Marina Lusic
PI @ CIID, Heidelberg, and @DZIF. Mom of two and scientist in love with nuclear architecture - NPC- RNA processing, metabolic switches in infected immune blood and brain cells 🧬🔬🧬🦠🧫
- Reposted by Marina LusicI started offering career advice to two junior colleagues today in separate meetings, and both times I caught myself thinking that, if I'm honest, I don't have very good advice on navigating the current funding and job climate. I think it's important to say that no one does.
- Reposted by Marina Lusic"Another remarkable case is a 106-year-old woman who took up swimming at age 70 & won her first competition three decades later. Longevity runs in the family: she has two younger sisters over 100 & a 110-year-old aunt." Great story from @marilenharo.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/d41... 🧪
- Reposted by Marina Lusic📣 Please spread: we’re hiring a Lab Manager! It is a critical position in our new lab. As our lab moves to Barcelona and joins the @crg.eu, we’re looking for a Lab Manager to help build the lab and set the lab atmosphere. 🔗 Apply here 👉 recruitment.crg.eu/content/jobs...
- Reposted by Marina LusicThis is the most astonishing graph of what the Trump regime has done to US science. They have destroyed the federal science workforce across the board. The negative impacts on Americans will be felt for generations, and the US might never be the same again. www.nature.com/immersive/d4...
- Reposted by Marina LusicA trial was about to launch for a vaccine that would ward off the HIV virus. It would be an incredible breakthrough. Then it looked as if it would be over before it started. n.pr/3NnYj0O
- Reposted by Marina Lusic1/ 🎄 We got our Christmas present today: "Two distinct chromatin modules regulate proinflammatory gene expression" is now published @natcellbio.nature.com doi.org/10.1038/s415.... Our study introduces a scATAC-seq-based framework for genome-wide analysis of gene regulation features.
- Exciting times ahead, indeed. Looking forward to 2026 and new inspiring and productive encounters, in Germany and Uk! !!!
- Really excited to be awarded a British council UK-Germany Springboard grant! Exciting times ahead as a UK cohort featuring the labs of myself and Ines Castro and @jollylab.bsky.social will launch trips and research meetings to build a collaboration with @marinalusic.bsky.social in CIID Heidelberg.
- Reposted by Marina LusicI just published: ERC-Plus: jackpot science or missed chance to fix academia? My reflections on ERC-Plus, Europe’s newest ultra-competitive research grant and what it tells us about the academic culture we’re building. medium.com/p/erc-plus-j...
- Reposted by Marina LusicExtrusive and cohesive cohesin cooperate to repair double-strand breaks in DNA @science.org @albertomarin.bsky.social @gerlichlab.bsky.social @imbavienna.bsky.social www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
- Reposted by Marina LusicHere is a copy of last year's Twitter thread explaining our preprint - jump to (21) for the new stuff 👀 Synergy between cis-regulatory elements can render cohesin dispensable for distal enhancer function now revised and journal accepted at www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... 🧵👇
- Reposted by Marina LusicI am happy to share that my postdoctoral work in the @gerlichlab.bsky.social at @imbavienna.bsky.social is finally out 🎉! Our study reveals how cohesin guides focused and accurate homology search. Read more 👉 www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... Follow along for key insights and updates! 🧵
- Reposted by Marina LusicNew paper out! How can we force HIV genomes out of their capsid shells and what can we learn about HIV biology doing so? Hint: capsid inhibitors actively re-route nuclear HIV complexes, and expose genomes via intriguing structural effects! open access: link.springer.com/article/10.1... read below
- Great new collaboration with @thmllr.bsky.social and Hans-Georg Kräusslich from @ciid-heidelberg.bsky.social came out on December 1st #HIV day - nuclear speckles & HIV capsid & antivirals gallore!!!
- If you’re interested in HIV capsids, nuclear speckles, or capsid-targeting antivirals, we’d love for you to check it out and share! 🙌 link.springer.com/article/10.1...
