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Reposted by Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD

Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

🚨New preprint from the Benayoun lab!🚨 LINE-1 (L1) #retrotransposons become transcribed with #aging and #senescence, and are thought to contribute to #inflammaging. But what actually happens to a healthy, non-senescent human cell when #L1 turns on? www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... A 🧵, 1/7

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Huge congrats to @the-te-guy.bsky.social & #EyaelTewelde, who led the work, and to our collaborators. We are also grateful for funding from #NIGMS and from a #pilot from the USC/Buck Nathan Shock Center. @uscleonarddavis.bsky.social 7/7

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Takeaway 💬: #TEs are not universal triggers of aging. Which TE is expressed, in which cell, and in what cell state matters - #TE derepression with aging will drive a complex panoply of biological signals and not just a generic “TE response.” 6/7

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Very unexpectedly: #L1 suppressed interferon-related gene sets in primary/non-transformed cells, yielding the opposite of the expected “L1 → IFN” model. Because this was so surprising, we tested this extensively with multiple #L1s, across cell states/types. The response was context-dependent! 5/7

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

However, against our prediction, #L1 expression did NOT simply make healthy fibroblasts look aged or senescent. In fact, many transcriptional effects were broadly opposite to signatures of #aging, #senescence (including repression of #SenMayo and #SASP). 4/7

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

What changed? #L1 affected the expression of genes/proteins in pathways linked to #HallmarksOfAging, including: 🧬 cell cycle & DNA damage (with flow validation) ⚙️ proteostasis 🧱 extracellular matrix 📡 immune signaling 🍽️ nutrient-sensing 3/7

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Following up on our previous #Alu study, we used primary human IMR90 fibroblasts & acute expression of a transposition-competent human #L1, then performed matched transcriptomic, proteomic & secretomic profiling. The result: #L1 expression extensively rewired all 3 molecular layers. 2/7

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

#GLAM2026 is under way! Excited to hear exciting trainee-led science on aging today!!! 🎉🎉🎉

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Reposted by Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD

Ashley Webb, PhD @aewebb.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

The abstract deadline is coming up for the FASEB on Epigenetics and Aging! Oct 19-22 in Malahide, Ireland. Submit now to be considered for a short talk! Amazing lineup including Yang Shi @denadubal.bsky.social @brunetlab.bsky.social @bbparis1984.bsky.social and more! events.faseb.org/event/Chroma...

events.faseb.org

Home - Chromatin and Epigenetics in Aging and Disease

Discover how epigenetics and transcription shape aging and disease, with new tools, therapies, and collaborations at this leading conference.

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Reposted by Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD

Bart Collet @atbart.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

Congratulations to Ella. The shared vs niche-specific split is the useful part: 'inflammaging' gets discussed as one thing, and a cross-tissue meta-analysis is what shows where the signature is common vs where tissue context rewrites it. On the reading list.

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Reposted by Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD

Science Figures That Look Like Shitposts @science-shitpost.bsky.social · 16/07/2026

a rare example of a science figure that looks like a shitpost which is just photos of real events: babies trying to climb into tiny toy cars, sit on tiny toy chairs, and slide down tiny toy slides doi.org/10.1126/scie... (fig. 1)

three panels of a figure showing infants committing scale errors

caption:
Fig. 1. Three examples of scale errors. (A) This 21-month-oldchild has committed a scale error by attempting to slide down aminiature slide; she has fallen off in this serious effort to carryout an impossible act. (B) This 24-month-old child has openedthe door to the miniature car and is repeatedly trying to forcehis foot inside the car. (C) This 28-month-old child is lookingbetween his legs to precisely locate the miniature chair that he is inthe process of sitting on.

