Check your mirrors, your alignment, and the speed limit: @desertbus.org for Hope 2026 is almost here! Starting today you can support Child's Play and keep the bus on the road with this year's shirt, plus a special anniversary design: www.fangamer.com/collections/...
Jeff Calhoun
@calhoujd.bsky.social
Research Assistant Professor with Gemma Carvill (@CarvillLab on Twitter). Focus: epilepsy genetics. Twin. Ace cat dad. Occasional writer. I am only an egg. He/him.
Thanks @plasmidsaurus.bsky.social for shouting out our paper and for helping us do our work with your amazing services. Also want to shoutout our awesome collaborators at UW who were a huge part of this effort @dougfowler.bsky.social and Rich James
Most uncertain genetic test results get untangled one variant at a time. This team tested thousands at once (@carinabiar.bsky.social, @calhoujd.bsky.social). In a new Nat. Comm. paper, Biar, Wang, Camp et al. measured protein abundance for thousands of TSC2 variants & mTOR pathway activity for 391.
Our paper on integrating data from 2+ multiplexed assays of variant effect (MAVE) for the same gene is available now: doi.org/10.1186/s130... We also have a Shiny webtool where you can plug in data and compare a few different integration approaches. A big thank you to all co-authors... 1/3
Combining multiplexed functional data to improve variant classification - Genome Medicine
Background With the surge in the number of variants of uncertain significance (VUS) reported in ClinVar in recent years, there is an imperative to resolve VUS at scale. Multiplexed assays of variant effect (MAVEs), which allow the functional consequence of 100s to 1000s of genetic variants to be measured in a single experiment, are emerging as a powerful source of evidence which can be used in clinical variant classification. Increasingly, multiple published MAVEs are available for the same gene, sometimes measuring different aspects of variant impact. When multiple functional roles of a gene need to be considered, combining data from multiple MAVEs may provide a more comprehensive measure of the consequence of a genetic variant, which could impact variant classifications. Methods We curated published datasets from five MAVEs for the gene TP53, two MAVEs for LDLR and two MAVEs for PTEN. Statistical methods (principal component analysis), unsupervised learning (k-means clustering), and supervised learning (Naïve Bayes and random forest classifiers) were used to integrate multiple MAVE datasets. The utility of MAVE integration methods were assessed using standard metrics (sensitivity, specificity, etc) as well as evidence strength in a putative variant classification framework. Results Here, we provide guidance for combining such multiplexed functional data, incorporating a stepwise process from data curation and collection to model generation and validation. We also present a web applet that allows users to test various methods for combining score sets from multiple assays, calculate integrated functional scores for all variants, and assess whether combining data enables the application of stronger evidence for pathogenicity or benignity. In general, supervised learning methods such as random forest led to improved variant classification as compared to any individual MAVE dataset. Conclusions By following the steps outlined herein with appropriate guardrails, researchers can maximize the value of MAVEs, strengthen the functional evidence for clinical variant classification, and potentially uncover novel mechanisms of pathogenicity for clinically relevant genes.
