Ruth Isenberg, PhD
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ruthlessruth15.bsky.social
Ruth Isenberg, PhD
@ruthlessruth15.bsky.social
980 followers 350 following 20 posts
Microbe lover 🦠 | Microbiology PhD | Postdoc at University of Minnesota in the lab of Julia Willett | First-gen | she/her
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Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
markjmandel.bsky.social
Great profile of @ruthlessruth15.bsky.social www.the-scientist.com/postdoc-port...
Postdoc Portrait: Ruth Isenberg
This postdoc explores how gut and oral bacteria wage microscopic battles that shape infection and health.
www.the-scientist.com
November 7, 2025 at 4:45 PM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
mmpconference.bsky.social
Mark your calendars! #mmpc2026 The 2026 Midwest Microbial Pathogenesis Conference will be take place September 25-27, 2026 at the University of Minnesota! We are excited to welcome keynote speaker Dr. Andy Camilli. Give us a follow and watch for important information here ➡️ mmpc2026.umn.edu
Midwest Microbial Pathogenesis Conference | Midwest Microbial Pathogenesis Conference 2026
mmpc2026.umn.edu
October 23, 2025 at 10:59 PM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
tunglejic.bsky.social
Independent research fellowships leading to tenured positions at the John Innes Centre.

Repost = nice. Thank you very much!!!
johninnescentre.bsky.social John Innes Centre @johninnescentre.bsky.social · Oct 3
Shortlisted candidates will be invited to give a seminar at the Fellows Conference, which will be held on 10 March 2026.

Candidates who win Fellowships will be offered a Tenure Track Group Leader position from the outset, initially for 5 years.

Find out more: www.jic.ac.uk/training-car...
Independent Research Fellowships Leading to Tenured Faculty Positions | John Innes Centre
The John Innes Centre (JIC), is a world leading centre of excellence in plant and microbial sciences based on the Norwich Research Park, UK. We are inviting applications from outstanding researchers…
www.jic.ac.uk
October 3, 2025 at 4:06 PM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
kaurr.bsky.social
#Wolbachia has puzzled scientists with its power to rewire insect reproduction. What if I tell you that we found one of the keys Wolbachia use to rewire its host AND a small molecule inhibitor uses this key to mimic what this microbe has mastered for millions of years.

www.cell.com/cell-reports...
Beyond Wolbachia—Can a small molecule control insect reproduction?
Kaur et al. demonstrate reduced histone acetylation as a key mechanism underpinning Wolbachia’s paternal-effect embryonic lethality trait in Drosophila melanogaster. Recapitulation of this trait by in...
www.cell.com
October 3, 2025 at 12:58 PM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
pratted.bsky.social
Announcing such a major change to NSF GRFP this late in the cycle is incredibly cruel. 2nd yr students (mine included) have been working so hard on their proposals despite ongoing uncertainty. They are driven and passionate about being outstanding scientists and helping those coming up behind them.
This means individuals in the following statuses at the time of application are eligible: Undergraduate in the final (senior) year of a bachelor’s degree program Bachelor’s degree-holder with NO enrollment in a graduate degree program (non-degree graduate coursework allowed) Individual enrolled in a joint bachelor’s-master’s degree program with at least three undergraduate years completed First-year graduate student in their first graduate degree program with less than one academic year completed in the degree program (according to institution’s academic calendar) Individuals enrolled in joint bachelor’s-master’s degree programs are considered graduate students. For GRFP, joint bachelor’s-master’s degrees are defined as degrees concurrently pursued and awarded. Not be a current NSF employee. Applications that do not meet eligibility requirements will be returned without review as being ineligible for a fellowship.
September 26, 2025 at 5:46 PM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
jasonwilliamsny.bsky.social
Please share with anyone who cares about NSF support for graduate students and take 30 seconds to sign and leave a comment.

