Tessera

Blair Strang

@strangviruslab.bsky.social

City St George's, University of London. HCMV, anti-viral drugs, congenital/placental infection etc etc etc. #JGV Editoral Board. Views my own.

473 Posts618 Follower 220 Folgt

Katy Brown @thekatybrown.bsky.social · 2d ago

Me, @emma-harding.bsky.social, @rtarlinton.bsky.social and @royalsociety.org are organising a meeting on endogenous viral elements! 8-9 Feb 2027, Birmingham UK. 2 whole days of EVEs! Many amazing researchers already agreed to speak. Invites: shorturl.at/jp9sh Provisional schedule: shorturl.at/8O5KV

Endogenous viral elements | Royal Society

Theo Murphy meeting organised by Dr Katy Brown, Dr Emma Harding and Professor Rachael Tarlinton

royalsociety.org

RTarlinton.bsky.social @rtarlinton.bsky.social · 4d ago

If you are as obsessed with endogenous viral elements in host genomes as I am, Save the date! will be a most excellent meeting mostly organised by @thekatybrown.bsky.social (even though my name is on it) royalsociety.org/science-even...

Endogenous viral elements | Royal Society

Theo Murphy meeting organised by Dr Katy Brown, Dr Emma Harding and Professor Rachael Tarlinton

royalsociety.org

Ryan Marino, MD @ryanmarino.bsky.social · 4d ago

Taking my time to really listen and learn from the very valid concerns of the MAHA movement:

(Facebook group post screenshot)

Hi, can I drink my urine while in antibiotics?
Thanks

Don't get on antibiotics!!!

Memento (artemis) Morty 🌙@mementomorty.bsky.social · 4d ago

we should hear MAHA out about this they might be onto something

Nature @nature.com · 4d ago

A severe bout of COVID-19 can wake up an army of dormant viruses hiding inside the body go.nature.com/4fDUY9w

COVID can wake up a slew of dormant viruses inside you

Reactivation of typically harmless anelloviruses, in particular, seems to be linked with developing long COVID, study finds.

go.nature.com

Chris Sullivan @sullivanlab.bsky.social · 4d ago

COVID awakens persistent viruses especially in the herpes and anello virus families. Cool example of RNA virus/DNA virus crosstalk. Maybe this adds to the inflammatory burden and misery. Congrats to UT Austin researcher Ester Melamed and co authors on this work. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Virus reactivation in acute and long COVID-19 - Nature

Chronic reactivation of distinct herpesviruses and anelloviruses occur during acute and long COVID-19, and track with disease severity, inflammation and outcomes, revealing immune signatures with prog...

nature.com

Thelonevirologist @thelonevirologist.bsky.social · 5d ago

No link between MMR vaccination before age 2 and autism, large US study suggests www.cidrap.umn.edu/childhood-va...

No link between MMR vaccination before age 2 and autism, large US study suggests

The findings reinforce existing evidence of the safety of MMR vaccination, the authors say.

cidrap.umn.edu

Thelonevirologist @thelonevirologist.bsky.social · 5d ago

Universal screening could find more babies born with cytomegalovirus infection, researchers say www.cidrap.umn.edu/misc-emergin...

Universal screening could find more babies born with cytomegalovirus infection, researchers say

cidrap.umn.edu

Nature @nature.com · 6d ago

Nature research paper: Rational design of disordered proteins for sequence–function investigation go.nature.com/4gZoDuW

Rational design of disordered proteins for sequence–function investigation - Nature

GOOSE enables the design and testing of thousands of disordered protein region sequences to reveal distinct sequence-to-function relationships.

go.nature.com

Scott Galloway @profgalloway.com · 7d ago

For God's sake,,, give Fauci a gold watch and a dinner and a party.

Microbiology Society @microbiologysociety.org · last wk.

Research visit grant applications are open. Check your eligibility and apply before 1 Oct 2026 at 23.59 BST: https://microb.io/ResearchVisitGrant. #Grant #Microbiology #ECR #EarlyCareer

Veerender Singh Jubbal @veerenderjubbal.bsky.social · last wk.

