We also developed a "universal" Aviatar that can localize to any GFP-tagged compartment using a weak nanobody, and we used it to localize to stress granules through endogenously-tagged G3BP1

Aviatar regulated actin polymerization at the membrane and revealed compartment-specific differences of RTK fragments commonly mislocalized in cancer

Aviatar can target any desired compartment for which a weak binder can be found. We show common targets: plasma membrane, endosomes, Golgi, ER, and microtubules.

Proteins often bind targets using avidity, the combined interaction strength of multiple weak binders. Now we’ve harnessed this principle for compact, *single*-component optogenetic tools for translocation. Lead by phenom PhD student @dennishuang.bsky.social #synbiosky🧵

📝 tinyurl.com/aviatar

New preprint! We found dynamic signal processing (IFFL) in a single protein, which pulses in response to step inputs. New insights for capability of protein computation + implications for new opto and thermo probes

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Check out the 🧵 from first author Dennis Huang:

and the second
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Hmm -- issues with the GIFs above: here is the first!
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Annoyingly, thermodynamics says heat will not stay confined to individual wells, constraining the complexity of our experiments. But we can predict heat spread dynamics over time with our online app, letting us quickly know if our desired experiment is possible.
bugajlab.shinyapps.io/ThermoPlate_...

Melt is highly modular and can endow thermal control over signaling, proteolysis, cell shape, and cell death, among other behaviors, through simple end-to-end fusions. Below, Melt-based induction of cell death in cancer cell lines after cooling by ~10C.

Excited and grateful that our initial report on temperature-sensitive protein switches is now published
@naturemethods.bsky.social Co-led by PhD students Will Benman and @dennishuang.bsky.social

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Brief thread:

Melt is highly modular and can endow thermal control over signaling, proteolysis, cell shape, and cell death, among other behaviors, through simple end-to-end fusions. Below, Melt-based induction of cell death in cancer cell lines after cooling by ~10C.