I'm very grateful to receive the Supervisor of the Year award from our graduate school (>350 PIs). This really means a lot to me! Big thanks to my great lab, and I look forward to the coming years of exciting science with everyone 🙂

Helmholtz Institute Würzburg@helmholtz-hiri.bsky.social · 4w ago

Congratulations to @jenshoer.bsky.social, who has been named “Supervisor of the Year” by the @gslsuniwue.bsky.social at @uni-wuerzburg.de! 🎉🥇 Read more: www.helmholtz-hiri.de/en/newsroom/...

The Bacterial RNA Biology Group in Jena is hiring a new PhD student! 🔬🧫🧬 We are looking for a motivated candidate to study bacteriophages of the opportunistic pathogen Klebsiella pneumoniae. 🔥 Apply by July 26, 2026 🔥 Details on the position and application: jobs.uni-jena.de/jobposting/9...

Perinuclear anchoring of telomeres enables plant infection by Ustilago maydis https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.04.03.716281v1

Excited to share the first preprint from the lab! We show that ApeA defends against RNA phage infection by cleaving the phage genome: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Check out this new spotlight in @cp-trendsmicrobiol.bsky.social! #HIRI’s @jenshoer.bsky.social and @mvelascogomariz.bsky.social highlight a recent study from the @saharmelamed.bsky.social lab that further unravels posttranscriptional regulatory networks in phage infection. 👏👇

Jens Hör@jenshoer.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Like bacteria, phages use sRNAs to regulate gene expression! Out today in @cp-trendsmicrobiol.bsky.social, @mvelascogomariz.bsky.social and I highlight a recent RIL-seq study from the @saharmelamed.bsky.social lab that looked into posttranscriptional regulation of lambda! tinyurl.com/lambda-RIL-seq

Like bacteria, phages use sRNAs to regulate gene expression! Out today in @cp-trendsmicrobiol.bsky.social, @mvelascogomariz.bsky.social and I highlight a recent RIL-seq study from the @saharmelamed.bsky.social lab that looked into posttranscriptional regulation of lambda! tinyurl.com/lambda-RIL-seq

Unraveling posttranscriptional regulatory networks in phage infection

Phages employ sophisticated transcriptional regulatory networks to optimize replication. Recently, Silverman et al. used RIL-seq (RNA interaction by l…

tinyurl.com

Looking for a truly unique PhD programme on RNA drugs and therapeutics? We have just opened the call for the second cohort of RNAmed-Future leaders in RNA-based medicine. More details under www.rnamed.de Please spread the word.

Do you want to understand how RNA #splicing decisions are made? We‘ve got a PhD position open for you (see 👇👇)!! Please share #RNAsky and RT! tinyurl.com/4ztu9cb9

Do viruses use RNA to rewire bacteria? Yes! In our paper in @cp-molcell.bsky.social RIL-seq reveals interkingdom RNA interactions during λ infection. Phages don’t just encode proteins, they use small RNAs to hijack bacterial replication and fine-tune infection. #RNA #Phage doi.org/10.1016/j.mo...

Phage-encoded small RNA hijacks host replication machinery to support the phage lytic cycle

Using RIL-seq, Silverman et al. map the RNA interactome of E. coli during phage lambda infection and uncover a conserved phage-encoded sRNA that activates host replication machinery. Their findings re...

cell.com

🔊 Interested in doing a PhD on RNA-binding proteins in an abundant microbiota species and becoming a member of the German Priority Programme “Illuminating Gene Functions in the Human Gut Microbiome”? Apply here: www.uni-wuerzburg.de/karriere/sin...

New online! Licence to knockdown — the phage gene silencer

Licence to knockdown — the phage gene silencer

Nature Reviews Microbiology, Published online: 22 October 2025; doi:10.1038/s41579-025-01253-zThis Genome Watch explores how a new antisense oligomer-based approach enables functional genomics of genetically intractable bacteriophages, revealing essential genes and infection mechanisms without requiring genetic modification.

nature.com

🧬 EMERGENCY SWITCH! 🤯 Bacteria adapt their metabolism to famine in seconds. @uni-jena.de researchers found that 𝘊𝘢𝘶𝘭𝘰𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘴 use two RNA molecules as molecular switches. An 'RNA sponge' kicks in to ensure survival.

