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Glenn Masson

@glennmasson.bsky.social
185 followers 168 following 95 posts

Scientist at School of Medicine, University of Dundee. Using cryo-EM and my beloved HDX-MS to investigate all things ISR Kinase - GCN2, HRI, PERK (and I guess PKR). glennmasson.com

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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 13/10/2026
The point when "hitch slapped" was birthed into this world was when I slinked out of that cesspit.
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
It still surprises me just how little we know. Basically everything you touched on there- intrinsic disorder, dedifferentiation, condensates has only been uncovered in the ~15 years and these are fundamental aspects of how biology works. Imagine what we'll know in 15 years. Impossible to predict.
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Can I also ask - how on earth is it guaranteed that what the AI reads remains siloed? Human reviewers have to remain confidential. How do I know that Claude isn't going to tell everyone in the world my research plans and preliminary data?
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
thanks to Olawale Raimi, who drove this project with some wonderful biochemistry and biophysics (even learning some HDX-MS!) and our collaborators at @mrcppu.bsky.social, Miratul Muqit and Carine de Marcos Lousa. #HDX-MS #HRI #DELE1
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
- DELE1 is a much tighter binder onto HRI than heme (by about 200x). What's more, the HDX-MS suggests that DELE1 binds precisely where previous research has shown heme binds. This means that even when there is heme kicking about, DELE1 can effectively displace it, activating the kinase. Many -
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
We're excited to present our latest data on the stress-sensing kinase HRI! The problem; HRI is inhibited by heme, and activated on mitochondrial damage by DELE1 - how can DELE1 activate HRI when heme is still around? By using biophysics and structural mass spectrometry (HDX), we proposed a model -
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Is it better than nuclear war? I enjoyed (if that's the correct word) part 2 of that, the scenario, but found part 1, the recounting of a meeting from the 60s, a real slog.
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
That's a really good and balanced piece. He turned up at the LMB unannounced in 2013 and gave whatever the opposite is of an invited lecture. It was passable, focusing on the ribosome + antibiotic resistance, I think, but during Q+A he outraged everyone by spouting racist and antisemitic drivel.
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Wendell Berry, an American poet died today. He wrote a work that forever turns over in my mind, and I revisit it often whenever I have the misfortune to pick up a newspaper. RIP
A poem by Wendell Berry

Title: the peace of wild things. 

