Daniel Heller
@danielheller.bsky.social
Head of the Cancer Nanomedicine Laboratory at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Weill Cornell Medicine. All opinions are my own.
Congratulations to former lab members Chen Chen, @anamarieperea.bsky.social, and colleagues who found that nanoparticles can take advantage of the lysosome to sequester drugs to control/prolong their release into the cell and increase anti-tumor efficacy! pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
September 23, 2025 at 3:22 AM
Congratulations to former lab members Chen Chen, @anamarieperea.bsky.social, and colleagues who found that nanoparticles can take advantage of the lysosome to sequester drugs to control/prolong their release into the cell and increase anti-tumor efficacy! pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
Reposted by Daniel Heller
I’ve already highlighted this landmark #lipidtime paper by @nadlerlab.bsky.social & colleagues, but ICYMI, do read André’s thread — this study is a huge leap forward in understanding the logic of intracellular lipid flux & is a phenomenal example of #chembio probes 🤝 quantitative imaging 🤝 modeling!
Out today in @nature.com: Together with the Honigmann, Shevchenko, Drobot and Hof labs, we present a general workflow for imaging the localization and transport of individual lipids in cells and mapping their metabolism.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
August 31, 2025 at 5:35 PM
I’ve already highlighted this landmark #lipidtime paper by @nadlerlab.bsky.social & colleagues, but ICYMI, do read André’s thread — this study is a huge leap forward in understanding the logic of intracellular lipid flux & is a phenomenal example of #chembio probes 🤝 quantitative imaging 🤝 modeling!
Reposted by Daniel Heller
Read this, read it again, breath the words into your lungs, and then go live them.
This is our mission.
www.thenation.com/article/acti...
This is our mission.
www.thenation.com/article/acti...
On the Power of Small Acts of Noncompliance
At a moment when large-scale resistance can feel futile,
there are other ways to oppose, engage, and fight back.
www.thenation.com
August 31, 2025 at 7:49 PM
Read this, read it again, breath the words into your lungs, and then go live them.
This is our mission.
www.thenation.com/article/acti...
This is our mission.
www.thenation.com/article/acti...
Reposted by Daniel Heller
Proofs just hit!
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August 2, 2025 at 8:32 PM
Proofs just hit!
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👇
Congrats to recent grad Stephen Ruiz and colleagues on our lab’s paper describing a new cancer target, and a new nanotherapeutic strategy to use it to treat patients! pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
Phospholipase PAFAH2 Mediates Ferroptosis Surveillance and Lipid Remodeling to Promote Resistance in KEAP1 Mutant Cancers
Although ferroptosis resistance is prevalent among many cancer cell types, precisely how ferroptosis surveillance mechanisms are induced remains elusive due to the heterogeneity of the cellular mutational status and metabolic states. Here, we find that phospholipase PAFAH2 regulates ferroptosis through its unique ability to specifically detoxify membrane-bound oxidized phospholipids in KEAP1 mutant and NRF2-active cancer cells. We show that the genetic or chemical perturbation of PAFAH2 is sufficient to sensitize KEAP1 mutant lung adenocarcinoma cells to ferroptosis. Lipidomic analyses reveal that PAFAH2 inhibition shifts the cellular lipidome to a distinctly ferroptosis state characterized by the enrichment of key phospholipids previously identified to be important in ferroptosis, like ether-linked phosphatidylethanolamines. Finally, we comparatively assessed the antitumor efficacy of PAFAH2 inhibitor monotherapy versus cotreatment with a nanoparticle-stabilized GPX4 inhibitor formulation. Our findings support that the broad applicability of PAFAH2 inhibition can be used in ferroptosis induction and abrogation of ferroptosis resistance across cancer types.
pubs.acs.org
July 3, 2025 at 7:43 PM
Congrats to recent grad Stephen Ruiz and colleagues on our lab’s paper describing a new cancer target, and a new nanotherapeutic strategy to use it to treat patients! pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
Reposted by Daniel Heller
EU augments opportunities for scientists around the world to launch or re-launch their careers in Europe.
Europe’s choice is clear.
To put science at the heart of its economy.
To become the home of scientific freedom and collaboration.
And to welcome talent from all over the world.
I’m glad to present the first elements of our Choose Europe Initiative.
