iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Chris Peritore-Galve

Lauren Palmer @laurenpalmer.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

🚨Faculty job search: University of Illinois Chicago Micro & Immuno department is hiring! Open rank and open area within host-pathogen interactions. Apply by May 31 to join us in UI College of Medicine in the heart of Chicago! uic.csod.com/ux/ats/caree...

Image of UIC sculpture, recreation center, and Medical Sciences Building

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 26/02/2026

The first instrument of the Peritore lab arrived today! Shout out to @cytiva.bsky.social for the matching AKTA lego 🫡🧫🦠🧪

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

The Peritore Lab officially opens its doors in 2026! I am seeking an organized, motivated technician to join our team focused on host-pathogen interaction research. For details on current research, check out: www.peritorelab.com Job listing: osu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/OSUCareers/j... #MicroSky

peritorelab.com

Peritore Lab | Microbial Infection & Immunity | Ohio State University Medical Center

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Carolyn Bertozzi @carolynbertozzi.bskyverified.social · 11/12/2025

I love this thread by @glycoshape.org, this is @bsky.app at its best!

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Alex Kwan @alexkwan.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

We used rabies virus 👾 to map how #psilocybin modifies long-range circuits 🧠, revealing network-specific reorganization that we didn’t expect. The full study is now online at Cell. @cp-cell.bsky.social Paper 👉 www.cell.com/cell/fulltex... Thread for a synopsis 👉 bsky.app/profile/alex...

cell.com

Psilocybin triggers an activity-dependent rewiring of large-scale cortical networks

Psilocybin reshapes brain networks through activity-dependent plasticity, including a weakening of recurrent cortical loops that could underlie its therapeutic effects.

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Harmit Singh Malik @harmitmalik.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

“I’m tired of being constantly confronted by the consequences of my (in)actions.”

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Reposted by Chris Peritore-Galve

Mariana Byndloss @maribyndloss.bsky.social · 19/11/2025

Join us in Colorado next spring for the Keystone Symposia “Beyond #Antibiotics: Emerging Strategies Combating #BacterialInfection”. Registrations are now open! Details below ⬇️

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

20/20 This was a fun and important study, and it was a pleasure to collaborate between the @bordenlacy.bsky.social Lab and our brilliant colleagues at @astra-zeneca.bsky.social!

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

19/20 AZD5148 is currently in Phase I clinical trials (NCT06469151), and we are hopeful that this monoclonal antibody will help C. difficile patients in the future.

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

18/20 However, the main conclusion is that AZD5148 is a VERY promising, broadly neutralizing mAb that works by itself, in relatively low doses, to prevent severe outcomes of C. diff infection. There is a paucity of therapeutics to combat C. diff infection. And this is likely to be a valuable one.

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

17/20 But, from a broader view, we have three different toxin subtypes that cause, in my opinion, vastly different pathologies during infection. Is this due to differences in receptor binding? The substrate targeted? Cell types intoxicated? Or simply toxin titers? Lots of questions remain.

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

16/20 So interestingly, AZD5148 does not neutralize TcdB3 in vitro, but it protects in vivo. We believe that this is due to the effects TcdB3 has on adherent cells, where, instead of cytopathic rounding, the cells detach from the plate. So the in vitro finding is likely a byproduct of the assay.

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

15/20 The lack of outward signs of disease and limited histopathology was curious, so we tested this with additional TcdB3+ strains and found that the mild disease with edema + inflammation being the most informative markers was consistent across ribotype 017 strains.

Hematoxylin and eosin-stained ceca of mice infected with three independent C. difficile strains encoding TcdB3. There is little to no damage to the epithelial layer and the only appreciable pathology is severe edema and inflammatory infiltrate.

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

14/20 Mice infected with the TcdB3+ strain develop no appreciable epithelial damage, but they do exhibit high amounts of inflammation and edema. Surprisingly, even though AZD5148 did not neutralize TcdB3 in vitro, it significantly protected against the inflammation and edema phenotypes in vivo!

