Iso Hirst
@isobelhirst.bsky.social
Final year PhD student in the Muench group at Leeds, research focusing on sample preparation for cryoEM/ET 🔬
Reposted by Iso Hirst
Excited to share a new chapter of my scientific journey in Chris Russo's group — developing a way to freeze proteins faster than they diffuse, paving the way for cryo-EM without air–water interface damage.
Chris Russo and Anastasiia Gusach have developed a new method to prepare #cryoEM samples that avoids protein damage during freezing
Read more: www2.mrc-lmb.cam.ac.uk/a-new-method...
#LMBResearch
Read more: www2.mrc-lmb.cam.ac.uk/a-new-method...
#LMBResearch
October 22, 2025 at 9:33 PM
Excited to share a new chapter of my scientific journey in Chris Russo's group — developing a way to freeze proteins faster than they diffuse, paving the way for cryo-EM without air–water interface damage.
Reposted by Iso Hirst
❄️ NEW PRE-PRINT ❄️ Happy to see our latest work online. Here we present a super simple solution to the preferred orientation problem in single particle cryo-EM: the use of ultrasonic excitation during vitrification! Details in the 🧵 below... #cryoEM #structuralbiology
Overcoming Preferred Orientation in Cryo-EM With Ultrasonic Excitation During Vitrification https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.09.14.676144v1
September 18, 2025 at 8:04 AM
❄️ NEW PRE-PRINT ❄️ Happy to see our latest work online. Here we present a super simple solution to the preferred orientation problem in single particle cryo-EM: the use of ultrasonic excitation during vitrification! Details in the 🧵 below... #cryoEM #structuralbiology
Reposted by Iso Hirst
This one is a bit of a departure from the usual and definitely a work in progress!
We found that by using ab initio reconstruction at very high res, in very small steps, we could crack some small structures that had eluded us - e.g. 39kDa iPKAc (EMPIAR-10252), below.
Read on for details... 1/x
We found that by using ab initio reconstruction at very high res, in very small steps, we could crack some small structures that had eluded us - e.g. 39kDa iPKAc (EMPIAR-10252), below.
Read on for details... 1/x
September 13, 2025 at 12:05 AM
This one is a bit of a departure from the usual and definitely a work in progress!
We found that by using ab initio reconstruction at very high res, in very small steps, we could crack some small structures that had eluded us - e.g. 39kDa iPKAc (EMPIAR-10252), below.
Read on for details... 1/x
We found that by using ab initio reconstruction at very high res, in very small steps, we could crack some small structures that had eluded us - e.g. 39kDa iPKAc (EMPIAR-10252), below.
Read on for details... 1/x
I submitted my thesis today!!! 4 years of work in 1 pdf 🤯
September 10, 2025 at 7:56 PM
I submitted my thesis today!!! 4 years of work in 1 pdf 🤯
Reposted by Iso Hirst
Bonjour, Madame Bear.
Bears must be my spirit animal as I often think or dream about them, then I either see one in person or on camera card, usually within a few hours.
Bears must be my spirit animal as I often think or dream about them, then I either see one in person or on camera card, usually within a few hours.
August 13, 2025 at 1:03 PM
Bonjour, Madame Bear.
Bears must be my spirit animal as I often think or dream about them, then I either see one in person or on camera card, usually within a few hours.
Bears must be my spirit animal as I often think or dream about them, then I either see one in person or on camera card, usually within a few hours.
Reposted by Iso Hirst
July 25, 2025 at 11:43 AM
Nice!!
bioRxiv has a dedicated section for negative results.
Use it.
Share negative results.
Your colleagues will appreciate it.
Use it.
Share negative results.
Your colleagues will appreciate it.
July 25, 2025 at 11:13 AM
Nice!!
Reposted by Iso Hirst
Angélique-Marguerite du Coudray was a famous 18th century French midwife who designed various teaching aids to train midwives about anatomy and obstetrics. Her work saved many lives in the age #WomensArt
July 24, 2025 at 7:44 AM
Angélique-Marguerite du Coudray was a famous 18th century French midwife who designed various teaching aids to train midwives about anatomy and obstetrics. Her work saved many lives in the age #WomensArt
Reposted by Iso Hirst
The Euro semi-final stage is set. Who is winning it all? 🏆
📸: WEURO2025
📸: WEURO2025
July 20, 2025 at 1:02 PM
The Euro semi-final stage is set. Who is winning it all? 🏆
📸: WEURO2025
📸: WEURO2025
Reposted by Iso Hirst
Recently I learnt that EMBL-EBI has a free online course about AlphaFold — how it works, strengths and limitations, how to use it — and it's very good!
There are also little quizzes and interactives.
www.ebi.ac.uk/training/onl...
There are also little quizzes and interactives.
www.ebi.ac.uk/training/onl...
AlphaFold - A practical guide
AlphaFold - A practical guide
www.ebi.ac.uk
July 21, 2025 at 3:33 PM
Recently I learnt that EMBL-EBI has a free online course about AlphaFold — how it works, strengths and limitations, how to use it — and it's very good!