→ europa.eu/!TTbWbJ
To put science at the heart of its economy.
To become the home of scientific freedom and collaboration.
And to welcome talent from all over the world.
I’m glad to present the first elements of our Choose Europe Initiative.
→ europa.eu/!TTbWbJ
May 5, 2025 at 6:13 PM
EU augments opportunities for scientists around the world to launch or re-launch their careers in Europe.
Reposted by Daniel Heller
The current administration’s narrative that Harvard (and all universities) feel “entitled” to federal dollars misleads the public. Nor are these funds a “privilege” 1/n
Harvard may have a lot of issues, but none of the accusations in this acid-tripping letter are it. Don't know whether to laugh or cry as I watch monkeys tear up pearl strings.
🚨🚨 Deranged letter from Education Secretary Linda McMahon to Harvard’s president, cutting off federal funding for any new grants.
Worth reading in full. It is NUTS.
Worth reading in full. It is NUTS.
May 6, 2025 at 1:31 AM
The current administration’s narrative that Harvard (and all universities) feel “entitled” to federal dollars misleads the public. Nor are these funds a “privilege” 1/n
Reposted by Daniel Heller
Important message. Also important to remember that federal funding for science isn’t “given” to university laboratories - it is awarded based on highly competitive process, profs spend months/years on proposals that are reviewed by experts, most are rejected.
www.young.senate.gov/newsroom/pre...
www.young.senate.gov/newsroom/pre...
Young, Pottinger Op-Ed: Funding for R&D Isn’t a Gift to Academia. It's Vital to U.S. Security. - Senator Young
The following column by Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.) and Matthew Pottinger, Former Deputy National Security Advisor of the United States, was published in The Washington Post on March 24, 2025. By Sena...
www.young.senate.gov
May 6, 2025 at 10:35 PM
Important message. Also important to remember that federal funding for science isn’t “given” to university laboratories - it is awarded based on highly competitive process, profs spend months/years on proposals that are reviewed by experts, most are rejected.
www.young.senate.gov/newsroom/pre...
www.young.senate.gov/newsroom/pre...
Reposted by Daniel Heller
🧪 ICYMI: $25,000 bridge funding for terminated NSF grants.
Major props for to the Spencer, Sloan, W. T. Grant, and Kapor Foundations for their swift action, even though we (and they) know this is a band-aid fix.
Due May 30. Applications are brief: a 2-3 page memo of 6-month plans & other docs.
Major props for to the Spencer, Sloan, W. T. Grant, and Kapor Foundations for their swift action, even though we (and they) know this is a band-aid fix.
Due May 30. Applications are brief: a 2-3 page memo of 6-month plans & other docs.
Rapid Response Bridge Funding Program
In the face of recent abrupt shifts in federal funding for education research, including large-scale terminations of National Science Foundation (NSF) research grant awards, we have developed a rap...
www.spencer.org
May 6, 2025 at 7:42 PM
🧪 ICYMI: $25,000 bridge funding for terminated NSF grants.
Major props for to the Spencer, Sloan, W. T. Grant, and Kapor Foundations for their swift action, even though we (and they) know this is a band-aid fix.
Due May 30. Applications are brief: a 2-3 page memo of 6-month plans & other docs.
Major props for to the Spencer, Sloan, W. T. Grant, and Kapor Foundations for their swift action, even though we (and they) know this is a band-aid fix.
Due May 30. Applications are brief: a 2-3 page memo of 6-month plans & other docs.
Reposted by Daniel Heller
Choose Science. Choose Europe.
A new Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Postdoctoral Fellowships 2025 call is now open.
With a budget of €404.3 million, it will support around 1,650 researchers from Europe and beyond.
Apply by 10 September → europa.eu/!fBTMgF
A new Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Postdoctoral Fellowships 2025 call is now open.
With a budget of €404.3 million, it will support around 1,650 researchers from Europe and beyond.
Apply by 10 September → europa.eu/!fBTMgF
May 8, 2025 at 10:12 AM
Choose Science. Choose Europe.
A new Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Postdoctoral Fellowships 2025 call is now open.
With a budget of €404.3 million, it will support around 1,650 researchers from Europe and beyond.
Apply by 10 September → europa.eu/!fBTMgF
A new Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Postdoctoral Fellowships 2025 call is now open.
