Maria Ermolaeva
@mariaermolaeva.bsky.social
Group Leader @Leibniz Institute on Aging. Discovering novel and unconventional interventions for healthy aging. Interested in metabolism, stress responses and microbiome.
Pinned
Inactivation of the DREAM complex mimics the molecular benefits of sleep
Circadian clock disruption and lack of sleep impair organismal health, but remedies remain elusive. Here, we used multi-omics, molecular and functional assays in C. elegans , human retinal cells and m...
www.biorxiv.org
Can the benefits of sleep 😴 be achieved without sleeping? Our latest research says YES. Using nematodes, human cells, and mouse brain, we found that the effects of sleep and wakefulness arise from large chromatin changes that can be modulated by drugs.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
It was a pleasure hosting the 2025 Groningen-Jena Aging Meeting in Jena! 🎉 We aimed for a truly multidisciplinary aging conference with lively discussions & great interactions - and it worked!
Huge thanks to our amazing helpers, speakers & participants for making it a success!
Huge thanks to our amazing helpers, speakers & participants for making it a success!
September 29, 2025 at 11:49 AM
It was a pleasure hosting the 2025 Groningen-Jena Aging Meeting in Jena! 🎉 We aimed for a truly multidisciplinary aging conference with lively discussions & great interactions - and it worked!
Huge thanks to our amazing helpers, speakers & participants for making it a success!
Huge thanks to our amazing helpers, speakers & participants for making it a success!
Can the benefits of sleep 😴 be achieved without sleeping? Our latest research says YES. Using nematodes, human cells, and mouse brain, we found that the effects of sleep and wakefulness arise from large chromatin changes that can be modulated by drugs.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Inactivation of the DREAM complex mimics the molecular benefits of sleep
Circadian clock disruption and lack of sleep impair organismal health, but remedies remain elusive. Here, we used multi-omics, molecular and functional assays in C. elegans , human retinal cells and m...
www.biorxiv.org
August 17, 2025 at 6:26 AM
Can the benefits of sleep 😴 be achieved without sleeping? Our latest research says YES. Using nematodes, human cells, and mouse brain, we found that the effects of sleep and wakefulness arise from large chromatin changes that can be modulated by drugs.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Can the immune system be activated by imaginary germs? Study finds that visual proximity with an object perceived as infections is sufficient for triggering an immune response.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Neural anticipation of virtual infection triggers an immune response - Nature Neuroscience
Serino et al. show that seeing an infectious avatar approach the body in virtual reality triggers an immune response, indicating that the brain prepares the body to fight infections even for perceived...
www.nature.com
July 28, 2025 at 6:48 PM
Can the immune system be activated by imaginary germs? Study finds that visual proximity with an object perceived as infections is sufficient for triggering an immune response.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Don’t miss the chance to register for this exciting conference! I will be presenting our latest findings on the unexpected side effects of circadian genome protection (aka sleep mimetics study).
🧬 #CIDHD25 will bring together experts exploring how cells maintain genome stability & how these insights are driving new therapies.
4 days of exciting talks, plus lots of opportunity for networking!
🗓️ Poster & Reg Deadline: 14 Aug
🔗 bit.ly/44mBPU2
#FusionCellBio #FusionDNA
4 days of exciting talks, plus lots of opportunity for networking!
🗓️ Poster & Reg Deadline: 14 Aug
🔗 bit.ly/44mBPU2
#FusionCellBio #FusionDNA
July 27, 2025 at 7:57 PM
Don’t miss the chance to register for this exciting conference! I will be presenting our latest findings on the unexpected side effects of circadian genome protection (aka sleep mimetics study).
Our ability to describe aging keeps improving - which is, of course, tremendously important. Yet one key task remains: actually finding ways to reverse aging or, at the very least, slow it down safely and reliably.
www.cell.com/cell/abstrac...
www.cell.com/cell/abstrac...
