iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Azra Atabay

Elisha Krieg @elishakrieg.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

Thanks to Advanced Materials for selecting our article on "Olympic" gels for a cover! 🔗🔗🔗🔗🔗🔗🔗🔗🔗 advanced.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1... #MaterialsScience #Biotechnology #Nanotechnology

This cover illustrates the molecular structure of an “Olympic gel” composed of mechanically interlocked plasmids. The ring-shaped DNA molecules can reversibly open and close via diversified lock-and-key domains, enabling controlled formation of mechanical bonds. The study shows that combinatorial synthetic biology can yield compositionally complex soft materials with exotic topological architectures and unique physical characteristics. More information: DOI:10.1002/adma.202520549

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Azra Atabay @azratabye.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

I had the pleasure of talking about my ongoing PhD work as an invited speaker at #EED2026 in Glasgow! It was such a stimulating experience to engage with fellow Eco-Evo-Devo people! Such an amazing crowd, really.

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Michalis Averof @michalis-averof.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

we're on the cover!

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Michalis Averof @michalis-averof.bsky.social · 19/04/2026

Finding molecular tags that localise fluorescent proteins to the cell membrane was the goal of our latest paper, now published in Development @dev-journal.bsky.social. The tags act as address labels, sending proteins to the cell membrane, where they highlight the shape and arrangement of cells. 2/9

journals.biologists.com

Targeting the cell membrane in established and emerging model organisms

Summary: Screening a toolkit of diverse membrane-localising tags identifies candidates that efficiently localise proteins to the plasma membrane in a wide range of animals and choanoflagellates.

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Michalis Averof @michalis-averof.bsky.social · 19/04/2026

These images show live embryos of animals (jellyfish, crustacean, worm, sea urchin, sea squirt, beetle) and one of animals closest single-celled relatives. They were captured taking advantage of fluorescent proteins localised on the outer membrane of cells, allowing us to observe cell outlines. 1/9

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Azra Atabay @azratabye.bsky.social · 16/03/2026

Did they use a smell-o-scope to detect that planet?

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Michalis Averof @michalis-averof.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

In animals with large genomes, finding cis-regulatory elements can be very challenging. Enhancers can be located tens/hundreds of kb away from their target promoters. We face this challenge in Parhyale, with >3 Gbp genome. We just published a preprint describing how we are tackling this problem. /1

biorxiv.org

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Elisha Krieg @elishakrieg.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

This was a tour-de-force. Big congratulation to the whole team, in particular our FOUR outstanding first authors: Sarah Speed 🙏 Yu-Hsuan Peng @jasperpeng.bsky.social 🙏 Azra Atabay @azratabye.bsky.social 🙏 Krishna Gupta @anekoplato.bsky.social 🙏 9/11

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Azra Atabay @azratabye.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

Working on this collaborative project in the Krieg lab has been a real pleasure. It began as a side ninja project with almost no budget but has grown and expanded so much. Really proud of what we have accomplished🥺 please check it out: advanced.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

advanced.onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Assembling a True “Olympic Gel” From over 16 000 Combinatorial DNA Rings

Olympic gels are an elusive class of soft matter, consisting of molecular networks held together purely by mechanically interlocked rings. Their topological structure promises unique properties and f...

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Michalis Averof @michalis-averof.bsky.social · 27/01/2026

How is everyday life in a research lab? Last year Arthur Monternier, an art student, joined our lab for 6 months. He conveys his experience in this comic strip. popsciences.universite-lyon.fr/ressources/l... popsciences.universite-lyon.fr/app/uploads/...

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c0nc0rdance @c0nc0rdance.bsky.social · 17/12/2025

“A process which led from the amoeba to man appeared to the philosophers to be obviously a progress - though whether the amoeba would agree with this opinion is not known" - Bertrand Russell, 1976. Time-lapse video of Vampyrella lateritia eating Spirogyra algae from Science Source/Oliver Skibbe. 🦠

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Michalis Averof @michalis-averof.bsky.social · 23/10/2025

How can we see the cells that make up a living organism? Membrane-localising tags can drive fluorescent proteins to the cell's outer membrane, making their outlines visible. But the tags don't work well in all organisms. How do you find one for your species of interest? 🧵 Check our latest preprint

biorxiv.org

A toolkit for testing membrane-localising tags across species

Transgenic markers and tools have revolutionised how we study cells and developing organisms. Some of the elements needed to construct those tools are universally applicable (e.g. fluorescent proteins...

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Michalis Averof @michalis-averof.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

Latest paper elifesciences.org/articles/107... closes an important cycle in our efforts to study regeneration: week-long recordings allow us to observe the behaviour of cells during the entire course of regeneration in a crustacean leg – bright objects in movie are fluorescent nuclei of cells. 1/6

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Yad Ghavi-Helm @yghavi.bsky.social · 23/07/2025

📢 We are recruiting! Several projects are available and can be tailored to the candidate's profile. Most include confocal imaging/spatial OMICs technologies. Please share and RT 🙏

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Jennifer Hattam @jenhattam.bsky.social · 03/04/2025

German pianist Davide Martello, who played during the Gezi protests in 2013 and at other demonstrations and sites of conflict and violence around the world, says he was deported from Turkey before a planned performance in Istanbul this week.

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y🏳️‍🌈şenaz @ayseneinart.bsky.social · 21/03/2025

Important to note this is much bigger than the mayor. While he was the spark, thousands are in the streets now despite bans clashing with cops due to rampant corruption in the current admin, crumbling economy, soaring unemployment, unlawful arrests… The people are fighting for democracy. #Turkey

Picture taken from Turkish Dictionary to summarize “What’s happening in Türkiye?”

“İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, Türkiye’s strongest opposition candidate for president, has been detained by police.

Yesterday, his university diploma was cancelled, making him unable to run for president.

Protests have been banned for four days.

The Justice system is used to restrict democratic rights.

Be our voice. Don’t let democracy be silenced.”

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Azra Atabay @azratabye.bsky.social · 21/03/2025

Dear Bluesky community, please spread the word about what is happening in Türkiye and the fight for democracy! Don’t be silent! Your turn will eventually come if you remain silent! We are all going through the same hell!

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Leah Stokes @leahstokes.bsky.social · 09/01/2025

Cannot stop thinking about how Octavia Butler wrote a book in 1993 about climate change. It opens with deadly fires in LA in 2025. In the story, a fascist President has just won office with the campaign slogan "Make America Great Again." She was a modern day Nostradamus. If only we'd listened.

The cover of the book Parable of the Sower.

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Azra Atabay @azratabye.bsky.social · 25/11/2024

Super interesting article about how companies like Tesla are threatening the unique biodiversity of New Caledonia, a French territory island, in their pursuit of nickel mining: The Island Where Environmentalism Implodes www.newyorker.com/news/the-wee...

newyorker.com

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Michalis Averof @michalis-averof.bsky.social · 12/11/2024

Looking for a tag to localise fluorescent proteins to the plasma membrane? Unsure which tag might work in your species? We generated a toolkit of 11 membrane-localising tags, which can be screened rapidly by microinjecting mRNA in your species of interest. 1/4 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

biorxiv.org

A toolkit for testing membrane localisation tags across species

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Çağrı Çevrim @cagricevrim.bsky.social · 21/11/2024

We’re thrilled to pre-advertise an EMBO Workshop we're organizing, featuring an incredible lineup of speakers! 🎉 Bring your unconventional models and join us in Edinburgh next June for an exciting and inspiring event. Stay tuned for our official poster and website, coming soon! 🧪

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