With a budget of €404.3 million, it will support around 1,650 researchers from Europe and beyond.
Apply by 10 September → europa.eu/!fBTMgF
Reposted by Daniel Heller
Leading from within...
A thread: NIH Fellows United is committed to showing up, even when leadership won’t. 🧪
May 9, 2025 at 7:18 PM
Leading from within...
Reposted by Daniel Heller
“The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas — hardly a partisan institution — finds that nondefense government R&D yields long-run economic returns of 150% to 300% …“Our findings therefore point to a misallocation of public capital, and substantial underinvestment in nondefense R&D.”
The NSF Is Being Dismantled — With Broad Implications For The American Economy
The economic consequences of cuts to the National Science Foundation and restricting scientific inquiry on this scale could be far-reaching.
www.forbes.com
May 10, 2025 at 4:30 AM
“The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas — hardly a partisan institution — finds that nondefense government R&D yields long-run economic returns of 150% to 300% …“Our findings therefore point to a misallocation of public capital, and substantial underinvestment in nondefense R&D.”
Reposted by Daniel Heller
The pact of the federal govt with universities was not a handout. It was a strategic decision to boost US leadership in technology, defense, and health. And it paid dividends. In tech, internet, in cancer drugs (for example), No other sector has invested in high risk high reward ideas like US govt.
May 10, 2025 at 2:42 AM
The pact of the federal govt with universities was not a handout. It was a strategic decision to boost US leadership in technology, defense, and health. And it paid dividends. In tech, internet, in cancer drugs (for example), No other sector has invested in high risk high reward ideas like US govt.
Reposted by Daniel Heller
Opinion | The Science I Would Be Doing if I Weren’t in ICE Detention
www.nytimes.com
May 13, 2025 at 12:56 PM
Reposted by Daniel Heller
May 14, 2025 at 9:16 PM
Reposted by Daniel Heller
Reposted by Daniel Heller
At the end of this summer, the future of U.S. science and research will be decided.
From weather alerts to cancer breakthroughs, science shapes every part of our lives.
We need everyone in this fight.
The Summer Fight for Science starts now. Are you in?
The fight starts here: bit.ly/4ddiuqU
From weather alerts to cancer breakthroughs, science shapes every part of our lives.
We need everyone in this fight.
The Summer Fight for Science starts now. Are you in?
The fight starts here: bit.ly/4ddiuqU
May 14, 2025 at 7:07 PM
At the end of this summer, the future of U.S. science and research will be decided.
From weather alerts to cancer breakthroughs, science shapes every part of our lives.
We need everyone in this fight.
The Summer Fight for Science starts now. Are you in?
The fight starts here: bit.ly/4ddiuqU
From weather alerts to cancer breakthroughs, science shapes every part of our lives.
We need everyone in this fight.
The Summer Fight for Science starts now. Are you in?
The fight starts here: bit.ly/4ddiuqU
Reposted by Daniel Heller
In the words of @cdelawalla.bsky.social - It's time to Get In, Dorks!
And if you're in CO and want help, DM me, let's stand up for science! This is not unachievable if we stand together.
And if you're in CO and want help, DM me, let's stand up for science! This is not unachievable if we stand together.
☀️THE SUMMER FIGHT FOR SCIENCE☀️
🫵 WHO: You + all our friends
🧪 WHAT: Share science with your neighbors and tell them about the impact of proposed budget cuts.
🇺🇸 WHERE: Your local community
🏖️ WHEN: Now to Sept 30th
🔬 WHY: The 9/30 budget vote will determine the future of science in America.
🫵 WHO: You + all our friends
🧪 WHAT: Share science with your neighbors and tell them about the impact of proposed budget cuts.
🇺🇸 WHERE: Your local community
🏖️ WHEN: Now to Sept 30th
🔬 WHY: The 9/30 budget vote will determine the future of science in America.
May 14, 2025 at 10:07 PM
In the words of @cdelawalla.bsky.social - It's time to Get In, Dorks!
And if you're in CO and want help, DM me, let's stand up for science! This is not unachievable if we stand together.
And if you're in CO and want help, DM me, let's stand up for science! This is not unachievable if we stand together.