doi.org
Our paper on integrating data from 2+ multiplexed assays of variant effect (MAVE) for the same gene is available now: doi.org/10.1186/s130... We also have a Shiny webtool where you can plug in data and compare a few different integration approaches. A big thank you to all co-authors... 1/3
Combining multiplexed functional data to improve variant classification - Genome Medicine
Background With the surge in the number of variants of uncertain significance (VUS) reported in ClinVar in recent years, there is an imperative to resolve VUS at scale. Multiplexed assays of variant effect (MAVEs), which allow the functional consequence of 100s to 1000s of genetic variants to be measured in a single experiment, are emerging as a powerful source of evidence which can be used in clinical variant classification. Increasingly, multiple published MAVEs are available for the same gene, sometimes measuring different aspects of variant impact. When multiple functional roles of a gene need to be considered, combining data from multiple MAVEs may provide a more comprehensive measure of the consequence of a genetic variant, which could impact variant classifications. Methods We curated published datasets from five MAVEs for the gene TP53, two MAVEs for LDLR and two MAVEs for PTEN. Statistical methods (principal component analysis), unsupervised learning (k-means clustering), and supervised learning (Naïve Bayes and random forest classifiers) were used to integrate multiple MAVE datasets. The utility of MAVE integration methods were assessed using standard metrics (sensitivity, specificity, etc) as well as evidence strength in a putative variant classification framework. Results Here, we provide guidance for combining such multiplexed functional data, incorporating a stepwise process from data curation and collection to model generation and validation. We also present a web applet that allows users to test various methods for combining score sets from multiple assays, calculate integrated functional scores for all variants, and assess whether combining data enables the application of stronger evidence for pathogenicity or benignity. In general, supervised learning methods such as random forest led to improved variant classification as compared to any individual MAVE dataset. Conclusions By following the steps outlined herein with appropriate guardrails, researchers can maximize the value of MAVEs, strengthen the functional evidence for clinical variant classification, and potentially uncover novel mechanisms of pathogenicity for clinically relevant genes.
doi.org
I am proud to share our paper using two complementary approaches to resolve variants of uncertain significance (VUS) in the gene TSC2. VUS are a barrier to achieving a precise genetic diagnosis for tuberous sclerosis complex and some cancers. 1/14 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
An integrated, scaled approach to resolve TSC2 variants of uncertain significance - Nature Communications
Variants of uncertain significance pose a significant challenge for genetic diagnosis of tuberous sclerosis complex. Here, the authors present scalable variant effect assay data which will improve gen...
nature.com
I am proud to share our paper using two complementary approaches to resolve variants of uncertain significance (VUS) in the gene TSC2. VUS are a barrier to achieving a precise genetic diagnosis for tuberous sclerosis complex and some cancers. 1/14 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
An integrated, scaled approach to resolve TSC2 variants of uncertain significance - Nature Communications
Variants of uncertain significance pose a significant challenge for genetic diagnosis of tuberous sclerosis complex. Here, the authors present scalable variant effect assay data which will improve gen...
nature.com
Even if the destruction somehow stopped today, it will take years to rebuild.
The U.S. government has lost more than 10,000 STEM Ph.D.s since Trump took office. A Science analysis reveals how many were fired, retired, or quit across 14 agencies. Read more: https://scim.ag/4boPkq8
Watching the systematic dismantling of the world's largest funder of biomedical research is heartbreaking and infuriating
NEW: Another NIH institute director hasn't been renewed — the director of NIAMS (arthritis, musculoskeletal and skin diseases institute). That leaves a whopping 15 of 27 institutes and centers without a permanent director.
Excited to share our work to resolve TSC2 variants of uncertain significance. Will write a proper tweetorial soon! Huge thanks to our many collaborators. This study benefited from the hard work of many folks and I appreciate them lending their time and expertise.
An integrated, scaled approach to resolve TSC2 variants of uncertain significance https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.01.16.699909v1
Excited to share our work to resolve TSC2 variants of uncertain significance. Will write a proper tweetorial soon! Huge thanks to our many collaborators. This study benefited from the hard work of many folks and I appreciate them lending their time and expertise.
An integrated, scaled approach to resolve TSC2 variants of uncertain significance https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.01.16.699909v1
Jarring homemade preserves just to seal something
aimlessly pushing a shopping cart around the store just to wheel something
I have something special to share. We premiered this incredible video last night at the dinner auction. This is a Game Tech. This is a job Child's Play created and YOUR donations make possible! Please take a few minutes to watch this and share it if you can. vimeo.com/1140232457/1...
Childs Play - "I Am a Game Tech"
This is "Childs Play - "I Am a Game Tech"" by Chris Coleman on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.
vimeo.com
@coachnelly.bsky.social caught Oki Oki FC vod today. Awesome to see your progress, keep it up!
