Ben Martin
@benjaminmartin.bsky.social
Assistant Prof at McGill, Oncology & Biochem departments, Lady Davis Institute | chromatin/txn | previous member @adelmanlab, LeAnn Howe labs | he/him | Fragile Nucleosome co-organizer | FHC MNT alumn 🏑🇨🇦🦌 | https://www.martinlab.ca/
1/ New paper alert! 🎉🧬 Our study on #9p21 gene regulation is out in #CellGenomics: "Chromatin topology and distal elements underlie divergent cell-type-specific regulation of 9p21 locus cell cycle genes" (Torlai Triglia, Miller, et al. www.cell.com/cell-genomic... 🧵
RNA-seq tells us how much RNA is present in the cell. But to understand gene regulation, we need to easily measure the synthesis and decay rates driving this abundance. We introduce AIR-seq: analog intrinsic recoding sequencing. (1/6) www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Analog intrinsic recoding measures RNA dynamics without chemical conversion
Steady-state RNA abundance measurements mask the synthesis and decay rates that shape gene expression. Analog intrinsic recoding sequencing (AIR-seq) repurposes the base-pairing properties of N4-hydro...
biorxiv.org
Excited to share a new preprint from the lab, by @andrewmatheson.bsky.social and team, where we dive into the superpower of newts: plasticity! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... Like many good projects, this started with a serendipitous observation... 🧵1/5
So much sadness, excitement, anxiety.. all the feels! This was a long journey that started with a pandemic and ended with “whatever this is”. But I am thrilled that the Raman lab will be a thing. More about our lab soon but for now, must move toddler and dog across the country. Send good vibes
Harmit Singh Malik@harmitmalik.bsky.social · 2w agoAnd just like that… @pravrutharaman.bsky.social is ready to leave us to start her lab at @umassboston.bsky.social We mark this occasion by the ‘solemn’ passing of the crown and specter to the next seniormost postdoc @tamanash.bsky.social; may his reign be as short as British PMs.
How do sarcomeric mutations disrupt the transition to adult cardiac metabolism? Our study in TNNT2-linked HCM hiPSC-CMs reveals an early energetic deficit, paradoxical mTORC1 suppression, and a pathway to therapeutic rescue. Congrats to Homa Hamledari and the team! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Molecular Rewiring in TNNT2-Linked Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy hiPSC-Derived Cardiomyocytes upon Metabolic Maturation
Human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs) are widely used to model cardiac development and inherited cardiomyopathies, yet their immature metabolic state limits interpreta...
biorxiv.org
This. This is the correct, science-backed, responsible framing. Wish more news outlets did it like the CBC.
'Just stop burning fossil fuels.' Scientists stress that our smoky skies only have one true fix | CBC News
Smoky skies in Toronto have led to new scrutiny of government efforts to fight fires and manage forests. But scientists say the realistic way to tackle the smoke is fighting climate change itself.
cbc.ca
The STRAIGHT-IN (Dual) kit is now available via @addgene.bsky.social! 🧬 A complete 24-plasmid toolkit for installing up to two orthogonal CLYBL landing pads, DASIT-based enrichment without FACS, and efficient large DNA integration in human cells. Link: www.addgene.org/kits/gallowa... 🧵
We just started our summer break, but we're also planning our September-December seminar schedule! If you have an exciting chromatin/transcription story that will be ready for the spotlight by then, use the survey below to nominate yourself to give a #FNucleosome talk 🧬🧬 forms.gle/1EKYN2Nt79ar...
Application to speak in the Fragile Nucleosome series
Thank you for your interest in our seminar series! We use a variety of different session formats but, in general, trainees can plan for a ~15 min talk + 5min Q/A and PIs can plan for a ~25min talk +...
forms.gle
ok my mid-career academic tweeps: if you were going back in time to start as an assistant professor again, what would you tell your younger self? would you do anything differently? anything you did that you think was an A+ decision? give us soon-to-be new PIs any & all advice!
super excited to share that I'm starting as an Assistant Professor at CU Denver this fall! my lab will be right in the heart of downtown Denver :) mattioli-lab.org i'm hiring! if you're interested in joining us to study how alternative isoforms contribute to cancer, please reach out
📢 Attention Recent Graduates 📢 I’m hiring a Postgraduate Research Associate to join my growing team at Yale! If you’re passionate about RNA biology/Gene Regulation and are looking to gain hand-on research experience before graduate school, please consider applying! postdocs.yale.edu/posts/2026-0...
Postgraduate Associate – RNA Biology, Genomics, Neurodevelopment - Department of Genetics, Yale School of Medicine
postdocs.yale.edu
1/ Very excited to share the first publication from my lab! In this work, we developed an efficient strategy to precisely mutate mammalian histone genes in their native genomic context using CRISPR prime editing: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Identifying critical lysines in mammalian histone H3 with high-throughput CRISPR prime editing - Nature Genetics
This study uses a precise and efficient clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) prime editing system to substitute lysine residues in histone H3, individually or in combinat...
nature.com
Dont miss this great opportunity to present your research!
