Science in Boston

💼 Looking for your next role in Boston life sciences? Our feed features opportunities across biotech, academia, healthcare, and beyond. 👉 Subscribe and get jobs delivered to your inbox every Monday: https://bit.ly/3ODbNGP

A team led by Dr. Yi-Pin Lin at @tufts.edu has received a $4 million National Institutes of Health grant to advance development of a #LymeDisease vaccine and new therapies for early infection. Learn more about their work with a protein called CspZ: https://bit.ly/4zcfMMu

🔔 The second episode has dropped! In partnership with the @isscr.org Early Career Advisory Committee, we're spotlighting rising leaders in stem cell research. Hear from Drs. @anupamahl.bsky.social and Verena Schwach on cell fate and #cardiac development! 🎧 Tune in: https://bit.ly/4zmw4T2

Researchers from @harvardmed.bsky.social have employed a new approach called “tactical surfaceome profiling" to identify the most promising targets for #ImmuneBasedTherapies. 🧫 Abstract: https://go.nature.com/3TQJNlV 🗞️ News: https://bit.ly/3WFB0nA

The @niageing.ca has approved a nearly $24 million grant to fund @bostonu.bsky.social’s Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center for five years. “The center is really the nucleus for all Alzheimer’s and neurodegenerative disease research across BU,” says Director Dr. Ann McKee: https://bit.ly/4Bkf5T1

Wyss and @harvardmed.bsky.social researchers developed CRISPR as a gene-editing tool, which eventually enabled them to genetically modify pig kidneys. Now, Wyss startup eGenesis is building upon this work to develop safe and effective pig organs for xenotransplantation. #WorldCRISPRDay

Dr. Cornelia Peterson at @tufts.edu studies how tumors in the meibomian glands, located along the eyelids, arise in dogs. 🐕 Learn about her team's investigation into the #MYC gene as an important driver of cancerous processes in the meibomian gland: https://bit.ly/4spg7cf

Dr. Ahmad (Mo) Khalil at @harvardmcb.bsky.social has received an NIH Director’s Pioneer Award to develop a new technology that could transform how scientists study proteins and their roles in health and disease. Congratulations Dr. Khalil! Learn about his unique approach: https://bit.ly/4zbNMZm

Congratulations Core Faculty member Jennifer Lewis on being appointed to the National Academy of Medicine! Lewis has been appointed in recognition of her groundbreaking work in 3D bioprinting of soft and living materials.

A new study out of the lab of the @whiteheadinstitute.bsky.social's Dr. Jonathan Weissman offers one of the most detailed views yet of how a mammal is built, cell by cell. 🥼 Abstract: https://bit.ly/4sf3z7j 💬 Press release: https://bit.ly/4hVSqos

BU’s Donald Lloyd-Jones, MD, ScM, principal investigator of the Framingham Heart Study, is one of 100 new members elected to the National Academy of Medicine, recognizing his revolutionary work in cardiovascular disease research: bit.ly/4yP2aGl

A new study from Mali Mlaba and Dr. Zaza Ndhlovu's lab at the @ragoninstitute.bsky.social shows that HIV hides in the lymph nodes of the body to evade natural killer cells. Their work could inform a future #HIVCure strategy: https://bit.ly/4jj9pSF

Researchers at @mit.edu have developed a new way to program natural killer immune cells to target cancerous T cells or T cells that have become autoreactive. Abstract from the Anderson lab: https://go.nature.com/4jI5m2D Press release: https://bit.ly/4hS8ZjC

Congratulations to Dr. Joyce Liu from @danafarber.bsky.social! She is the recipient of the 2026 Michaele C. Christian Oncology Drug Development Award and Lectureship from the National Cancer Institute. Learn more about her #CancerTherapy work: https://bit.ly/4s6iz7d

Join us on October 29, from 6-8 pm for Discovery After Dark! Explore interactive exhibits, participate in hands-on activities, put your outbreak response skills to the test, and interact with Broad scientists! Advanced registration required. Register at: broad.io/DaD

Drs. Iain Cheeseman and Siniša Hrvatin at the @whiteheadinstitute.bsky.social have each received a Professor Amar G. Bose Research Grant, which supports ambitious research that may be too early, exploratory, or unconventional for traditional funding. 👏 Congratulations! https://bit.ly/4B6w0Ix

🩸A blood test for #ctDNA may help doctors identify which patients with #EwingSarcoma are at greater risk of relapse. Learn more about the study from Drs. David Shulman, Brian Crompton, and Steven DuBois at @danafarber.bsky.social: https://bit.ly/4xW09aL