- Lab life and Christmas cookies can match when the students get creative
- Reposted by Marina LusicOur Spatial Genome Organisation 2025 attendees! Fantastic presentations, discussions & collaborations have taken place over the past 2 days, with plenty more to come. Its been a pleasure working with Karim, Irene & Matthias, looking forward to what the future holds for this brilliant series. #SGO25
- Reposted by Marina Lusic
- Reposted by Marina Lusic@science.org ATP-dependent remodeling of #chromatin #condensates reveals distinct #mesoscale outcomes | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
- Reposted by Marina LusicSometimes I think about how from 1935-1975ish, Bell Labs produced an insane amount of revolutionary science and technology, including 11 Nobel Prizes, the transistor, UNIX, C, the laser, the solar cell, information theory, etc. The secret? Provide scientists with ample, steady, no-strings funding.
- Reposted by Marina Lusic🚀We’re hiring! Join our international team at @ciid-heidelberg.bsky.social and @uniheidelberg.bsky.social as a PhD Student or Postdoctoral Researcher to lead cutting edge research projects at the virus-host interface Postdoc: tinyurl.com/d5sdhbnp PhD: tinyurl.com/bdz5e5u6
- Reposted by Marina LusicJUST IN: Jane Goodall, primatologist who transformed our understanding of the lives of apes, has died, according to an announcement from the Jane Goodall Institute.
- Reposted by Marina LusicIn 1668, Francesco Redi challenged the idea of spontaneous generation by proving that maggots came from fly eggs, not from rotting meat. His experiment laid the foundation for modern microbiology and disproved centuries of misconceptions about life’s origins. #ScienceHistory
- Reposted by Marina LusicNucleosome phasing by chromatin remodelers regulates macrophage lineage fidelity by preserving nucleosome arrays flanking PU.1-bound sites to prevent lineage-inappropriate transcription by C/EBPβ @cp-immunity.bsky.social www.cell.com/immunity/ful...
- Reposted by Marina Lusicabout the $100K H1B fee, here's some interesting details: "If an employee is in the U.S., he or she will not be subject if (i) applying to extend or amend H-1B status, or (ii) applying to change from another visa category into H-1B status from within the U.S."
- www.nature.com/articles/d41... Do you think this is a matter of progress or concern?
- Reposted by Marina Lusic1/ One of the questions I get asked about my book is what new they'll discover about #epigenetics. I hope there will be a lot to learn, but maybe one of the most intriguing stories will be about the contribution of John Pugh. www.amazon.com/Epigenetics-...
- Reposted by Marina Lusic@kazu_maeshima from the Genome Dynamics Laboratory at the National Institute of Genetics (@NIG_idenken) will present groundbreaking research on chromatin organization and behavior in live cells revealed by super-resolution imaging. nyulangone.zoom.us/webinar/regi... #chromatin2025
- Reposted by Marina LusicSpeaker Spotlight: Don’t miss @Anders_S_Hansen from MIT as he unpacks the secrets of distal gene regulation in space and time! Learn how enhancers find and activate their target genes—revealing new insights into the selectivity and dynamics of gene control. Reserve your seat:
- Reposted by Marina Lusic“Antiscience has gone beyond U.S. borders to Europe, Australia, and Africa. Defeating it will require unprecedented commitment and international cooperation, not only between scientific organizations, but also their host governments.” 🧪 #Disinformation #AntiScience time.com/7317436/scie...
- Reposted by Marina LusicLiquid-liquid phase separation of HP1? Not in our mouse fibroblasts… This paper by the Fabian Erdel group offers a fresh perspective on how this can be reconciled with seemingly conflicting reports: The phase separation propensity of HP1 decreases from yeast → fly → mouse. doi.org/10.1038/s414...
