Heather Feaga
@heatherfeaga.bsky.social
Assistant Professor at Cornell studying translation in bacteria. Nothing bad ever happens to a scientist, it's all data.
Pinned
Heather Feaga
@heatherfeaga.bsky.social
· Aug 19
Conservation and evolution of the programmed ribosomal frameshift in prfB across the bacterial domain | mBio
Translation termination is catalyzed by one of two release factors in bacteria, RF1 or RF2. It has been known for decades that RF2 levels in Escherichia coli are regulated by a programmed ribosomal frameshift within the prfB gene that encodes RF2. We ...
journals.asm.org
Latest from the lab! Analysis of everyone’s favorite regulatory mechanism in bacteria — the RF2 programmed frameshift! Likely present in the ancestor of bacteria, use of this mechanism is influenced by stop codon usage! Big congrats to @cassidyprints.bsky.social
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
Reposted by Heather Feaga
In the era of chatGPT, Claude, Grok, DeepSeek, Perplexity etc and finding an email in outlook using keywords is literally impossible….
November 21, 2025 at 8:08 PM
In the era of chatGPT, Claude, Grok, DeepSeek, Perplexity etc and finding an email in outlook using keywords is literally impossible….
Great visit to UW Madison, microbiology home base! Thanks to Jason Peters for hosting! See you at Phages! 👋
November 14, 2025 at 12:49 PM
Great visit to UW Madison, microbiology home base! Thanks to Jason Peters for hosting! See you at Phages! 👋
Reposted by Heather Feaga
Very proud of our recently published work in @narjournal.bsky.social led by senior PhD candidate Julia Warrick. #RNA
academic.oup.com/nar/article/...
academic.oup.com/nar/article/...
An autism spectrum disorder mutation in Topoisomerase 3β causes accumulation of covalent mRNA intermediates by disrupting metal binding within the zinc finger domain
Abstract. The loss and mutation of Topoisomerase 3β (TOP3B), the only known eukaryotic topoisomerase with the ability to catalyze RNA strand passage reacti
academic.oup.com
November 10, 2025 at 12:21 AM
Very proud of our recently published work in @narjournal.bsky.social led by senior PhD candidate Julia Warrick. #RNA
academic.oup.com/nar/article/...
academic.oup.com/nar/article/...
It’s normal for colleagues in a field to share and discuss their unpublished results. What’s not normal is basing your entire model off of those results and declaring yourself the winner. Announcing that that is what you did IN YOUR PAPER is even weirder.
November 8, 2025 at 3:05 PM
It’s normal for colleagues in a field to share and discuss their unpublished results. What’s not normal is basing your entire model off of those results and declaring yourself the winner. Announcing that that is what you did IN YOUR PAPER is even weirder.
Reposted by Heather Feaga
Women, we need to work harder to get noticed for ruining science.
A List of Things Said to Have Been Ruined by Women
🧵
🧵
November 6, 2025 at 11:57 PM
Women, we need to work harder to get noticed for ruining science.
Reposted by Heather Feaga
🚨Just in press @asbmb.bsky.social JBC!🚨 Alex & Chioma's paper detailing the interaction of Fe(II) with an intact membrane His kinase for the first time! Binding stoichiometry ✅ Fe(II) structure ✅ Direct observation of selectivity ✅ Signal transmission pathway ✅ Read more here: tinyurl.com/49wdkecu
The Pseudomonas aeruginosa Membrane Histidine Kinase BqsS/CarS Directly Senses Environmental Ferrous Iron (Fe2+)
Prokaryotic two-component signal transduction systems (TCSs) are widely utilized by bacteria to respond to their environment and are typically compose…
tinyurl.com
November 6, 2025 at 2:19 PM
🚨Just in press @asbmb.bsky.social JBC!🚨 Alex & Chioma's paper detailing the interaction of Fe(II) with an intact membrane His kinase for the first time! Binding stoichiometry ✅ Fe(II) structure ✅ Direct observation of selectivity ✅ Signal transmission pathway ✅ Read more here: tinyurl.com/49wdkecu
Reposted by Heather Feaga
“So hear me, President Trump, when I say this: to get to any of us, you will have to get through all of us.