Reposted by Daniel Heller
You can get distracted by all the stuff that’s really bad and abhorrent and you might miss all the stuff that’s REALLY bad and abhorrent. It’s like a magician show in horror alley.
The House Ways & Means Committee advanced a tax bill that includes a dangerous provision granting the executive branch the power to effectively shut down any non-profit by accusing them of “supporting terrorism” and using that to suspend their tax-exempt status without any real due process.
Republicans Sneak Nonprofit Killer Bill Into the Tail End of Trump’s 389-Page Tax Plan
It would give the Trump administration the power to strip the tax-exempt status of any nonprofit it deems a “terrorist-supporting organization.”
theintercept.com
May 14, 2025 at 9:27 PM
You can get distracted by all the stuff that’s really bad and abhorrent and you might miss all the stuff that’s REALLY bad and abhorrent. It’s like a magician show in horror alley.
Reposted by Daniel Heller
🚨 AIMBE is calling on the biomedical research community to take a minute to send our 3 new advocacy letters urging Congress to:
1. Protect the STEM Training Pipeline (e.g., NIH MOSAIC, T32s, MARC, etc.)
2. Oppose Indirect Cost Caps
3. Support Research Funding in FY2026
aimbe.org/advocate/wri...
1. Protect the STEM Training Pipeline (e.g., NIH MOSAIC, T32s, MARC, etc.)
2. Oppose Indirect Cost Caps
3. Support Research Funding in FY2026
aimbe.org/advocate/wri...
May 5, 2025 at 6:34 PM
🚨 AIMBE is calling on the biomedical research community to take a minute to send our 3 new advocacy letters urging Congress to:
1. Protect the STEM Training Pipeline (e.g., NIH MOSAIC, T32s, MARC, etc.)
2. Oppose Indirect Cost Caps
3. Support Research Funding in FY2026
aimbe.org/advocate/wri...
1. Protect the STEM Training Pipeline (e.g., NIH MOSAIC, T32s, MARC, etc.)
2. Oppose Indirect Cost Caps
3. Support Research Funding in FY2026
aimbe.org/advocate/wri...
I don’t always chair GRCs, but when I do, I do so in Tuscany with @thedaylab.bsky.social!
Just 45 days left until the Cancer Nanotechnology Gordon Research Conference! Looking forward to a fantastic meeting! It has been a pleasure to organize with my co-chair @danielheller.bsky.social! www.grc.org/cancer-nanot...
2025 Cancer Nanotechnology Conference GRC
The 2025 Gordon Research Conference on Cancer Nanotechnology will be held in Lucca (Barga), Lucca Italy. Apply today to reserve your spot.
www.grc.org
May 3, 2025 at 2:46 AM
I don’t always chair GRCs, but when I do, I do so in Tuscany with @thedaylab.bsky.social!
Proud to add to the long-running Handbook of Carbon Nano Materials series, with two volumes on carbon nanotubes in biomedicine! Amazing work by co-editor @mijinkim.bsky.social and so many terrific chapter authors! worldscientific.com/worldscibooks/…
May 1, 2025 at 2:16 AM
Proud to add to the long-running Handbook of Carbon Nano Materials series, with two volumes on carbon nanotubes in biomedicine! Amazing work by co-editor @mijinkim.bsky.social and so many terrific chapter authors! worldscientific.com/worldscibooks/…
Reposted by Daniel Heller
🧐 NEW mRNA LNP from @yizhoudonglab.bsky.social that supercharges the cancer-immunity cycle by inducing tumor cell death while increasing the number & activity of dendritic cells. Want to know how it works? Read the full paper in the Journal of Controlled Release www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Enhancing antitumor immunity through chemotherapeutic-derived lipid nanoparticle-induced immunogenic cell death and CD40L/Flt3L mRNA-mediated dendritic cell activation
Dendritic cells (DCs) are essential for inducing effective antitumor T cell responses. However, the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME) hin…
www.sciencedirect.com
April 15, 2025 at 6:33 PM
🧐 NEW mRNA LNP from @yizhoudonglab.bsky.social that supercharges the cancer-immunity cycle by inducing tumor cell death while increasing the number & activity of dendritic cells. Want to know how it works? Read the full paper in the Journal of Controlled Release www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by Daniel Heller
