Smolka Lab
@smolka-lab.bsky.social
Signaling mechanisms in genome biology: DNA repair, DNA replication and the cell cycle. Proteomic tools for exploring kinases and phosphatases.
Cornell University, Ithaca - https://smolka.wicmb.cornell.edu
Cornell University, Ithaca - https://smolka.wicmb.cornell.edu
Check out our new biosensor technology to study DDR kinase signaling: ProKAS.
We combine:
-proteomics
-engineered peptide sensors
-a new concept of amino acid barcodes
ProKAS tracks kinase signaling with spatial resolution and produces highly quantitative data.
Just published today: rdcu.be/ePNo0
We combine:
-proteomics
-engineered peptide sensors
-a new concept of amino acid barcodes
ProKAS tracks kinase signaling with spatial resolution and produces highly quantitative data.
Just published today: rdcu.be/ePNo0
November 13, 2025 at 6:22 PM
Check out our new biosensor technology to study DDR kinase signaling: ProKAS.
We combine:
-proteomics
-engineered peptide sensors
-a new concept of amino acid barcodes
ProKAS tracks kinase signaling with spatial resolution and produces highly quantitative data.
Just published today: rdcu.be/ePNo0
We combine:
-proteomics
-engineered peptide sensors
-a new concept of amino acid barcodes
ProKAS tracks kinase signaling with spatial resolution and produces highly quantitative data.
Just published today: rdcu.be/ePNo0
A significant conceptual advance in the field of DNA recombination… great work by the labs of @brookscrickard1.bsky.social
and Michelle Wang
and Michelle Wang
Just throwing this out there as a significant conceptual advance in the field
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
The Eukaryotic homology search complex distorts donor DNA structure to probe for homology
Homologous recombination (HR) is a DNA double-strand break repair pathway that facilitates genetic exchange and protects damaged replication forks during DNA synthesis. As a template-based repair proc...
www.biorxiv.org
September 18, 2025 at 10:57 AM
A significant conceptual advance in the field of DNA recombination… great work by the labs of @brookscrickard1.bsky.social
and Michelle Wang
and Michelle Wang
Reposted by Smolka Lab
Honored to receive an Outstanding Poster Award at the Protein Science Symposium! Huge thanks to the @weillinstitute.bsky.social and @weillcornell.bsky.social for an amazing event—and of course, big shoutout to the @smolka-lab.bsky.social for making the poster results possible!
June 13, 2025 at 1:19 AM
Honored to receive an Outstanding Poster Award at the Protein Science Symposium! Huge thanks to the @weillinstitute.bsky.social and @weillcornell.bsky.social for an amazing event—and of course, big shoutout to the @smolka-lab.bsky.social for making the poster results possible!
Reposted by Smolka Lab
We are counting down the days to our Protein Science Symposium on June 10-12! Thrilled to be hosting our colleagues from WCM @weillcornell.bsky.social as well as keynote speakers Dr. Christopher Lima @christopherdlima.bsky.social and Dr. Jin Zhang @jinzhanglab.bsky.social
May 22, 2025 at 12:27 AM
We are counting down the days to our Protein Science Symposium on June 10-12! Thrilled to be hosting our colleagues from WCM @weillcornell.bsky.social as well as keynote speakers Dr. Christopher Lima @christopherdlima.bsky.social and Dr. Jin Zhang @jinzhanglab.bsky.social
New preprint from the lab:
ATM controls fork processing and restart, and the PPM1D phosphatase is needed to properly balance this action of ATM.
Congratulations to @yitingcao.bsky.social @yingzhengwang.bsky.social and Jumana Badar.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
ATM controls fork processing and restart, and the PPM1D phosphatase is needed to properly balance this action of ATM.
Congratulations to @yitingcao.bsky.social @yingzhengwang.bsky.social and Jumana Badar.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
An ATM-PPM1D Circuit Controls the Processing and Restart of DNA Replication Forks
In response to DNA replication stress, DNA damage signaling kinases inhibit origin firing and promote the remodeling and stabilization of replication forks, leading to a systemic reduction in DNA synt...
www.biorxiv.org
May 16, 2025 at 1:02 PM
New preprint from the lab:
ATM controls fork processing and restart, and the PPM1D phosphatase is needed to properly balance this action of ATM.
Congratulations to @yitingcao.bsky.social @yingzhengwang.bsky.social and Jumana Badar.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
ATM controls fork processing and restart, and the PPM1D phosphatase is needed to properly balance this action of ATM.