- New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani
- New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani
November 5, 2025 at 10:47 AM
“So hear me, President Trump, when I say this: to get to any of us, you will have to get through all of us.
- New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani
- New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani
Reposted by Heather Feaga
To be fair, this bot does accurately reflect the accepted modern practice of never saying anything interesting in a scientific paper.
Nature suggests you use their "Manuscript Adviser" bot to get advice before submitting
I uploaded the classic Watson & Crick paper about DNA structure, and the Adviser had this to say about one of the greatest paper endings of the century:
I uploaded the classic Watson & Crick paper about DNA structure, and the Adviser had this to say about one of the greatest paper endings of the century:
November 3, 2025 at 4:41 PM
To be fair, this bot does accurately reflect the accepted modern practice of never saying anything interesting in a scientific paper.
Reposted by Heather Feaga
Super proud of Dr Brayan Vilanova Cuevas for successfully defending his dissertation on Philaster diadema interactions. Well done, and watch out world!!
November 3, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Super proud of Dr Brayan Vilanova Cuevas for successfully defending his dissertation on Philaster diadema interactions. Well done, and watch out world!!
Reposted by Heather Feaga
This month, my lab celebrated our 5 year anniversary! On October 16, 2020, I rode the L train to start my lab at UIC, as the only lab member during COVID. In 2025, we celebrated together! It’s been such an honor that all these incredible people and more have chosen to do science with me!
October 31, 2025 at 3:15 AM
This month, my lab celebrated our 5 year anniversary! On October 16, 2020, I rode the L train to start my lab at UIC, as the only lab member during COVID. In 2025, we celebrated together! It’s been such an honor that all these incredible people and more have chosen to do science with me!
Reposted by Heather Feaga
Excited to share my latest postdoctoral work in the Shen Lab at Tufts! In this study, we follow up on an exciting finding by former grad student @shailab.bsky.social that C diff uses its Class A PBP (PBP1) to drive cell division (unlike previously studied bacteria)! journals.plos.org/plosgenetics...
Molecular dissection of Class A PBP function uncovers novel features of the non-canonical Clostridioides difficile divisome complex
Author summary Bacterial cell division is an ancient and essential process, but our molecular understanding of this process is primarily based on studies in a select few model systems. Recent work fou...
journals.plos.org
October 28, 2025 at 1:25 AM
Excited to share my latest postdoctoral work in the Shen Lab at Tufts! In this study, we follow up on an exciting finding by former grad student @shailab.bsky.social that C diff uses its Class A PBP (PBP1) to drive cell division (unlike previously studied bacteria)! journals.plos.org/plosgenetics...
Of course Amazon runs Canvas.
October 20, 2025 at 9:58 PM
Of course Amazon runs Canvas.
Reposted by Heather Feaga
We’re starting to look for postdocs for 2026 and beyond. Nothing official yet, but if you want to use your synbio skills and the growing Microbe-Mineral Atlas to build cutting-edge biomining technologies read more below:
docs.google.com/document/d/1...
docs.google.com/document/d/1...
Microbe-Mineral Atlas Engineering
The Barstow lab at Cornell University is looking for a new postdoc for 2026 and beyond to help us with the next phase of our Microbe-Mineral Atlas project. We plan on going from basic scientific disco...
docs.google.com
October 19, 2025 at 7:52 PM
We’re starting to look for postdocs for 2026 and beyond. Nothing official yet, but if you want to use your synbio skills and the growing Microbe-Mineral Atlas to build cutting-edge biomining technologies read more below:
docs.google.com/document/d/1...
docs.google.com/document/d/1...
Reposted by Heather Feaga
I'm happy to post this recent work from our lab. Trying to keep things going under challenging times.
www.biorxiv.org/cgi/content/...
www.biorxiv.org/cgi/content/...