Are you interested in studying RNA phages? We are looking for a PhD student and a postdoc to join the lab! For more information and how to apply, see below 👇 Please RT!

Helmholtz Institute Würzburg@helmholtz-hiri.bsky.social · 10mo ago

📢 The #HIRI is looking for a #postdoc & a #PhD student to join the research group of @jenshoer.bsky.social. His lab focuses on understanding the molecular mechanisms of #phages with #RNA genomes during infection, host takeover & anti-phage defense. 🧫🦠 More info: www.helmholtz-hiri.de/en/jobs-tale...

I'm really happy to have been granted an @erc.europa.eu Starting Grant! We'll study the molecular principles of RNA phages—from infection to replication to bacterial immunity. Interested in joining? Feel free to reach out! Formal job ads to follow. More info here: tinyurl.com/RIBO-PHAGE #ERCStG

Hi there! We are lookig for a highly motivated and talented postdoctoral researcher to join our dynamic team starting in 2026. Please see the call for more details! Come on join us! It will be fun! :)

Upregulation of the AcrAB2NodT efflux pump confers antibiotic resistance at the cost of collateral metal sensitivity https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.07.17.665315v1

Hello! Ever wonder what's "talking to" your favorite transcript, but were too scared to ask? In our review in @cp-cellreports.bsky.social, @mardakheh.bsky.social and I highlight new RNA-focused tools for discovering RNA interactions across organizational scales. Checkit! tinyurl.com/ydn6e3ac

Fresh in @NatureBiotech! We developed a synthetic biology tool for tracking gene transfer in microbial communities and applied it to study plasmid hosts in a wastewater microbiome. Awesome collab with James Chappell & @joffsilberg.bsky.social and incredible students. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Information storage across a microbial community using universal RNA barcoding - Nature Biotechnology

Barcoding microbial ribosomal RNA creates a recording of gene transfer events without requiring translation.

nature.com

I'm happy to share the first publication from my lab @hoerlab.bsky.social, now out in @narjournal.bsky.social! I take a look at the biology of RNA phages, focusing on how meta-omics methods are discovering new RNA phage families and bacterial defense strategies. #PhageSky doi.org/10.1093/nar/...

Advancing RNA phage biology through meta-omics

Abstract. Bacteriophages with RNA genomes are among the simplest biological entities on Earth. Since their discovery in the 1960s, they have been used as i

doi.org

Excited to share our new preprint on an RNA sponge counteracting sibling sRNAs in Caulobacter! Laura Vogt and @mvelascogomariz.bsky.social used RILseq, RNA biochemistry and great commitment to work out this story! www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-6...

Microbiologist Dr Kathrin Fröhlich from the Cluster of Excellence "Balance of the Microverse" at #UniJena will receive the research prize of the Association for General and Applied Microbiology (VAAM) for her work on regulatory RNA in bacteria. Congratulations! 🥳 ➡️ www.uni-jena.de/en/304590/re...

Base-modified nucleotides mediate immune signaling in bacteria www.science.org/doi/abs/10.1... #jcampubs

Base-modified nucleotides mediate immune signaling in bacteria

Signaling from pathogen sensing to effector activation is a fundamental principle of cellular immunity. While cyclic (oligo)nucleotides have emerged as key signaling molecules, the existence of other ...

science.org

RNA virus ecogenomics along a subarctic permafrost thaw gradient https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.02.13.637936v1

Let's all welcome our new postdoc, @mvelascogomariz.bsky.social, to the Helmholtz Institute Würzburg and @jenshoer.bsky.social's lab! 👋 We wish you a fantastic start and an amazing time here, Manuel! 🎉 www.helmholtz-hiri.de/en/newsroom/...

NEW @ HIRI: MANUEL VELASCO GOMARIZ

The HIRI family warmly welcomes Manuel Velasco Gomariz

helmholtz-hiri.de

Hello community! In my first post on Bluesky I would love to share with you the latest publication from my PhD at @uni-jena.de ! We generated a system to screen for the activity of sRNAs in Caulobacter and described the role of AbnZ in the post-transcriptional regulation of the TAM system.

An sRNA overexpression library reveals AbnZ as a negative regulator of an essential translocation module in Caulobacter crescentus

Abstract. Small RNAs (sRNAs) play a crucial role in modulating target gene expression through short base-pairing interactions and serve as integral compone

academic.oup.com