Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 24/09/2026Follow updates on our research! prismscience.org/feed.xml 051
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczCatherine Rampell @crampell.bsky.social · 20/09/2026It really is striking how many authoritarian states have ended up in this exact same place, where the leader seizes control of scientific inquiry. Lysenkoism in the Soviet Union, Aryan Physics in the Third Reich, Great Leap Forward (also related to Lysenko) in China. 8527281074
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczPolitico @politico.com · 20/09/2026Trump asked budget chief to draft order bringing health research funding under his controldlvr.itTrump asked budget chief to draft order bringing health research funding under his controlThe move came after the NIH director refused Trump’s request to cut Harvard grants in an Oval Office meeting. 39198126
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczbioRxiv Biophysics @biorxiv-biophys.bsky.social · 20/09/2026Optimizing the connectivity of protein conformations to untangle ensemble refinement www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/20… 024
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczbioRxiv Biophysics @biorxiv-biophys.bsky.social · 17/09/2026The CAHRA Challenge: A Community-Wide Assessment of Cryo-EM Heterogeneous Reconstruction Algorithms www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/20… 056
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 09/09/2026Emergency 🚨 TTPD with @fraserlab.com about the launch of @prismscienceorg.bsky.social. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/p...podcasts.apple.comPrism: Unlocking Protein DynamicsPodcast Episode · The Tortured Proteins Department · September 8 · 27m 031
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczPrism Science @prismscienceorg.bsky.social · 08/09/2026We have not yet tapped the full potential of cryoEM. The method revolutionized structural bio with atomic-level detail, but has largely focused on proteins’ common lowest-energy states. With enough samples, cryoEM sees a broader energy landscape: It can capture *rare* states. 101
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 08/09/2026Proteins are always moving. They wiggle. They jiggle. They interact with their surroundings. That movement drives their function. Yet the motion stays mostly invisible. We cannot understand protein function, engineer it, or correct it until we can see the motion and predict it. prismscience.orgprismscience.orgPrism | Revealing the Dynamics of LifeDynamic structural data, models, and language to become standard across the field. At scale, this is how we predict conformational ensembles across all of biology. 193
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczPrism Science @prismscienceorg.bsky.social · 08/09/2026We need new ways to understand disease & design drugs. Protein motion holds the answer. 143
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczPrism Science @prismscienceorg.bsky.social · 01/09/2026Same mission, but an expanded vision for revolutionizing structural biology to better capture protein motion. Launching September 8. 041
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 01/09/2026Methods development is usually sequential: Collect, then process, then model, then encode, then interpret. At the @diffuseproject.bsky.social, we tackled all of these pieces once. That is what it takes to transform the field and unlock protein dynamics. See more: diffuse.science/posts/year-o...diffuse.scienceA Year (plus) of DiffUSEScience progress over the first year-ish of the DiffUSE Project 042
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 31/08/2026New TTPD with @fraserlab.com! podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s...podcasts.apple.comState of DecayPodcast Episode · The Tortured Proteins Department · August 30 · 1h 5m 011
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 27/08/2026New pub from @diffuseproject.bsky.social! Ordered water molecules mediate protein stability, ligand binding, and catalysis. Predicting them lags far behind protein structure prediction. We developed WaterFlow, a new state-of-the-art method for ordered water placement. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...biorxiv.orgWaterFlow: Prediction of Ordered Water Molecule Positions on Protein StructuresOrdered water molecules mediate many protein functions, including stability, ligand binding, and catalysis. Predicting their positions with sub-angstrom accuracy would support protein design, binding ... 2183
