Colin Conine
@colinconine.bsky.social
Small RNA biologist at UPenn & CHOP
www.coninelab.com
Interested in small RNAs, germlines, inheritance, sports, and Shiba Inu’s
www.coninelab.com
Interested in small RNAs, germlines, inheritance, sports, and Shiba Inu’s
Pinned
Colin Conine
@colinconine.bsky.social
· Apr 16
tRNA-derived RNA processing in sperm transmits non-genetically inherited phenotypes to offspring in C. elegans https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.04.14.648817v1
The first C. elegans paper from lab! We find that, similar to mammals, tRNA-fragments (or the new name in the field tDRs) accumulate in worm sperm and can transmit non-genetically inherited phenotypes to offspring. We also find an RNase that regulates their processing, showing that length matters
Reposted by Colin Conine
Reposted by Colin Conine
We are recruiting a PhD student!
A fully-funded position at The University of Newcastle, Australia. The candidate will be part of a team investigating how the sperm RNA profile is shaped. See more in link below or get in touch.
A fully-funded position at The University of Newcastle, Australia. The candidate will be part of a team investigating how the sperm RNA profile is shaped. See more in link below or get in touch.
February 2, 2026 at 6:54 AM
We are recruiting a PhD student!
A fully-funded position at The University of Newcastle, Australia. The candidate will be part of a team investigating how the sperm RNA profile is shaped. See more in link below or get in touch.
A fully-funded position at The University of Newcastle, Australia. The candidate will be part of a team investigating how the sperm RNA profile is shaped. See more in link below or get in touch.
Reposted by Colin Conine
Two tiers of piRNA clusters balance diversification of piRNAs with limitation of off-target effects https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.01.28.702291v1
February 1, 2026 at 3:18 AM
Two tiers of piRNA clusters balance diversification of piRNAs with limitation of off-target effects https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.01.28.702291v1
Reposted by Colin Conine
One protein. One pathway. A whole germline fate.
New paper from my postdoc @mpi-bio-fml.bsky.social out in PNAS:
Germline fate determination by a single ARGONAUTE protein in Ectocarpus www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
New paper from my postdoc @mpi-bio-fml.bsky.social out in PNAS:
Germline fate determination by a single ARGONAUTE protein in Ectocarpus www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Germline fate determination by a single ARGONAUTE protein in Ectocarpus | PNAS
ARGONAUTE (AGO) proteins are a highly conserved family of RNA-binding proteins that
play central roles in gene regulation and developmental process...
www.pnas.org
January 30, 2026 at 9:14 AM
One protein. One pathway. A whole germline fate.
New paper from my postdoc @mpi-bio-fml.bsky.social out in PNAS:
Germline fate determination by a single ARGONAUTE protein in Ectocarpus www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
New paper from my postdoc @mpi-bio-fml.bsky.social out in PNAS:
Germline fate determination by a single ARGONAUTE protein in Ectocarpus www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Reposted by Colin Conine
And for this, I admire them both so much.
No one is coming to save us. We have to be the change we want to see in the world and that always starts with making some changes within ourselves. We can start by reimagining ourselves to meet the moment.
If Victor can do it, we can do it too. ❤️✊🏼
No one is coming to save us. We have to be the change we want to see in the world and that always starts with making some changes within ourselves. We can start by reimagining ourselves to meet the moment.
If Victor can do it, we can do it too. ❤️✊🏼
January 27, 2026 at 12:25 AM
And for this, I admire them both so much.
No one is coming to save us. We have to be the change we want to see in the world and that always starts with making some changes within ourselves. We can start by reimagining ourselves to meet the moment.
If Victor can do it, we can do it too. ❤️✊🏼
No one is coming to save us. We have to be the change we want to see in the world and that always starts with making some changes within ourselves. We can start by reimagining ourselves to meet the moment.
If Victor can do it, we can do it too. ❤️✊🏼
Reposted by Colin Conine
Pregnancy loss is common in humans, and chromosomal abnormalities are the leading cause. Using genetic data from ~140,000 IVF embryos, we show that maternal variation in meiosis genes influences recombination and aneuploidy risk.
First authors: @saracarioscia.bsky.social & @aabiddanda.github.io
First authors: @saracarioscia.bsky.social & @aabiddanda.github.io
Common variation in meiosis genes shapes human recombination and aneuploidy - Nature
Analysis of data from pre-implantation genetic testing sheds light on the genetic basis of meiotic-origin aneuploidy, the leading cause of human pregnancy loss, identifying common genetic variants ass...
www.nature.com
January 21, 2026 at 9:14 PM
Pregnancy loss is common in humans, and chromosomal abnormalities are the leading cause. Using genetic data from ~140,000 IVF embryos, we show that maternal variation in meiosis genes influences recombination and aneuploidy risk.