There are also little quizzes and interactives.
www.ebi.ac.uk/training/onl...
There are also little quizzes and interactives.
www.ebi.ac.uk/training/onl...
Reposted by Iso Hirst
Trans youth deserve healthcare, not courtroom cruelty.
Now, the highest court has sided with bans - against research showing this care improves mental health and saves lives.
💔 We stand with them. We demand science, dignity, and compassion.
zurl.co/QejZr
Now, the highest court has sided with bans - against research showing this care improves mental health and saves lives.
💔 We stand with them. We demand science, dignity, and compassion.
zurl.co/QejZr
What to know about the impacts of the Supreme Court's ruling on transgender care for youth
The U.S. Supreme Court said Tennessee did not violate the constitution by banning gender-affirming care for transgender minors. The case is sure to resonate nationally.
zurl.co
June 20, 2025 at 11:30 PM
Trans youth deserve healthcare, not courtroom cruelty.
Now, the highest court has sided with bans - against research showing this care improves mental health and saves lives.
💔 We stand with them. We demand science, dignity, and compassion.
zurl.co/QejZr
Now, the highest court has sided with bans - against research showing this care improves mental health and saves lives.
💔 We stand with them. We demand science, dignity, and compassion.
zurl.co/QejZr
Reposted by Iso Hirst
🧵 Activists have broken into British Airforcs Base & carried out sabotage to try to help save Palestinian lives & prevent war crimes.
‘RAF Brize Norton military planes damaged as activists break into base ahead of flight.’ [1]
‘RAF Brize Norton military planes damaged as activists break into base ahead of flight.’ [1]
June 20, 2025 at 11:12 AM
🧵 Activists have broken into British Airforcs Base & carried out sabotage to try to help save Palestinian lives & prevent war crimes.
‘RAF Brize Norton military planes damaged as activists break into base ahead of flight.’ [1]
‘RAF Brize Norton military planes damaged as activists break into base ahead of flight.’ [1]
Really enjoying this review of time-resolved cryoEM 😊 especially this lovely summary figure ✍️
www.cell.com/structure/fu...
www.cell.com/structure/fu...
June 19, 2025 at 12:33 PM
Really enjoying this review of time-resolved cryoEM 😊 especially this lovely summary figure ✍️
www.cell.com/structure/fu...
www.cell.com/structure/fu...
Reposted by Iso Hirst
Great to see the conversation in the US around how gender-blind design leaves girls out of parks.
Also great to see Brickfield Park in Bath mentioned – co-created with teenage girls, alongside inspiring examples from Vienna. Awareness is growing!
nextcity.org/urbanist-new...
Also great to see Brickfield Park in Bath mentioned – co-created with teenage girls, alongside inspiring examples from Vienna. Awareness is growing!
nextcity.org/urbanist-new...
Our Public Spaces Are Failing Teen Girls
Op-ed: Adolescent girls are missing from parks, playgrounds — and our gender-blind urban planning. So let’s ask them what they need.
nextcity.org
June 19, 2025 at 11:34 AM
Great to see the conversation in the US around how gender-blind design leaves girls out of parks.
Also great to see Brickfield Park in Bath mentioned – co-created with teenage girls, alongside inspiring examples from Vienna. Awareness is growing!
nextcity.org/urbanist-new...
Also great to see Brickfield Park in Bath mentioned – co-created with teenage girls, alongside inspiring examples from Vienna. Awareness is growing!
nextcity.org/urbanist-new...
Reposted by Iso Hirst
Some good news. Tentatively.
HIV protection with just two shots a year: FDA approves Gilead drug www.statnews.com/2025/06/18/f... via @statnews.com
HIV protection with just two shots a year: FDA approves Gilead drug www.statnews.com/2025/06/18/f... via @statnews.com
HIV protection with just two shots a year: FDA approves Gilead drug
A new twice-yearly shot could be a "game changer" in the fight against AIDS, but experts' hopes have dimmed because of the current political climate.
www.statnews.com
June 18, 2025 at 6:52 PM
Some good news. Tentatively.
HIV protection with just two shots a year: FDA approves Gilead drug www.statnews.com/2025/06/18/f... via @statnews.com
HIV protection with just two shots a year: FDA approves Gilead drug www.statnews.com/2025/06/18/f... via @statnews.com
Reposted by Iso Hirst
Latest preprint from the lab, many years in the making!
By combining #cryoEM with #AlphaFold3 modelling, we propose that norovirus NS3 forms a transmembrane RNA translocase.
This could have big implications for our understanding of viral replication & assembly (🧵)
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
By combining #cryoEM with #AlphaFold3 modelling, we propose that norovirus NS3 forms a transmembrane RNA translocase.
This could have big implications for our understanding of viral replication & assembly (🧵)
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
June 18, 2025 at 6:32 AM
Latest preprint from the lab, many years in the making!
By combining #cryoEM with #AlphaFold3 modelling, we propose that norovirus NS3 forms a transmembrane RNA translocase.