📣New today! 📄Landscapes of missense variant impact for human superoxide dismutase 1 🧑🤝🧑 @axakova.bsky.social @fritzroth.bsky.social & co
Landscapes of missense variant impact for human superoxide dismutase 1
SOD1 variants cause the motor neuron disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Axakova et al. functionally assay ∼86% of all possible SOD1 missense variants, producing a variant-effect map resource that ...
cell.com
Just a reminder to check for your name in this list of books that OpenAI trained from. If your name is there, they probably owe you several thousand dollars. OpenAI cried that if everyone eligible author files, the company will go bankrupt, so I'm alerting every author I have ever spoken to.
Search LibGen, the Pirated-Books Database That Meta Used to Train AI
Millions of books and scientific papers are captured in the collection’s current iteration.
theatlantic.com
#PAXWest 2025 is a gaming paradise spread across three buildings! Here’s a quick look at how to get around and enter each building. For more maps & entry details visit PAXwest25.com/Maps
I don't work with fruit flies but even I know how important FlyBase is. Such sad news. 😞
News via The Transmitter www.thetransmitter.org/community/ha...
EpiPred: A gene-specific machine learning model for classifying missense variants in the epilepsy-related gene STXBP1 https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.08.09.669488v1
🚨 Most variant screens measure growth or abundance. What do they miss? That variants impact a spectrum of protein and cellular phenotypes. Variant in situ sequencing (VIS-seq) finds what’s missing: image cells 🔬 first, decode later, revealing multi-scale phenotypes for thousands of variants.👇 1/9
I couldn't sleep last night and skimmed through the names on the #BethesdaDeclaration support letter page. First, the good news. (1) There were 18,000+ names and it took me 3 hours. 1/n
Thank you to all who joined us in person or online for #VariantEffect25 🌟 📺 Symposium talks are now available on our Youtube channel www.youtube.com/@cmap_cegs8443
See our new paper in @ajhgnews.bsky.social : Validating data from multiplex assays of variant effect: A CanVIG-UK national survey of NHS clinical scientists Explores blocks to implementing MAVE data into clinical variant interpretation @varianteffect.bsky.social authors.elsevier.com/a/1lDFkgeXDyy6
@kathleen.loadingreadyrun.com Hi Kathleen, on recent TTC Q&A you mentioned sharing a curated lofi beats playlist with @coachnelly.bsky.social any chance you’d share here on blusky too? thanks!! 🙏
Hey @plasmidsaurus.bsky.social, have you heard of DinoCon? 🦖🦕
Things #DinoCon are REALLY coming along as ticket sales have gone into overdrive. Schedule out; most presenters and speakers have now been announced. The biggest and best dinosaur-themed meeting the UK has EVER seen, join us at the University of Exeter, Aug 16th and 17th. Book now: www.dinocon.co.uk
Very excited about latest report from @igorulitsky.bsky.social's lab using an ASO to upregulate CHD2 expression!
Stop the doom scrolling! A new 🗞️ from my lab, describing one of our flagship projects of many years we are super excited to share: "Inducible formation of fusion transcripts upregulates haploinsufficient CHD2 gene expression". A 🧵 biorxiv.org/content/earl...
CliPE now available in STAR Protocols: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Protocol to perform multiplexed assays of variant effect using curated loci prime editing
Multiplexed assays of variant effect (MAVEs) perform simultaneous characterization of many variants. Here, we present a protocol to perform MAVEs usin…
sciencedirect.com
Proud to introduce curated loci prime editing (cliPE)! It is a generalizable and accessible platform to characterize many genetic variants in a gene of interest 1/11 arxiv.org/abs/2501.04822
CliPE now available in STAR Protocols: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Protocol to perform multiplexed assays of variant effect using curated loci prime editing
Multiplexed assays of variant effect (MAVEs) perform simultaneous characterization of many variants. Here, we present a protocol to perform MAVEs usin…
sciencedirect.com
Proud to introduce curated loci prime editing (cliPE)! It is a generalizable and accessible platform to characterize many genetic variants in a gene of interest 1/11 arxiv.org/abs/2501.04822