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczbioRxiv Biophysics @biorxiv-biophys.bsky.social · 27/08/2026WaterFlow: Prediction of Ordered Water Molecule Positions on Protein Structures www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/20… 064
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczRichard Sever @richardsever.bsky.social · 27/08/2026$3.7 billion spent on APCs in 2025. That's ~1000X more than it costs to run bioRxiv/medRxiv. Worth thinking about as we consider how to fund infrastructure... arxiv.org/pdf/2608.16322arxiv.org 813379
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 11/08/2026Most PDB structures report one set of coordinates. But the experimental data behind them, in both X-ray crystallography and cryo-EM, is produced by an ensemble of structures. How to extract this ensemble data at scale has been a quest in structural biology for 40+ years. 25115
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczLisa Fazio @lkfazio.bsky.social · 08/08/2026Given the clear parallels between the new Vanderbilt "First Principles" and the text of the letter, I would be shocked if Vanderbilt didn't play a large role in the discussions www.vanderbilt.edu/declaration/ Reminder that faculty played no role in drafting or approving the first principlesvanderbilt.eduDeclarationThe University and Its Purpose: A Declaration of First Principles was adopted by the Vanderbilt University Board of Trust in June 2026. The declaration is organized around three core purposes: Pathbre... 295
Reposted by Stephanie Wankowiczpilarcossio.bsky.social @pilarcossio.bsky.social · 07/08/2026⚡ Time is running out! ⚡ The deadline for the @biophysicalsoc.bsky.social Theory & Computation Awards is Sept 15! 🧬💻 Recognizing outstanding research across: 🎓 Postdocs 🌱 Early Career 🚀 Mid-Career Nominate a student or colleague! 🧪✨ 👇 Details: www.biophysics.org/Awards-Fundi...biophysics.org Subgroup Awards - The Biophysical Society 048
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczPrism Science @prismscienceorg.bsky.social · 27/07/2026In our latest blog, @fraserlab.com graduate student Taylor Womack discusses his roadmap before the results: how he plans to separate lattice vibrations from internal protein motion, which open tools he is using, and which parts are still unresolved. Feedback welcome. diffuse.science/posts/taylor...xtraj.pyIs it all just the lattice?Towards a complete forward model of diffuse scattering 022
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczCarolyn Bertozzi @carolynbertozzi.bskyverified.social · 26/07/2026“If universities oppose the actions of the administration, they need to say so quickly so that their constituents aren’t left wondering whether there’s a plan. The alternative is a community of university scientists adrift and grasping for a lifeline.” www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...science.orgUniversity science in the US needs a coherent planThe Trump administration continues to degrade America’s scientific establishment, causing widespread harm to the country’s broader interests and well-being. Last week, the Association of American Univ... 25323
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 20/07/2026TTPD Episode 16: Cruel Kinase Summer with @fraserlab.com! We chat about a revolving door of consortium meetings, follow up on the OMB-proposed rule, two mini-protein kinase preprints, and how to share science, including differences between blogs and scholarly work. diffuse.science/posts/TTPD-16/diffuse.scienceCruel Kinase Summer, Episode 16The Tortured Proteins Department Podcast, Cruel Kinase Summer 110
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczPrism Science @prismscienceorg.bsky.social · 01/07/2026Unlocking protein dynamics requires infrastructure we all can access. ICYMI: all of our software packages live on GitHub, updated in the open: github.com/diff-usegithub.comdiffUSEdiffUSE has 15 repositories available. Follow their code on GitHub. 032
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczPrism Science @prismscienceorg.bsky.social · 29/06/2026What's happening in protein dynamics research right now? Jaime & Stephanie break down NIH policy changes, preprints & the conformational ensembles conference. New episode up: diffuse.science/posts/TTPD-15/ #StructuralBiology 073
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 17/06/2026Modeling the solvent in X-ray structures is HARD, and a key reason for the mismatch between models & experimental data. But being able to test different ways to model bulk solvent and measure its impact on refinement will get us a step closer to figuring out how to account for it. 141