Congratulations to @yitingcao.bsky.social @yingzhengwang.bsky.social and Jumana Badar.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Double award to the fantastic graduate student @mateuszwagner.bsky.social …
I'm honored to have received the George P. Hess Award from the MBG department and the Outstanding Graduate Teaching Award from CALS. These recognitions wouldn't have been possible without the support of the incredible @smolka-lab.bsky.social and the exceptional students of BIOMG3320.
May 11, 2025 at 8:29 PM
Double award to the fantastic graduate student @mateuszwagner.bsky.social …
Reposted by Smolka Lab
Devasting that clinical trial for Jim's PediaFlow baby heart pump is on hold due the stop on all DOD funding at Cornell.
Funded by DOD CDMRP, Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs, yet White House stopped Congress funds
#ResearchSavesLives #Standup4Science
youtu.be/a7aUBvBcPV4
Funded by DOD CDMRP, Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs, yet White House stopped Congress funds
#ResearchSavesLives #Standup4Science
youtu.be/a7aUBvBcPV4
Research at Risk: Life-saving heart pumps for babies
YouTube video by Cornell University
youtu.be
May 8, 2025 at 3:55 AM
Devasting that clinical trial for Jim's PediaFlow baby heart pump is on hold due the stop on all DOD funding at Cornell.
Funded by DOD CDMRP, Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs, yet White House stopped Congress funds
#ResearchSavesLives #Standup4Science
youtu.be/a7aUBvBcPV4
Funded by DOD CDMRP, Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs, yet White House stopped Congress funds
#ResearchSavesLives #Standup4Science
youtu.be/a7aUBvBcPV4
Reposted by Smolka Lab
🚨🧪 Are you a researcher affected by the recent cancellation of federal grants and contracts at Columbia University?
I'm working on a story for @Nature.com. If you want to chat, your identity will be kept private.
Signal: humbertobasilio.24
Email: humberto.basilio@us.nature.com
Repost please!
I'm working on a story for @Nature.com. If you want to chat, your identity will be kept private.
Signal: humbertobasilio.24
Email: humberto.basilio@us.nature.com
Repost please!
March 10, 2025 at 2:38 PM
🚨🧪 Are you a researcher affected by the recent cancellation of federal grants and contracts at Columbia University?
I'm working on a story for @Nature.com. If you want to chat, your identity will be kept private.
Signal: humbertobasilio.24
Email: humberto.basilio@us.nature.com
Repost please!
I'm working on a story for @Nature.com. If you want to chat, your identity will be kept private.
Signal: humbertobasilio.24
Email: humberto.basilio@us.nature.com
Repost please!
Reposted by Smolka Lab
Our preprint is now published www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
March 6, 2025 at 7:47 PM
Our preprint is now published www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by Smolka Lab
Applications are open for the Weill Institute Emerging Scholars Symposium @ Cornell! Senior PhD students and, now, postdocs interested in networking & presenting their work in cell & molecular biology should apply by April 14, 2025. Please repost! wicmb.cornell.edu/emerging-sch...
March 4, 2025 at 10:34 PM
Applications are open for the Weill Institute Emerging Scholars Symposium @ Cornell! Senior PhD students and, now, postdocs interested in networking & presenting their work in cell & molecular biology should apply by April 14, 2025. Please repost! wicmb.cornell.edu/emerging-sch...
Senior graduate students and postdocs, here is a great opportunity to network, showcase your science and get to know Cornell and beautiful Ithaca! Please repost.
Some good news: applications are open for the Weill Institute Emerging Scholars Symposium @ Cornell! Senior PhD students and, now, postdocs interested in networking & presenting their work in cell & molecular biology at Cornell should apply by Apr 14. Please repost! wicmb.cornell.edu/emerging-sch...
February 19, 2025 at 10:03 PM
Senior graduate students and postdocs, here is a great opportunity to network, showcase your science and get to know Cornell and beautiful Ithaca! Please repost.
Reposted by Smolka Lab
My first-author paper on uncovering a non-canonical Tel1 motif using phosphoproteomics has been published in JBC! Amazing to work with @rainshj.bsky.social using both untargeted and targeted mass spectrometry. Check it out:
doi.org/10.1016/j.jb...
doi.org/10.1016/j.jb...
February 13, 2025 at 5:24 PM
My first-author paper on uncovering a non-canonical Tel1 motif using phosphoproteomics has been published in JBC! Amazing to work with @rainshj.bsky.social using both untargeted and targeted mass spectrometry. Check it out:
doi.org/10.1016/j.jb...
doi.org/10.1016/j.jb...