- Reposted by Marina Lusic🧬DZIF researchers have discovered that #HIV does not randomly integrate into the genome: the virus follows R-loops as signposts, with the enzyme Aquarius enabling the process. These findings open new avenues for potentially curative treatments. @marinalusic.bsky.social @natmicrobiol.nature.com
- www.dzif.de/en/how-hiv-e... @dzif.bsky.social @dfg.de @natmicrobiol.nature.com #HIV #HIVScience #HIVCure #Nucleus #Nucleararchitecture #Splicing #R-loops #Genomeorganization
- Reposted by Marina LusicLipid Nanoparticles with Aptamers Enable Targeted mRNA Delivery to CD4⁺ T Cells @biorxivpreprint.bsky.social www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
- I love his comment on productive careers being unpredictable - and how he was never consciously directing himself anywhere, he was just following his nose www.science.org/content/arti...
- Reposted by Marina Lusic🎵WHY DO ENHANCER! SUDDENLY APPEAR! EVERY TIME! THEY ARE NEAR!?! JUST LIKE ME! THEY LONG TO BE! CLOSE TO POLII! 🎵 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
- Reposted by Marina Lusic"I think each virus is its own set of surprises." - David Baltimore. RIP.
- Reposted by Marina LusicDavid Baltimore passed away yesterday, “a Nobel Prize-winning biologist whose work…profoundly shaped modern molecular biology &immunology. His discoveries…altered our understanding of viruses &immune responses, laying the foundation for advancements in gene therapy, cancer research, &vaccine devt”🧪🛟
- Sad to hear about the passing of David Baltimore www.nytimes.com/2025/09/07/s...
- Reposted by Marina LusicResearchers implanted CRISPR-edited pancreas cells into a person with type-1 diabetes. The cells produced insulin for months There was no need for immune-dampening drugs, due to gene edits that allowed the cells to evade detection by the recipient’s immune system. 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/d41...
- Reposted by Marina LusicOut now! 🍫🦠A defined microbial community reproduces attributes of fine flavour #chocolate fermentation By Gabriel Castrillo, David Salt & co #microsky #microbiomesky 🧪 Read it here: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
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- Mind-blowing. "To our knowledge, females needing to clone members of another species have not previously been observed"
- Reposted by Marina LusicFinal call to register and submit abstracts for the @faseborg.bsky.social conference on the Mechanobiology of the Cell Nucleus (#MBNSRC) to be considered for platform presentations. The conference takes place in Melbourne, FL, Oct. 26-30, 2025. See more info at: events.faseb.org/event/Mechan...
- Reposted by Marina LusicOur new preprint 🧬🔗 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... BRD4-NUT forms liquid-like condensates that locally constrain nucleosomes via BRD4-mediated crosslinking— physical control of #chromatin by #LLPS transcription condensates. @semeigazin.bsky.social @katsuminami.bsky.social @masaashimazoe.bsky.social
- Reposted by Marina LusicIs euchromatin really “open”? Our new study @bioRxiv suggests otherwise. Using super-resolution imaging @shiori-iida.bsky.social @masaashimazoe.bsky.social reveals: Euchromatin forms condensed domains in live cells. Cohesin constrains them and prevents domain mixing. www.biorxiv.org/cgi/content/...
- Reposted by Marina Lusic#NewResearch R-loops formed by RNA hybridization to DNA template strand during transcription influence HIV-1 integration into the CD4+ T cell genome. www.nature.com/articles/s41... #MicroSky @ciid-heidelberg.bsky.social @marinalusic.bsky.social
- Reposted by Marina LusicAquarius helicase facilitates HIV-1 integration into R-loop enriched genomic regions @natmicrobiol.nature.com @marinalusic.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s41...
- Our work "Aquarius helicase facilitates HIV-1 integration into R-loop enriched genomic regions" is out @natmicrobiol.nature.com, showing HIV-1 integration into R-loop genomic regions upon their resolution by cellular splicing helicase Aquarius (AQR) of the Intron Binding Complex (IBC)🧵.
- Our study, conducted in primary human CD4+ T cells, shows that HIV-1 preferentially integrates into intronic regions of transcriptionally active genes, where RNA:DNA hybrids (R-loops) are often created.
- We demonstrate that HIV-1 integrase binds directly to R-loops, suggesting that the RNA component of chromatin acts as a guiding signal — effectively a molecular “bait” — for integration.