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Reposted by Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD

Mark Ziemann 🇺🇦🌻🦩 @mdziemann.genomic.social.ap.brid.gy · 15/07/2026

Shared and niche-specific transcriptional signatures of macrophage aging revealed by a cross-tissue meta-analysis link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s… #genomics #Bioinformatics

A scientific chart shows certain gene ontology and reactome pathways are consistently upregulated in aging across dozens of public mouse datasets

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

We are grateful to the #HevolutionFoundation for supporting our research, and hope this metaanalysis will be a useful resource for the field of immune aging research! Congratulations again to #Ella and her collaborators, grad student #EyaelTewelde and undergrad #LeonChen 4/4

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

The short answer: there are both universal and niche-specific effects (and sex-specific effects - independently supported by other unpublished work) to macrophage aging, which will be important to account for in interventions to mitigate inflammaging and immunosenescence. 3/4

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

Our lab has been studying peritoneal #macrophage aging, and we became curious whether all macrophages age the same way or whether niches shape macrophage aging. To address this question, Ella decided to leverage a wealth of public macrophage aging RNA-seq datasets and conduct a metaanalysis. 2/4

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

Happy to share this new work by excellent Benayoun lab PhD Candidate #EllaSchwab, out today #BMCBiology: "Shared and niche-specific transcriptional signatures of macrophage aging revealed by a cross-tissue meta-analysis" @uscleonarddavis.bsky.social 1/4 🧬🖥️🧪🐁 link.springer.com/article/10.1...

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Reposted by Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD

Science X / Phys.org @sciencex.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

Across mouse tissues, aging macrophages shifted toward stress and damage responses, but the pattern was not uniform. Brain and lung macrophages showed distinct age-related changes, and sex-related differences also appeared. doi.org/hcbkqw

medicalxpress.com

Scientists discover how macrophages age differently throughout the body

Why does the immune system become less effective as we age? A new USC study published in BMC Biology offers fresh insights by examining a key immune cell type across tissues: macrophages.

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Reposted by Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD

PLOS Biology @plosbiology.org · 11/06/2026

Finally, in their Essay, @bbparis1984.bsky.social &co argue that accounting for both sex and age is essential to advancing personalized medicine, considering the interactions between these factors and the immune system plos.io/4wkqdgd

plos.io

The problem with one-size-fits-all medicine: Biological sex and the aging immune system

Aging has effects on the immune system that are similar in men and women, but also reshapes their immune systems in unique, sex-specific ways, however these differences are rarely taken into considera...

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Reposted by Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD

Cedric Feschotte @cedricfeschotte.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

📣 POSTDOC position available in the Feschotte Lab at Cornell to work on #TRANSPOSONS! More details below. Pls send informal application or inquiry ASAP by DM or email to cf458_at_cornell.edu. Pls spread the word 🙏 #TEsky www.thefeschottelabatcornell.com

thefeschottelabatcornell.com

The Feschotte Lab at Cornell

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 16/05/2026

A memorable #commencement ceremony today, where I had the honor to hood my talented trainee Dr. Ryan Lu! @uscleonarddavis.bsky.social 🎓🎊🍾

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 12/05/2026

Happy to share our new essay led by fantastic trainees 🔥🔥🔥 Clayton Baker, Victor Ansere and Cossette Sanqui: "The problem with one-size-fits-all medicine: Biological sex and the aging immune system" Here, we argue that any #personalized medicine must account for #sex for success. Enjoy the read!

lnkd.in

This link will take you to a page that’s not on LinkedIn

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Reposted by Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD

Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

🚨 New lab preprint alert! 🚨 A study 6 years in the making, made possible by @simonsfoundation.org support : "A multi-omic atlas in the African turquoise killifish reveals increased glucocorticoid signaling as a hallmark of brain aging" now on #biorXiv: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... A 🧵 1/11 🧪🖥️🧬

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Reposted by Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD

Dan Tyrrell @danis1337.bsky.social · 17/04/2026

A multi-omic atlas in the African turquoise killifish reveals increased glucocorticoid signaling as a hallmark of brain aging 🤩 @bbparis1984.bsky.social doi.org/10.64898/202...

doi.org

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Reposted by Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD

Aging Science News @agingbiology.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

A multi-omic atlas in the African turquoise killifish reveals increased glucocorticoid signaling as a hallmark of brain aging www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

biorxiv.org

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

🚨LA and SoCal trainees: Submit your abstracts for #GLAM2026 - we have 16 grad/postdoc talk slots and 12 undergraduate talk slots! 🚨

