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Naomi Pollock

@naomilpollock.bsky.social
676 followers 591 following 90 posts

Membrane protein biochemist, apprentice biophysicist and SMALP enthusiast; Lecturer in Biosciences at Aston University, UK.

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Reposted by Naomi Pollock
Nikolai Slavov @slavov-n.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
bioRxiv has a dedicated section for negative results. Use it. Share negative results. Your colleagues will appreciate it.
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
This account covers all the important areas of life: animal, vegetable, political.
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
Icelandic horse wrangler
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
Diving into a new area of literature today and it reminds me again how very much I love biochemistry. Utterly intoxicating and addictive and suddenly I have 30 tabs open on my browser. (Another 30!)
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Reposted by Naomi Pollock
Mike Murphy @mitoredox.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
I have two post doctoral positions available in my lab funded by the Wellcome Trust to develop new chemical biology approaches to studying mitochondria. Would suit those with interest in both mitochondria and chemical biology. Advert below-please forward and repost! www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/researc...
cam.ac.uk
Research Associate x 2 (Fixed Term)
The Medical Research Council Mitochondrial Biology Unit (MRC MBU), University of Cambridge, wishes to appoint two post-doctoral Research Associates to join the research group of Prof. Mike Murphy at t...
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
Even more complicated: research staff can be attached to the university but no college, which is quite a lonely position as social life is so college-centric.
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
Ute, would you be able to add our new account @impala-net.bsky.social? This is the Bluesky account for the new network @alice-rothnie.bsky.social has started in the U.K. We'd love to reach as many people as possible in order to make the network something that serves the whole membrane community
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
We're running a free launch event on 29/30th June 2026 in Cambridge, UK to build our community and start problem-solving together. luma.com/xwmfllyj
luma.com
IMPALA Kick-Off Event · Luma
The IMPALA-NET Kick-Off Meeting marks the official launch of the UK-wide Integral Membrane Proteins And Lipid Assemblies Network (IMPALA-NET), a new…
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
Do you love membrane proteins AND lipids? If so, the BBSRC-funded IMPALA-NET (the Integral Membrane Proteins And Lipids Assemblies network) is for you! Join here: www.impala-net.co.uk
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
The Marlands! Does it still exist?
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Reposted by Naomi Pollock
RCSB Protein Data Bank @rcsbpdb.bsky.social · 16/05/2026
Try this new online training game from Leandro F. Estrozi designed for newcomers in structural biology, with a focus on cryo-EM and cryo-ET map interpretation: rico.ibs.fr/helixplo...
Screenshot of online game
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
I do love the fact that Bluesky is the place to discuss youth orchestra trauma.
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Unfortunately I think we are working through an age of hyperbole, where pushing the limits of truth and definitions is rewarded. (I still like that paper!)
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Honourable exception: a paper called "The Crap-ome" www.nature.com/articles/nme...: about all the usual-suspect contaminants you get in protein purifications. Hugely useful and funny.
nature.com
The CRAPome: a contaminant repository for affinity purification–mass spectrometry data - Nature Methods
The Contaminant Repository for Affinity Purification (CRAPome) is a database of annotated negative control-data that can be used for filtering out nonspecific interactions in affinity purification-mas...
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
Possibly the first time in my career that I've achieved full marks.
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Reposted by Naomi Pollock
Chemistry World @chemistryworld.com · 07/04/2026
Join us online for free data visualisation workshops on the 28th & 29th of April with JMP software. Across both webinars, you can expect to gain practical skills to apply to your own scientific or engineering data: #SponsoredPost www.chemistryworld.com/webinars/vis...
chemistryworld.com
Visualising data for scientific discovery
Turn complex data into clear insight through hands-on learning and expert guidance
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
Very proud of these two powerhouses, and a timely award announcement as we moved into the beautiful new lab this week.