Sam Altman
@sama •7h
cool use case of chatgpt work i heard last night:
connect your family calendars and explain your kids' interests.
every morning for the drive to school, have it make a podcast that talks about one kid's soccer game that afternoon, one kid's upcoming birthday, some news, etc.
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What if you just talked to your children

Thelonevirologist @thelonevirologist.bsky.social · last wk.

Nanoparticles for antiviral nucleotide analogs: approaches and analytical challenges journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

Nanoparticles for antiviral nucleotide analogs: approaches and analytical challenges | Journal of Virology

Viral infections are a major economic and epidemiological burden on modern society, responsible for millions of deaths each year, and often have a disproportionate burden on at-risk and vulnerable pop...

journals.asm.org

Asperas Bompar @asperasbompar.bsky.social · last wk.

Wakanda tariffs going to get doubled now

US government lists fictional nation Wakanda as trade partner

Officials say it was an error to add the fictional nation from Black Panther to the list.

bbc.com

Miguel Hernandez Gonzalez @miguel-virus-cells.bsky.social · last wk.

Great to see this finally published! We describe channels at the poxvirus core wall involved in nucleic acid release. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

In situ structure of the poxvirus portal complex - Nature

Cryo-electron tomography uncovers the structure of a conserved hexameric ‘portal complex’ that spans the core wall in vaccinia virus, and shows how it is associated with viral functions such as a...

nature.com

Onisillos @onisillos.bsky.social · last wk.

Given the overwhelming demand (🤥), here are the editorials I've written on covid origins: www.thelancet.com/journals/lan... and www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

SARS-CoV-2 is a natural virus that found its way into humans through mundane contact with infected wildlife that went on to cause the most consequential pandemic for over a century. While it is scholarly to entertain alternative hypotheses, particularly when evidence is scarce, these alternative hypotheses have been implausible for a long time and have only become more-so with increasing scrutiny. Those who eagerly peddle suggestions of laboratory involvement have consistently failed to present credible arguments to support their positions.
Take the time to reflect on the paragraph above and how many words were expended to make the simple point that COVID-19 had a natural origin. This is because there are many people, most notably in the USA, with disproportionate influence who are poised to seize on less explicit statements to undermine a simple, and pretty straightforward, truth. These are the same people who are willing to malign individuals—a topical example being former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Anthony Fauci—who dedicated themselves to understanding and lessening the impact of the pandemic.
The sheer hubris needed to underpin alternative hypotheses was an early signal of their tenuousness, when we are intensely aware that the natural processes needed to bring about this sort of pandemic are constantly churning and testing the boundaries between animal and human populations. The most remarkable thing about the whole COVID-19 origin saga is the confected controversy over something that should not be controversial at all. The thing that should be controversial is how little of the energy expended over this discussion has been directed towards actual beneficial outcomes.
To be frank, the fanciful ideas put forward by self-described free thinkers are more in keeping with popular movies than the realities of working with pathogens. It is admirable to pursue curiosity wherever it might lead and to reject the constraints of…

A year ago, August 2024, we addressed the state of discussions about COVID-19 origins in our Editorial COVID-19 origins: plain speaking is overdue. We did not lay out the evidence because the space we had available was not sufficient to address the points in detail. And the evidence was presented in a comprehensive and digestible fashion by the authors of the relevant research. Our focus was laying out the situation in a clear and uncluttered way, to counter the many commentators in the press who were giving their assessments based on what they wanted to believe (or what would make a more entertaining story) rather than what they could back up with evidence. Given the potential consequences, to pandemic prevention and public health in general, they were being irresponsible.
On June 27, 2025, WHO’s Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO) published their report Independent Assessment of the Origins of SARS-CoV-2. This report provides an update in the context of information that has emerged since their 2022 report. The report outlines the most prominent hypotheses and reflects on the supporting evidence for each of them. They stress that they did not have access to raw data when preparing this report, and SAGO and WHO have requested further information from governments, including those that have made assertions about the origins of SARS-CoV-2: China, Germany, and the USA. At the time of writing the report this information had not been provided. Meaning that this report is based on published literature, not so-called intelligence touted by some governments.
The report outlines four hypotheses but essentially two are based on zoonotic spillover and two are based on a laboratory accident. The assessment in the report from the outset discounts one hypothesis from each of these broad categories due to a lack of evidence, although SAGO remains open to reconsideration if more evidence is forthcoming. Despite giving one of the laboratory accident…

Abraham lab at HMS/HHMI @abrahamlabhms.bsky.social · last wk.

