Sarah Aitken
@s-j-aitken.bsky.social
Clinician Scientist & Pathologist Assistant Professor, Yale School of Medicine • posts≠employer www.aitkenlab.org #GenomicPathology
Can dietary interventions change how fast genomes accumulate mutations with age? We studied how caloric restriction (CR)—one of the most robust lifespan-extending interventions—affects somatic mutations across the genome in different tissues and cell types in mice.
It’s less than two weeks until Closer To Free Ride 2026! Registration is still open to join us on the road for 10, 25, 40, 65, or 100 miles Or if you prefer your feet on solid ground, we need a few extra volunteers; opportunities here: www.rideclosertofree.org/volunteer #CTFRide #hoperideswithus
Closer to Free Ride
The Closer to Free Ride supports patient care and research at Smilow Cancer Hospital and Yale Cancer Center. Learn more today at www.rideclosertofree.org.
rideclosertofree.org
Big paper alert! This project has been years in the making. A comprehensive description of somatic mutation rates and signatures across 53 tissues or cell types using NanoSeq. A large collective effort led by Mimy Pham, Mike Stratton and @r-rahbari.bsky.social. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
A comprehensive atlas of somatic mutation rates and mutational signatures in normal human cells
Over the course of a lifetime, somatic mutations accrue in normal human cells, causing variation in cell phenotype and engendering somatic evolution with outcomes ranging from the adaptive immune syst...
biorxiv.org
Great work from Dr Claudia Arnedo-Pac, with friends and colleagues from the Histopathology and Genomics Core Facilities at CRUK Cambridge Institute @cruk-ci.bsky.social Spatial Single Cell RNA Profiling of Human Liver FFPE Tissue Microarrays Using Xenium In Situ link.springer.com/protocol/10....
Spatial Single Cell RNA Profiling of Human Liver FFPE Tissue Microarrays Using Xenium In Situ
Spatially resolved transcriptomics was named Method of the Year 2020 and has continued to evolve rapidly since then, providing novel insights in development, physiology, and disease processes. Many ap...
link.springer.com
How long does DNA damage last? @aaronquinlan.bsky.social and I found evidence that lesions are transmitted from parent (P0) to offspring (F1) in C. elegans. If they segregate unrepaired for multiple cell divisions, lesions generate multi-allelism in the F1 germline. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Inherited DNA damage generates multi-allelic mutations in C. elegans
Exogenous and endogenous mutagens generate a wide variety of DNA lesions, including bulky adducts, chemical modifications, and single- or double-stranded breaks. A phenomenon called “lesion segregation,” in which lesions evade repair and persist for multiple cell divisions, has recently been documented in tumors and healthy somatic tissues from mice and humans, respectively. Persistent lesions can generate multi-allelic variants (MAVs) by serving as templates for multiple rounds of error-prone replication. By reanalyzing data from a large C. elegans mutagenesis experiment, we observed robust evidence for MAVs at a small fraction (∼0.2%) of mutated sites in the offspring of strains treated with alkylating agents. Because these sequencing data were derived from the progeny of a single F1 animal — itself the offspring of a mutagenized P0 — all mutations should be biallelic. The presence of multi-allelic variation implies that some DNA lesions are transmitted to the F1 zygote, evade repair, and are repeatedly bypassed by error-prone polymerases during embryogenesis. We suspect that many more lesions are inherited than is suggested by MAV prevalence, and that a large fraction of biallelic mutations are also caused by inherited lesions. Our results demonstrate that DNA lesions serve as durable, transgenerational templates for mutagenesis in C. elegans . We speculate that lesion segregation in the early embryo may be a source of mosaicism and genetic diversity in humans, as well. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. National Institutes of Health, https://ror.org/01cwqze88, R01HG012252
biorxiv.org
Engines of genetic diversity... Transgenerational lesion segregation in worms, very nice work by Aaron Quinlan @aaronquinlan.bsky.social & Thomas Sasani
bioRxiv Genetics@biorxiv-genetic.bsky.social · last mo.Inherited DNA damage generates multi-allelic mutations in C. elegans https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.08.26.747097v1
Today was our fifth lab-iversary! This year we celebrated... 1 successful PhD viva 2 new preprints 3 relocated TC hoods 4 new team members 5 YEARS OF THE LAB Thank you to everyone who made these things possible 🤩
Sarah Aitken@s-j-aitken.bsky.social · last yr.Yesterday was our fourth lab-iversary 🥳 In the last year we moved to the US, welcomed new lab members at Yale and in Cambridge, mastered Transatlantic hybrid lab life, posted preprints, published others, submitted grants... Looking forward to what year five has in store! @yalepathology.bsky.social
Check it now! 💫 Exited to share this preprint, the result of a fantastic collaboration between Sarah Aitken’s and Martin Taylor’s labs. During my secondment at @yalecancer.bsky.social @yalepathology.bsky.social, I contributed to explore how H&E images can be used to predict tumour genomics
Sarah Aitken@s-j-aitken.bsky.social · 2mo ago🔬NEW PREPRINT🔬 Explainable machine learning relates histological to genomic pathology www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... From John Connelly and Barbara Hernando @bhernando.bsky.social, co-led with Martin Taylor @mstaylor.bsky.social - along with others from #LCEConsortium #genomicPathology #ml #ai
🔬NEW PREPRINT🔬 Explainable machine learning relates histological to genomic pathology www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... From John Connelly and Barbara Hernando @bhernando.bsky.social, co-led with Martin Taylor @mstaylor.bsky.social - along with others from #LCEConsortium #genomicPathology #ml #ai
New research from an international collaboration with roots in the CI suggests why DNA damage from smoking, UV rays and other factors may cause cancer in some people but not others. Find out more: www.cruk.cam.ac.uk/news/study-r...