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
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Admirable Women @admirablewomen.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
Chemist/physician Dr. Maud Menten co-authored the seminal paper 𝘋𝘪𝘦 𝘒𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘬 𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘐𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘸𝘪𝘳𝘬𝘶𝘯𝘨, 1931. This intro'd the Michaelis–Menten equation (image). It remains a cornerstone of #biochemistry, used in drug design, metabolic studies & enzyme engineering. She was born #OTD in 1879. #WomenInSTEM
A black-and-white historical photograph of Dr. Maud Leonora Menten (1879–1960), the Canadian physician and biochemist who co-developed the Michaelis–Menten equation for enzyme kinetics. Taken in her laboratory (likely at the University of Pittsburgh in the 1910s–1920s), she stands with a serious, focused expression—lips closed, eyes direct and thoughtful—against a backdrop of wooden shelves filled with glass bottles, jars, scientific equipment, and a wire-mesh enclosure. She wears a dark dress with a lace collar, a string of beads, and her hair styled in a neat bun. Superimposed on the image is the Michaelis–Menten equation in white text:v=Vmax⁡[S]Km+[S]v = \frac{V_{\max} [S]}{K_m + [S]}v = \frac{V_{\max} [S]}{K_m + [S]}
This iconic portrait captures Menten during her groundbreaking research in biochemistry and histochemistry, where she helped establish the foundational mathematical model of enzyme-substrate reactions still used today, while overcoming significant gender barriers as one of the first women in Canada to earn both an M.D. and a Ph.D.
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Reposted by Naomi Pollock
Alasdair Hubbard @dralhubb.bsky.social · 02/03/2026
🔔Seminar Opportunity🔔 We're looking for (self)recommendations for a Postdoc who is working in the area of AMR (any area, any discipline) to give an online seminar in May. Reply, DM or email me, there will more opportunities in the future as well so will be good to have a list. #MicroSky #AMR
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 17/02/2026
This may be of relevance to you as well www.scandikitchen.co.uk/product/pick...
scandikitchen.co.uk
Loki - Pick & Mix 200g (With Liquorice)
Loki - Pick & Mix 200g (With Liquorice), from Scandinavia
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 17/02/2026
You need to visit the Scandi kitchen cafes! They do a whole month. @scandikitchen.bsky.social
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 11/02/2026
Want training in membrane protein purification and analysis? Need a peer group to share the highs and lows of membrane proteins? May I suggest the Biochemical Society workshop 15-17th April 2026 in Birmingham, U.K. Early bird registration deadline is looming! www.biochemistry.org/events-and-t...
biochemistry.org
7th UK Workshop on Membrane Proteins
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 05/02/2026
I had to read that headline several times to be sure of what it said.
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 25/01/2026
A good show of support is to invite US-based speakers to our meetings and finds ways to provide bursaries for young scientists to travel overseas.
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
Thanks for flagging this. I hadn't heard about it. Wish I had ice cream now.
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Reposted by Naomi Pollock
Coskun Lipid Cellar @ ZML Dresden @lipid.bsky.social · 15/01/2026
We are online! Apply, repost, inform all your amazing colleagues and lets have a great #lipidlove time in Dresden meetings.embo.org/event/26-lip...
meetings.embo.org
The lipid code to life
Modern lipid biology has evolved far beyond the traditional view of lipids as simple building blocks or energy substrates. Lipids are now recognised as dynamic regulators of biological structures and…
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Reposted by Naomi Pollock
Universität Jena @uni-jena.de · 09/01/2026
Researchers of @hellmichgroup.bsky.social at #UniJena Cluster of Excellence @microverse.bsky.social have deciphered a key mechanism of antibiotic resistance. They showed how the bacterium applies the energy required to transport the drug out of its cell. ➡️ www.uni-jena.de/en/381040/sp...
uni-jena.de
Specific activation instead of continuous operation: How bacteria save energy and what this means for antibiotic resistances
Researchers in the Cluster of Excellence “Balance of the Microverse” at the University of Jena decipher a key mechanism of antibiotic resistance pumps
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
Radioneck
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 09/01/2026
Loads in the south Birmingham hill country.
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 18/12/2025
A good friend of mine is in one of these pictures! Lovely to see.