Comprehensive human proteome profiles across a 50-year lifespan reveal aging trajectories and signatures
A 50-year multi-tissue proteomic atlas reveals transcriptome-proteome decoupling,
proteostasis decline with amyloid accumulation, and asynchronous aging clocks, identifying
circulating senoproteins co...
www.cell.com
July 27, 2025 at 7:42 PM
Our ability to describe aging keeps improving - which is, of course, tremendously important. Yet one key task remains: actually finding ways to reverse aging or, at the very least, slow it down safely and reliably.
www.cell.com/cell/abstrac...
www.cell.com/cell/abstrac...
Only a few days remain until the final (extended) abstract submission deadline on July 25th! The conference is reaching capacity, and only limited spots are left. Short talk selections will be made after the deadline—don’t miss your opportunity to be part of this exciting meeting!
Interested in healthy aging - from fundamental mechanisms to advanced interventions? Join us September 24-26 for the Groningen-Jena Aging Meeting, featuring talks by leading experts and 20+ short talk slots selected from abstracts. Early bird registration ends on 30.06.25
July 20, 2025 at 9:28 AM
Only a few days remain until the final (extended) abstract submission deadline on July 25th! The conference is reaching capacity, and only limited spots are left. Short talk selections will be made after the deadline—don’t miss your opportunity to be part of this exciting meeting!
Unpopular opinion: Before we attempt to create immortal humans, we should first figure out how to colonize other planets - because Earth can't accommodate everyone forever with its limited resources. Until then, let’s focus on delivering healthy longevity.
July 14, 2025 at 5:07 PM
Unpopular opinion: Before we attempt to create immortal humans, we should first figure out how to colonize other planets - because Earth can't accommodate everyone forever with its limited resources. Until then, let’s focus on delivering healthy longevity.
A strong start toward healthy aging: study shows that early-life exercise is sufficient to extend healthspan, even after prolonged detraining (in mice).
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Early-life exercise extends healthspan but not lifespan in mice - Nature Communications
Exercise exerts health benefits, yet the long-term effects of early-life regular exercise on later-life health and lifespan remain poorly understood. Here, the authors show early-life exercise in mice...
www.nature.com
July 14, 2025 at 1:17 PM
A strong start toward healthy aging: study shows that early-life exercise is sufficient to extend healthspan, even after prolonged detraining (in mice).
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Maria Ermolaeva
I am very proud to present you the first paper from the main research line of my group at the @mpiage.bsky.social in collaboration with my current group @molepi.bsky.social @bds-lumc.bsky.social at the LUMC, which is now published in @geroscience.bsky.social!
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Functional characterisation of rare variants in genes encoding the MAPK/ERK signalling pathway identified in long-lived Leiden Longevity Study participants - GeroScience
Human longevity, which is coupled to compression of age-related disease, is a heritable trait. However, only few common genetic variants have been linked to longevity, suggesting that rare, family-spe...
link.springer.com
May 29, 2025 at 7:50 PM
I am very proud to present you the first paper from the main research line of my group at the @mpiage.bsky.social in collaboration with my current group @molepi.bsky.social @bds-lumc.bsky.social at the LUMC, which is now published in @geroscience.bsky.social!
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Proud of Prerana Chaudhari for winning the Best Talk Award for presenting this study at the annual meeting of the German Association for Aging Research (DGfA) in Ulm. Grateful for the recognition of our science by the community and hoping to share additional news on this project soon.
I'm often asked if I would take an anti-aging drug 💊 discovered in my lab. As of today, the answer is yes! I'm starting a new compound we identified last year, based on insights from the gut microbiome of human centenarians + many tests and screens in worms and human cells (1/2)
July 11, 2025 at 7:37 PM
Proud of Prerana Chaudhari for winning the Best Talk Award for presenting this study at the annual meeting of the German Association for Aging Research (DGfA) in Ulm. Grateful for the recognition of our science by the community and hoping to share additional news on this project soon.