Hematoxylin and eosin-stained ceca of mice prophylactically administered antibodies, then infected with the TcdB3-encoding strain M68. Columns left-to right are: healthy control, isotype IgG control, 0.5 mg/kg AZD5148, 1 mg/kg AZD5148, 0.5 mg/kg bezlotoxumab, and 1 mg/kg bezlotoxumab. The healthy tissue has nicely formed crypts, not much space between the mucosa and the seromuscular layer, indicating that there is no edema. The control IgG group has significant expansion of the submucosa and inflammatory cells in this compartment as well as an expansion of gut-associated lymphoid tissue. The 0.5 mg/kg AZD5148 cecum images have less submucosal edema and inflammatory infiltrates compared to the control IgG group, but the 1 mg/kg AZD5148 images are near healthy. In contrast, both 0.5 and 1 mg/kg groups of bezlotoxumab have significant amounts of edema and inflammatory infiltrates.

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

13/20 Upon initial assessment, it seemed like this strain, despite being isolated from the clinic, did not cause C. difficile infection. There was no diarrhea and minimal weight loss around days 3-6 post-infection. But the tissue tells a different story.

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

12/20 What I was really excited about was building up the model of infection with a TcdB3+ strain. This TcdB subtype is typically found in ribotype 017 strains that lack TcdA and are endemic to East Asia. This subtype is also unique in that it preferentially targets Ras-like GTPases.

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

11/20 What is baffling is that despite protecting against lethality and weight loss, mAb therapy did not have an impact on pathology. This could be due to systemic effects of neutralizing TcdB, or the prevention of further damage by directing more AZD5148 from the bloodstream to the tissue, or more.

Hematoxylin and eosin staining of mouse cecum tissues prophylactically treated with anti-TcdB monoclonal antibodies or an isotype control. Columns left to right are control IgG, AZD5148, and Bezlotoxumab, all given at a dose of 2.5 mg/kg. The top row is a zoomed-out view showing a cross-section of the mouse ceca. There is a massive submucosal expansion, indicative of edema, and severe shedding of the epithelial layer. The bottom row shows a close-up image of the epithelium, which is highly inflamed, and is highly damaged and eroded in some areas.

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

10/20 AZD5148 was protective down to the low dose of 0.5 mg/kg, whereas bezlotoxumab was most protective at 2.5 mg/kg in our model. We next tested prophylactic protection during infection with the highly pathogenic VPI 10463 (TcdB1+) strain, and again, AZD5148 outperformed bezlotoxumab.

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

9/20 Using AZD5148 in a prophylactic model, we found that AZD5148 alone was sufficient to protect against severe C. difficile infection with a TcdB2+ strain. The addition of a TcdA-neutralizing mAb, PA50, added no benefit over AZD5148 alone, which tracks with data from bezlotoxumab clinical trials.

nejm.org

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

8/20 In vitro, AZD5148 potently neutralized TcdB1 and TcdB2 with EC50 values 1,000- or 14,000-fold lower than those of bezlotoxumab, respectively. However, AZD5148 was unable to neutralize TcdB3 in vitro, which contains the Y323H mutation in AZD5148's epitope...

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

7/20 So we set off to test whether AZD5148 would protect against diverse C. difficile strains that encode TcdB1, TcdB2, and TcdB3 variants. We also compared its efficacy to bezlotoxumab (Zinplava), the existing mAb that was discontinued in January.

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

6/20 Around the same time, the field gained a deeper appreciation of divergence in TcdB sequences, with the TcdB1, TcdB2, and TcdB3 subtypes being the most clinically-relevant subtypes. www.nature.com/articles/s42... journals.plos.org/plospathogen...

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

5/20 But one of the key findings was that some strains encode a TcdB sequence variant that contains a mutation in AZD5148's epitope, which significantly decreased binding affinity...

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

4/20 Members of the @bordenlacy.bsky.social Lab then did some fantastic structural and mechanistic work to show that PA41/AZD5148 binds the TcdB enzymatic domain and blocks the translocation of this toxic cargo from the endosomal pore into the host cytosol. www.jbc.org/article/S002...

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

3/20 Past work generated the novel anti-TcdB antibody PA41 (now called AZD5148), which neutralized TcdB with picomolar affinity and protected hamsters against lethal infection when combined with an anti-TcdA neutralizing antibody, PA50. academic.oup.com/jid/article/...