When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.
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Adrian Liston @labliston.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Two post-doc positions available in our lab! It is a supportive environment and on which boosts careers! Historically, of our ~30 post-docs 27% have gone on to tenure-track positions, 27% did another post-doc, and 42% have gone on to positions in biotech or pharma.
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
The swifts of St Catharine's College, noisy blighters 🥰
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
...Universities are tasked with two impossible tasks: being the primary driver of social mobility, while also promoting scholastic excellence. Furthermore, promoting Uni as THE way out of generational poverty, while simultaneously trapping young people in lifelong debt, is unbelievably misguided.
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
The 2015 Sutton Trust & Education Committee’s 2021 "The forgotten" reports showed that educational disadvantage is rapidly embedded in children from low-income families in the UK: before primary school, regardless of geography or race....
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
Wait what?
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
A lovely wee review from a very talented PhD student Min Cao, with whom I share supervision duties with Miratul Muqit, is out today on HRI. Turns out, despite knowing about HRI for about 70 years, it still has the capacity to surprise! portlandpress.com/biochemsoctr...
portlandpress.com
Structural insights into HRI kinase activity and inhibition
Abstract. Haem-regulated inhibitor (HRI) is emerging as a potential therapeutic target in several disease areas, including cancers such as multiple myeloma and neurodegenerative disease. As one of fou...
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Research Professional News @resprofnews.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
UKRI urged to be ‘transparent’ after adopting grant lotteries. Funder’s quiet introduction of randomisation option across opportunities prompts questions, plus support for “innovative” action. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-r...
researchprofessionalnews.com
UKRI urged to be ‘transparent’ after adopting grant lotteries - Research Professional News
Funder’s quiet introduction of randomisation option across opportunities prompts questions, plus support for “innovative” action
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
I think the Gene Machine by Venki fulfills this brief.
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
Interesting discussion. Having worked in pharma-adjacent for many years, negative results are lauded much more in industry - "fail fast and fail often" in early drug discovery. The fact that their negative data never sees the light of day is concerning, too, but at least it's not taxpayer-funded.
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
Hmm I hadn't considered that - and ATP sensor especially would be useful somewhere in the ISR, especially if it was coupled to AA sensing. Would be a good thing to test. We haven't tried gtp yet but maybe we should too!
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
I have yet to find an ATP-mimetic compound which 𝘤𝘢𝘯'𝘵 activate GCN2 at certain concentrations, including AMP-PNP, ATPyS, and even ADP. This is all in vitro with purified GCN2.
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
New paper alert! Residue level Kd's from HDX-MS/MS data published today in JASMS. Really useful approach to disentangle drug/protein SAR on proteins in solution in a medium throughput way. Great work De Lin, Vincent Postis and every who helped! pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
pubs.acs.org
Residue-Level Determination of Small-Molecule–Protein Affinities by Hydrogen–Deuterium Exchange Mass Spectrometry
Hydrogen–Deuterium Exchange Mass Spectrometry (HDX-MS) is an established tool in drug discovery, used to characterize target engagement and conformational dynamics, and frequently used in both biophar...
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 30/03/2026
@newstatesman1913.bsky.social hey , either my maths isn't what it used to be....does the annual subscription come with a complimentary Nick Lezard fag stained signed tote bag or something?
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 21/03/2026
Nowruz mubarak from this adopted Iranian to the people of Iran and the Iranian diaspora. Fesenjān, sabzi polo, ghormeh sabzi and kebab to celebrate the new year.
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
Had a wonderful time in Strasbourg presenting our latest HDX-MS research at the 5th International Conference for HDX! Excellent cheese, beer, wine, macarons and outstanding science to boot! Excellent work from the conference organisers Sarah, Julien and Cherine!
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Ian Kelsall @iankelsall.bsky.social · 01/03/2026
🚨⚠️ New Preprint Alert! ⚠️ 🚨 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... Screening p97 cofactors, @prithadg.bsky.social identified FAF2 as the strongest activator of the p97-UFD1-NPL4 complex. Leveraging her mechanistic descoveries, we designed 𝘥𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘰 binders that could also enhance p97 substrate unfolding.
Image of FAF2's predicted helical domain interacting with the UFD1 UT3 domain. Next to this are similar images showing the predicted binding of de novo designed protein binders to the same region. Above is a sequence alignment indicating the key residues involved in the interaction.
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Sjors Scheres @sjorsscheres.bsky.social · 16/02/2026
Please spread the word: the Structural Studies Division @mrclmb.bsky.social is looking for a new tenure-track, independent group leader with an exciting plan in any area of Structural (Molecular & Cell) biology, in discovery biology and/or methods development. 🥳 mrc.tal.net/vx/mobile-0/...
mrc.tal.net
Research Group Leader Tenure Track - Structural Studies - LMB 2775 - Medical Research Council
Location: Cambridge. Vacancy: Research Group Leader Tenure Track - Structural Studies - LMB 2775. Closing Date: 16/03/2026, 23:55
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 16/02/2026
Fellowship rejected (after interview), root canal, and a -80 freezer failure all within 24h. Yay!
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 08/02/2026
Another day another birthday party. The brief for this one was rainbow marshmallow sprinkles and I think I achieved that. Now for the ensuing hyperglycemic coma...
