PabloPeMac
@pemac.bsky.social
Vaccinologist / Viral Immunologist. Associate professor NU. BLM - 🌈 he / him / el - Views are mine
Interesting paper from Subramani et al. showing that Marburg vaccines are more effective when they incorporate GP only. Seems like "GP-immunofocusing" is critical, particularly at low vaccine doses.
When more isn’t better: The surprising superiority of glycoprotein-only Marburg vaccines: buff.ly/NK3Pmlf
An Editor’s Note by @pemac.bsky.social @harvardmed.bsky.social on Subramani et al. (buff.ly/y6LTOo3)
An Editor’s Note by @pemac.bsky.social @harvardmed.bsky.social on Subramani et al. (buff.ly/y6LTOo3)
September 12, 2025 at 11:48 AM
Interesting paper from Subramani et al. showing that Marburg vaccines are more effective when they incorporate GP only. Seems like "GP-immunofocusing" is critical, particularly at low vaccine doses.
Reposted by PabloPeMac
Doing more with less in vaccine protection against Marburg virus
Bukreyev & team compare mRNA vaccines encoding MARV full length glycoprotein alone or as a virus-like particle, finding low-dose GP-only mRNA conferred 100% protection guinea pigs.
buff.ly/y6LTOo3
Bukreyev & team compare mRNA vaccines encoding MARV full length glycoprotein alone or as a virus-like particle, finding low-dose GP-only mRNA conferred 100% protection guinea pigs.
buff.ly/y6LTOo3
September 10, 2025 at 3:33 PM
Doing more with less in vaccine protection against Marburg virus
Bukreyev & team compare mRNA vaccines encoding MARV full length glycoprotein alone or as a virus-like particle, finding low-dose GP-only mRNA conferred 100% protection guinea pigs.
buff.ly/y6LTOo3
Bukreyev & team compare mRNA vaccines encoding MARV full length glycoprotein alone or as a virus-like particle, finding low-dose GP-only mRNA conferred 100% protection guinea pigs.
buff.ly/y6LTOo3
Reposted by PabloPeMac
Behind the Scenes with principal contributors from the Mani and Castrillon labs at UT Southwestern. Left to right, Ram Mani, Diego H. Castrillon, Susmita Ramanand, and Subhransu Sahoo.
August 21, 2025 at 3:51 PM
Behind the Scenes with principal contributors from the Mani and Castrillon labs at UT Southwestern. Left to right, Ram Mani, Diego H. Castrillon, Susmita Ramanand, and Subhransu Sahoo.
Reposted by PabloPeMac
ICYMI:
What are the mechanisms underlying variable expressivity in monogenetic disorders?
@bloodgenes.bsky.social and team show polygenetic modifiers affect penetrance and expressivity in telomere biology disorders: buff.ly/syMkr6z
What are the mechanisms underlying variable expressivity in monogenetic disorders?
@bloodgenes.bsky.social and team show polygenetic modifiers affect penetrance and expressivity in telomere biology disorders: buff.ly/syMkr6z
August 23, 2025 at 12:04 PM
ICYMI:
What are the mechanisms underlying variable expressivity in monogenetic disorders?
@bloodgenes.bsky.social and team show polygenetic modifiers affect penetrance and expressivity in telomere biology disorders: buff.ly/syMkr6z
What are the mechanisms underlying variable expressivity in monogenetic disorders?
@bloodgenes.bsky.social and team show polygenetic modifiers affect penetrance and expressivity in telomere biology disorders: buff.ly/syMkr6z
Reposted by PabloPeMac
Our new paper in collab with @hemannlab.bsky.social.
Shows IFITM3 KO mice that are more easily infected with most, if not all, influenza strains can be used for preclinical challenge studies to test vaccine candidates. 🫁🦠🥼💉https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264410X25007558
Shows IFITM3 KO mice that are more easily infected with most, if not all, influenza strains can be used for preclinical challenge studies to test vaccine candidates. 🫁🦠🥼💉https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264410X25007558
IFITM3-deficient mice as a model for testing influenza virus vaccines via the intramuscular route
Influenza virus infections remain a significant global health concern. Development of a universal influenza vaccine has been met with challenges, in p…
www.sciencedirect.com
July 9, 2025 at 4:06 PM
Our new paper in collab with @hemannlab.bsky.social.