We are excited to share two preprints reporting a mosquito-specific receptor for chikungunya virus and other alphaviruses! 🤩 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... @harvardmicro.bsky.social @harvardvirology.bsky.social @hhmi-science.bsky.social

Thelonevirologist @thelonevirologist.bsky.social · last wk.

Persistent cytolytic CD8+ T cells recognize SARS-CoV-2 and herpesvirus epitopes in long COVID www.cell.com/cell-reports...

Persistent cytolytic CD8+ T cells recognize SARS-CoV-2 and herpesvirus epitopes in long COVID

Ma et al. perform deep-phenotyping of CD8+ T cells specific for viruses implicated in LC pathogenesis: SARS-CoV-2, CMV, and EBV. These T cells from LC individuals share features of terminal differenti...

cell.com

Spyros Lytras @spyroslytras.bsky.social · 2w ago

Come work on exciting AI for biology projects in Paris!! 🇫🇷 Details and application below, deadline sept 1st!

Antigen Evolution & Design Lab@antigenevo.bsky.social · 3w ago

🚨 JOB ALERT🚨 We are very excited to be hiring the lab's ✨very first postdoc✨! Work on new AI technologies for decoding antigen protein evolution in a fresh research environment, at the heart of Paris 🇫🇷 Details & link to apply: research.pasteur.fr/en/job/postd... Deadline: Sep 1st

Thelonevirologist @thelonevirologist.bsky.social · 3w ago

Bundibugyo ebolavirus from the 2026 Ebola outbreak in Uganda and DR Congo: a new variant - The Lancet www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

Bundibugyo ebolavirus from the 2026 Ebola outbreak in Uganda and DR Congo: a new variant

Bundibugyo ebolavirus (BDBV) is one of three species members of the genus Orthoebolavirus (family Filoviridae) that cause disease in humans. The first BDBV outbreak was in the western Uganda district ...

thelancet.com

Thelonevirologist @thelonevirologist.bsky.social · 3w ago

Reconsidering the rVSVΔG-ZEBOV-GP vaccine during the 2026 Bundibugyo virus outbreak - The Lancet Infectious Diseases www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

Reconsidering the rVSVΔG-ZEBOV-GP vaccine during the 2026 Bundibugyo virus outbreak

The ongoing 2026 Bundibugyo virus disease (BVD) public health emergency of international concern in DR Congo and Uganda has exposed gaps in preparedness for non-zairense orthoebolaviruses. With BVD va...

thelancet.com

Carl Quintanilla @carlquintanilla.bsky.social · 3w ago

“The Guardian wins the ‘Caption of the Year’ competition: - William Merrin @theguardian.com

Mahan Ghafari @mghafari.bsky.social · 4w ago

A long time in the making, and exciting to finally see this work published. We show how the PoW model resolves evolutionary events across vastly different timescales, from the origins of HIV-1 and HIV-2 lineages, through the deeper history of SIVs, to the ancient split between SIV and pSIV and more.

Aris Katzourakis@ariskatzourakis.bsky.social · last mo.

Completed our work on reconstructing the viral histories of human, simian and prosimian immunodeficiency viruses across multiple evolutionary timescales, with @mghafari.bsky.social & @psimmond.bsky.social royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...

Kristian G. Andersen @kgandersen.bsky.social · 4w ago

"The overall progress in controlling HIV/AIDS over the past 25 years is nothing short of incredible" However: "Bilateral extractive global health arrangements are becoming normalised, with HIV policy dictated by foreign politicians rather than scientific best practice"

Greg Folkers@gregfolkers.bsky.social · 4w ago

Lancet: Ending HIV: a reality check bit.ly/4vRGVTj

Microbiology Society @microbiologysociety.org · last mo.

