Jonathan Townson
@jontytownson.bsky.social
Postdoc doing microscopy and cell biology at the University of Oslo. I study cell dynamics, membrane contact sites and mechenosensing.
Previously did my PhD developing optogenetic tools to control Notch signalling in flies at the University of Cambridge.
Previously did my PhD developing optogenetic tools to control Notch signalling in flies at the University of Cambridge.
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
Preprint highlights in extracellular biology
Read these @prelights.bsky.social posts relevant to our special issue #DevSIextracellular by @fadelvalle.bsky.social, Sristilekha Nath, @kanishka03.bsky.social, Zoha Sadaqat and @jontytownson.bsky.social.
journals.biologists.com/dev/article/...
Read these @prelights.bsky.social posts relevant to our special issue #DevSIextracellular by @fadelvalle.bsky.social, Sristilekha Nath, @kanishka03.bsky.social, Zoha Sadaqat and @jontytownson.bsky.social.
journals.biologists.com/dev/article/...
September 5, 2026 at 10:00 AM
Preprint highlights in extracellular biology
Read these @prelights.bsky.social posts relevant to our special issue #DevSIextracellular by @fadelvalle.bsky.social, Sristilekha Nath, @kanishka03.bsky.social, Zoha Sadaqat and @jontytownson.bsky.social.
journals.biologists.com/dev/article/...
Read these @prelights.bsky.social posts relevant to our special issue #DevSIextracellular by @fadelvalle.bsky.social, Sristilekha Nath, @kanishka03.bsky.social, Zoha Sadaqat and @jontytownson.bsky.social.
journals.biologists.com/dev/article/...
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
PRISM: A Plasmid-based Reporter for Intracellular Spectral Microscopy by Jonathon Nixon-Abell and team: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
September 3, 2026 at 10:40 AM
PRISM: A Plasmid-based Reporter for Intracellular Spectral Microscopy by Jonathon Nixon-Abell and team: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
I don’t belong here: Thoughts of a first-generation academic
@sillysciencelady.bsky.social discusses her experiences of belonging and the burdens that first-generation students face in academia, and how she is actively combating these thoughts and feelings.
thenode.biologists.com/i-dont-belon...
@sillysciencelady.bsky.social discusses her experiences of belonging and the burdens that first-generation students face in academia, and how she is actively combating these thoughts and feelings.
thenode.biologists.com/i-dont-belon...
I don’t belong here: Thoughts of a first-generation academic - the Node
As a university student working towards my bachelor’s degree, I didn’t even know what it would mean to add “Dr.” to my name. Six months into my postdoc, I
thenode.biologists.com
September 2, 2026 at 10:58 AM
I don’t belong here: Thoughts of a first-generation academic
@sillysciencelady.bsky.social discusses her experiences of belonging and the burdens that first-generation students face in academia, and how she is actively combating these thoughts and feelings.
thenode.biologists.com/i-dont-belon...
@sillysciencelady.bsky.social discusses her experiences of belonging and the burdens that first-generation students face in academia, and how she is actively combating these thoughts and feelings.
thenode.biologists.com/i-dont-belon...
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
Do you work with microscopy images and segment to quantify or track? Do you study cell biology? development? Gather round! Let me tell you about FOCUS-3D, a segmentation algorithm that is fast, accurate and can be used on any model. We used it here to study zebrafish development. 🧪 (thread)
FOCUS‑3D: Robust, generalizable volumetric cell segmentation for three‑dimensional fluorescence microscopy
Understanding how cells establish spatial organization within tissues is a fundamental question in life sciences. While modern three-dimensional fluorescence microscopy captures large-volume tissue ar...
www.biorxiv.org
August 29, 2026 at 5:47 AM
Do you work with microscopy images and segment to quantify or track? Do you study cell biology? development? Gather round! Let me tell you about FOCUS-3D, a segmentation algorithm that is fast, accurate and can be used on any model. We used it here to study zebrafish development. 🧪 (thread)
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
A massive update: At least ~15 companies~ are selling scientists antibodies using faked validation data. We've documented 18,000+ manipulated images on 17,000+ products sold by leading laboratory suppliers including Thermo Fisher, Abcam, Santa Cruz Biotechnology, Millipore Sigma and Bio-Techne.