First, Google DeepMind put structural biologists out of work, and now it's coming for the jobs of bioinformaticians doing genome analysis: a preprint reveals AlphaGenome, the little brother of AlphaFold.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
AlphaGenome: advancing regulatory variant effect prediction with a unified DNA sequence model
Deep learning models that predict functional genomic measurements from DNA sequence are powerful tools for deciphering the genetic regulatory code. Existing methods trade off between input sequence le...
www.biorxiv.org
June 28, 2025 at 2:29 PM
First, Google DeepMind put structural biologists out of work, and now it's coming for the jobs of bioinformaticians doing genome analysis: a preprint reveals AlphaGenome, the little brother of AlphaFold.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by Maria Ermolaeva
Why does eating less extend lifespan? 🧬
Mutation accumulation underpins evolution of lifespan extension by dietary restriction
We often think about saving energy or recycling waste - but we show how evolution acting on mutation load can generate longer life on low food 🧵
🔗 tinyurl.com/jn5ryhxv
Mutation accumulation underpins evolution of lifespan extension by dietary restriction
We often think about saving energy or recycling waste - but we show how evolution acting on mutation load can generate longer life on low food 🧵
🔗 tinyurl.com/jn5ryhxv
June 25, 2025 at 8:29 AM
Why does eating less extend lifespan? 🧬
Mutation accumulation underpins evolution of lifespan extension by dietary restriction
We often think about saving energy or recycling waste - but we show how evolution acting on mutation load can generate longer life on low food 🧵
🔗 tinyurl.com/jn5ryhxv
Mutation accumulation underpins evolution of lifespan extension by dietary restriction
We often think about saving energy or recycling waste - but we show how evolution acting on mutation load can generate longer life on low food 🧵
🔗 tinyurl.com/jn5ryhxv
One week left until the abstract submission deadline. Excellent line-up of speakers discussing diverse topics on aging and longevity and 20+ slots for short talks selected from the abstracts. Don't miss your chance to join us in Jena in September!
Interested in healthy aging - from fundamental mechanisms to advanced interventions? Join us September 24-26 for the Groningen-Jena Aging Meeting, featuring talks by leading experts and 20+ short talk slots selected from abstracts. Early bird registration ends on 30.06.25
June 22, 2025 at 5:45 PM
One week left until the abstract submission deadline. Excellent line-up of speakers discussing diverse topics on aging and longevity and 20+ slots for short talks selected from the abstracts. Don't miss your chance to join us in Jena in September!
High dietary fructose directly affects neonatal brain development and contributes to anxiety behaviours in later life by suppressing microglial phagocytosis. Fructose is a natural sugar from fruit and honey but also used as a sweetener in processed foods. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Early life high fructose impairs microglial phagocytosis and neurodevelopment - Nature
Exposure of mice to high fructose during gestation or early postnatal life causes decreased microglial phagocytosis during brain development and leads to anxiety-like behaviour in adolescence.
www.nature.com
June 16, 2025 at 3:52 AM
High dietary fructose directly affects neonatal brain development and contributes to anxiety behaviours in later life by suppressing microglial phagocytosis. Fructose is a natural sugar from fruit and honey but also used as a sweetener in processed foods. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A new study in three species shows taurine levels don’t decrease with age. Instead, individual differences explain most of the variation in taurine concentrations. Looks like another popular “anti-aging” supplement is losing its magic.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Is taurine an aging biomarker?
Low circulating taurine concentrations have been proposed as a driver of the aging process. We found that circulating taurine concentrations increased or remained unchanged with age in three geographi...
www.science.org
June 9, 2025 at 8:36 PM
A new study in three species shows taurine levels don’t decrease with age. Instead, individual differences explain most of the variation in taurine concentrations. Looks like another popular “anti-aging” supplement is losing its magic.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by Maria Ermolaeva
A few days late, but I’m happy to post our recent publication on body-to-brain signaling regulation of memory in Nature Aging:
Online now!✨RESEARCH: Zhou, Novak et al show that the hypodermis regulates memory in C. elegans via insulin/IGF-1 and Notch signaling; activating this pathway rescues CREB-dependent memory in aged worms @ctmurphy1.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s43... rdcu.be/eo3Pd
Body-to-brain insulin and Notch signaling regulates memory through neuronal CREB activity - Nature Aging
Zhou, Novak and colleagues identify that the Caenorhabditis elegans hypodermis, a peripheral liver-like metabolic tissue, regulates memory via insulin/IGF-1 and Notch signaling, and show that activati...