Finding a way to replenish or restore pancreatic beta cells has been one of the holy grails of diabetes research. New research from the Kulkarni lab at the Joslin Diabetes Center reveals a potential path toward generating new beta cells from neighboring alpha cells: https://bit.ly/46NXFjJ

Dr. Ernest Aguinam is using Lymph Node Organ Chips to study the immune system and ultimately develop medical countermeasures for radiation injury and chronic #LymeDisease. Learn more about Dr. Aguinam and his work at the @wyssinstitute.bsky.social: https://bit.ly/4dHNpgy #OrganChip

📋 Dr. Loza Tadesse has made the @technologyreview.com's annual 35 Innovators Under 35 list! Dr. Tadesse’s research program pioneers AI-informed optical and spectroscopy systems to advance both human and planetary health. Learn more: https://bit.ly/4hlHBvF

A phase 1 clinical trial led by Dr. Matthew Frigault at @mgbresearch.bsky.social has found that an investigational #CART therapy can lead to deep and durable responses in people with relapsed/refractory #MultipleMyeloma. Press release: https://bit.ly/4z2tnFL Abstract: https://bit.ly/3VjTmtU

Two @harvard.edu researchers have been named as a 2026 Schmidt Sciences Polymath. The program has committed up to $20 million to support scientists pursuing high-risk, high-reward research. Congratulations to... 🥁 Dr. Nick Bellono: https://bit.ly/4rH3xoz Dr. Allon Klein: https://bit.ly/4rG1jFO

Before the parasite Toxoplasma gondii can invade a cell, it has to know it has reached the right place. 💥 New research from the Lourido lab at the @whiteheadinstitute.bsky.social reveals that the parasite has its own invasion machinery to enter the cell: https://bit.ly/4yn54CD #Toxoplasmosis

The difficulty associated with detecting #OvarianCancer early is one of the reasons it is among the deadliest forms of cancer. Dr. Kripa Varanasi's team at @mit.edu has developed a handheld device that gently collects living cells to test for ovarian cancer: https://bit.ly/4hTs71V

Dr. Chao Zhang from @bostonu.bsky.social has been awarded a four-year, $3.2M R01 grant from the NIH’s National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases! His project aims to simplify kidney biopsy diagnosis by combining AI and TEM analysis: https://bit.ly/3VhcRDn

🍂 New semester. New season. Fresh science. Start your autumn off right by staying connected to Boston's life sciences community with the Science in Boston newsletter. 📬 Sign up today: https://bit.ly/43dDbP6

Researchers across @mgbresearch.bsky.social are working to change that by studying how #OvarianCancer develops, identifying opportunities for earlier detection and prevention, and developing more effective treatments. Check out their four projects: https://bit.ly/4yPyOHU

A study from SMART's antimicrobial resistance research group at @mit.edu sheds new light on how bacteria use RNA modification to control protein production. This opens new avenues to study bacterial adaptation. 👀 Check it out: https://bit.ly/4y93Ham

Researchers at @harvardmed.bsky.social and @danafarber.bsky.social have found that CDK2 inhibitors reduce resistance to #immunotherapy across a wide range of cancers. 📝 Abstract: https://bit.ly/4A9K5nU 📰 Press release: https://bit.ly/4diAUrR

Tien Nguyen at @harvardmcb.bsky.social has received an NIH F31 fellowship to investigate how bacteria coordinate the final stages of cell division, research that could uncover new vulnerabilities for future #antibiotics. 🦠 Congratulations! https://bit.ly/3TOSw7X

We are thrilled to announce that molecular biologist and neuroscientist Catherine Dulac of @harvardmcb.bsky.social is the 2026 winner of Rockefeller's Pearl Meister Greengard Prize! Register now for the award ceremony on Oct 20. #WomenInScience 🔗: https://bit.ly/3V2pZMA

Scientists at @umasschan.bsky.social have received $14.7 million from NHLBI to develop new models and gene therapies for alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, a chronic, debilitating genetic lung disease that shortens lifespan. 👏 Congratulations to all researchers! https://bit.ly/4yBny1N

Researchers at @mit.edu have developed implantable nanoantennas that can kill brain cancer cells without damage to healthy tissue. 🎯 “This approach significantly reduced tumor growth and extended survival without detectable side effects,” says Dr. Deblina Sarkar: https://bit.ly/4iyqSWW

Drs. Sandy Elmehrath and Peter Nguyen at the @wyssinstitute.bsky.social worked together to conceptualized the FEMOx project, the newest funded project through ARPA-H. 👶The team will get up to $12M in funding to tackle the rapid detection of fetal oxygen deprivation: https://bit.ly/4xYJWT7