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

2/20 C. difficile infection is driven by two protein toxins, TcdA and TcdB. However, years of work suggest that TcdB is the main virulence factor. The only FDA-approved anti-TcdB mAb, bezlotoxumab (Zinplava) for the prevention of recurrent C. difficile infection, was discontinued earlier this year.

reuters.com

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

🧪Thrilled to share our new study "The monoclonal antibody AZD5148 confers broad protection against TcdB-diverse Clostridioides difficile strains in mice” in PLoS Pathogens! @bordenlacy.bsky.social ➡️We show that this mAb alone protects against infection with strains encoding TcdB variants. 1/20

journals.plos.org

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Chris Peritore-Galve @fcperitore.bsky.social · 28/08/2025

Excited to share our recent review in which @rcglover.bsky.social, @joeyzacks.bsky.social, @bordenlacy.bsky.social, and I discuss current advances in our understanding of immunity to C. difficile infection and what it will take to develop an effective vaccine 💉 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

sciencedirect.com

Immune Aspects of Clostridioides difficile Infection and Vaccine Development

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Fabian Rivera-Chávez @fabianrchavez.bsky.social · 18/08/2025

1/ Excited to share the first preprint from my lab! 🎉 My postdoc Paz asked how cholera toxin (CT) helps Vibrio cholerae thrive in the gut. Turns out, CT rewires epithelial metabolism toward L-lactate production—fueling pathogen growth in the small intestine during disease

biorxiv.org

Cholera toxin-induced disease generates epithelial cell-derived L-lactate that promotes Vibrio cholerae growth in the small intestine

Cholera toxin (CT) promotes Vibrio cholerae colonization by altering gut metabolism to favor pathogen growth. We have previously found that CT-induced disease leads to increased concentrations of L-la...

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Alt National Park Service @altnps.bsky.social · 12/03/2025

Imagine this: On the evening of March 8, you and your spouse unlock the door to your apartment building. As you step inside, two men—not in uniform—push their way in behind you. They tell you your visa has been revoked and that they are there to deport you.

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Igor Brodsky @brodskyigorlab.bsky.social · 13/03/2025

In 2024 NIH grant awards supported 407,782 jobs and $94.58 billion in new economic activity nationwide, the largest figure in the history of the report. www.forbes.com/sites/michae...

forbes.com

NIH Grants Fueled $95 Billion In FY 2024 Economic Activity, Finds New Report

National Institutes of Health grants generated almost $95 billion in economic activity nationwide in FY 2024 according to a new report by United for Medical Research.

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Jeremy Berg @jeremymberg.bsky.social · 05/03/2025

Preliminary injunction in nationwide indirect cost rate case. This means that the judge found that the plaintiffs (AAMC, et al.) are likely to win on the merits when the ruling is finalized. www.statnews.com/2025/03/05/n...

statnews.com

Judge issues preliminary injunction blocking Trump cuts to NIH research overhead payments

A federal judge issued a nationwide preliminary injunction blocking the Trump administration from slashing NIH payments for research overhead

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Science Magazine @science.org · 05/03/2025

A federal judge in Massachusetts today blocked an attempt by the National Institutes of Health to cut some $4 billion annually that goes to universities to cover the cost of supporting research on their campuses.

scim.ag

U.S. judge blocks NIH’s plan to slash overhead cost payments

Injunction allows universities to keep receiving billions to recover costs of supporting federal research on campus

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CALL TO ACTIVISM @calltoactivism.bsky.social · 02/03/2025

This is Marco Rubio explaining how the USA promised to defend Ukraine forever if they got rid of their nuclear arsenal left after the Soviet Union fell. This is why lil marco was sinking into the couch. He was hoping we wouldn’t find it…so don’t RT right now this very second.