Monumental new paper from a great collaboration full of exceptional humans! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Genetic background sets the trajectory of experimental cancer evolution - Nature
Experimentally replaying tumour evolution in divergent mouse strains reveals the importance of interactions between genetic ancestry and acquired cancer-driving mutations in shaping the earliest stage...
nature.com
A new study published in @nature.com by @s-j-aitken.bsky.social shows how an individual's inherited genetic background shapes cancer risk, how tumors evolve, and how aggressively they progress + could lead to more personalized cancer prevention and treatment. medicine.yale.edu/cancer/publi...
Genetic Background Shapes Cancer Evolution and Tumor Progression
This study investigates how genetic background affects cancer evolution, showing that inherited genetic differences shape tumor growth, driver mutations, and
medicine.yale.edu
In a new @nature.com study, YSM researchers examine how inherited #genetics influence the progression and evolution of #liver #cancer. Learn more and find the full study: medicine.yale.edu/publication-...
Nature research paper: Genetic background sets the trajectory of experimental cancer evolution go.nature.com/3RzmnjJ
Genetic background sets the trajectory of experimental cancer evolution - Nature
Experimentally replaying tumour evolution in divergent mouse strains reveals the importance of interactions between genetic ancestry and acquired cancer-driving mutations in shaping the earliest stages of cancer development.
go.nature.com
It's fantastic to see this finally published! Huge credit to @s-j-aitken.bsky.social and @mstaylor.bsky.social for their determination and creativity on this project, which went in many unexpected directions (with many people along for the ride) and way beyond the initial experimental questions
Sarah Aitken@s-j-aitken.bsky.social · 2mo ago🧬NEW PAPER🧬 To what extent is cancer development deterministic? Does the germline genome affect that predictability? Find out in our #StrainDifferences paper @nature.com "Genetic background sets the trajectory of experimental cancer evolution" www.nature.com/articles/s41... 🧵[1/14]
Great to see the publication of this paper in @nature.com involving @mstaylor.bsky.social as part of an international team of researchers.
Martin Taylor@mstaylor.bsky.social · 2mo agoTo what extent is cancer development deterministic? Does the germline genome affect that predictability? We re-ran cancer evolution to answer these questions. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
To what extent is cancer development deterministic? Does the germline genome affect that predictability? We re-ran cancer evolution to answer these questions. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Thread from @s-j-aitken.bsky.social explaining our new paper that finds strong epistatic interactions between germline genetic background and somatic driver mutations that set the course of cancer development.
Sarah Aitken@s-j-aitken.bsky.social · 2mo ago🧬NEW PAPER🧬 To what extent is cancer development deterministic? Does the germline genome affect that predictability? Find out in our #StrainDifferences paper @nature.com "Genetic background sets the trajectory of experimental cancer evolution" www.nature.com/articles/s41... 🧵[1/14]
🧬NEW PAPER🧬 To what extent is cancer development deterministic? Does the germline genome affect that predictability? Find out in our #StrainDifferences paper @nature.com "Genetic background sets the trajectory of experimental cancer evolution" www.nature.com/articles/s41... 🧵[1/14]
Genetic background sets the trajectory of experimental cancer evolution - Nature
Experimentally replaying tumour evolution in divergent mouse strains reveals the importance of interactions between genetic ancestry and acquired cancer-driving mutations in shaping the earliest stage...
nature.com
new out in Nature www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Genetic background sets the trajectory of experimental cancer evolution - Nature
Experimentally replaying tumour evolution in divergent mouse strains reveals the importance of interactions between genetic ancestry and acquired cancer-driving mutations in shaping the earliest stage...
nature.com
I’m very grateful to be one of the 2026 Pew-Stewart Cancer Research scholars! Thanks to @pew.org and The Alexander and Margaret Stewart Trust for supporting, @yalecancer.bsky.social for nominating, and my lab, mentors, collaborators, letter writers, and reviewers for their confidence in our work.
