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Heidi Ledford

@heidiledford.bsky.social

Reporter for Nature, mostly covering biology and medicine. hledford.01 (Signal) and heidiledford (@proton.me)

46 Posts3115 Follower1267 Folgt
@scienceartnews.bsky.social · 2d ago

The bispecific antibodies, T-cell activators, attempt to bring the two cell types closer together, thereby stimulating the T-cell to attack the cancer cell. At least 12 such T-cell activators have been approved for the treatment of cancer, including leukemia & myeloma. @heidiledford.bsky.social

Cancer-fighting antibodies with a one-two punch take aim at tumours

Bispecific antibodies, which bind to two targets, are sweeping into the clinic and are prompting even more elaborate versions.

go.nature.com

NSWA - Northwest Science Writers @nswa.bsky.social · 3w ago

NSWA members: @robertakwok.bsky.social will be launching her new book, Lost in Curiosity, next week! 🚀 Hope to see you at one of these events:) Tuesday 7/21 at 7pm at Ravenna Books Wednesday 7/22 at 6:30 at Brick & Mortar Books Redmond Thursday 7/23 at 6pm at Village Books & Paper Dreams, Fairhaven

Seattle-area folks, I'll be launching Lost in Curiosity at Third Place Books Ravenna and Brick & Mortar Books in Redmond next Tuesday/Wednesday! And if you're closer to Bellingham, I'l...

Seattle-area folks, I'll be launching Lost in Curiosity at Third Place Books Ravenna and Brick & Mortar Books in Redmond next Tuesday/Wednesday! And if you're closer to Bellingham, I'll be at Village ...

lnkd.in

Alexandra Witze@alexwitze.bsky.social · last mo.

🔴 We have a fun thing for you today in @nature.com - a game! We took the latest research into Mars terraforming and transformed it into an interactive adventure. 🌿 How would you make the red planet green? Try your hand and see if you can win. 🧪 www.nature.com/immersive/d4...

Can you terraform Mars? Try Nature’s game

Once the realm of science fiction, the idea of making Mars habitable is gaining traction. Nature consulted with key scientists to develop this experimental adventure.

nature.com

Heidi Ledford@heidiledford.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Not just an issue for AI: "Scientists and engineers who build powerful AI systems often understand the tools’ capabilities in extraordinary detail. What they resist — and sometimes cannot see — is that their technical choices are also political choices." www.nature.com/articles/d41...

I advise the Vatican and the UN on AI — don’t dismiss the Pope’s message as theology

The papal letter goes beyond a religious document and diagnoses a failure in AI governance that the scientific community should heed.

nature.com

Helen Pearson@helenpearson.bsky.social · 3mo ago

"The results... do not mean that 6-8 hours is the optimum amount of sleep for every person, nor do they prove that achieving that ‘Goldilocks’ range of sleep each day directly improves health or slows ageing." @heidiledford.bsky.social on sleep study & impt caveats www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Sleep linked to slower ageing: huge study pinpoints the right amount

Health outcomes were better in people who slept between about six and eight hours a day.

nature.com

Philip Ball@philipcball.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Characteristicaly good piece by @lizziegibney.bsky.social about how seriously (or not) to take AI doomsayers. The point is made here that AI researchers are not necessarily the best people to ask about social implications of the technology. To which I'd add that... www.nature.com/articles/d41...

AI doom warnings are getting louder. Are they realistic?

Researchers are increasingly sounding the alarm that artificial intelligence could end humanity. But such doomsday warnings carry their own risks.

nature.com

Magdalena Skipper@magdalenaskipper.bsky.social · 5mo ago

This is important! A locally tailored, big-push intervention to educate unmarried adolescent girls in 18 communities in northern Nigeria reduced rates of marriage from 86% to just 21% 🧪 #policy #education www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Marriage of adolescent girls in Nigeria reduced by 80% by ‘big push’ intervention

A locally tailored, big-push intervention to educate unmarried adolescent girls in 18 communities in northern Nigeria reduced rates of marriage from 86% to just 21%. Interventions that address complex...

nature.com

Natasha Gilbert@byng.bsky.social · 5mo ago

More researchers face consequences for their links to #Epstein. Jack Horner, who was a consultant for the Jurassic park films, is no longer employed at Chapman University. See my story for Nature www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Scientists face fallout for past associations with Epstein

Jack Horner, who was a consultant for the Jurassic Park films, is among the researchers whose work or careers have been affected because of revelations from newly released documents.

nature.com

Max Kozlov@maxkozlov.bsky.social · 6mo ago

I'm on Capitol Hill watching NIH director Jayanta Bhattacharya testify to the Senate HELP committee. Thankfully I haven't been escorted out of this event (yet). Here's what I'm following. You can also watch live here: www.help.senate.gov/hearings/mod...

Modernizing the National Institutes of Health: Faster Discoveries, More Cures | The U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions

Full Committee Hearing on February 3, 2026 at 5:00 AM

help.senate.gov

Timothy Caulfield@caulfieldtim.bsky.social · 8mo ago

Aluminium is crucial to vaccines — and safe. Why are US advisers debating it? www.nature.com/articles/d41... by @heidiledford.bsky.social via @nature.com "You cannot just get rid of an adjuvant that works and is safe before you have something else that you know will be a good replacement."

Aluminium is crucial to vaccines — and safe. Why are US advisers debating it?

RFK Jr’s vaccine advisory panel will be discussing the inclusion of adjuvants in childhood vaccinations this week. Here’s what’s at stake.

nature.com

Brendan Maher@bmaher.bsky.social · 11mo ago

Inspired by Fred Rogers, @nature.com asked readers to help us 'find the helpers' amid the crisis in American science. What emerged were inspiring stories of researchers, legal experts, data hounds and government scientists who are fighting the dismantling of the US research enterprise. 🧪🧵1/6

Alexandra Witze@alexwitze.bsky.social · 12mo ago

In which @stephaniemlee.bsky.social reports for @theopennotebook.bsky.social on using public documents for investigative science journalism. With @laurenweberhp.bsky.social @naveenasadasivam.bsky.social @primateyell.bsky.social @dangaristo.bsky.social & more: www.theopennotebook.com/2025/08/12/h...

Hidden in Plain Sight: Using Public Documents to Report on Elusive Stories - The Open Notebook

People, companies, and government agencies don’t always return your phone calls. To investigate secretive subjects, reporters can make creative use of documents that are out in the open. Lawsuits, Ins...

theopennotebook.com

Max Kozlov@maxkozlov.bsky.social · last yr.

NIH director Jay Bhattacharya posted on X: "No clinical trial has been delayed, nor has any participant been dropped from clinical trial. These are the facts." Malaria, tuberculosis, cancer trials abroad have all been on the chopping block, leaving participants stranded, I reported in this story.

NIH grant cuts will axe clinical trials abroad — and could leave thousands without care

US agency’s new policy could abruptly end studies of infectious diseases and cancer, leaving researchers scrambling for funds.

nature.com

Max Kozlov@maxkozlov.bsky.social · last yr.

After ruling the NIH grant cuts were illegal yesterday, Judge Young, a Reagan appointee on the bench since 1985, ended the hearing with a blistering 15-minute speech. I've cleaned up my notes — here are his remarks in full. 🧵

Judge rules against NIH grant cuts — and calls them discriminatory

The decision means that the US biomedical agency has to restore funding to hundreds of research projects, but the government will likely appeal.

nature.com