Rad54 separation of function mutation highlights unique roles during homologous recombination
Homologous recombination (HR) is a DNA repair pathway that utilizes a template-based approach to repair double-strand breaks within the genome. Template utilization requires the exchange of individual...
www.biorxiv.org
October 15, 2025 at 10:48 PM
I'm happy to post this recent work from our lab. Trying to keep things going under challenging times.
www.biorxiv.org/cgi/content/...
www.biorxiv.org/cgi/content/...
Reposted by Heather Feaga
We are hiring…position suitable for PhD student with interest in ribosomes, antibiotics and cryoEM…
www.uni-hamburg.de/en/stellenan...
www.uni-hamburg.de/en/stellenan...
Job advertisement
www.uni-hamburg.de
October 16, 2025 at 4:02 PM
We are hiring…position suitable for PhD student with interest in ribosomes, antibiotics and cryoEM…
www.uni-hamburg.de/en/stellenan...
www.uni-hamburg.de/en/stellenan...
Reposted by Heather Feaga
Happy to share our new review in Royal Society Open Biology 🎉
tRNA-modifying enzymes in bacterial stress adaptation:
How tRNA mods rewire translation under oxidative + antibiotic stress (MoTTs, moonlighting, therapy angles).
Read: doi.org/10.1098/rsob...
#RNAsky #microsky #AMR #RNAmodifications
tRNA-modifying enzymes in bacterial stress adaptation:
How tRNA mods rewire translation under oxidative + antibiotic stress (MoTTs, moonlighting, therapy angles).
Read: doi.org/10.1098/rsob...
#RNAsky #microsky #AMR #RNAmodifications
tRNA-modifying enzymes in bacterial stress adaptation | Open Biology
Transfer RNAs (tRNAs) and their modifications are central to bacterial translation
and physiology, yet their roles in stress adaptation remain underexplored. While extensively
studied in eukaryotes, a...
doi.org
October 8, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Happy to share our new review in Royal Society Open Biology 🎉
tRNA-modifying enzymes in bacterial stress adaptation:
How tRNA mods rewire translation under oxidative + antibiotic stress (MoTTs, moonlighting, therapy angles).
Read: doi.org/10.1098/rsob...
#RNAsky #microsky #AMR #RNAmodifications
tRNA-modifying enzymes in bacterial stress adaptation:
How tRNA mods rewire translation under oxidative + antibiotic stress (MoTTs, moonlighting, therapy angles).
Read: doi.org/10.1098/rsob...
#RNAsky #microsky #AMR #RNAmodifications
Reposted by Heather Feaga
We're hiring! Check out our ad and please re-post or forward to interested #Microbiology parties: apply.interfolio.com/174783
Apply - Interfolio
{{$ctrl.$state.data.pageTitle}} - Apply - Interfolio
apply.interfolio.com
October 7, 2025 at 4:10 PM
We're hiring! Check out our ad and please re-post or forward to interested #Microbiology parties: apply.interfolio.com/174783
Reposted by Heather Feaga
My department (Biological Sciences) at the University of Delaware is looking for a new tenure track assistant professor with a research focus on biomolecular sensing broadly. 🧪#molbiol #microsky
careers.udel.edu/en-us/job/50...
careers.udel.edu/en-us/job/50...
University of Delaware - Details - Assistant Professor (Tenure Track), Department of Biological Sciences
careers.udel.edu
October 6, 2025 at 7:49 PM
My department (Biological Sciences) at the University of Delaware is looking for a new tenure track assistant professor with a research focus on biomolecular sensing broadly. 🧪#molbiol #microsky
careers.udel.edu/en-us/job/50...
careers.udel.edu/en-us/job/50...
I left this geranium for dead last spring in a window sill and suddenly this morning I notice one green leaf and one tiny pink flower. That’s hope y’all.
October 4, 2025 at 1:44 PM
I left this geranium for dead last spring in a window sill and suddenly this morning I notice one green leaf and one tiny pink flower. That’s hope y’all.