Yale Cancer Center@yalecancer.bsky.social · 4mo agoCongratulations to Sarah Aitken, MBChB, PhD, @s-j-aitken.bsky.social, named to the 2026 class of the Pew-Stewart Scholars Program for Cancer Research. medicine.yale.edu/news-article... @pewtrusts.bsky.social @yalepathology.bsky.social
Congratulations to Sarah Aitken, MBChB, PhD, @s-j-aitken.bsky.social, named to the 2026 class of the Pew-Stewart Scholars Program for Cancer Research. medicine.yale.edu/news-article... @pewtrusts.bsky.social @yalepathology.bsky.social
Two great postdoc projects, amazing team, fabulous city… ⬇️
Martin Taylor@mstaylor.bsky.social · 4mo agoInterested in DNA damage and the mechanisms of mutagenesis? We are hiring post-doctoral scientists as part of the amazing CAUSE Cancer Grand Challenge team. Biochemistry, genomics and computational biology... tinyurl.com/yc5xs3wa tinyurl.com/4unu5uu9 CAUSE www.cancergrandchallenges.org/cause
Congratulations to Dr Klaske Schukken for her postdoc work on aneuploidy dependencies: three different approaches, dozens of genome wide CRISPR screens, and functionally validated results. Well done Klaske 🤩
bioRxivpreprint@biorxivpreprint.bsky.social · 5mo agoPaired CRISPR screens identify mitochondrial metabolism and UBE2H as aneuploid-specific dependencies in human cancer cell lines https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.04.26.720636v1
Tumor promotion through the lens of evolution This review grew out of many long conversations, shared ideas, and lively discussions It has been a real pleasure to think together with Allan, Paul, Eve, and Abel about how tumours develop and how carcinogens shape cancer risk rdcu.be/fdC2J
Tumour promotion through the lens of evolution
Nature - This Review revisits tumour initiation and promotion in light of clonal diversity and the presence of cancer driver mutations in normal tissues, aiming to understand mechanisms that enable...
rdcu.be
Excited to share our latest work in Nature. Applying single-molecule and single-cell DNA sequencing methods, we uncover an extraordinary landscape of somatic mutations in immune checkpoint genes in autoimmune B cells, suggesting that somatic mutations may be key to autoimmunity [1/n] rdcu.be/fdqbr
Polyclonal selection of immune checkpoint mutations in thyroid autoimmunity
Nature - Polyclonal selection of immune checkpoint mutations in thyroid autoimmunity
rdcu.be
The 67th #IWD of 2026 👩🏽💻👩🏼🔬👩🏾⚕️👩🏻🏫🌈✊🏾🌍
Sarah Aitken@s-j-aitken.bsky.social · 8mo agoToday (and every day), we are doing our bit towards Building Inclusive Futures for Women and Girls (and men and boys) Claudia, Emma, and Yi in Cambridge; Barbara in Madrid; and Klaske, Rohini, Tanuja, Vanessa, and Katie in New Haven 👩🏻💻👩🏼🔬👩🏽⚕️ #idwgs2026 #WomenInSTEM #WWCode
We’re excited to reveal that team CAUSE led by Ludmil Alexandrov at @ucsandiego.bsky.social has been selected by @cancergrand.bsky.social to receive up to $25m over approx 5 years to take on one of cancer’s toughest challenges. Congratulations @mstaylor.bsky.social from IGC & team: edin.ac/4kYC1iR
📰 News announcement! www.cancergrandchallenges.org/new-teams-an... We’re thrilled to welcome five world-leading scientific teams, each awarded up to £20 million, to take on some of the toughest unanswered questions in #CancerResearch. Find out more about the teams and their challenges.
$125m awarded to five visionary teams
$125m awarded to five visionary teams
cancergrandchallenges.org
Today (and every day), we are doing our bit towards Building Inclusive Futures for Women and Girls (and men and boys) Claudia, Emma, and Yi in Cambridge; Barbara in Madrid; and Klaske, Rohini, Tanuja, Vanessa, and Katie in New Haven 👩🏻💻👩🏼🔬👩🏽⚕️ #idwgs2026 #WomenInSTEM #WWCode