Guifeng Wei
@guifengwei.bsky.social
RNA modifications, X-inactivation, epigenetics, bioinformatics https://sites.google.com/view/guifengwei/
An elegant explanation for why L1 is enriched on the X chromosome!
Geoff Faulkner@faulknerlab.bsky.social · 6d agoOur study published today @science.org shows that X-chromosome inactivation (XCI) attracts L1 mutations to the human X chromosome: doi.org/10.1126/scie... With outstanding Perspective from @aurelien-doucet.bsky.social & @retrogenomics.bsky.social: doi.org/10.1126/scie...
New preprint 📢 Thrilled to share our long-awaited work on the role of RSX in marsupial X-inactivation. This was a huge team effort over the years, led by @aureliencourtois.bsky.social @sermenchero.bsky.social Sugako Ogushi and Waz Varsally, that allowed us to set up genome editing in opossum embryos
Genome editing of marsupial RSX reveals conserved and divergent principles in mammalian X-inactivation
X-chromosome inactivation balances X-gene dosage between the sexes in eutherians and marsupials. The lncRNA Xist mediates X-inactivation in eutherians but is absent from marsupials. An evolutionarily ...
biorxiv.org
🚨🚨NEW PREPRINT ALERT!🚨🚨Proud to present our recent study, out now on bioRxiv, in which we reveal an RNA-dependent positive feedback loop that drives malignant ribosome biogenesis and tumour growth (1/15). 🔗 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
There is more to transcriptional readthrough than meets the eye, and it could even provide a therapeutic opportunity in cancer. Check out our new perspective, inspired by recent work from Neugebauer and Grzechnik labs! #RNABiology #RNASky #Epigenetics
Agata Stepien@agatakstepien.bsky.social · last mo.Studying gene ends is becoming even more fascinating! Curious why? Read our News & Views "Transcriptional readthrough progresses from incidental byproduct to therapeutic opportunity" inspired by the recent publication by Podszywałow-Bartnicka and @karlaneugebauer.bsky.social @natsmb.nature.com
🔥 Published today, and just in time for summer conferences, here are your guidelines for presenting badly www.nature.com/articles/s41... rdcu.be/fqa92
I only want to strongly emphasize that everyone must go to the @qedscience.bsky.social homepage to see their AI slop promotional ads. They are DERANGED! Two end in scientists dying, and one strongly implies bestiality. I can't get them out of my head!
QED Science@qedscience.bsky.social · last mo.🎉 Meet The 1%. Out of 57,455 bioRxiv life science preprints, QED Science selected 574 exceptional manuscripts through blind evaluation. The 1%: the-one-percent.qedscience.com Good science deserves to be seen. @biorxivpreprint.bsky.social @openrxiv.bsky.social @richardsever.bsky.social
This study led by @flavia-con.bsky.social from the Brockdorff lab is finally published at Nature Communications! www.nature.com/articles/s41... Using live-cell and single-molecule imaging, this work dissects how the epigenetic regulator #SMCHD1 interacts with chromatin during X-inactivation.
Selective interaction of SMCHD1 with chromatin is governed by LRIF1 and SMCHD1 ATPase activity - Nature Communications
SMCHD1 is a key player in X chromosome inactivation in mammals and has been linked to two human disorders. Here, the authors present insight into SMCHD1’s mode of interaction and functionality at its ...
nature.com
Guifeng Wei@guifengwei.bsky.social · last yr.Fresh preprint by @flavia-con.bsky.social from our lab uncovers how SMCHD1 finds & binds chromatin using live-cell single-molecule imaging🔬 She reveals how SMCHD1 dynamically engages chromatin, including the inactive X chromosome, to maintain gene silencing. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
New paper! How do RNAs "know" where to go inside a cell? We dug into the sequence elements that route RNAs to the right place. It turns out that, in mammals, they're surprisingly massive (>200 nt), multipartite, and wonderfully complicated. 🧵
Postdoc position available now in the Smith Group lsi.exeter.ac.uk/groups/smith... to test the hypothesis that differentiation biases between human pluripotent stem cell lines may be eliminated by reversion to the naïve state. careers.exeter.ac.uk/vacancies/79...