This could have big implications for our understanding of viral replication & assembly (🧵)
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
By combining #cryoEM with #AlphaFold3 modelling, we propose that norovirus NS3 forms a transmembrane RNA translocase.
This could have big implications for our understanding of viral replication & assembly (🧵)
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by Iso Hirst
Proteins operate on a short timescale — on the order of a millisecond, or even faster
https://go.nature.com/4l7qAEm
https://go.nature.com/4l7qAEm
Freeze frame: cracking molecular motion
Time-resolved cryo-electron microscopy can resolve protein motion on millisecond or even microsecond timescales, but the need for highly specialized tools and skills limits the method’s reach.
go.nature.com
June 16, 2025 at 10:22 AM
Proteins operate on a short timescale — on the order of a millisecond, or even faster
https://go.nature.com/4l7qAEm
https://go.nature.com/4l7qAEm
Reposted by Iso Hirst
3.5 yr funded PhD studentship available in my lab October start. Exploring cardiac myosin modulators with cryoEM and mass spec. Get in touch if interested. Apply before 28th July. www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
Unravelling the mechanisms of action of cardiac myosin modulators in health and heart disease at University of Leeds on FindAPhD.com
PhD Project - Unravelling the mechanisms of action of cardiac myosin modulators in health and heart disease at University of Leeds, listed on FindAPhD.com
www.findaphd.com
June 16, 2025 at 6:54 PM
3.5 yr funded PhD studentship available in my lab October start. Exploring cardiac myosin modulators with cryoEM and mass spec. Get in touch if interested. Apply before 28th July. www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
I’m very happy to share my first paper on the effects of AWI interactions and flexibility on SPA data quality! Thank you to everyone on the team 🤩
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Untangling the effects of flexibility and the AWI in cryoEM sample preparation: A case study using KtrA
Single particle cryo-electron microscopy (cryoEM) is a powerful tool for elucidating the structures of biological macromolecules without requiring cry…
www.sciencedirect.com
June 2, 2025 at 5:18 PM
I’m very happy to share my first paper on the effects of AWI interactions and flexibility on SPA data quality! Thank you to everyone on the team 🤩
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by Iso Hirst
"I am hesitant to comment broadly on what it’s like for scientists now in America because I have only limited information about what is going on outside of this detention center. What I do know is that my colleagues, many of whom are, like me, foreign scientists, are terrified"
'I did not complete a customs declaration for frog embryos (...) this would normally result in a warning or fine. Instead, my visa was revoked & I was sent to a detention center in Louisiana, where I have spent the past 3 months with roughly 100 other women. We share one room w dormitory-style beds'
Opinion | I Came to Study Aging. Now I’m Trapped in ICE Detention.
www.nytimes.com
May 14, 2025 at 4:35 AM
"I am hesitant to comment broadly on what it’s like for scientists now in America because I have only limited information about what is going on outside of this detention center. What I do know is that my colleagues, many of whom are, like me, foreign scientists, are terrified"
Reposted by Iso Hirst
Okay hear me out, what if building your protein model was a first person horror survival experience??
#MolecularNodes #b3d #GeometryNodes 🧪
#MolecularNodes #b3d #GeometryNodes 🧪
April 29, 2025 at 9:43 AM
Okay hear me out, what if building your protein model was a first person horror survival experience??
#MolecularNodes #b3d #GeometryNodes 🧪
#MolecularNodes #b3d #GeometryNodes 🧪
Reposted by Iso Hirst
Young Londoners deserve opportunities across the EU.
A youth mobility scheme would strengthen ties with our neighbours, boost our economy and open doors for the next generation at a time of global uncertainty.
A youth mobility scheme would strengthen ties with our neighbours, boost our economy and open doors for the next generation at a time of global uncertainty.
April 28, 2025 at 6:00 AM
Young Londoners deserve opportunities across the EU.
A youth mobility scheme would strengthen ties with our neighbours, boost our economy and open doors for the next generation at a time of global uncertainty.
A youth mobility scheme would strengthen ties with our neighbours, boost our economy and open doors for the next generation at a time of global uncertainty.
Reposted by Iso Hirst
Exciting to see our time-resolved #cryoEM device developed by @stemuench.bsky.social & colleagues in action at the CCPEM Spring Symposium!
Brilliant talk by @scarfflab.bsky.social showing how it helped to visualize the elusive actomyosin primed complex & demonstrate the swinging lever mechanism.
Brilliant talk by @scarfflab.bsky.social showing how it helped to visualize the elusive actomyosin primed complex & demonstrate the swinging lever mechanism.
April 25, 2025 at 4:40 PM
Exciting to see our time-resolved #cryoEM device developed by @stemuench.bsky.social & colleagues in action at the CCPEM Spring Symposium!
Brilliant talk by @scarfflab.bsky.social showing how it helped to visualize the elusive actomyosin primed complex & demonstrate the swinging lever mechanism.
Brilliant talk by @scarfflab.bsky.social showing how it helped to visualize the elusive actomyosin primed complex & demonstrate the swinging lever mechanism.