Shows IFITM3 KO mice that are more easily infected with most, if not all, influenza strains can be used for preclinical challenge studies to test vaccine candidates. 🫁🦠🥼💉https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264410X25007558
Shows IFITM3 KO mice that are more easily infected with most, if not all, influenza strains can be used for preclinical challenge studies to test vaccine candidates. 🫁🦠🥼💉https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264410X25007558
Reposted by PabloPeMac
Mucosal delivery and gene-based vaccines can both enhance boost responses for influenza vaccination in cynomolgus macaques over available vaccines
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
July 9, 2025 at 6:25 PM
Mucosal delivery and gene-based vaccines can both enhance boost responses for influenza vaccination in cynomolgus macaques over available vaccines
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by PabloPeMac
Elon Musk casually, and illegally, dismantled USAID. According to a new study in the Lancet, that action will lead to *14 million* premature deaths between 2025 and 2030.
Again: Elon Musk is directly responsible for 14 million coming deaths. 4.5 million will be children.
Again: Elon Musk is directly responsible for 14 million coming deaths. 4.5 million will be children.
Evaluating the impact of two decades of USAID interventions and projecting the effects of defunding on mortality up to 2030: a retrospective impact evaluation and forecasting analysis
USAID funding has significantly contributed to the reduction in adult and child mortality
across low-income and middle-income countries over the past two decades. Our estimates
show that, unless the a...
www.thelancet.com
July 2, 2025 at 8:00 PM
Elon Musk casually, and illegally, dismantled USAID. According to a new study in the Lancet, that action will lead to *14 million* premature deaths between 2025 and 2030.
Again: Elon Musk is directly responsible for 14 million coming deaths. 4.5 million will be children.
Again: Elon Musk is directly responsible for 14 million coming deaths. 4.5 million will be children.
Someone should be systemically tracking the deaths caused by Musk/Trump policies. USAID cuts alone has led to 300,000 deaths. Cuts in basic science also will result in many more deaths.
Musk should be asked about this in every interview he does now and forever. To ignore it is a dereliction of duty.
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/30/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/30/o...
June 1, 2025 at 12:27 AM
Someone should be systemically tracking the deaths caused by Musk/Trump policies. USAID cuts alone has led to 300,000 deaths. Cuts in basic science also will result in many more deaths.
Reposted by PabloPeMac
This is accurate. COVID-19 also predisposes to blood clots even in mild cases and pregnancy itself has a heightened risk of blood clots because of the massive estrogen levels involved. These risks are drastically reduced with vaccination.
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
May 27, 2025 at 11:31 PM
This is accurate. COVID-19 also predisposes to blood clots even in mild cases and pregnancy itself has a heightened risk of blood clots because of the massive estrogen levels involved. These risks are drastically reduced with vaccination.
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
Viral evolution itself offers a powerful lens to understand how antigen structure affects immunogenicity
Always love posts from @enirenberg.bsky.social--this is our hot off the press work with @gquirk96.bsky.social, but he does a better job explaining it than I would!
TL;DR, as SARS-CoV2 Spike epitopes drifted, many became poorly immunogenic, irrespective of antigenic imprinting/prior immunity.
TL;DR, as SARS-CoV2 Spike epitopes drifted, many became poorly immunogenic, irrespective of antigenic imprinting/prior immunity.
I've been yelling for a while about how imprinting is not the problem with our immune responses to Omicron, and the issue is much more about the intrinsic immunogenicity of Omicron's spike protein (which is poor). This freshly published study provides pretty definitive proof of that 🧵
May 27, 2025 at 6:27 PM
Viral evolution itself offers a powerful lens to understand how antigen structure affects immunogenicity
Reposted by PabloPeMac
GUYS. The comment period for this ends in THREE DAYS. PLEASE if you have even a little bit of time, submit a comment here: www.regulations.gov/commenton/FD...
Let them know EVERYONE should be able to get COVID vaccines. They BACK DOWN when WE PUSH BACK. www.statnews.com/2025/05/20/f...