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Reposted by Naomi Pollock
Chris Mulligan @chrismulligan.bsky.social · 17/12/2025
🚨My lab is hiring a postdoc!🚨 If you’re interested in working out the mechanism and physiological impact of bacterial lipid transport processes then please apply! Job advert is here: tinyurl.com/4swddfda Get in touch by email (c.mulligan@kent.ac.uk) for informal enquiries Please repost! Thanks!
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 26/11/2025
Spent the afternoon introducing some 16/17 year old to the magic of automatic pipettes @astonuniversity.bsky.social @astonaime.bsky.social. They were genuinely excited about it, and made some fun images. Wholesome.
Image shows the word "chemistry" spelled out by pipetting coloured liquid into nine 96-well plates according to specific coordinates to form each letter.
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
Thanks for linking to the article, and indirectly reminding me to catch the rest of yesterday's Start the Week, which I believe you were on.
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
Social media clearly brings out my inner grump! Some of the fruit fly genes are just funny/silly (if unhelpful to learn) like hedgehog/sonic hedgehog. Others I find genuinely troubling (cheap date?).
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
I think it's possible that even the Old Norse-stablishment found it irresponsible to devote an entire day every week to chaos.
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
There's also some "we think we're very funny" names in fly genetics that have aged poorly, and I think should be changed.
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 06/11/2025
I started following you when I joined Bluesky for some new-PI solidarity. This feels like a good place to say how much I appreciate all your content: politics, academia, fishing, jam... Thanks for sharing so much!
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 22/10/2025
Also "he" and "paternity leave". Or indeed "they" and "parental leave".
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 21/10/2025
At least the headline included her name and omitted her marital status.
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Reposted by Naomi Pollock
Ellie Boardman @ellieboardman.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
The CCP4 Northern Structural Biology Meeting is back again in Newcastle 6-7th November 2025. If you are a structural biologist/biochemist in the North of the UK please register and submit abstracts by this Friday 17th. nusbf.ncl.ac.uk/ccp4-norther...
nusbf.ncl.ac.uk
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Reposted by Naomi Pollock
Holthuis Lab @holthuislab.bsky.social · 17/10/2025
🚨🚨🚨 We are launching the 2nd application round for the Erasmus Mundus Joint Master’s Program MemBioMed, offering cutting-edge training on exploring the complex behavior of cellular membranes & unlocking their therapeutic potential. Students can apply here: life.univ-cotedazur.eu/internationa...
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 15/10/2025
PhD project alert: the excellent MIBTP programme is open for applications. I am offering an exciting project on endogenous membrane protein complexes, jointly supervised with @alangoddard.bsky.social. Please spread the word! warwick.ac.uk/fac/cross_fa...
warwick.ac.uk
Dr Naomi Pollock
Dr Naomi Pollock
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
ECRs have full-time research posts (still fixed-term and shorter than they used to be IMO). I was scandalised when I learned how many excellent ECRs in arts and humanities lead whole modules on fixed term/zero hours contracts, and do research unpaid to try to stay in the game. It's exploitative.
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
This captures the reason I went on strike in 2023. The lack of solidarity from bioscientists for the wider university community was shocking. I imagine it's because we remain *relatively* well funded.
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
P.S. Sorry that doesn't answer your question. As a recent post-doc I respect your efforts to create decent jobs.
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
My impression is that nearly everyone feels one or two rejections away from being in a precarious position. That may not reflect reality, but it's how people feel, even senior profs. Who's left with the mental space to demand better funding, i.e better opportunities for ECRs?
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Vanni Lab at UNIFR, Switzerland @labvanni.bsky.social · 13/10/2025
Thanks to @snsf.ch, we are hiring two PhD students to investigate frontier topics in lipid biology using a combination of MD simulations and experiments. Preferred starting date: ASAP. Fribourg - and Switzerland - are quite nice, for both work and private life! Please spread the word!
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 07/10/2025
I read that as a (whimsical?) misspelling of "cells". I wasn't much less confused when I realised it said "cellos".
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Naomi Pollock @naomilpollock.bsky.social · 03/10/2025
It's a devastatingly cruel disease, and this breakthrough must bring hope to many affected people and their families. It's also amazing to see successful gene therapies. Suggests a golden age ahead of treating heritable diseases.
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