www.nature.com
June 4, 2025 at 8:22 PM
A few days late, but I’m happy to post our recent publication on body-to-brain signaling regulation of memory in Nature Aging:
As someone doing intervention screens that take us almost anywhere in terms of a mechanism, I can say firsthand that publishing high-impact work outside "your" research field is mission impossible due to enormous peer review bias. Still, we forge ahead.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
The pivot penalty in research - Nature
An analysis of millions of scientific papers and patents reveals a ‘pivot penalty’ when researchers shift direction, with the impact of studies decreasing rapidly the further they move from their prev...
www.nature.com
June 4, 2025 at 1:28 PM
As someone doing intervention screens that take us almost anywhere in terms of a mechanism, I can say firsthand that publishing high-impact work outside "your" research field is mission impossible due to enormous peer review bias. Still, we forge ahead.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Interested in healthy aging - from fundamental mechanisms to advanced interventions? Join us September 24-26 for the Groningen-Jena Aging Meeting, featuring talks by leading experts and 20+ short talk slots selected from abstracts. Early bird registration ends on 30.06.25
May 22, 2025 at 1:04 PM
Interested in healthy aging - from fundamental mechanisms to advanced interventions? Join us September 24-26 for the Groningen-Jena Aging Meeting, featuring talks by leading experts and 20+ short talk slots selected from abstracts. Early bird registration ends on 30.06.25
Reposted by Maria Ermolaeva
🚨 Aging and Microbiome Conference 2025
📌 Jena, Germany
📆 October 28-29, 2025
⏰ Abstract submission deadline: 31.05.2025
ℹ️ amc25.leibniz-fli.de
📌 Jena, Germany
📆 October 28-29, 2025
⏰ Abstract submission deadline: 31.05.2025
ℹ️ amc25.leibniz-fli.de
May 19, 2025 at 5:40 PM
🚨 Aging and Microbiome Conference 2025
📌 Jena, Germany
📆 October 28-29, 2025
⏰ Abstract submission deadline: 31.05.2025
ℹ️ amc25.leibniz-fli.de
📌 Jena, Germany
📆 October 28-29, 2025
⏰ Abstract submission deadline: 31.05.2025
ℹ️ amc25.leibniz-fli.de
Reposted by Maria Ermolaeva
We have a 4-year postdoc position open in our Research Unit on proteostasis!
The project explores inter-tissue regulation using advanced proteomics approaches.
Collaborative & interdisciplinary environment. More details & application here:
jobs-uk-koeln.onlyfy.jobs/job/pktg6ivj...
The project explores inter-tissue regulation using advanced proteomics approaches.
Collaborative & interdisciplinary environment. More details & application here:
jobs-uk-koeln.onlyfy.jobs/job/pktg6ivj...
Postdoc Position (f/m/x)
We are looking to support our rapidly growing team as soon as possible:
jobs-uk-koeln.onlyfy.jobs
May 15, 2025 at 10:01 AM
We have a 4-year postdoc position open in our Research Unit on proteostasis!
The project explores inter-tissue regulation using advanced proteomics approaches.
Collaborative & interdisciplinary environment. More details & application here:
jobs-uk-koeln.onlyfy.jobs/job/pktg6ivj...
The project explores inter-tissue regulation using advanced proteomics approaches.
Collaborative & interdisciplinary environment. More details & application here:
jobs-uk-koeln.onlyfy.jobs/job/pktg6ivj...