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- Very happy to have contributed to this exiting story on nuclear softening caused by metabolic switch caused by oncometabolite 2-HG causing whitening of the brown adipocytes Trifunovic lab CECAD Cologne softeninghttps://www.nature.com/articles/s42255-025-01332-8?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
- Reposted by Marina LusicCheck out this exciting meeting and register! Fantastic line-up of speakers on cell biology of the nucleus and a great venue 🔥
- 📢 Abstract submission deadline reminder for 'Cell biology of the nucleus'! Before packing your bags and leaving for your summer vacation, there is one important task left to do: submit your abstract for #EESNucleus ✍️ Deadline is 26 August: s.embl.org/ees25-07-bl
- Reposted by Marina LusicOur preprint is out! Q4ddPCR is a 4-target ddPCR assay for high-resolution HIV reservoir profiling validated on proviral sequences and across multiple cohorts. It supports HIV cure trials where precision matters. Thanks to Rachel Scheck, Brad Jones & all co-authors. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
- With boost to NIH budget, Senate panel rejects Trump’s plan to slash agency | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/arti...
- Reposted by Marina LusicMany proteins bind RNA, yet we still don’t know what RNAs most bind because methods map one RBP at a time. In @cp-cell.bsky.social, with the Jovanovic lab, we describe SPIDR – a method for mapping the RNA binding sites of dozens of RBPs in a single experiment. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
- Reposted by Marina LusicSPIDR enables multiplexed mapping of RNA-protein interactions and uncovers a mechanism for selective translational suppression upon cell stress @cellcellpress.bsky.social @mitchguttman.bsky.social www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...
- Reposted by Marina LusicHow do enhancer-gene contacts relate to transcription activation? In mouse embryonic stem cells, a combo of STED, oligoFISH & RNA FISH shows that 3% of Dppa3 alleles transcribe. For these, enhancers and promoters come closer (panel E). Stumberger ... Leonhardt & Harz www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
- Reposted by Marina LusicReminder: Nobel-prize winning PCR (1983), used in basically all genetic tech today, was only possible because of extremophile bacterium discovered in 1964 in Yellowstone funded by a small ~$80k NSF grant with no obvious application at the time. #science 🧪 www.richmondscientific.com/how-a-discov...
- Reposted by Marina LusicOnline Now: The nucleolar granular component mediates genome-nucleolus interactions and establishes their repressive chromatin states Online now:
- Reposted by Marina LusicDie #Exzellenzcluster stehen fest: Heute hat die Exzellenzkommission 70 Projekte zur Förderung ausgewählt. 45 Cluster werden fortgesetzt, 25 neu eingerichtet. Die Förderung beginnt ab 1. Jan. 2026 für 7 Jahre, die Fördersumme beträgt insg. 539 Mio. €/Jahr. Die Liste: www.dfg.de/resource/blo... 1/3
- Reposted by Marina LusicDeaths from heart disease down 75%, that’s NIH. Deaths from stroke down 75%, that’s NIH. HIV/AIDS no longer a death sentence, that’s NIH. 99% of FDA approved drugs in the last decade, that’s NIH. Please show this video to anyone who doesn’t understand why the NIH is so important.
- Reposted by Marina LusicNow online! Integrator loss leads to dsRNA formation that triggers the integrated stress response
- Great work on 3D chromatin from @becklab.bsky.social led by @jpkreysing.bsky.social and @sergiocruzleon.bsky.social in primary human resting CD4 T cells! Very happy to have contributed !
- New preprint on 3D heterochromatin architecture in human cells! Great collab with @sergiocruzleon.bsky.social & @johannesbetz.bsky.social from @hummerlab.bsky.social, @marinalusic.bsky.social & the Turoňová lab. Many thanks to my supervisor @becklab.bsky.social. bioRxiv: tinyurl.com/3a74uanv 🧵👇
- An excellent view of the current state of the affairs in US science by Paul Bieniasz www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
- Reposted by Marina LusicBut ecDNA do not form hubs pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36476408/