The deadline for the 2025 Graduate Research Fellowship Program is about one month away and literally no one can apply. #NSFGRFP

jasonjwilliamsny.github.io/grfp2025/
An Open Letter to U.S. STEM Leadership on the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program
An Open Letter to U.S. STEM Leadership on the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program
jasonjwilliamsny.github.io
September 25, 2025 at 10:09 PM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
bielleogy.bsky.social
Giving a webinar on #BlueSoup this Friday, in case anyone wants to pop in during their lunch!
A promotional flyer for a webinar in the CSU Bioinformatics Webinar Series. On the left side, it shows the date and time: “26 Sep | 12 PM PST.” It includes instructions to join via Zoom with Meeting ID: 886 2442 3158 and a QR code above. On the right, there is a photo of Dr. Elinne Becket, Associate Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at California State University San Marcos, sitting outdoors with plants and trees in the background. Below, the title of the talk is displayed: “The Soup that Blue up Twitter.” The description explains that Dr. Becket will discuss the shared curiosity of science, open science, and a story from February 2023 when leftover beef soup prepared by her mom turned bright blue. Scientists and people on Twitter collaborated to investigate, leading to a global effort among microbiologists and chemists. At the bottom, there are links to learn more about upcoming webinars at www.informatics.sdsu.edu and Dr. Becket’s website: https://elinneb.wixsite.com/becketlab
September 22, 2025 at 5:55 PM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
geiselbiofilm.bsky.social
Job opening - pls share: The Biology Department at Worcester State University has been approved to hire TWO new tenure-track faculty members to begin September 1, 2026! Here is a link to the job ad and application site: worcester.interviewexchange.com/jobofferdeta... .
Worcester State University Job Posting: Assistant/Associate Professor, Biology
Worcester State University Job Posting: Assistant/Associate Professor, Biology
worcester.interviewexchange.com
September 5, 2025 at 8:39 PM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
pcart.bsky.social
Good news! KU's IRACDA program was reinstated! We are now taking applications for postdocs. Please spread the word.

sjobs.brassring.com/TGnewUI/Sear...
Postdoctoral Researcher - University of Kansas - Job Details
Job Details: The IRACDA Program at the University of Kansas (KU) is accepting applications for postdoctoral scholarships. W
sjobs.brassring.com
August 30, 2025 at 10:19 PM
ruthlessruth15.bsky.social
The best part of getting a PhD alongside your sister is you get to send silly emails like this to each other
August 20, 2025 at 10:44 PM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
mmpconference.bsky.social
Did you miss the opportunity to submit an abstract to MMPC?
We have extended the deadline to August 25! Please consider sharing your latest and greatest research!
www.mmpconference2025.com/submit-an-ab...
MMPC 2025 - Submit an Abstract
Submission Dates Abstract submission will open on May 1, 2025 Oral abstract submission deadline: July 15, 2025 Poster abstract submission deadline: Extended to August 25! Instructions for abstract s...
www.mmpconference2025.com
August 19, 2025 at 4:11 PM
ruthlessruth15.bsky.social
I suppose this is a good time to let y'all know @jlewillett.bsky.social and I have a new preprint out! I had a lot of fun giving a talk about this work at #Phages25 🧬🦠
August 7, 2025 at 1:58 AM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
ameliarandich.bsky.social
@ruthlessruth15.bsky.social: #Streptococcus mutants can kill #Enterococcus and other G(+)’s with mutanobactin, a cyclic lipopeptide that increases cell membrane permeability #phages2025 🦠

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Streptococcal natural products mediate interspecies competition with Gram-positive bacterial pathogens
Polymicrobial communities where bacteria must compete with each other to persist can serve as a source of uncharacterized antibacterial compounds to develop drugs for the treatment of drug-resistant i...
www.biorxiv.org
August 7, 2025 at 12:48 AM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
ben-parker.bsky.social
The Parker Lab at UNC Biology is hiring a postdoc to work on insect–microbe interactions.

Support available for multiple years from startup; we are open to a range of project ideas. Come join us to study symbiosis in a supportive, collaborative environment!