1/🧵
1/🧵
August 25, 2026 at 1:06 PM
A massive update: At least ~15 companies~ are selling scientists antibodies using faked validation data. We've documented 18,000+ manipulated images on 17,000+ products sold by leading laboratory suppliers including Thermo Fisher, Abcam, Santa Cruz Biotechnology, Millipore Sigma and Bio-Techne.
1/🧵
1/🧵
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
7/7 If we want scientists to stop chasing journal prestige, we have to stop rewarding them for chasing journal prestige.
Change the incentives, and the culture can follow.
@hannaherf.bsky.social and I make the case in @sciencepolitics.bsky.social:
sciencepolitics.org/2026/08/17/s...
Change the incentives, and the culture can follow.
@hannaherf.bsky.social and I make the case in @sciencepolitics.bsky.social:
sciencepolitics.org/2026/08/17/s...
Science Doesn't Need Better Journals. It Needs Better Incentives. - Science Politics
Journal prestige shapes what science gets done, how fast it moves, and whose work gets seen. Pushing institutions to engage in open science can make the system more equitable.
sciencepolitics.org
August 19, 2026 at 12:21 AM
7/7 If we want scientists to stop chasing journal prestige, we have to stop rewarding them for chasing journal prestige.
Change the incentives, and the culture can follow.
@hannaherf.bsky.social and I make the case in @sciencepolitics.bsky.social:
sciencepolitics.org/2026/08/17/s...
Change the incentives, and the culture can follow.
@hannaherf.bsky.social and I make the case in @sciencepolitics.bsky.social:
sciencepolitics.org/2026/08/17/s...
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
Excited to share our newest work! We asked whether RNA molecules need to be in a specific place in the cell to do their job. We found that a single RNA must reach the midbody, the structure that pinches two dividing cells apart, for cell division to finish efficiently. 🧵⬇️
August 12, 2026 at 3:42 PM
Excited to share our newest work! We asked whether RNA molecules need to be in a specific place in the cell to do their job. We found that a single RNA must reach the midbody, the structure that pinches two dividing cells apart, for cell division to finish efficiently. 🧵⬇️
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
Paper celebration! Learn more about bulk autophagy and p62/SQSTM1 in BHD here: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Great work by Halvor Ullern, Julie Aarmo Johannessen and coauthors!
@arcticautophagy.bsky.social
@cancelluio.bsky.social
Great work by Halvor Ullern, Julie Aarmo Johannessen and coauthors!
@arcticautophagy.bsky.social
@cancelluio.bsky.social
August 9, 2026 at 7:02 PM
Paper celebration! Learn more about bulk autophagy and p62/SQSTM1 in BHD here: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Great work by Halvor Ullern, Julie Aarmo Johannessen and coauthors!
@arcticautophagy.bsky.social
@cancelluio.bsky.social
Great work by Halvor Ullern, Julie Aarmo Johannessen and coauthors!
@arcticautophagy.bsky.social
@cancelluio.bsky.social
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
reason 47 why government funding for fundamental research is the only stable route to scientific progress
Google can’t see what commercial return they are getting on AlphaFold
August 6, 2026 at 10:21 PM
reason 47 why government funding for fundamental research is the only stable route to scientific progress
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
Speaker refused to divulge the name of compound X in Q&A after his ASCB talk.
Questioner [who will be known to many cell biologists] blew a raspberry into the mic and gave the speaker the finger.
Questioner [who will be known to many cell biologists] blew a raspberry into the mic and gave the speaker the finger.
Hey 🧪! I was just reminiscing with a friend about the time a very senior academic called a mid-career guy's work "completely meaningless" at a meeting and now I want to hear your best (public, academic) disses
July 29, 2026 at 3:07 PM
Speaker refused to divulge the name of compound X in Q&A after his ASCB talk.