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 15/06/2026Excited to present sampleworks: a modular platform for generating biomolecular conformational ensembles by coupling AI structure predictors to experimental data. Our first publication of @diffuseproject.bsky.social, led by @karsonchrispens.bsky.social + Marcus Collins. thestacks.org/publications...thestacks.orgsampleworks: A Modular Platform for Experimentally Guided Biomolecular Ensemble Generation 1165
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 14/06/2026TTPD Episode 15 with @fraserlab.com! We chat about our conformational ensembles conference (paired talk FTW!), 4 different preprints, and new NIH disasters. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/d... diffuse.science/posts/TTPD-15/podcasts.apple.comDaylightPodcast Episode · The Tortured Proteins Department · June 13 · 55m 1113
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczNature Methods @natmethods.nature.com · 11/06/2026A Perspective discusses challenges in macromolecular ensemble prediction and the methodological advances that are needed. @stephanieaw.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s41...nature.comFrom possibility to precision in macromolecular ensemble prediction - Nature MethodsThis Perspective discusses current challenges in macromolecular ensemble prediction and the infrastructure and methodological advances needed to overcome these barriers. 0155
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczPrism Science @prismscienceorg.bsky.social · 09/06/2026We present sampleworks, an open, modular platform for generating and evaluating biomolecular conformational ensembles from structure predictors guided by experimental data doi.org/10.82153/jkx.... 195
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 05/06/2026Closing this chapter means leaving an amazing team. These people took a chance, worked hard, and made the lab a fantastic place to work everyday. 060
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczPrism Science @prismscienceorg.bsky.social · 03/06/2026Want to shape the future of structural biology? We are seeking a Project Manager to help lead the DiffUSE Project, guiding ML researchers, computational scientists, national labs, and university partners. Apply: buff.ly/gZlj9AP #StructuralBiology #MachineLearning #Hiring #AcademicSkyjobs.ashbyhq.comProject Manager - DiffUSE ProjectABOUT DIFFUSE The DiffUSE Project is building open infrastructure to study protein dynamics using experimental data. The project spans wet-lab collaborators, computational scientists, ML researchers,… 023
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 29/05/2026Since World War II, the United States built the world’s preeminent scientific enterprise on a straightforward principle: federal dollars should fund the best science, as determined by independent experts rather than politicians. This proposed rule dismantles all of this. 041
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczPrism Science @prismscienceorg.bsky.social · 28/05/2026The DiffUSE Project wants examples where structural heterogeneity matters but cannot be encoded in PDBx/mmCIF. X-ray, cryo-EM, time-resolved, multi-map, or fragment screening data welcome. Submit yours: diffuse.science/submit/diffuse.scienceSubmit Examples of Heterogeneous Structural DataThe DiffUSE Project 076
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 21/05/2026www.nature.com/articles/s41...nature.comFrom possibility to precision in macromolecular ensemble prediction - Nature MethodsThis Perspective discusses current challenges in macromolecular ensemble prediction and the infrastructure and methodological advances needed to overcome these barriers. 0196
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczHannah Wayment-Steele @hkws.bsky.social · 17/05/2026For any #nmr chemical shift aficionados, today I ported UCBshift(-X) from Teresa Head-Gordon's lab to work in modern Google Colab. Sharing in case its helpful! @nmr900.bsky.social colab.research.google.com/github/HWaym... 0103
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczPrism Science @prismscienceorg.bsky.social · 13/05/2026ICYMI: The latest Tortured Proteins Department episode. @stephanieaw.bsky.social and @fraserlab.com on: NIH strategic plan comments (due 5/26), AI lab guidelines, two new cryo-EM preprints, training scientists for what's next diffuse.science/posts/TTPD-14/ 011
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczThe Tennessee Holler @thetnholler.bsky.social · 13/05/2026So the Republican Supermajority breaks the law and violates the constitution to strip Memphis of representation — then Speaker Sexton strips Dems of committee assignments for daring to protest. Welcome to Tennessee. 1131998908
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczArdem Patapoutian @ardemp.bskyverified.social · 08/05/2026The United States is a constitutional federal representative democracy. Or is it? 091