Smith Group - Living Systems Institute - University of Exeter
Understanding pluripotency
lsi.exeter.ac.uk
🧵 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
Today we celebrate our colleagues Colin Kleanthous and Rob Klose as they join the Fellowship of the Royal Society, one of the highest honours in the scientific world, in recognition of their impactful contributions to knowledge. Congratulations! 👏 👏 👏 Read more ⬇️
Congratulations to Colin Kleanthous and Rob Klose on joining the Fellowship of the Royal Society
The two scientists have been selected for outstanding contributions to their fields
bit.ly
New online! The discovery of gene imprinting
The discovery of gene imprinting
Nature Reviews Genetics, Published online: 19 May 2026; doi:10.1038/s41576-026-00973-zIn this Journal Club, Mary Gehring recalls a 1970 paper from Jerry Kermicle, which used elegant maize genetics to show that alleles behave differently depending on parental origin, laying the conceptual foundation for gene imprinting.
dlvr.it
New online! RNA design across eras: from covariance models to modern generative AI
RNA design across eras: from covariance models to modern generative AI
Nature Reviews Genetics, Published online: 08 May 2026; doi:10.1038/s41576-026-00967-xIn this Journal Club, Annalisa Marsico describes a 1994 paper by Eddy and Durbin that formalized RNA sequence analysis with covariance models, which are powerful tools more recently applied to generative machine learning models for RNA design.
dlvr.it
Two new papers 📖 from our lab 1️⃣ What is epigenetics (and why X inactivation is?) rdcu.be/fhzSz and 2️⃣ A Baculovirus-based tool to express any gene of interest with high efficiency in Anopheles cells rdcu.be/fhzTy
The epigenetic nature of X chromosome inactivation
Nature Reviews Genetics - In this Journal Club, Claudia Keller Valsecchi recalls two seminal studies by Csankovszki et al. and by Wutz and Jaenisch that defined X-chromosome inactivation as an...
rdcu.be
Very importantly, one of the co-organisers @xrnchew.bsky.social is cycling to the meeting to raise awareness and funds for 'All things small and green' . Please join him or sponsor him! gofund.me/f4068dc3c
Donate to Cycling from Exeter to the 3' end (in Oxford)!, organized by Steven West
I'll be cycling from Exeter to Oxford (about 160 miles/260 km) - hopefully … Steven West needs your support for Cycling from Exeter to the 3' end (in Oxford)!
gofund.me
Stunning work — acquisition of IDRs in SON appears to have driven the evolution of nuclear speckles, enabling selective splicing of GC-rich intron–exon units.
Tugce Aktas@aktast.bsky.social · 5mo agoOur most recent work on the “function and evolution” of #nuclear-speckles is now online at Cell @cp-cell.bsky.social doi.org/10.1016/j.ce... Read the thread👇 for the highlights of our findings.
Yesterday we came together to honour Professor Raymond Dwek through the naming of the Raymond Dwek Seminar Room. Raymond's family (pictured) joined the celebration and Raymond was visibly touched, saying: "Thank you for this amazing gesture. I'm humbled by it, but I will treasure it."
Just out @natrevimmunol.nature.com RNA-binding proteins and ribonucleoproteins as determinants of immunity www.nature.com/articles/s41... gives our perspective on this growing area of research. Special thanks to the editor Alexandra, for streamlining the manuscript.
RNA-binding proteins and ribonucleoproteins as determinants of immunity - Nature Reviews Immunology
RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) considerably expand the information content of the genome and can determine the lifespan, localization and function of RNA, thereby controlling when, where and how much pro...
nature.com
an interesting work on how RNA regulatory elements control immune systems.
The Francis Crick Institute@crick.ac.uk · 7mo agoResearchers at the Crick, @cam.ac.uk and Sanquin Research Amsterdam have made a key discovery about how the immune system can switch from ‘on’ to ‘off’ so quickly. The findings could offer potential new avenues for treating cancer or autoimmune conditions. www.crick.ac.uk/news/2026-01...