Questioner [who will be known to many cell biologists] blew a raspberry into the mic and gave the speaker the finger.
Questioner [who will be known to many cell biologists] blew a raspberry into the mic and gave the speaker the finger.
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
Colorblind II: Microscopy images and colour blindness – quantixed
quantixed.org
July 21, 2026 at 3:16 PM
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
Don't use slop. Someone's trying to make money out of you and your colleagues and your friends. Do yourself a favor and read 100% human-crated content in @prelights.bsky.social Upload preprints. Read preprints. Cite preprints. Fuck AI 🧪
Homepage - preLights
Welcome to preLights, the preprint highlights service run by the biological community and supported by The Company of Biologists. Here, a team of scientists regularly review, highlight and comment on ...
prelights.biologists.com
June 26, 2026 at 11:55 AM
Don't use slop. Someone's trying to make money out of you and your colleagues and your friends. Do yourself a favor and read 100% human-crated content in @prelights.bsky.social Upload preprints. Read preprints. Cite preprints. Fuck AI 🧪
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
And in general, if you ARE going to use IF, at least also consider it alongside our Impact Inflation (ImpInf) metric from the Strain on scientific publishing.
Golf rules: low ImpInf is good. Society and non-profit journals consistently have lower ImpInf. That tells you it's earned.
Golf rules: low ImpInf is good. Society and non-profit journals consistently have lower ImpInf. That tells you it's earned.
The strain on scientific publishing
Abstract. Scientists are increasingly overwhelmed by the volume of articles being published. The total number of articles indexed in Scopus and Web of Science has grown exponentially in recent years; ...
direct.mit.edu
June 18, 2026 at 7:05 PM
And in general, if you ARE going to use IF, at least also consider it alongside our Impact Inflation (ImpInf) metric from the Strain on scientific publishing.
Golf rules: low ImpInf is good. Society and non-profit journals consistently have lower ImpInf. That tells you it's earned.
Golf rules: low ImpInf is good. Society and non-profit journals consistently have lower ImpInf. That tells you it's earned.
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
This is the kind of things PhD student Louis can do with @ekatrukha.bsky.social's CurveMorph: following protein movement whithin growing axons in his stunning 80-hour movies
June 16, 2026 at 9:29 PM
This is the kind of things PhD student Louis can do with @ekatrukha.bsky.social's CurveMorph: following protein movement whithin growing axons in his stunning 80-hour movies
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
Wu and Hegde annotate and analyze the topology of 4,863 human endoplasmic reticulum–inserted membrane proteins and their 20,546 transmembrane domains, showing that transmembrane domains inserted by different pathways can tolerate different biophysical properties. rupress.org/jcb/article/...
May 29, 2026 at 5:45 PM
Wu and Hegde annotate and analyze the topology of 4,863 human endoplasmic reticulum–inserted membrane proteins and their 20,546 transmembrane domains, showing that transmembrane domains inserted by different pathways can tolerate different biophysical properties. rupress.org/jcb/article/...
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
Why can't we explain enhancer action despite 2 decades of chromosome conformation technologies? 😬
Our new study spearheaded by Leonid Mirny's group points to a flaw in our assumptions, and to a solution from physical principles
By @timothyfoldes.bsky.social 💻& @karissalhansen.bsky.social 🧪
🧵👇
Our new study spearheaded by Leonid Mirny's group points to a flaw in our assumptions, and to a solution from physical principles
By @timothyfoldes.bsky.social 💻& @karissalhansen.bsky.social 🧪
🧵👇
May 12, 2026 at 11:01 PM
Why can't we explain enhancer action despite 2 decades of chromosome conformation technologies? 😬
Our new study spearheaded by Leonid Mirny's group points to a flaw in our assumptions, and to a solution from physical principles
By @timothyfoldes.bsky.social 💻& @karissalhansen.bsky.social 🧪
🧵👇
Our new study spearheaded by Leonid Mirny's group points to a flaw in our assumptions, and to a solution from physical principles
By @timothyfoldes.bsky.social 💻& @karissalhansen.bsky.social 🧪
🧵👇
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
This is an important point and I'd argue there's further complexity. A paper is a narrative that essentially says "We have a scientific claim/idea about the world and here is a series of connected data to support our claim".