FragileNucleosome@fnucleosome.bsky.social · 2mo agoWe just started our summer break, but we're also planning our September-December seminar schedule! If you have an exciting chromatin/transcription story that will be ready for the spotlight by then, use the survey below to nominate yourself to give a #FNucleosome talk 🧬🧬 forms.gle/1EKYN2Nt79ar...
Apply to be part of our fall seminar series!
FragileNucleosome@fnucleosome.bsky.social · 2mo agoWe just started our summer break, but we're also planning our September-December seminar schedule! If you have an exciting chromatin/transcription story that will be ready for the spotlight by then, use the survey below to nominate yourself to give a #FNucleosome talk 🧬🧬 forms.gle/1EKYN2Nt79ar...
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 🧵👇
Hanes: Segal Cancer Centre’s 20 years of breakthroughs ‘help patients the world over’ montrealgazette.com/opinion/colu...
Hey #nucleus nerds, the JCS Special Issue on the Cell Biology of the Nucleus is now live! This was a pleasure to co-edit with Megan King @luskinglab.bsky.social.
Journal of Cell Science@jcellsci.bsky.social · last mo.Our Special Issue: Cell Biology of the Nucleus is complete Explore our Toc: journals.biologists.com/jcs/issue/13... Our cover image shows the posteriorly positioned nuclei (Nup50-mCherry - pink) of notochord cells in Ciona embryos. See article by Peng et al. journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...
Apply now to speak in the Fragile Nucleosome Series this Fall!
FragileNucleosome@fnucleosome.bsky.social · 2mo agoWe just started our summer break, but we're also planning our September-December seminar schedule! If you have an exciting chromatin/transcription story that will be ready for the spotlight by then, use the survey below to nominate yourself to give a #FNucleosome talk 🧬🧬 forms.gle/1EKYN2Nt79ar...
What if you could watch chromatin change in live neurons…..IN REAL TIME?Share if this is your dream! My lab is making biosensors to make chromatin visible as neurons wire into circuits & are hiring an Associate Scientist to build, not just execute. Apply: stjude.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/stjude/job/M...
(1/n) Very excited to share tri-lab collab (Mirny & Zechner) led by Harvey, Henrik & Jack: Q: How do enhancers & promoters interact in space (contact vs. action-at-a-distance) and time (stable vs. transient)? A: Transient E-P contact (~25-42 nm lasting ~10-20 sec): www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Please share this gift article from The New York Times with friends, family, sceptics, and People who think that studying weird things is a waste of money. Then follow up with meaningful discussion about what I call 'free range science'. Free without subscription. www.nytimes.com/2026/06/20/o...
Opinion | The Science That Turned Lizard Venom Into GLP-1s Is Under Attack
nytimes.com
Starting in 3 hours - register and join us!
FragileNucleosome@fnucleosome.bsky.social · 2mo ago🧬This Wednesday will be the final seminar of the Spring 2026 #FNucleosome schedule, and we've got a great one lined up! Join us to hear about the outstanding research of @annanordin.bsky.social, @valentinabaderna.bsky.social, and @kezlane.bsky.social! register here: us06web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...
🚨Preprint Drop🚨 We are very pleased to release our study on DNA methylation dynamics at enhancers during ESC differentiation! This work was led by Marlet Morales-Franco and Priscillia Lhoumaud 🧵(1/13) www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Dual profiling of DNA modifications with enhancer features during the exit of naive pluripotency
Cis-regulatory elements, such as enhancers, play an essential role in coordinating gene expression programs during cellular transitions. As such, substantial efforts have been made to characterize enh...
biorxiv.org
We've got a stellar lineup for the last Fragile Nucleosome Seminar before our summer break!
FragileNucleosome@fnucleosome.bsky.social · 2mo ago🧬This Wednesday will be the final seminar of the Spring 2026 #FNucleosome schedule, and we've got a great one lined up! Join us to hear about the outstanding research of @annanordin.bsky.social, @valentinabaderna.bsky.social, and @kezlane.bsky.social! register here: us06web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...
🧵 Happy to share that the final version of our study is finally out in @natcomms.nature.com today: www.nature.com/articles/s41... What started as an unexpected observation—that SETDB1 depletion accelerates X chromosome silencing—led us to uncover a role for SETDB1 in regulating Xist transcription.
SETDB1 and HUSH modulate Xist RNA levels during establishment of X chromosome inactivation - Nature Communications
Regulation of X chromosome inactivation in mammals requires precise control of the levels of the non-coding RNA Xist. Almeida et al. describe an autoregulatory mechanism in which nascent Xist transcri...
nature.com
Excited to share the first pre-print from our lab!! Check it out here! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... We found that many RNA-binding proteins canonically understood to regulate RNA processing can also function like transcription factors and cofactors to directly regulate transcription.
📢Faculty Position in Nucleic Acid Based Nanomedicine Available! 📆Apply by September 15! ubc.wd10.myworkdayjobs.com/ubcfacultyjo...
🧬🧬🧬 Join us this Wednesday, June 3rd for exciting talks from three early career chromatin/transcription researchers: Mark Geisler, @jcornwallscoones.bsky.social, and @sidujain.bsky.social! register here: us06web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...
To give back: I'm offering 6 one-hour mentorship sessions for students & ECRs from Latin America interested in building a career in RNA. DM me a short paragraph on why this would be valuable to you. 📩