First authors: @saracarioscia.bsky.social & @aabiddanda.github.io
First authors: @saracarioscia.bsky.social & @aabiddanda.github.io
Reposted by Colin Conine
Nature research paper: A nowhere-to-hide mechanism ensures complete piRNA-directed DNA methylation
go.nature.com/4pDVgPq
go.nature.com/4pDVgPq
A nowhere-to-hide mechanism ensures complete piRNA-directed DNA methylation - Nature
In mice, a SPOCD1–TPR-dependent ‘nowhere-to-hide’ mechanism is required for complete non-stochastic piRNA-directed LINE1 DNA methylation by preventing transposons from escaping surveillance within heterochromatin.
go.nature.com
January 16, 2026 at 3:25 PM
Nature research paper: A nowhere-to-hide mechanism ensures complete piRNA-directed DNA methylation
go.nature.com/4pDVgPq
go.nature.com/4pDVgPq
Reposted by Colin Conine
None of RNA’s remarkably versatile forms are built to last — not even within the cell that they came from. www.quantamagazine.org/cells-across...
January 11, 2026 at 4:46 PM
None of RNA’s remarkably versatile forms are built to last — not even within the cell that they came from. www.quantamagazine.org/cells-across...
Reposted by Colin Conine
Our paper on the Expanded Registry of candidate cis-Regulatory Elements (cCREs) is out 🎉
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
To celebrate, here’s a "meme-torial" walkthrough of the science.
Let’s get started 🧵 1/11
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
To celebrate, here’s a "meme-torial" walkthrough of the science.
Let’s get started 🧵 1/11
a man wearing a plaid shirt and a purple hat is saying here we go .
ALT: a man wearing a plaid shirt and a purple hat is saying here we go .
media.tenor.com
January 8, 2026 at 2:04 AM
Our paper on the Expanded Registry of candidate cis-Regulatory Elements (cCREs) is out 🎉
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
To celebrate, here’s a "meme-torial" walkthrough of the science.
Let’s get started 🧵 1/11
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
To celebrate, here’s a "meme-torial" walkthrough of the science.
Let’s get started 🧵 1/11
Reposted by Colin Conine
Stress controls epigenetic inheritance!
A histone ubiquitylation-based regulatory hub links stress/environmental signaling to heterochromatin self-propagation and epigenetic inheritance-reshaping how we think about development, drug resistance, and cancer
👉 nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09899-8
A histone ubiquitylation-based regulatory hub links stress/environmental signaling to heterochromatin self-propagation and epigenetic inheritance-reshaping how we think about development, drug resistance, and cancer
👉 nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09899-8
January 7, 2026 at 4:46 PM
Stress controls epigenetic inheritance!
A histone ubiquitylation-based regulatory hub links stress/environmental signaling to heterochromatin self-propagation and epigenetic inheritance-reshaping how we think about development, drug resistance, and cancer
👉 nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09899-8
A histone ubiquitylation-based regulatory hub links stress/environmental signaling to heterochromatin self-propagation and epigenetic inheritance-reshaping how we think about development, drug resistance, and cancer
👉 nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09899-8
Reposted by Colin Conine
We are thrilled to share our latest work uncovering the mechanistic basis of target-directed microRNA degradation (TDMD). This work was driven by @jakobfarnung.bsky.social and @elenaslo.bsky.social in a fantastic collaboration with Brenda Schulman's lab. tinyurl.com/E3TDMD (1/5)
January 6, 2026 at 3:16 PM
We are thrilled to share our latest work uncovering the mechanistic basis of target-directed microRNA degradation (TDMD). This work was driven by @jakobfarnung.bsky.social and @elenaslo.bsky.social in a fantastic collaboration with Brenda Schulman's lab. tinyurl.com/E3TDMD (1/5)
Reposted by Colin Conine
Mpox is transmitted by sex, but is it transmitted by semen?
We first need to know if the virus is actually replicating in the testes, so that’s what we set out to find, led by @akelvinlab.bsky.social
Yep, there’s MPXV growing in those balls!
rasmussenretorts.substack.com/p/is-that-mp...
We first need to know if the virus is actually replicating in the testes, so that’s what we set out to find, led by @akelvinlab.bsky.social
Yep, there’s MPXV growing in those balls!
rasmussenretorts.substack.com/p/is-that-mp...
Is that Mpox in Your Balls or Are You Just Happy to See This Preprint?
Deez disordered seminiferous tubules
rasmussenretorts.substack.com
January 2, 2026 at 5:27 PM
Mpox is transmitted by sex, but is it transmitted by semen?
We first need to know if the virus is actually replicating in the testes, so that’s what we set out to find, led by @akelvinlab.bsky.social
Yep, there’s MPXV growing in those balls!
rasmussenretorts.substack.com/p/is-that-mp...
