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Gabriel Aughey

@gabrielaughey.bsky.social
215 followers 230 following 18 posts

Neurobiologist at UCL. Interested in neurological disease, genetics, behaviour, and development.

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Gabriel Aughey @gabrielaughey.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Really don't like the tone of the discourse around the video that won the Nikon award. I definitely think there is a conversations to be had about this, but it's beginning to look like a pile-on aimed at the individual who submitted it.
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Jason Rasgon @vectorgen.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Banger of a new RasgonLab study by Drs. Najmeh Nejat and Travis van Warmerdam on a new arthropod germline CRISPR delivery system. Knock-out AND knock-in by ORAL delivery! No more injections! Germline Engineering by Viral transduction (GEValT)
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Alfonso Martinez Arias @amartinezarias.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
It is clear that people are using AI to review papers and grants. Often as a tool, not as an off the bottle answer for review (though some do). One of the signs of this is the detail of the negative comments and the errors, often minor and irrelevant to the conclusions. 🧵
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Alice Roberts @profaliceroberts.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
The fallout from the collapse of this glacier - a torrent of mud surging down the valley - killed hundreds of people. Gone, in a flash. Those people were wiped out by anthropogenic climate change. Our governments are simply not responding quickly enough to this disaster which is already upon us.
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Gabriel Aughey @gabrielaughey.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
We have an open position for a research assistant to work on neurological disease, gene regulation, and circadian rhythms in Drosophila - please share with any recently graduated students etc who might be interested! www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/...
ucl.ac.uk
UCL – University College London
UCL is consistently ranked as one of the top ten universities in the world (QS World University Rankings 2010-2022) and is No.2 in the UK for research power (Research Excellence Framework 2021).
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Carolina Rezaval @crezaval.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
We’re recruiting postdocs! Join our @wellcometrust.bsky.social funded programme 'Decoding competition in the brain'. How does the brain resolve competing needs and prioritise behaviour? 📅 Deadline: 1 September Apply: rezavallab.org Please share! www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DSM781/r...
jobs.ac.uk
Research Fellow (Postdoctoral) at University of Birmingham
Recruiting now: Research Fellow (Postdoctoral) on jobs.ac.uk. Click for details and explore more academic job opportunities on the top job board
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MichaelMcMurray lab @mcmurraylab.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Doing the periodic cleaning of used plasmid miniprep columns and realized in honor of Earth Day it may be worth reminding you molecular biologists: Plasmid miniprep columns can be cleaned and reused essentially indefinitely! Just add 1 M HCl, soak overnight and wash 3x w/ water. Save $ and plastic
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Gabriel Aughey @gabrielaughey.bsky.social · 13/03/2026
Am I reading this correctly that normal applicant-led @ukri.org grants will be decided by interview? Peer-review is not mentioned, so is it only the panel that decides? Not sure how this is a better system for anyone involved, but we still need clearer communications... www.ukri.org/news/mrc-cur...
ukri.org
MRC curiosity-driven research reopens with new approach
The Medical Research Council (MRC) unpauses curiosity driven research funding and improves the funding process.
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Ko-Fan Chen 陳克帆 @kofanchen.biologists.social.ap.brid.gy · 04/11/2025
I am glad to say that the first manuscript from the lab is now available on BioRxiv www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/202… We set out to answer a simple question: If the fruit fly #Drosophila cannot see clearly, how would they #sleep?
An image of photoreceptor (magenta) innervating the Drosophila brain (green)
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Thiago Carvalho @cyrilpedia.bsky.social · 11/02/2026
'Yesterday, I learned that one of my students, who applied for a Marie Curie Fellowship, did not get it. My first reaction was to ask what could be done to improve the application in the future. Then I saw the score: above 93 points!.' substack.com/home/post/p-...
substack.com
When Science Funding Becomes a Lottery
or, how Europe’s funding schemes turned evaluation into ritual
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Gabriel Aughey @gabrielaughey.bsky.social · 02/02/2026
Started my fellowship in January - just gearing up to submit my first independent grant and everything has been cancelled! This letter provides no reassurance for ECRs in my position. And why was there no consulation or warning that this was going to happen!? www.ukri.org/news/open-le...
ukri.org
Open letter from Ian Chapman to research and innovation community
UKRI Chief Executive outlines changes to UKRI investment approach, addressing concerns about research funding and the financial position of STFC.
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Gabriel Aughey @gabrielaughey.bsky.social · 28/01/2026
Does anyone have a protocol for homebrew HCR in situ probes? I've seen several published protocols for designing inititators to use with molecular instruments amplifiers - but it looks like they wont share their sequences anymore!?
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Gabriel Aughey @gabrielaughey.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
Always shocking to see these kinds of data collected together. "[publishers made]US$12 billion in profits between 2019 and 2024" - That's $12 billion diverted away from actual research or materially supporting the community - these are disgusting numbers.
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Gabriel Aughey @gabrielaughey.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
Really confused about what problem LLMs like qed are meant to be solving? Is it meant to be for people writing papers - in which case we already have well established mechanisms for feedback (i.e. speaking with human colleagues), or for reviewers - obviously problematic for so many reasons!?