Let them know EVERYONE should be able to get COVID vaccines. They BACK DOWN when WE PUSH BACK. www.statnews.com/2025/05/20/f...
FDA will limit Covid vaccines to people over 65 or at high risk of serious illness, leaders say
The FDA announced it will limit access to Covid-19 vaccines going forward to people 65 and older and others at high risk of serious illness
www.statnews.com
May 20, 2025 at 7:36 PM
GUYS. The comment period for this ends in THREE DAYS. PLEASE if you have even a little bit of time, submit a comment here: www.regulations.gov/commenton/FD...
Let them know EVERYONE should be able to get COVID vaccines. They BACK DOWN when WE PUSH BACK. www.statnews.com/2025/05/20/f...
Let them know EVERYONE should be able to get COVID vaccines. They BACK DOWN when WE PUSH BACK. www.statnews.com/2025/05/20/f...
Reposted by PabloPeMac
The 80-year recipe stoking America’s Prosperity:
1) Free-market capital investments in brilliant ideas…
2) enabled by Engineering Innovations…
3) based on Science Research in Universities…
4) funded by Grants from the US Government.
It’s time more people understood this.
1) Free-market capital investments in brilliant ideas…
2) enabled by Engineering Innovations…
3) based on Science Research in Universities…
4) funded by Grants from the US Government.
It’s time more people understood this.
May 17, 2025 at 1:36 PM
The 80-year recipe stoking America’s Prosperity:
1) Free-market capital investments in brilliant ideas…
2) enabled by Engineering Innovations…
3) based on Science Research in Universities…
4) funded by Grants from the US Government.
It’s time more people understood this.
1) Free-market capital investments in brilliant ideas…
2) enabled by Engineering Innovations…
3) based on Science Research in Universities…
4) funded by Grants from the US Government.
It’s time more people understood this.
Reposted by PabloPeMac
My ongoing request:
If your NSF or NIH grant was terminated--whether at Harvard or elsewhere--please report it here.
NSF: grant-watch.us/submit-nsf.h...
NIH: grant-watch.us/submit-nih.h...
Our trackers are actively used in lawsuits and are often the only record that terminations ever occurred.
If your NSF or NIH grant was terminated--whether at Harvard or elsewhere--please report it here.
NSF: grant-watch.us/submit-nsf.h...
NIH: grant-watch.us/submit-nih.h...
Our trackers are actively used in lawsuits and are often the only record that terminations ever occurred.
NSF appears to be terminating hundreds of its grants to Harvard, per internal sources at NSF and at Harvard. At least one division has had all its grants cut.
May 14, 2025 at 2:22 PM
My ongoing request:
If your NSF or NIH grant was terminated--whether at Harvard or elsewhere--please report it here.
NSF: grant-watch.us/submit-nsf.h...
NIH: grant-watch.us/submit-nih.h...
Our trackers are actively used in lawsuits and are often the only record that terminations ever occurred.
If your NSF or NIH grant was terminated--whether at Harvard or elsewhere--please report it here.
NSF: grant-watch.us/submit-nsf.h...
NIH: grant-watch.us/submit-nih.h...
Our trackers are actively used in lawsuits and are often the only record that terminations ever occurred.
Reposted by PabloPeMac
America is intentionally squandering our global scientific advantage by persecuting academics and researchers. There is beauty and wonder in the quest for scientific understanding, and we should be helping that curiosity bloom, not crushing it under jackboots.
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/13/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/13/o...
Opinion | I Came to Study Aging. Now I’m Trapped in ICE Detention.
www.nytimes.com
May 13, 2025 at 5:56 PM
America is intentionally squandering our global scientific advantage by persecuting academics and researchers. There is beauty and wonder in the quest for scientific understanding, and we should be helping that curiosity bloom, not crushing it under jackboots.
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/13/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/13/o...
This is the opposite of affirmative action
Thirty-eight of 43 experts cut last month from the boards that review the science and research that happens in laboratories at the National Institutes of Health are female, Black or Hispanic, according to an analysis by the chairs of a dozen of the boards.