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Andy Pekosz @andrewpekosz.bsky.social · 22/02/2025

Everyone who ever got funding through NIAID should be aware of this bill and start sending messages to their US legislators. The bill intends to dissolve NIAID. This is Project 2025 www.congress.gov/bill/119th-c...

congress.gov

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Carolyn Ibberson @cbibberson.bsky.social · 22/02/2025

I created a brief spreadsheet of reductions I've heard of so far. Any additions you know of (especially if you have the links/receipts) would be great: docs.google.com/spreadsheets...

docs.google.com

Graduate Reductions Across Biomedical Sciences (2025)

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Stand Up for Science! @standupforscience.net · 22/02/2025

🚨 WANT TO HELP US STAND UP FOR SCIENCE? 🚨 Here's a little update on where we're currently at with the planning process! Is your state red or grey & you want to see an event happen? Fill out our volunteer form or share with a friend! airtable.com/app4h5wUssMG... #standupforscience2025

Photo of the United States with a color code for states that have rallies confirmed, in progress, needing a leader, or no leader.

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Vaughn Cooper @vscooper.micropopbio.org · 22/02/2025

🚨PA colleagues: "Senator Fetterman wants to hear from you about how the federal funding freeze is affecting Pennsylvania." "If your project has been impacted, please fill out our constituent impact form:" forms.office.com/g/mFv2JAPxpC Get out your Other Support and share that info!

forms.office.com

Microsoft Forms

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PLOS Biology @plosbiology.org · 21/02/2025

PLOS has issued a statement on recent US Executive Orders and scientific integrity. We are determined to stand firmly behind our mission, our values and our principles, and against any attempt at censorship or undermining of the core principles of scientific inquiry. plos.io/3D4O8cH

plos.io

PLOS statement on recent US Executive Orders and scientific integrity - The Official PLOS Blog

Since its founding over twenty five years ago PLOS has been dedicated to advancing open science, ensuring that knowledge is accessible to…

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Mark Peifer (He, him) @peiferlabunc.bsky.social · 21/02/2025

Ok scientists & those who love science 🧪: here is another exhortation. Call Congress TODAY about the freeze on NIH Council Meetings and Study Sections. Emphasize that this means NO new grants are being funded & labs will soon start to shut down and fire employees. Phone numbers are at: 5calls.org

5calls.org

5 Calls

Spend 5 minutes. Make 5 calls. Make your voice heard.

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Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽 @needhibhalla.bsky.social · 22/02/2025

Once again, these include a host of individual and institutional training grants that broaden participation in biomedical research: IMSD, MARC, U-RISE, G-RISE, Bridges to Doctorates, MOSAIC, etc. This strategy is nefarious and in direct conflict with the recent injunction against Trump anti-DEI EOs

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Alt NIH Bluesky 🧪 @altnih4science.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

It’s been buried in all the news today, but every scientist in the US should pay attention to this: Mike Lauer went out on a limb for us all, sending out a memo saying institutes should start awarding grants. And it looks like Trump/Musk fired him for that. 🧪

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Lewis Kamb @lewiskamb.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

CDC source: “We just had word that all our fellows and post doc staff are laid off effective immediately. The famous Epidemic Intelligence Service, aka the Disease Detectives, is no more. That’s 1260 staff. They are calling this ‘Phase 1’.”

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Gregg Gonsalves @gregggonsalves.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

This new Administration is a bunch of terrorists blowing up all that is meant to keep us safe and healthy. CDC cuts expected to devastate Epidemic Intelligence Service, a ‘crown jewel’ of public health www.statnews.com/2025/02/14/t... via @statnews.com

statnews.com

CDC cuts expected to devastate Epidemic Intelligence Service, a ‘crown jewel’ of public health

Members of the CDC's Epidemic Intelligence Service were warned Friday that many of them were about to be fired

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Alt NIH Bluesky 🧪 @altnih4science.bsky.social · 11/02/2025

Hi Vanderbilt, with your $545 million in NIH funding — how’s it going over there?

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Matt Barber @biobarber.bsky.social · 08/02/2025

Executive wants to frame the NIH indirects cut as $4B in savings. But given that NIH returns $2.5 on every $1 investment, this would actually cost US economy a net $6 BILLION (per year!). Not to mention the human costs of wrecking education and research sectors and the communities they serve.

nih.gov

Direct Economic Contributions

NIH directly supports the economy through investments in research institutions and job formation.

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Dr. Kat Napaaqtuk❄️ @napaaqtuk.bsky.social · 02/02/2025

@asm.org this better not be anticipatory obedience. I have 5 lab members planning on going to ASM microbe this year. I will absolutely pivot to another meeting if ASM gives in to anti-DEI efforts.

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