📢 @harvardmed.bsky.social has recently announced the launch of the Bristol Myers Squibb Collaborative Research Fellowship. This new program will offer HMS postdoctoral fellows cross-training at intersection the of academia and industry. Learn more: https://bit.ly/4xxJnyq

Dr. Colin Kim at @harvardmcb.bsky.social has been recognized with three Early-Career Research Awards. In the Nett Lab, Dr. Kim studies how plants make specialized molecules with medicinal properties. 🌱 Congratulations! https://bit.ly/3VtWD9Q

CDK2, part of the machinery driving cell division, is often hyperactive in cancer. A new study from Drs. Wucherpfennig and Sicinski at @danafarber.bsky.social identifies #CDK2 inhibition as a potential clinical target. 🔬 Abstract: https://bit.ly/4A9K5nU 🗞️ Press release: https://bit.ly/4A9GpTd

🤓 @tufts.edu researchers and clinicians work together to stop the spread of #HPV and prevent the cancers it causes. The team—including Drs. Rebecca Perkins, Karl Munger, and Elizabeth White—is diving into the cancer-driving proteins found in HPV: https://bit.ly/4reXxTB

Tien Nguyen Awarded NIH Fellowship to Study Bacterial Cell Division 🔬 🧪🧬 #AcademicSky #higherEd www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @harvardmed.bsky.social @harvard.edu @naoshigeuchida.bsky.social

Six new endowed chairs have been announced by @umasschan.bsky.social. 🪅 Congratulations to Drs. Jennifer Wang, Samir Malkani, Johanna Seddon, Edwin Boudreaux, David Michael Dosa, and Andrew Tapper! https://bit.ly/3TqJOwt

Researchers in the Jackson lab at @harvardmed.bsky.social developed a pipeline combining long-read direct RNA sequencing to identify chimeric #mRNA transcripts in macrophages. 🔭 Abstract in Nature: https://go.nature.com/4gKlQ8w 📰 Press release: https://bit.ly/4ylX5VR

Colin Kim Recognized with Three Early-Career Research Awards 🔬 🧪🧬 #AcademicSky #higherEd www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @cyhkim.bsky.social @naoshigeuchida.bsky.social @salkinstitute.bsky.social @theplantjournal.bsky.social @harvard.edu

A region of the brain called the #striatum is critical for many cognitive and motor functions. Drs. Heiman, Kellis, and Gabuzda from @mit.edu have generated a new atlas of the neurons found within the striatum using single-cell RNA sequencing among other techniques: https://bit.ly/4xE7zjs

🪑 Dr. Erik Sontheimer at @umasschan.bsky.social has been appointed chair of the RNA Therapeutics Institute. Dr. Sontheimer is a pioneering leader in the field of CRISPR gene editing. Congratulations! https://bit.ly/46G63RZ

🤯 @broadinstitute.org researchers have invented “self-reporting” living cells that share their own transcriptomes, allowing for analysis without killing the cells. Press release: https://bit.ly/4x8R5yT Abstract in Cell Press: https://bit.ly/4AcCkxV

🛣️ Researchers at @danafarber.bsky.social & @bostonchildrens.bsky.social have smoothed the road to gene therapy for #SickleCell disease. Their approach collects + manufactures enough stem cells in a single hospital visit. See the work from Drs. Williams, Esrick, & Manis: https://on.bchil.org/4ybzuXR

New preprint from our collaboration with Caroline Uhler and @broadinstitute.org on TissueFormer, a new tool for predicting spatial gene expression from histology images at cellular resolution www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Dr. Mariano Aufiero, a postdoctoral fellow at the @ragoninstitute.bsky.social, has received a CRI Irvington Postdoctoral Fellowship from the Cancer Research Institute! 👏 Congratulations Dr. Aufiero! https://bit.ly/4dc80t2

In this episode of #BreastCancerBreakthroughs, Dr. Harold Burstein and Dr. Ana Garrido-Castro discuss new results from the PANKU-Breast02 Study on a new dual-antibody drug conjugate, called izalontamab brengitecan (iza-bren), for metastatic triple-negative breast cancer. youtu.be/bIbDHoaWczc?...

Jen Bays loves building things, from IKEA furniture to scientific stories. As part of the THRIVE Validation Project, she’s studying vascular barriers and developing a therapeutic to repair damaged blood vessels to treat diseases like sepsis. Learn more about Jen and her work in this month’s #HOWyss.