Stentor from anywhere, but why not Taco Bell on the beach?! 🔬 🌮🏖️ 160
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightDeepa Rajan, PhD @deeparajan.bsky.social · 23/04/2026How can a single cell learn without a brain? We explore this in my paper with @wallaceucsf.bsky.social! We discovered that single cells may learn using molecules similar to those that animal brains use to learn, like CaMKII. Cells can also propagate memory states to their progeny! 426789
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightDeepa Rajan, PhD @deeparajan.bsky.social · 07/04/2026We discovered a new species! Our paper on Stentor stipatus is now published @wallaceucsf.bsky.social @aralbright.bsky.social 1155
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 25/03/2026maybe it isn’t a coveted Nobel parking spot, but at least I get to feel special when I go to the dentist who I happen to share a last name with 🦷🪥 060
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightSarah Guest @sarahmoeba.bsky.social · 17/11/2025Our work on Naegleria Myosin 2 is out! Naegleria encodes 3 Myo2s which contract its actin network—the first evidence of contractile Myo2 outside of Amorphea. Myo2 is actually widespread in Naegleria's relatives and correlates with fast cell crawling. Read more: www.cell.com/current-biol...cell.comMyosin 2 drives actin contractility in fast-crawling species outside of the amorphean lineageMyosin 2-dependent actin contractility—the force that powers cell division and migration in animals, fungi, and other Amorphea—had been previously unknown outside this single eukaryotic group. Guest e... 24220
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightNeedhi Bhalla 💅🏽 @needhibhalla.bsky.social · 08/11/2025This kind of inconsistency is often used to lift up a few women without helping all, maintaining misogyny. How many other women, and non-white people, could have had a similar effect given the chance or opportunity? We will never know. 3265
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 07/11/2025I'm SOO jealous!! I haven't been to a game in years and I already know I won't be able to make the UNC vs. Stanford or Berkeley games when they're over here in January 😭 100
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightKate Cavanaugh @katecavanaugh.bsky.social · 01/10/2025See this? This = implanting mouse embryo. Usually this happens inside its mother and is invisible to us, but we can actually watch implantation ex vivo with the hope of understanding why implantation goes awry in embryos of older women. A 🧵... 1125881
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 15/09/2025when you and your friend @dnamystrom.bsky.social both win awards from @ascbiology.bsky.social MBoC you celebrate with hot pot and nails that match your shirt 😍💅 160
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightMagnoliaBouton @magnoliabouton.bsky.social · 14/09/2025Sharing stories matters. If you’ve faced grant terminations, funding delays, loss of research jobs, etc., your voice is needed. Help show the real impact of NIH funding interference - tell your story so we don’t lose innovation, cures, and hope for the future. www.27unihted.org/biohealthbeats27unihted.orgBiohealth Beats — 27 UNIHTED 37834
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 10/09/2025Mega shout out to all of the authors, Wallace again for making science so fun, MBoC, and @ascbiology.bsky.social for supporting the #NIHMOSAIC program and science funding in general :) 000
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 10/09/2025I am so grateful to have the opportunity to work with Vincent and @wallaceucsf.bsky.social in the first place, but I am so happy that Vincent and I were awarded Paper of the Year at MBoC 🤩 www.ascb.org/society-news...ascb.orgASCB and MBoC Announce 2025 Paper of the Year Award Winners - ASCBASCB and its research journal, Molecular Biology of the Cell (MBoC), are proud to recognize the outstanding scientific achievements of early career researchers through the 2025 Paper of the Year Award... 141
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightJeremy Berg @jeremymberg.bsky.social · 10/09/2025Here is a word cloud of the words that were missing from the noncompetitive renewal awards but had been present in the parent award. 3/4 12345144
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightBen Larson @blarson.bsky.social · 26/08/2025What could be more exciting than watching Euplotes scurry around under the microscope? How about adding some raptorial predation by supergiant cannibal cells? www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... Video by Vittorio Boscaro. 1/n 312138
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightMagnoliaBouton @magnoliabouton.bsky.social · 25/08/2025Listed are some of the many NIH research training programs that were terminated! Together, these programs supported thousands of trainees, whose careers are now in limbo. Such a great loss for discovery and innovation. We must protect our next generation of scientists! #HandsOffNIH #ProtectScience 15329
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightColette Delawalla, PhD @cdelawalla.bsky.social · 23/08/2025As one can imagine, I have some thoughts. Here’s a thread no one asked for: 1. SCIENCE IN THE US IS POLITICAL. No matter how much you want to ignore that fact, it is supported by taxpayer dollars and is therefore, political by nature. 2. BUT it has had bipartisan support for decades, which… 17598251
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightErica Rodriguez, PhD @ericarodriguez.bsky.social · 23/08/2025I have certainly lost a lot of hope in this process, but it is nice to see some people are still advocating for us. Thanks @jeremymberg.bsky.social 0386
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 23/08/2025I am one of these faces. I certainly do feel like my life has been turned upside down multiple times this year, but I will always love my #NIHMOSAIC family and I am so glad we have people like @jeremymberg.bsky.social fighting for us ❤️ 1389
Reposted by Ashley Albrightadelaide tovar @adel-aide.bsky.social · 21/08/2025Throughout this whole saga, I’ve felt the collective agony of being in constant contact with other MOSAIC scholars facing the same shitty fate. I don’t want to downplay the deep solidarity/support, but what I feel most acutely is the wave of grief crashing over hundreds of early-career scientists. 58223
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightAlex Long @alexandralong.bsky.social · 10/07/2025Really important article in the NY Times today about cuts to NIH diversity grants, featuring a profile of Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social who is an amazing and super inspiring cell biology postdoc whose K99 was prematurely terminated. 21010
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 27/06/2025I do know they like duckweed but I’m always curious about wild Stentor and where people find them 😊 010
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 27/06/2025... but did you look for any Stentor among the duckweed? 120
Reposted by Ashley Albrighteartha mae @endoeartha.bsky.social · 26/06/2025Still waiting... www.science.org/content/arti...science.orgNIH will reinstate 900 grants in response to court orderProjects touching on sensitive topics such as DEI had been illegally terminated, judge found 16115
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightMwahahahahahadScientist @mads100tist.bsky.social · 22/04/2025Read preprints. Cite preprints. Email people and tell them you loved their preprint. Email people you hated their preprint. Embrace preprints, preprints are good. 834777
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 09/04/2025I’ll say that yesterday wasn’t necessarily the happiest birthday I’ve ever had, but I love the solidarity from my friends and @uaw4811.bsky.social Thank you UAW and thank you to the person that captured this photo of my sign at the rally ❤️ 042
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 04/04/2025To say I’m devastated to lose what I’ve worked SO hard for is an understatement, but I am trying to remind myself of how grateful I am for the community I got from it. ❤️ you ASCB and friends 030
Reposted by Ashley AlbrightChrystal Starbird @drstarbird.bsky.social · 03/04/2025I have heard the final goal for overall cuts (external and internal) is higher than this. What are we doing to prepare? It’s clear that most places are not about fighting back, so I hope you have a plan to protect your people and the research that you’ve indicated is critical your mission. 2229
Ashley Albright @aralbright.bsky.social · 06/03/2025Thank you! I can’t take credit for the design (hi @christineliu.art), but I can take credit for the quote… it’s an Ashley original 🙂 030