What is the best time of day for exercise? Apparently it matters: strenuous evening exercise likely disrupts sleep due to heightened sympathetic arousal. Conversely (not this study), moderate evening workouts lower blood glucose levels for healthier sleep.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Dose-response relationship between evening exercise and sleep - Nature Communications
Exercise is essential for health, but strenuous evening exercise may disrupt sleep. Here, using 4-million nights of objective data, the authors show strenuous exercise ending within 4 hours of bedtime...
www.nature.com
April 27, 2025 at 8:23 AM
What is the best time of day for exercise? Apparently it matters: strenuous evening exercise likely disrupts sleep due to heightened sympathetic arousal. Conversely (not this study), moderate evening workouts lower blood glucose levels for healthier sleep.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Maria Ermolaeva
🔥🔥🔥 OUR NEW PREPRINT: Slowing and reversing aging? Nature does it, here we show how! Age deceleration and reversal gene patterns in dauer diapause. @cecad.bsky.social @unicologne.bsky.social @uniklinikkoeln.bsky.social www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Age deceleration and reversal gene patterns in dauer diapause
The aging process is characterized by a general decrease in physical functionality and poses the biggest risk factor for a variety of diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and neurodegener...
www.biorxiv.org
April 20, 2025 at 5:52 AM
🔥🔥🔥 OUR NEW PREPRINT: Slowing and reversing aging? Nature does it, here we show how! Age deceleration and reversal gene patterns in dauer diapause. @cecad.bsky.social @unicologne.bsky.social @uniklinikkoeln.bsky.social www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
4th Chromosomal Instability as a Driver of Human Disease Conference.
7-10 October 2025, Malta. Stunning location, fantastic speaker lineup - and I'll be presenting the data behind our successful path to developing sleep mimetic drugs. Don't miss it!
7-10 October 2025, Malta. Stunning location, fantastic speaker lineup - and I'll be presenting the data behind our successful path to developing sleep mimetic drugs. Don't miss it!
Don’t miss out!
Submit your abstract & register for #CIDHD25 by 1st May to:
🐦Lock in the early bird rate
💰Be eligible for a registration grant (awarded to selected short talks)
Get all the details here: bit.ly/3RgjVLl
#FusionCellBio #FusionDNA
Submit your abstract & register for #CIDHD25 by 1st May to:
🐦Lock in the early bird rate
💰Be eligible for a registration grant (awarded to selected short talks)
Get all the details here: bit.ly/3RgjVLl
#FusionCellBio #FusionDNA
April 15, 2025 at 7:36 PM
4th Chromosomal Instability as a Driver of Human Disease Conference.
7-10 October 2025, Malta. Stunning location, fantastic speaker lineup - and I'll be presenting the data behind our successful path to developing sleep mimetic drugs. Don't miss it!
7-10 October 2025, Malta. Stunning location, fantastic speaker lineup - and I'll be presenting the data behind our successful path to developing sleep mimetic drugs. Don't miss it!
Chronic stress literally destroys the brain by interfering with protein and organelle quality control. Interestingly, acute stress does the opposite.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Stress dynamically modulates neuronal autophagy to gate depression onset - Nature
Acute stress activates autophagy in the lateral habenula, whereas chronic stress suppresses it, with this autophagy having a causal role in maintaining emotional homeostasis against stress, and its re...
www.nature.com
April 12, 2025 at 9:08 AM
Chronic stress literally destroys the brain by interfering with protein and organelle quality control. Interestingly, acute stress does the opposite.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
I missed something important when reading this paper the 1st time: in a cohort of 105K human participants (large enough to reflect general trends) only 9.3% (!!) achieved healthy aging. This is such a low number. Let's get to work to improve this!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Optimal dietary patterns for healthy aging - Nature Medicine
In two longitudinal cohorts followed for 30 years, the associations of eight different dietary patterns with healthy aging—encompassing cognitive, physical and mental health—were studied, identifying ...
www.nature.com
April 10, 2025 at 12:47 PM
I missed something important when reading this paper the 1st time: in a cohort of 105K human participants (large enough to reflect general trends) only 9.3% (!!) achieved healthy aging. This is such a low number. Let's get to work to improve this!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...