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Matthew Freeman @mjafreeman.bsky.social · 03/02/2026
I watched much of Ian Chapman's (Head of @ukri.org) appearance this morning at @ukparliament.parliament.uk Science, Innovation and Technology Committee.. A few points and new information that bioscientists may find interesting... A 🧵
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 02/02/2026
! 🧐 chemrxiv.org/doi/full/10....
chemrxiv.org
Site Specific Hydrogen Deuterium Exchange Mass Spectrometry Enables Deep Explorations of Dynamic Allosteric Networks in Protein-Drug Interactions | ChemRxiv
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.For more information or tips please see 'Downloading to a citation manager' in the Help menu.
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 28/01/2026
I advised two groups at the UoD to wait for the next MRC Capital Equipment grant rather than the BBSRC Capital Equipment grant, as their proposal was perhaps a better fit for the MRC. Turns out the MRC capital equipment grant never materialised!
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MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology @mrclmb.ac.uk · 27/01/2026
Exciting opportunity for a #postdoc to join @suyangzhang.bsky.social’s group in the LMB Structural Studies Division to investigate co-transcriptional splicing using cryo-EM and biochemistry. Read more: www.nature.com/naturecareer... Apply by 11 FEB #PostdocJobs #ScienceJobs
Suyang Zhang smiles in front of a blurred laboratory background
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
Nothing will make Universities flee from embracing and embedding AI faster than sharing IP % points lol
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
Please share! We've an exciting one-year postdoctoral position available in my group - drug discovery using HDX-MS for a Parkinson's disease target. Join us on high-impact, translational research at the cutting edge of structural biology. We're a friendly bunch! www.dundee.ac.uk/work-for-us/...
dundee.ac.uk
Postdoctoral Research Assistant - UOD2127
Closing date: Wednesday 18 February 2026, 23:59
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Adam Kucharski @adamjkucharski.bsky.social · 13/01/2026
Want to get the data out of a PDF figure? As in, the actual data – not a rough trace-along-the-lines version? I made an app you might like: adamkucharski.github.io/pdf2plot/ It all started a few years ago... 🧵
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 13/01/2026
love the colour scheme here
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bioRxiv Biochemistry @biorxiv-biochem.bsky.social · 09/01/2026
Structural basis for a phosphoinositide-driven mTORC2-AKT positive feedback loop www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/20…
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Simon Cook @drsimoncook.bsky.social · 28/12/2025
Pssst! I have a PhD position available. Please pass it on www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
findaphd.com
Exploring Resistance to KRAS inhibitors (KRASi) of differentiated Mechanism of Action at Babraham Institute (Cambridge) on FindAPhD.com
PhD Project - Exploring Resistance to KRAS inhibitors (KRASi) of differentiated Mechanism of Action at Babraham Institute (Cambridge), listed on FindAPhD.com
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PRIDE Database @pride-ebi.bsky.social · 23/12/2025
PXD053875 🚨 Cyclophilin D (CypD) is a drug-target protein ligand that can be pushed to fHDX-MS in the double-digit mM range. This study proposes a methodological framework for FBDD. 🚨 New dataset alert! 🚨
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 17/12/2025
Yes it's odd. Reputable lab I think as well so I'm surprised by their response.
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 17/12/2025
Without giving the game away it's not the ligand I am concerned about some other bits of the structure. The validation report looks fine. I have numerous other concerns with the manuscript and the fact this wasn't supplied after asking also raised alarm bells. Will ask again, thanks for the advice.
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
Thanks -structure is held on pdb, no mtz. Will poke the editor a little more forcefully
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
Reviewing a x-ray crystallography paper, I have asked for the .mtz file, as they talk quite a bit about the density supporting their findings. Authors have refused. Am I out of touch w/ x-ray data now or is that kind of insane? #crystallography @markohyvonen.bsky.social @scurry.bsky.social
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
Wait wut
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 08/12/2025
This is great! www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
bbc.co.uk
Sunday Feature - The Great Egyptian Music Mystery - BBC Sounds
Ellie Chan traces the story of a set of unique and puzzling manuscripts
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 06/12/2025
Waking up to a morning of awkward looks and disappointment every morning...this Ashes series is like Christmas day on repeat.
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
A wonderful opportunity to be part of the friendliest college in Cambridge! A JRF is a wonderful springboard to academic independence
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Simon Cook @drsimoncook.bsky.social · 17/11/2025
I’m really pleased to share the link to a new Cook Lab paper published today in Nature Communications. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
RAF inhibitors activate the integrated stress response by direct activation of GCN2 - Nature Communications
Three BRAF inhibitors are used to treat melanoma and colorectal cancer. Here, the authors demonstrate that these drugs bind and activate the protein kinase GCN2, a previously unappreciated off-target ...
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
📢New preprint has landed! 📢 We show how HDX-MS can derive Kd at AN AMINO ACID RESOLUTION using HDX-MS against drugs. Comments and criticisms welcome! Spatially Resolved Determination of Small Molecule Protein Affinities by HDX-MS. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
biorxiv.org
Spatially Resolved Determination of Small Molecule Protein Affinities by Hydrogen Deuterium Exchange Mass Spectrometry
Hydrogen Deuterium Exchange Mass Spectrometry (HDX-MS) is an established tool in drug discovery, used to characterize target engagement and conformational dynamics, frequently used in both biopharmace...
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Glenn Masson @glennmasson.bsky.social · 13/11/2025
Wait, what?
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