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Reposted by Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD

Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

🔥 Attention Los Angeles and SoCal Geroscience trainees 🔥: Registration and abstract submission for the 2026 ✨ Geroscience Los Angeles Meeting (GLAM) ✨ are open: gero.usc.edu/laara/event/... #GLAM2026 will take place September 4th, 2026 at the California Science Center 🧪 🔬 👩‍🔬 👨‍🔬 1/2

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Reposted by Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD

bioRxiv Neuroscience @biorxiv-neursci.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

A multi-omic atlas in the African turquoise killifish reveals increased glucocorticoid signaling as a hallmark of brain aging www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/20…

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Reposted by Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD

American Aging Association @americanaging.bsky.social · 03/01/2026

🚨 AGE VOYAGER Grants are OPEN! 🚨 ✔️ Up to $5,000 ✔️ For AGE trainee members (grad students & postdocs) ✔️ Supports travel, lodging, registration, childcare & more 🗓 Deadline: Jan 12, 2026 #AGEVoyager #AgingResearch #Geroscience #ResearchFunding #AGE

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

We hope you will enjoy the read as much as we enjoyed working on this project! 😍 @uscleonarddavis.bsky.social 11/11

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

This study provides a powerful resource and framework to leverage the killifish 🐟 to rapidly test pathways driving 🧠 aging! This work came to life thanks to talented lab members led by #RaphealWilliams, #BryanTeefy & #AaronLemus, and help from our collaborators #StevenMcCarroll and #JohnTower. 10/11

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

🔥 Indeed, mid-life-initiated glucocorticoid antagonism with #mifepristone is sufficient to curb brain aging-associated transcriptional changes and microglia expansion (suggesting this intervention may potentially increase brain health span, at least in this species).🔥 9/11

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

These observations prompted a crazy 🤪 gambit - what if counteracting #glucocorticoid signalling before #cortisol levels spike (say, at middle age) could prevent or slow down the onset of aging phenotypes? 🤔 8/11

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

and (iii) our data predicted widespread activation of hashtag#glucocorticoid signalling as a hallmark of brain aging (with conservation in publicly available human 🙍‍♀️ 🙍‍♂️ and mouse 🐁 datasets). Consistently, we saw increased cortisol production in old 👵 fish tissues! 7/11

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

(ii) age-related gene expression changes reported with human 🙍‍♀️ 🙍‍♂️ and mouse 🐁 aging are clearly conserved in hashtag#killifish, 6/11

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

We made several interesting observations: (i) #microglia expand in numbers with aging and acquire an "activated" phenotype, regardless of sex and strain (which we confirmed using #RNAscope imaging), 5/11

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

We were able to identify and annotate all major #brain cell types expected in a Vertebrate: neurons, astrocytes, microglia, oligodendrocytes, etc and to determine potential shifts in relative cell abundances using our single cell level data. 4/11

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

Our goal: identifying robust, conserved genetic pathways that may regulate Vertebrate #brain 🧠 #aging. We used a combination of single-nuclei RNA-seq and single nuclei ATAC-seq (@10xgenomics.bsky.social) together with bulk ATAC-seq to create an atlas of brain aging across the lifespan. 3/11

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

As part of the #Simons Collaboration for Plasticity in the Aging Brain's conserved pathway group, we embarked on an effort to map brain 🧠 #aging in the short-lived African turquoise killifish 🐟, using females ♀️ and males ♂️, across 2 strains with different captive lifespans. 2/11

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

Trainees at the undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral levels are encouraged to submit an abstract for consideration through the conference website. Abstracts submitted until June 1st can be considered for oral presentations, and the final talk lineup will be announced by July 31st! 2/2

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Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD @bbparis1984.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

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Reposted by Bérénice A. Benayoun, PhD

Zebrafish Rock! 🎃 @zebrafishrock.bsky.social · 28/03/2026

Please share with your #killifish colleagues 🐟 #ZebrafishMeeting

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