A new and fascinating story from @bencarty.bsky.social and the group, with crucial help from the teams of @naltemose.bsky.social, Simona Giunta, and @dfachinetti.bsky.social. Many thanks to all for a fantastic collaboration. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
I’m a fair-weather poster on here to say the least. However, I'm pleased to present our latest paper. A great effort from all authors and an interesting insight into transcriptional regulation (we think!). www.cell.com/molecular-ce...
Sequential verification of transcription by Integrator and Restrictor
Estell and Łazowski et al. show that Integrator and Restrictor form distinct pathways for early attenuation of RNA polymerase II: Integrator acts at the promoter-proximal pause site, whereas Restricto...
cell.com
⚠️ Paper alert: Using a novel CRISPR screening approach, we mapped the entire regulatory network controlling Xist—key for X-chromosome inactivation. 👉 We discover how sex and development signals are decoded at a single gene locus. www.nature.com/articles/s41... 👇 Bluetorial
Reporter CRISPR screens decipher cis-regulatory and trans-regulatory principles at the Xist locus - Nature Structural & Molecular Biology
Here Schwämmle et al. develop CRISPR reporter screens to map transcription-factor-regulatory element interactions at the Xist locus, revealing a two-step mechanism integrating developmental and X-dosage signals to initiate X-chromosome inactivation.
nature.com
Thrilled to share our new Brockdorff lab paper at NSMB: we show that the primary role of m6A RNA modification on Xist is to promote RNA degradation. Xist turnover is mediated by the NEXT complex, not PAXT, and is independent of the m6A reader YTHDC1. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
m6A and the NEXT complex direct Xist RNA turnover and X-inactivation dynamics - Nature Structural & Molecular Biology
Wei et al. show that the primary function of m6A on the nuclear long noncoding RNA Xist, a master regulator of X inactivation, is to promote RNA degradation. Xist turnover is mediated by the nuclear e...
nature.com
Today, I would like to honor the memory of Roger Y. Tsien, who died on August 24, 2016. His legacy lives with all who use his technologies, including calcium sensors, fluorescent proteins, the acetoxymethyl (AM) ester, & many more! #FluorescenceFriday www.nature.com/articles/nme...
New method drop: HCR-Proxy, a modular proximity labelling approach to profile local proteome composition around RNA at nanoscale, subcompartmental resolution. Thereby we resolved nested nucleolar layers and uncovered the grammar of spatial protein partitioning. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Check out the latest study from our lab, led by Coffee Xiang (@coffeebond007.bsky.social) www.nature.com/articles/s41... (1/2)
PAL-AI reveals genetic determinants that control poly(A)-tail length during oocyte maturation, with relevance to human fertility - Nature Communications
Gene regulation in oocytes relies heavily on poly(A) tail-length changes. Here, the authors develop PAL-AI, a neural network model that predicts tail-length changes, identifies regulatory motifs, and ...
nature.com
Very happy to share our protocols paper for CELLO-seq. This will make single cell long read RNA-seq more accessible and provides analysis guidelines. We hope this helps the #transposon #TEsky community and folks working on #singleCell isoform and allelic #gene expression. doi.org/10.1038/s415...
Long-read RNA sequencing of transposable elements from single cells using CELLO-seq - Nature Protocols
Single-cell long-read RNA sequencing enables the high-fidelity mapping of single-cell expression data from highly sequence-similar transposable elements to unique genomic loci by correcting errors fro...
doi.org
Fresh preprint by @flavia-con.bsky.social from our lab uncovers how SMCHD1 finds & binds chromatin using live-cell single-molecule imaging🔬 She reveals how SMCHD1 dynamically engages chromatin, including the inactive X chromosome, to maintain gene silencing. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Selective interaction of the protein SMCHD1 with specific chromatin regions is governed by the loading factor LRIF1 and SMCHD1 ATPase activity
The chromosomal protein SMCHD1 is a GHKL ATPase that plays important roles in epigenetic silencing, including on the inactive X chromosome (Xi) and at the D4Z4 macrosatellite linked to regulation of D...
biorxiv.org