Read the latest ICTV Virus Taxonomy Profile on Rhabdoviridae. Available to read in JGV: https://doi.org/10.1099/jgv.0.002255 #JGenVirol

Fig. 1.
(Left) Negative-contrast electron micrograph of vesicular stomatitis Indiana virus particles. Bar: 100 nm (courtesy of P. Perrin). (Right) Schematic illustration of a rhabdovirus virion and ribonucleocapsid structure (courtesy of P. Le Mercier).

turgut keskintürk @tkeskinturk.bsky.social · last mo.

data visualization is my passion.

fox news showing weekly temperatures: 92, 92, 92, 94, 94, 92, 92, with a very strong gap between 94 and 92.

Andrew Wehrman @profwehrman.bsky.social · last mo.

Today is the 250th anniversary of Boston’s mass inoculation against smallpox on July 3, 1776. The city was effectively closed to commerce from July through September 1776. The mass immunization effort was cheered as evidence of true independence. Here's how I described it in my book:

While John Adams and fifty-five men in Philadelphia debated a resolution on independence and the final wording of the Declaration of Independence, the people of Boston declared their own independence from smallpox. The measures taken in both cities provided hope that America would not only be a republic free of a king but also a country free from disease. On July 3, 1776, a day after independence was declared in Philadelphia, the Massachusetts General Court voted to allow inoculation. Despite the dangers of infection, the people of Boston and the surrounding areas cheered the news. Ezekiel Price, a court official and insurance broker, declared “Liberty is given for to inoculate for the small-pox; many begin upon it this afternoon.” Hannah Winthrop described the scene: “Boston has given up its Fears of an invasion & is busily employd in Communicating the Infection. Straw Beds & Cribs are daily Carted into the Town.” She wrote that “Men Women & children eagerly crowding to inoculate is I think as modish as running away from the Troops of a barbarous George was the last year.” Dr. James Warren wrote to John Adams that the “rage for inoculation” had “whirled me into its vortex.…” Warren and his wife Mercy Otis joined Abigail Adams and her four children who had been invited to be inoculated at Abigail’s uncle’s house in Boston along with Abigail’s sisters Elizabeth Cranch and Mary Shaw and their families. Even though Boston was teeming with the sick, the prospect that the city could conquer smallpox made it "a scene delightful indeed." Cotton Tufts was satisfied that he could now "take my leave of Earth, satisfied that the Day of American Redemption was at Hand."

Eddie Burfi @eddieburfi.bsky.social · last mo.

The greatest Mexico v England tweets you will ever read. 😂 As you were.

Jon Phillips @jowiph.bsky.social · last mo.

I would kill or die for Larry

A small operation in Oregon that hunts truffles with a trained dog has added an unpaid trainee. A cat named Larry accompanies the handler and the truffle dog into the woods every outing, works a patch of ground a little apart from them, and digs with tremendous confidence in places where there is nothing.
The handler says Larry has never found a truffle and shows no sign of understanding the assignment. He does not use scent the way the dog does and he does not respond when the dog makes a find.
He simply digs his own holes nearby and then inspects them. "He thinks he's on the team," the handler said. "He is emphatically not on the team."
TRUFFLE DOG FINDS THE TRUFFLES -
'TRAINEE' CAT DIGS RANDOM HOLES AND FINDS DIRT

Cell - a Cell Press journal @cp-cell.bsky.social · last mo.

Now online! A viral ORFeome library for systems-level genetic dissection of host-pathogen interactions

A viral ORFeome library for systems-level genetic dissection of host-pathogen interactions

A scalable library of ∼13,000 barcoded viral open reading frames from >500 viral species enables functional genomic screens across the virome. Applying this platform identified viral regulators of cellular proliferation, antigen presentation, and interferon signaling. This platform enables systematic exploration of viral protein function.

dlvr.it