Reposted by Heather Feaga
The Peters lab is looking for a new team member! The role transposons play in evolution, basic mechanisms regulating transposition, and applying transposons as tools for genome modification with a special focus on guide RNA-directed transposition. cornell.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/CornellCaree...
Technician III - Department of Microbiology
Position Summary This position will be in the lab of Dr. Joseph E. Peters in the Department of Microbiology. Research in the Peters’ lab broadly involves deciphering mechanisms in genome stability and...
cornell.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com
October 3, 2025 at 1:01 PM
The Peters lab is looking for a new team member! The role transposons play in evolution, basic mechanisms regulating transposition, and applying transposons as tools for genome modification with a special focus on guide RNA-directed transposition. cornell.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/CornellCaree...
Reposted by Heather Feaga
I am very happy to share that I have started this week as an Assistant Professor of Microbiology at the Richard A. Gillespie College of Veterinary Medicine in Harrogate, Tennessee. It has been a beautiful journey from IAAS to Ohio State to Cornell, and now to LMU-CVM.
October 3, 2025 at 7:43 AM
I am very happy to share that I have started this week as an Assistant Professor of Microbiology at the Richard A. Gillespie College of Veterinary Medicine in Harrogate, Tennessee. It has been a beautiful journey from IAAS to Ohio State to Cornell, and now to LMU-CVM.
Reposted by Heather Feaga
Apply for a #PhD with @paulhoskisson.bsky.social and me on all things #Streptomyces, #evolution, #AMR, #antibiotics, #biotech!
Deadline 21st November. #MicroSky please share!
Deadline 21st November. #MicroSky please share!
Come and work with me and @ariannebabina.bsky.social on #Streptomyces evolution and antibiotic production
Origins of a tangled bank: Adaptation and evolution in antibiotic-producing Streptomyces
www.gla.ac.uk/postgraduate...
please repost
Origins of a tangled bank: Adaptation and evolution in antibiotic-producing Streptomyces
www.gla.ac.uk/postgraduate...
please repost
University of Glasgow - Postgraduate study - Centres for Doctoral Training - NorthWest Biosciences - Our Projects - Underpinning Bioscience - Paul A Hoskisson
www.gla.ac.uk
October 2, 2025 at 3:23 PM
Apply for a #PhD with @paulhoskisson.bsky.social and me on all things #Streptomyces, #evolution, #AMR, #antibiotics, #biotech!
Deadline 21st November. #MicroSky please share!
Deadline 21st November. #MicroSky please share!
Reposted by Heather Feaga
quick while the government is shut down let’s all switch to metric
October 1, 2025 at 4:11 AM
quick while the government is shut down let’s all switch to metric
Reposted by Heather Feaga
Come and work with me and @ariannebabina.bsky.social on #Streptomyces evolution and antibiotic production
Origins of a tangled bank: Adaptation and evolution in antibiotic-producing Streptomyces
www.gla.ac.uk/postgraduate...
please repost
Origins of a tangled bank: Adaptation and evolution in antibiotic-producing Streptomyces
www.gla.ac.uk/postgraduate...
please repost
University of Glasgow - Postgraduate study - Centres for Doctoral Training - NorthWest Biosciences - Our Projects - Underpinning Bioscience - Paul A Hoskisson
www.gla.ac.uk
September 30, 2025 at 11:02 AM
Come and work with me and @ariannebabina.bsky.social on #Streptomyces evolution and antibiotic production
Origins of a tangled bank: Adaptation and evolution in antibiotic-producing Streptomyces
www.gla.ac.uk/postgraduate...
please repost
Origins of a tangled bank: Adaptation and evolution in antibiotic-producing Streptomyces
www.gla.ac.uk/postgraduate...
please repost
Reposted by Heather Feaga
"Cascading failure" is my new favorite term
Curiosity calls for science.
Making sense of spaghetti physics: "Why does the strand break like that?"
🍝
#science #physics #pasta #interesting
Making sense of spaghetti physics: "Why does the strand break like that?"
🍝
#science #physics #pasta #interesting
September 28, 2025 at 1:54 PM
"Cascading failure" is my new favorite term