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Alejandro Montenegro @aemonten.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
PREACH! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Reaffirming the value of model organisms in training scientific minds - Nature Cell Biology
As biomedical research prioritizes human models and translational promise, classic model organisms are increasingly dismissed. Here we argue that they have a lasting value, both in enabling discovery and in cultivating scientific thinking, by training researchers in systems reasoning, integrative thinking and independent inquiry.
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FlyBase @flybase.bsky.social · 03/06/2025
We currently have a call for support that has gone out to European labs, to support FlyBase-UK. We are asking our colleagues from labs in the US and other countries to wait for a similar call to them that will go out in the near future, to support the US sites. We thank you for your patience.
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Andreas Prokop @poppi62.bsky.social · 04/06/2025
SUSTAINABILITY & #DROSOPHILA - If you keep flies & have tried to re-use containers but then given up on it, please could you let us know & tell us the reasons? We urgently need statements for a publication about sustainability in fly labs. Please, contact Andreas.Prokop@manchester.ac.uk
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Mark A. Hanson @hansonmark.bsky.social · 03/06/2025
URGENT: FlyBase has lost practically all its funding overnight; even user fees are tied up in denied grant funding. 🤬🤯 Any lab using @flybase.bsky.social please donate using the link in post below. This incredible community, on whose backs our #Drosophila labs depend, can't be left out to dry.
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Tony Southall @tonysouthall.bsky.social · 26/04/2025
New preprint! We have discovered that the splicing factor Sex lethal (Sxl - well known for its role in sex determination) binds to chromatin and regulates tRNA synthesis in neurons by interacting with RNA Pol III! Highlighting Sxl as a novel modulator of neuronal homeostasis. tinyurl.com/s44s2z95
tinyurl.com
Sex-lethal is recruited to chromatin to promote neuronal tRNA synthesis in males through RNA Polymerase III regulation
The RNA-binding protein Sex-lethal (Sxl) is classically known as a master regulator of sex determination and mRNA splicing in Drosophila melanogaster. However, this role is not conserved across specie...
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Surfin' NuRD @surfinnurd.bsky.social · 25/04/2025
Pedestrians killed by car drivers in UK annually: >400 Cyclists killed by car drivers in UK annually: >100 Pedestrians killed by cyclists in UK annually: <3 So which of these is the most scary and worthy of more laws? www.theguardian.com/news/2025/ap...
theguardian.com
Cyclists who kill pedestrians could be jailed for life under new law in England and Wales
Reckless cycling is currently prosecuted under legislation from the 1860s, with a maximum two-year jail sentence
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Royal Entomological Society @royentsoc.bsky.social · 18/03/2025
🔔 Reminder: RES #InsectWelfare Survey 🦗 We’re gathering perspectives on the ethical treatment of insects in research. If you’re in #InsectResearch, your voice is essential! Deadline: 1 April 🔽 buff.ly/kEmqgdr #EthicsInScience #InsectEthics #AnimalResearch
Hairy-footed flower bee, Anthophora plumipes (c) Anthony Cooper
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Maya Voichek @mayavoichek.bsky.social · 17/03/2025
1/ Transposable elements are often called "jumping genes" because they mobilize within genomes. 🧬 But did you know they can also jump 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 cells? 🤯 Our new study reveals how retrotransposons invade the germline directly from somatic cells. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... A short thread 🧵👇
Drosophila follicle showing retrotransposons (pink & yellow) expressed in somatic cells infecting the oocyte
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Masud Husain @masudhusain.bsky.social · 06/03/2025
Why academia is sleepwalking into self-destruction. My editorial @brain1878.bsky.social If you agree with the sentiments please repost. It's important for all our sakes to stop the madness academic.oup.com/brain/articl...
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Mike Feigin 🥯 @mikefeigin.bsky.social · 25/02/2025
I had that nightmare again. The one where I’m a postdoc.
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John Ganz @lioneltrolling.bsky.social · 23/02/2025
To me, a Nazi salute means, "I want to murder your family." There can be no irony about it: It puts deep anger and hatred in my heart to see it done and I will never forgive anyone who justifies or minimizes it.
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Gabriel Aughey @gabrielaughey.bsky.social · 21/02/2025
I've been a bit slow to post about this, but our work on RBL2-linked disease is now available online in #Brain. We provide a comprehensive characterisation of clinical phenotypes, and explore the neurological function of the #Drosophila orthologue, Rbf. (1/2) doi.org/10.1093/brai...
doi.org
Clinical and genetic characterization of a progressive RBL2-associated neurodevelopmental disorder
RBL2 dysfunction, which disrupts cell-cycle gene expression, has been linked to a severe neurodevelopmental disorder. Aughey et al. characterize a cohort o
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Abigail Wilson, PhD @abigaildwilson.bsky.social · 06/02/2025
Delighted to have been selected to give a talk on 3rd March at the 4th Crick Rare Diseases Conference @crick.ac.uk - there's still time to register (and free to register for students!) www.crick.ac.uk/whats-on/4th...
crick.ac.uk
4th Crick Rare Diseases Conference
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Auke-Florian 🪹 @aukeflorian.nl · 04/02/2025
Bird nests made from anti-bird spikes?! 🤯 Hi, I'm a nest researcher 👋 and new here on BlueSky, sharing the craziest #bird nests I've ever found. 👀 Today, I’m sharing my discovery of rebellious birds that build nests out of anti-bird spikes. And honestly, it's like telling a joke... A thread. 🧵
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Gabriel Aughey @gabrielaughey.bsky.social · 28/01/2025
Was wondering what had been going on. Please stop this - flybase is my emotional support database - I need to visit several times just to get through the day!