Women, minorities fired in purge of NIH science review boards
Scientists, with expertise in fields that include mental health, cancer and infectious disease, typically serve five-year terms and were not given a reason for their dismissal.
www.washingtonpost.com
April 17, 2025 at 9:24 AM
This is the opposite of affirmative action
My upcoming weekend read
A minireview from @parkerjdenz.bsky.social just out in @mbio.bsky.social! We explore why studies on IFITM3 SNPs and viral disease severity often conflict. Summary: IFITM3 matters most during infections with emergent viruses, when adaptive immunity is lacking. journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
IFITM3 variants point to a critical role in emergent virus infections | mBio
The interferon-induced transmembrane protein (IFITM) family includes five IFITMs in
humans (IFITM1, 2, 3, 5, and 10). Each of these displays antiviral activity when overexpressed,
but only IFITMs 1, 2...
journals.asm.org
April 16, 2025 at 5:35 PM
My upcoming weekend read
Reposted by PabloPeMac
"Hungary passes constitutional amendment to ban LGBTQ+ public events, seen as a major blow to rights."
Little coverage of this.
But Katy Perry's few minutes in space got endless coverage.
Little coverage of this.
But Katy Perry's few minutes in space got endless coverage.
April 15, 2025 at 4:07 AM
"Hungary passes constitutional amendment to ban LGBTQ+ public events, seen as a major blow to rights."
Little coverage of this.
But Katy Perry's few minutes in space got endless coverage.
Little coverage of this.
But Katy Perry's few minutes in space got endless coverage.
There’s a thin line between cutting a deal and succumbing to the regime.
Universities in Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union thought giving in to government demands would save their independence
theconversation.com/universities...
theconversation.com/universities...
Universities in Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union thought giving in to government demands would save their independence
Before the Nazis, German universities were among the best in the world. Step by step, the universities gave up their independence until they were instruments of the state.
theconversation.com
April 11, 2025 at 1:34 PM
There’s a thin line between cutting a deal and succumbing to the regime.
Reposted by PabloPeMac
This is PhD student Rümeysa Öztürk. She was disappeared for 24 hours by ICE for writing an op-ed.
Now in ICE custody, she's being denied her asthma inhaler. She's suffered at least 3 asthma attacks.
The denial of medical care in custody can amount to torture under intl law.
Now in ICE custody, she's being denied her asthma inhaler. She's suffered at least 3 asthma attacks.
The denial of medical care in custody can amount to torture under intl law.
April 4, 2025 at 7:13 PM
This is PhD student Rümeysa Öztürk. She was disappeared for 24 hours by ICE for writing an op-ed.
Now in ICE custody, she's being denied her asthma inhaler. She's suffered at least 3 asthma attacks.
The denial of medical care in custody can amount to torture under intl law.
Now in ICE custody, she's being denied her asthma inhaler. She's suffered at least 3 asthma attacks.
The denial of medical care in custody can amount to torture under intl law.
Reposted by PabloPeMac
They are arresting people on the streets, terminating their visas, and disappearing them for writing things they disagree with. This is where we are. Two months in. Right now. If you think they won’t begin coming after citizens soon, you are mistaken.
March 27, 2025 at 12:03 PM
They are arresting people on the streets, terminating their visas, and disappearing them for writing things they disagree with. This is where we are. Two months in. Right now. If you think they won’t begin coming after citizens soon, you are mistaken.
Flu is the most ageist virus I know
Today @natmedicine.bsky.social published our study showing the older individuals born prior to 1968 have more antibodies that cross-react to #H5N1 relative to younger individuals. If H5N1 causes a pandemic, children will likely be the most susceptible. 1/2
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Immune history shapes human antibody responses to H5N1 influenza viruses - Nature Medicine
H5N1 strain-specific antibodies are higher in older individuals and correlate more with birth year than with age, suggesting that younger individuals are potentially more likely to benefit from H5N1 v...
www.nature.com
March 13, 2025 at 11:50 PM
Flu is the most ageist virus I know
A hero in immunology visits NU and gets to meet Melvin
March 13, 2025 at 11:03 PM
A hero in immunology visits NU and gets to meet Melvin
Standing up for science
March 7, 2025 at 7:01 PM
Standing up for science