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 01/05/2026🖕🖕🖕🖕🖕 www.nytimes.com/2026/05/01/w...nytimes.comFederal Appeals Court Temporarily Halts Abortion Pills by Mail 010
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczTorsten Schwede @torstenschwede.bsky.social · 21/04/2026The CASP experiment is about to start - and is still short on challenging prediction targets. Ligand complexes, RNA, … 12016
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczJeremy Berg @jeremymberg.bsky.social · 19/04/2026Very good (if tragic) story from the Washington Post [GIft Link] wapo.st/3OONwh6 1/8wapo.stFor U.S. medical researchers, shrinking labs and bare budgets are the new realityThe Trump administration has slashed the number of grants from the National Institutes of Health, with far fewer focused on women, cancer and mental health. 310466
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczSonya @sonyahanson.bsky.social · 13/04/2026Excited to announce this postdoc position at the intersection of experiment and computation for time-resolved cryo-EM! It's a collaboration between the Enchev group at the Crick and myself and @pilarcossio.bsky.social at the Flatiron Institute! Plz share. crick.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/External/job...crick.wd3.myworkdayjobs.comSenior Data ScientistSalary for this Role: From £53,025 per annum plus benefits, subject to skills and experience Job Title: Senior Data Scientist Reports to: Radoslav Enchev Closing Date: 06/May/2026 23.59 GMT Job Descri... 075
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 08/04/2026Year 3 of Conformational Ensembles Conference! The most compelling questions in structural biology cannot be effectively addressed with a single structure. We have a stellar lineup of people looking at and answering these questions. @fraserlab.com More information: conformationalensembles.github.ioconformationalensembles.github.ioConformational Ensemble 173
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 07/04/2026Episode 13 Tortured Protein Department Podcast: Long Live with @fraserlab.com! Catch my big news with the @diffuseproject.bsky.social, psycho travel stories, April Fools pranks, and AI grad students. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/l... 141
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 06/04/2026I'm ecstatic to share that I'm joining the @diffuseproject.bsky.social (diffuse.science) full-time as Scientific Program Director at @asterainstitute.bsky.social .diffuse.scienceThe DiffUSE ProjectUnlocking Protein Dynamics 2242
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczAlisia Fadini @alisiafadini.bsky.social · 01/04/2026ROCKET 🚀 inference-time optimization of AlphaFold to fit structural data is published! rdcu.be/fa9YH Since our preprint, we’ve pushed it to regimes where other methods break: low resolution, weak signal, real experimental edge cases. Here’s what we learned: 1/15rdcu.beAlphaFold as a prior: experimental structure determination conditioned on a pretrained neural networkNature Methods - ROCKET improves experimental structure elucidation by integrating implicit structural knowledge from OpenFold, a trainable reimplementation of AlphaFold2, with X-ray... 112751
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczJoe Greener @jgreener64.bsky.social · 01/04/2026On this 1st April I'm happy to release a technical report from our startup MirageBio, describing a new protein structure model with state-of-the-art performance. jgreener64.github.io/posts/techni...jgreener64.github.ioMirageBio technical report 14618
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczMatthieu Chavent @matthchavent.bsky.social · 27/03/2026After three inspiring days filled with excellent science our @cecamevents.bsky.social meeting has come to an end! 2103
Stephanie Wankowicz @stephanieaw.bsky.social · 23/03/2026I am honored to be the inaugural recipient of the George M. Sheldrick Award, which recognizes innovative methods, algorithms, or software. Sheldrick showed that building tools can help transform a field, something I am excited to carry on. See you @iucr2026.bsky.social. aucryst.org/sheldrick-aw...aucryst.orgBot Verification 4261
Reposted by Stephanie WankowiczColette Delawalla, PhD @cdelawalla.bsky.social · 16/03/2026Breast cancer mortality dropped 58% from 1975 to 2019. Localized, early detected breast cancer has a 99% 5 year survival rate. Modern mammogram tech was developed by NASA for telescopes. Last year, RFK Jr. cancelled 87 research grants on breast cancer. www.nytimes.com/2026/03/16/u...nytimes.comSusie Wiles, Trump’s White House Chief of Staff, Has Breast Cancer 23456502556