We first need to know if the virus is actually replicating in the testes, so that’s what we set out to find, led by @akelvinlab.bsky.social
Yep, there’s MPXV growing in those balls!
rasmussenretorts.substack.com/p/is-that-mp...
Reposted by Colin Conine
What a father eats, drinks, inhales, is stressed by or otherwise experiences in the weeks and months before he conceives a child might be encoded in molecules, packaged into his sperm cells and transmitted to his future kid.
How Dad’s Fitness May Be Packaged and Passed Down in Sperm RNA | Quanta Magazine
Research into how a father’s choices — such as diet, exercise, stress, nicotine use — may transfer traits to his children has become impossible to ignore.
www.quantamagazine.org
January 1, 2026 at 1:15 AM
What a father eats, drinks, inhales, is stressed by or otherwise experiences in the weeks and months before he conceives a child might be encoded in molecules, packaged into his sperm cells and transmitted to his future kid.
As a belated Christmas 🎁 I’d like a 3X4’ poster of this 🎅
Also check out the article. They reference our work (and I’m quoted a couple times)!
Also check out the article. They reference our work (and I’m quoted a couple times)!
Research in mice shows that the epididymis, a small organ at the back of the testicle, passes information about a father’s lived condition, such as a high-fat diet, rigorous exercise or toxin exposure, in sperm molecules. www.quantamagazine.org/how-dads-fit...
December 26, 2025 at 10:11 PM
As a belated Christmas 🎁 I’d like a 3X4’ poster of this 🎅
Also check out the article. They reference our work (and I’m quoted a couple times)!
Also check out the article. They reference our work (and I’m quoted a couple times)!
Reposted by Colin Conine
We tend to emphasize the maternal role in development: an egg cell is enormous compared to a sperm cell, and a mother gestates the embryo. But a growing body of research suggests that sperm cells carry more than just genetic information. www.quantamagazine.org/how-dads-fit...
December 23, 2025 at 9:04 PM
We tend to emphasize the maternal role in development: an egg cell is enormous compared to a sperm cell, and a mother gestates the embryo. But a growing body of research suggests that sperm cells carry more than just genetic information. www.quantamagazine.org/how-dads-fit...
Reposted by Colin Conine
Intrigued by a long-standing conundrum in small RNA biology—how nuclear Argonaute proteins silence transposons when they *need* target transcription for their own recruitment—we studied the piRNA pathway.
And found a hidden RNA-decay axis from Piwi to the RNA exosome.
And found a hidden RNA-decay axis from Piwi to the RNA exosome.
RNA decay via the nuclear exosome is essential for piwi-mediated transposon silencing https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.16.694471v1
December 22, 2025 at 6:14 PM
Intrigued by a long-standing conundrum in small RNA biology—how nuclear Argonaute proteins silence transposons when they *need* target transcription for their own recruitment—we studied the piRNA pathway.
And found a hidden RNA-decay axis from Piwi to the RNA exosome.
And found a hidden RNA-decay axis from Piwi to the RNA exosome.
Reposted by Colin Conine
Happy to share two BioRxiv manuscripts from our lab. One on genetic Argonaute interaction and unexpected non-correlation between small RNAs and their targets:
doi.org/10.64898/202...
The second on IDR processing and IDR-mediated Argonaute loading control:
doi.org/10.64898/202...
Merry Xmas😊
doi.org/10.64898/202...
The second on IDR processing and IDR-mediated Argonaute loading control:
doi.org/10.64898/202...
Merry Xmas😊
December 22, 2025 at 2:06 PM
Happy to share two BioRxiv manuscripts from our lab. One on genetic Argonaute interaction and unexpected non-correlation between small RNAs and their targets:
doi.org/10.64898/202...
The second on IDR processing and IDR-mediated Argonaute loading control:
doi.org/10.64898/202...
Merry Xmas😊
doi.org/10.64898/202...
The second on IDR processing and IDR-mediated Argonaute loading control:
doi.org/10.64898/202...
Merry Xmas😊
Reposted by Colin Conine
Hmmm ... sperm RNAs? Paternal effects? It's like an early Christmas present! Very nice article by Ivan Amato, including quotes and work from some excellent scientists like @colinconine.bsky.social ... and me, as well. ;)
www.quantamagazine.org/how-dads-fit...
www.quantamagazine.org/how-dads-fit...
How Dad’s Fitness May Be Packaged and Passed Down in Sperm RNA | Quanta Magazine
Research into how a father’s choices — such as diet, exercise, stress, nicotine use — may transfer traits to his children has become impossible to ignore.
www.quantamagazine.org
December 22, 2025 at 5:59 PM
Hmmm ... sperm RNAs? Paternal effects? It's like an early Christmas present! Very nice article by Ivan Amato, including quotes and work from some excellent scientists like @colinconine.bsky.social ... and me, as well. ;)
www.quantamagazine.org/how-dads-fit...
www.quantamagazine.org/how-dads-fit...