The data =/ the paper. The paper > the data. The data > the paper. 1/n
The data =/ the paper. The paper > the data. The data > the paper. 1/n
A paper is not just its underlying data but also the narrative the authors have decided to use. How authors interpret and explain their results is important.
Different readers can then read and interpret differently, but that initial narrative is relevant.
Different readers can then read and interpret differently, but that initial narrative is relevant.
May 2, 2026 at 2:00 PM
This is an important point and I'd argue there's further complexity. A paper is a narrative that essentially says "We have a scientific claim/idea about the world and here is a series of connected data to support our claim".
The data =/ the paper. The paper > the data. The data > the paper. 1/n
The data =/ the paper. The paper > the data. The data > the paper. 1/n
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
Doing the periodic cleaning of used plasmid miniprep columns and realized in honor of Earth Day it may be worth reminding you molecular biologists:
Plasmid miniprep columns can be cleaned and reused essentially indefinitely! Just add 1 M HCl, soak overnight and wash 3x w/ water. Save $ and plastic
Plasmid miniprep columns can be cleaned and reused essentially indefinitely! Just add 1 M HCl, soak overnight and wash 3x w/ water. Save $ and plastic
April 22, 2026 at 9:34 PM
Doing the periodic cleaning of used plasmid miniprep columns and realized in honor of Earth Day it may be worth reminding you molecular biologists:
Plasmid miniprep columns can be cleaned and reused essentially indefinitely! Just add 1 M HCl, soak overnight and wash 3x w/ water. Save $ and plastic
Plasmid miniprep columns can be cleaned and reused essentially indefinitely! Just add 1 M HCl, soak overnight and wash 3x w/ water. Save $ and plastic
The #spotLight episode for this #preLight is out. Recorded with the @prelights.bsky.social I chatted with @kawillis.bsky.social about the #preprints covered in the preLight. The spotLight episode is available to listen to here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-X3... (1/2)
April 17, 2026 at 3:41 PM
The #spotLight episode for this #preLight is out. Recorded with the @prelights.bsky.social I chatted with @kawillis.bsky.social about the #preprints covered in the preLight. The spotLight episode is available to listen to here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-X3... (1/2)
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
Check out our new release on BioRxiv
co-lead by @pm-mueller.bsky.social
👉 rb.gy/lnrizk
special🙏 to
Severine Kunz #MDC
@leventallab.bsky.social
@andimicroscopy.bsky.social
@ewerslab.bsky.social and Kedar Narayan @NCI CCR VolumeEM
Are the days of discovering new cellular structures over?? /1
co-lead by @pm-mueller.bsky.social
👉 rb.gy/lnrizk
special🙏 to
Severine Kunz #MDC
@leventallab.bsky.social
@andimicroscopy.bsky.social
@ewerslab.bsky.social and Kedar Narayan @NCI CCR VolumeEM
Are the days of discovering new cellular structures over?? /1
April 15, 2026 at 4:52 PM
Check out our new release on BioRxiv
co-lead by @pm-mueller.bsky.social
👉 rb.gy/lnrizk
special🙏 to
Severine Kunz #MDC
@leventallab.bsky.social
@andimicroscopy.bsky.social
@ewerslab.bsky.social and Kedar Narayan @NCI CCR VolumeEM
Are the days of discovering new cellular structures over?? /1
co-lead by @pm-mueller.bsky.social
👉 rb.gy/lnrizk
special🙏 to
Severine Kunz #MDC
@leventallab.bsky.social
@andimicroscopy.bsky.social
@ewerslab.bsky.social and Kedar Narayan @NCI CCR VolumeEM
Are the days of discovering new cellular structures over?? /1
Really cool to see this beautiful work from @storerlab.bsky.social is now published!
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
April 13, 2026 at 2:42 PM
Really cool to see this beautiful work from @storerlab.bsky.social is now published!