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Annika Barber @annikabarber.bsky.social · 21/01/2025
If anyone happens to need it this week for...reasons...this is the best graphic on the complexity of human sex determination I've ever seen. I use it in an undergrad course on gene regulatory mechanisms. Shoutout to @unamandita.bsky.social! www.scientificamerican.com/article/beyo...
scientificamerican.com
Beyond XX and XY: The Extraordinary Complexity of Sex Determination
A host of factors figure into whether someone is female, male or somewhere in between
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Loïc A. Royer 💻🔬🧪 @loicaroyer.bsky.social · 11/12/2024
The birth of fruit fly's central nervous system imaged with multicolor #adaptive #lightsheet microscopy. The microscope self-aligns to a signal that appears during imaging. www.nature.com/articles/nbt...
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Amoyel lab @amoyellab.bsky.social · 04/12/2024
We're hiring a postdoc! Please forward to people you know who are looking for positions. Interested in studying how metabolism is wired to support fertility? 🔬🪰 Come join us! Ad to go live next week, but informal enquiries encouraged.
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Fillip Port @crisprflydesign.bsky.social · 02/12/2024
Our new preprint is out - please share! We asked: How can we make CRISPR knockouts in vivo more efficient? And set up an assay that enables detection of CRISPR cutting with 100s-1000s of sgRNAs over entire chromosome arms in living animals. Grab a ☕ and let’s dive in. 🧵🧪 1/n #CRISPR #geneediting
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Micah G. Allen @micahgallen.com · 02/12/2024
Would you like to see @biorxivpreprint.bsky.social add a share to blue sky button?! I know I would! Share this post to let @richardsever.bsky.social @erictopol.bsky.social and others at bioarxiv know!
A screenshot of a paper on bioarxiv illustrating the lack of blue sky share button!
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Moita Lab @moitalab.bsky.social · 02/12/2024
Thrilled to present our latest BioRXiv on brain/body interactions during defensive freezing behaviour! (www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...). You might think that a frozen animal has, well, frozen muscle activity, right? Wrong! Underneath the still surface of a fly, something in the legs is beating… 🧵
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Gabriel Aughey @gabrielaughey.bsky.social · 28/11/2024
A (lightly) paraphrased sample of recent feedback from a failed fellowship application: Strength - The project was important and ambitious. Weakness - While the project was interesting and important, it was too ambitious to fund. ...not really sure what to take from this experience!🤔
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the Node @the-node.bsky.social · 28/11/2024
Register for the final Development presents... webinar of 2024, chaired by @dev-journal.bsky.social Senior Editor @amjeve.bsky.social. We'll hear from Madalena Reimão Pinto and @gabrielaughey.bsky.social on the topic of #GeneRegulation in #DevBio 📆Wed 4 Dec 15:00GMT us02web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...
Development presents… webinar on Wednesday 4 December 15:00 GMT, chaired by Alex Eve. Talk number 1: Madalena M. Reimão Pinto (Biozentrum) on ‘The regulatory landscape of 5′ UTRs in translational control during zebrafish embryogenesis’; Talk number 2: Gabriel Aughey (University College London) on ‘Characterisation of an RBL2-associated neurodevelopmental disorder sheds light on neuronal cell-cycle exit and re-entry’.
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The Company of Biologists @biologists.bsky.social · 25/11/2024
🧪The final Development presents... webinar of 2024 will be chaired by Development’s Senior Editor @amjeve.bsky.social. We will hear from Madalena M. Reimão Pinto and Gabriel Aughey on the topic of gene regulation. #DevBio #GeneRegulation 📆Wed 4 Dec 15:00GMT Register here: bit.ly/3OpUfu2
Alt text: Development presents… webinar on Wednesday 4 December 15:00 GMT, chaired by Alex Eve. Talk number 1: Madalena M. Reimão Pinto (Biozentrum) on ‘The regulatory landscape of 5′ UTRs in translational control during zebrafish embryogenesis’; Talk number 2: Gabriel Aughey (University College London) on ‘Characterisation of an RBL2-associated neurodevelopmental disorder sheds light on neuronal cell-cycle exit and re-entry’.
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Gabriel Aughey @gabrielaughey.bsky.social · 22/11/2024
I'm a bit sceptical about joining another social network, but honestly it's a bit quiet over on mastodon. So I'm tentatively dipping into Bluesky, hoping to engage with like-minded neuro, genetics, and Drosophila community. It's nice to see so many people here already!
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