Reposted by Colin Conine
In a recent study, the fitness of a father mouse at the time of conception was found to have metabolic and mitochondrial benefits for his offspring. Similar signatures were found in the sperm of well-exercised human men. @ivanamato.bsky.social reports: www.quantamagazine.org/how-dads-fit...
How Dad’s Fitness May Be Packaged and Passed Down in Sperm RNA | Quanta Magazine
Research into how a father’s choices, including diet, exercise, stress and nicotine use, may transfer traits to his children epigenetically has become impossible to ignore.
www.quantamagazine.org
December 22, 2025 at 3:21 PM
In a recent study, the fitness of a father mouse at the time of conception was found to have metabolic and mitochondrial benefits for his offspring. Similar signatures were found in the sperm of well-exercised human men. @ivanamato.bsky.social reports: www.quantamagazine.org/how-dads-fit...
Reposted by Colin Conine
New review out! 🧬🪱 How do Argonautes bind the right small RNAs?
We synthesize how small RNA features, Argonaute properties, chaperones, and subcellular organization shape small RNA binding specificity.
rnajournal.cshlp.org/content/earl...
We synthesize how small RNA features, Argonaute properties, chaperones, and subcellular organization shape small RNA binding specificity.
rnajournal.cshlp.org/content/earl...
Decoding Argonaute Specificity: Insights from C. elegans and Beyond
A monthly journal publishing high-quality, peer-reviewed research on all topics related to RNA and its metabolism in all organisms
rnajournal.cshlp.org
December 17, 2025 at 6:52 PM
New review out! 🧬🪱 How do Argonautes bind the right small RNAs?
We synthesize how small RNA features, Argonaute properties, chaperones, and subcellular organization shape small RNA binding specificity.
rnajournal.cshlp.org/content/earl...
We synthesize how small RNA features, Argonaute properties, chaperones, and subcellular organization shape small RNA binding specificity.
rnajournal.cshlp.org/content/earl...
Reposted by Colin Conine
Reposted by Colin Conine
Here, @amywebster.bsky.social & @patrickphillips.bsky.social review the role of genetic and environmental causes in shaping epigenetic regulation at three timescales: among individuals within a generation, across one or multiple generations and sustained over evolutionary time go.nature.com/4pXiKQ4
Epigenetics and individuality: from concepts to causality across timescales - Nature Reviews Genetics
Recent genomic approaches are providing unprecedented opportunity to disentangle how genotype and environment affect organismal traits. The authors review the role of epigenetic variation in mediating...
go.nature.com
December 11, 2025 at 12:59 PM
Here, @amywebster.bsky.social & @patrickphillips.bsky.social review the role of genetic and environmental causes in shaping epigenetic regulation at three timescales: among individuals within a generation, across one or multiple generations and sustained over evolutionary time go.nature.com/4pXiKQ4
Reposted by Colin Conine
We can now properly credit to @swinburnelab.bsky.social 🤩 Welcome to Bluesky! 🧪
Synchronized development of zebrafish embryos immobilized by snake venom (alpha-bungarotoxin). Credit to Dr. Ian Swinburne. #ZebrafishZunday
December 5, 2025 at 7:54 AM
We can now properly credit to @swinburnelab.bsky.social 🤩 Welcome to Bluesky! 🧪
Reposted by Colin Conine
"Lysosomal activation leaves a lasting memory"
by Siu Sylvia Lee
"In a recent study, Zhang et al show that lysosomal activation induces somatic histone H3.3 production, which moves to the germline and is methylated at K79 to transmit longevity"
FREE till Jan 24
authors.elsevier.com/a/1mDhQcQbJF...
by Siu Sylvia Lee
"In a recent study, Zhang et al show that lysosomal activation induces somatic histone H3.3 production, which moves to the germline and is methylated at K79 to transmit longevity"
FREE till Jan 24
authors.elsevier.com/a/1mDhQcQbJF...
December 5, 2025 at 9:49 PM
"Lysosomal activation leaves a lasting memory"
by Siu Sylvia Lee
"In a recent study, Zhang et al show that lysosomal activation induces somatic histone H3.3 production, which moves to the germline and is methylated at K79 to transmit longevity"
FREE till Jan 24
authors.elsevier.com/a/1mDhQcQbJF...
by Siu Sylvia Lee
"In a recent study, Zhang et al show that lysosomal activation induces somatic histone H3.3 production, which moves to the germline and is methylated at K79 to transmit longevity"
FREE till Jan 24
authors.elsevier.com/a/1mDhQcQbJF...