Very interesting work by the @zhalab.bsky.social showing why Ku is essential in human cells
Exciting results! Using AID-Degron system, Dr. Yimeng Zhu in the lab found that Ku suppresses RNA-mediated innate immunity to accommodate Alu-expansion in primates - solving the misery of Ku essentiality in human cell and uncover 94r^2 for co evolution www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Ku suppresses RNA-mediated innate immune responses in human cells to accommodate primate-specific Alu expansion
Ku70 and Ku80 form Ku, a ring-shaped protein that initiates the non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ) DNA repair pathway.[1][1] Specifically, Ku binds to double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) ends and recruits othe...
www.biorxiv.org
February 11, 2025 at 3:22 AM
Very interesting work by the @zhalab.bsky.social showing why Ku is essential in human cells
In this new paper we find that Tel1 kinase (yeast ATM) targets D/E-S/T motifs… more prevalent than S/T-Q!
Mec1 (yeast ATR) can’t target D/E-S/T, so we think D/E-S/T targeting allows Tel1 functional specialization.
A mutation in Tel1 makes it only target S/T-Q… and cells become CPT sensitive.
Mec1 (yeast ATR) can’t target D/E-S/T, so we think D/E-S/T targeting allows Tel1 functional specialization.
A mutation in Tel1 makes it only target S/T-Q… and cells become CPT sensitive.
Profiling Tel1 Signaling Reveals a Non-Canonical Motif Targeting DNA Repair and Telomere Control Machineries
The stability of the genome relies on Phosphatidyl Inositol 3-Kinase-related Kinases (PIKKs) that sense DNA damage and trigger elaborate downstream si…
www.sciencedirect.com
January 21, 2025 at 3:36 PM
In this new paper we find that Tel1 kinase (yeast ATM) targets D/E-S/T motifs… more prevalent than S/T-Q!
Mec1 (yeast ATR) can’t target D/E-S/T, so we think D/E-S/T targeting allows Tel1 functional specialization.
A mutation in Tel1 makes it only target S/T-Q… and cells become CPT sensitive.
Mec1 (yeast ATR) can’t target D/E-S/T, so we think D/E-S/T targeting allows Tel1 functional specialization.
A mutation in Tel1 makes it only target S/T-Q… and cells become CPT sensitive.
Reposted by Smolka Lab
Happy to share a new work from the lab on how DNA damage checkpoint can be down-regulated. rdcu.be/d5o3E. Congrats to all authors at @mskcancercenter.bsky.social and our Weill BCMB student @tzippora.bsky.social. gradschool.weill.cornell.edu/bcmb-allied-...
January 4, 2025 at 5:03 PM
Happy to share a new work from the lab on how DNA damage checkpoint can be down-regulated. rdcu.be/d5o3E. Congrats to all authors at @mskcancercenter.bsky.social and our Weill BCMB student @tzippora.bsky.social. gradschool.weill.cornell.edu/bcmb-allied-...
Excited to share our preprint reporting a completely new approach to study kinase signaling: ProKAS.
ProKAS is based on a tandem array of peptide sensors with barcodes for multiplexed, spatial and kinetic applications.
We applied it to DDR kinases. Please share.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
ProKAS is based on a tandem array of peptide sensors with barcodes for multiplexed, spatial and kinetic applications.
We applied it to DDR kinases. Please share.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
December 17, 2024 at 2:10 PM
Excited to share our preprint reporting a completely new approach to study kinase signaling: ProKAS.
ProKAS is based on a tandem array of peptide sensors with barcodes for multiplexed, spatial and kinetic applications.
We applied it to DDR kinases. Please share.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
ProKAS is based on a tandem array of peptide sensors with barcodes for multiplexed, spatial and kinetic applications.
We applied it to DDR kinases. Please share.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by Smolka Lab
Great “tools of the trade” piece by Xiaofu Cao in Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol about her recent paper exploiting cell cycle-dependent phosphorylation to make a conditional protein relocalization tool!
ToT piece: rdcu.be/d0Utp
Original paper (@naturecellbiology.bsky.social): www.nature.com/articles/s41...
ToT piece: rdcu.be/d0Utp
Original paper (@naturecellbiology.bsky.social): www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Exploiting cell cycle-dependent dephosphorylation for mitosis-specific protein recruitment
Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology - In this Tools of the Trade article, Cao (Baskin lab) discusses the development of MARS, which enables mitosis-specific recruitment of enzymes to the plasma...
rdcu.be
November 21, 2024 at 2:11 AM
Great “tools of the trade” piece by Xiaofu Cao in Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol about her recent paper exploiting cell cycle-dependent phosphorylation to make a conditional protein relocalization tool!
ToT piece: rdcu.be/d0Utp
Original paper (@naturecellbiology.bsky.social): www.nature.com/articles/s41...
ToT piece: rdcu.be/d0Utp
Original paper (@naturecellbiology.bsky.social): www.nature.com/articles/s41...