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
“Hallucinated references are an interaction design failure, there will be a fix soon.” The fact that this is about integrity, responsibility, trust – decidedly non-technical values – gets ignored. Moral questions are reframed as technical problems.'
dorotheabaur.ch/en/texts-and...
dorotheabaur.ch/en/texts-and...
Hallucinated References: Five Excuses for Academic Misconduct
When I proposed rejecting papers with hallucinated references, the support was overwhelming. But the critical voices revealed five argument patterns: from AI hype through TINA rhetoric to nihilism.
dorotheabaur.ch
March 19, 2026 at 7:01 AM
“Hallucinated references are an interaction design failure, there will be a fix soon.” The fact that this is about integrity, responsibility, trust – decidedly non-technical values – gets ignored. Moral questions are reframed as technical problems.'
dorotheabaur.ch/en/texts-and...
dorotheabaur.ch/en/texts-and...
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
Very cool! Useful tool for #Drosophila folks. Would be great adopted by whole labs / institutions. Considering it's newness, add features? Tinkering & I don't yet see: 1) Retrospective dating / bulk stock flipping 2) Stock acquisition date 3) Column sort by chromosome 4) Reference usage citation
We just launched flyRoom — modern web-based stock management for Drosophila labs. No more spreadsheets, no more messy labels, no more lost stocks. Free to start, built by researchers for researchers.
www.flyroom.net
www.flyroom.net
flyRoom - Drosophila Stock Management for Research Labs
Modern stock management for Drosophila research labs. Track stocks, plan crosses, import from FlyBase, print labels, and collaborate across institutions.
www.flyroom.net
March 15, 2026 at 8:00 PM
Very cool! Useful tool for #Drosophila folks. Would be great adopted by whole labs / institutions. Considering it's newness, add features? Tinkering & I don't yet see: 1) Retrospective dating / bulk stock flipping 2) Stock acquisition date 3) Column sort by chromosome 4) Reference usage citation
Reposted by Jonathan Townson
Mirror mirror on the wall, what is the fairest funding call?
@jontytownson.bsky.social covers two #preprints (@kristine-willis.mstdn.science.ap.brid.gy & team) using data & social science to analyse how significant biological discoveries are made
#preLight⬇️
prelights.biologists.com/highlights/t...
@jontytownson.bsky.social covers two #preprints (@kristine-willis.mstdn.science.ap.brid.gy & team) using data & social science to analyse how significant biological discoveries are made
#preLight⬇️
prelights.biologists.com/highlights/t...
A thirty-year trend of increasing clinical orientation at the National Institutes of Health; Prediction of transformative breakthroughs in biomedical research - preLights
Mirror mirror on the wall, what is the fairest funding call?
prelights.biologists.com
March 11, 2026 at 10:16 AM
Mirror mirror on the wall, what is the fairest funding call?
@jontytownson.bsky.social covers two #preprints (@kristine-willis.mstdn.science.ap.brid.gy & team) using data & social science to analyse how significant biological discoveries are made
#preLight⬇️
prelights.biologists.com/highlights/t...
@jontytownson.bsky.social covers two #preprints (@kristine-willis.mstdn.science.ap.brid.gy & team) using data & social science to analyse how significant biological discoveries are made
#preLight⬇️
prelights.biologists.com/highlights/t...
Happy to have written a piece with @prelights.bsky.social covering two preprints looking at funding and publications! A data science approach to analysing #funding decisions and #publications in #biosciences. (1/3) prelights.biologists.com/highlights/t...
A thirty-year trend of increasing clinical orientation at the National Institutes of Health; Prediction of transformative breakthroughs in biomedical research - preLights
Mirror mirror on the wall, what is the fairest funding call?
prelights.biologists.com
March 12, 2026 at 2:48 PM
Happy to have written a piece with @prelights.bsky.social covering two preprints looking at funding and publications! A data science approach to analysing #funding decisions and #publications in #biosciences. (1/3) prelights.biologists.com/highlights/t...