unc.peopleadmin.com/postings/303...
Post-Doc Research Associate
The researcher will be primarily responsible for carrying out investigations related to our lab's research, using an insect model system (aphids) to address mechanistic and evolutionary genetic questi...
unc.peopleadmin.com
August 1, 2025 at 3:13 PM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
coereba.bsky.social
Kenyon is hiring a TT microbiologist! Please share widely. I’m the search chair & am happy to answer any questions. careers.pageuppeople.com/695/cw/en-us...
Kenyon College - Details - Assistant Professor of Biology (Tenure-Track)
careers.pageuppeople.com
July 25, 2025 at 2:18 PM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
markowenmartin.bsky.social
One of the first #LuxSelfies (people illuminated by bacterial bioluminescence) I successfully photographed. #Micronaut and #DocMartian Ruth Isenberg...and I did not retouch her eyes. So: camera glitch or demonic entity? You decide. @ruthlessruth15.bsky.social
July 9, 2025 at 11:55 PM
ruthlessruth15.bsky.social
Okay but for real, what are people actually looking for when they ask you to identify your ethnicity/race? Whenever I can only select one (which is silly) I at least want to select the option that is closest to what the asker is looking for.
May 21, 2025 at 5:17 PM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
knutdrescher.bsky.social
We found that many bacterial species use exogenous peptidoglycan fragments - released by lysis of neighboring cells - as a general danger signal, triggering a danger response that protects bacteria against many dangers: biofilm formation.

Details here 👇
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Bacteria use exogenous peptidoglycan as a danger signal to trigger biofilm formation - Nature Microbiology
Peptidoglycan released by neighbouring kin or non-kin cell lysis induces physiological changes that protect from a range of stresses, including phage predation.
www.nature.com
January 6, 2025 at 10:13 AM
ruthlessruth15.bsky.social
Today I learned how to wrangle C. elegans! I can confirm that they do a lot of wiggling back and forth. But I love them ❤️🪱
December 6, 2024 at 10:11 PM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
alexisrohou.bsky.social
🚨 Attention #teamtomo PhD students! 🚨 12-week paid internship opportunity at Genentech. Want to see how we use cryoET in pharma? And spend the summer 2025 in the Bay Area? Details and application link here: roche.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/ROG-A2O-GENE...
2025 Summer Intern - Department of Structural Biology
Department Summary The CryoEM Group in the Department of Structural Biology is dedicated to providing high-resolution structural insights into biological macromolecules involved in health and disease....
roche.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com
November 18, 2024 at 5:49 AM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
ginalewin.bsky.social
Hi BlueSky friends!

Postdoc(s) available in my lab!

Multiple projects on how bacterial genomic and functional diversity impacts microbial interactions & disease. 🦠🧫

See www.thelewinlab.com/join-us/post... for more information.

Please RT & share.

#Postdoc #Microbiology #OralMicro #VaginalMicro
Ad for postdoc position
October 25, 2024 at 2:46 PM
ruthlessruth15.bsky.social
I'm so happy that this paper is finally published! This one was a long time coming: 9 years, 3 pairs of hands, 270 strains, 93 plasmids, and a lot of hard work. It started as a side project that eventually led to my entire dissertation, and I'm glad it did.
evolvedbiofilm.bsky.social Ákos T Kovács @evolvedbiofilm.bsky.social · Oct 22
Superb #mSystemsJ by @ruthlessruth15.bsky.social et al from @markjmandel.bsky.social

Functional analysis of cyclic diguanylate-modulating proteins in Vibrio fischeri
"protein OE to systematically characterize the functional potential of all 50 V.fischeri proteins"❗️

journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
October 22, 2024 at 5:58 PM
ruthlessruth15.bsky.social
Thank you Delta for canceling my flight 3 hours before take-off and having no alternatives. Guess I'm driving to Madion! See y'all at #Phages2024 😅
August 4, 2024 at 7:12 PM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
markowenmartin.bsky.social
Thursday: another episode of #MattersMicrobial! Episode #48 is with the great Mark Mandel. He discusses the work he and his colleagues do with the beautiful squid-Vibrio sysmbiosis. Please spread the #GoodMicrobialWord! @microbe.tv @univpugetsound @asmicrobiology

youtu.be/6V61a92LoGs?...
Matters Microbial #48: Many are bright but few are chosen
Today, Dr. Mark Mandel, Professor of Medical Microbiology & Immunology at University of Wisconsin-Madison, joins the #QualityQuorum to discuss the research h...
youtu.be
July 18, 2024 at 7:40 PM
Reposted by Ruth Isenberg, PhD
evolvedbiofilm.bsky.social
A Label-Free Approach for Relative Spatial Quantitation of c-di-GMP in Microbial Biofilms

Anal Chem from Laura Sanchez
with @ruthlessruth15.bsky.social @markjmandel.bsky.social, Fitnat Yildiz and more

pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
May 17, 2024 at 2:53 PM