Marko Kaksonen

Class-I myosin responds to changes in membrane tension during clathrin-mediated endocytosis in human induced pluripotent stem cells | PNAS Clathrin-mediated endocytosis (CME) is an essential cellular process that needs to operate efficiently across a wide range of conditions. Internali...

www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

scanning electron micrograph image of the surface of an oocyte in the process of internalizing yolk precursors, with the classical “pits” labeled

A very cool bug fact I just learned: the first published description of the process later defined as “clathrin-mediated endocytosis” – lets cells uptake large molecules; exploited by viruses – was yolk precursor internalization by maturing Aedes aegypti oocytes! 🦟 pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14126875/

📢Job alert📢

@uniheidelberg.bsky.social has an opening for a full W3-position on “Modeling of Biological Processes” 😀👍 Here is the call

tinyurl.com/3w9e9dtf

and application deadline is March 15. The group would be located at the beautiful #BioQuant center right in the middle of Neuenheimer Feld.

Please share🙏:

Our lab opens 2 PhD positions to investigate fungi's evolution: #Barcelona

Wet lab in Biochemistry/Structural Biology of cryo-tolerant fungi
www.upf.edu/documents/d/...

Computational in Physical Chemistry of cellular processes under extrem environments
www.upf.edu/documents/d/...

Continuum architecture dynamics of vesicle tethering in exocytosis Data from complementary imaging techniques were integrated into a model that resolves the dynamic exocyst ensemble and membrane architecture during exocytosis, an essential cellular pathway. Sec18 med...

0/10
🥳 our #exocyst paper out in @cp-cell.bsky.social, led by Marta, Sebas & @sasmeek.bsky.social in collab with @jonasries.bsky.social, @cmanzo.bsky.social & Castaño-Díez labs #Quantitative_Cell_Biology

Continuum architecture dynamics of vesicle tethering in exocytosis
www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...

a woman says " would you like to join us " with her eyes closed ALT: a woman says " would you like to join us " with her eyes closed

📢 Open faculty position – Origins of Life
We have an opening in our section at the University of Geneva! 🧬🚀

SPREAD THE WORD

Apply here: jobs.unige.ch/www/wd_porta...

We are excited to share our new preprint which is now available to read on biorXiv: doi.org/10.64898/202... 🎉🎉🎉

New preprint from the lab 🎉: γ-tubulin is a novel target of the tubulin autoregulation pathway! Previously thought to exclusively target α- and β-tubulin mRNAs, we show that the TTC5–SCAPER–CNOT11 axis also degrades γ-tubulin mRNA, expanding the scope of this fundamental regulatory mechanism.

My lab in the NIH Intramural Program (Bethesda, MD) will be recruiting postdoctoral fellows over the next year with flexible start dates. We work on nanoscale cellular imaging of the plasma membrane and related organelles. Please reach out if you’re interested. www.training.nih.gov/jobs/pdp-053...

Evolutionary cell biology comes of age Summary: This Perspective discusses how the discipline of evolutionary cell biology, by integrating evolutionary theory, comparative physiology and modern molecular approaches, works to understand how...

Thanks @jcellsci.bsky.social for this opportunity to contribute to your centenary collection with our take on the state of the field - 10 years after its modern reincarnation 🧪🌍

W/ @alebenoit.bsky.social @eelcotromer.bsky.social @fritzlaylin.bsky.social

journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...

Calling all archaeal enthusiasts! 🔬🔥 From molecular machines to microbial communities, Archaea never fail to surprise us!
We are excited to announce the 2026 EMBO Workshop on the Molecular Biology of Archaea, 6–10 July in Cambridge, UK!
Sign up here: meetings.embo.org/event/26-arc...
#ArchaeaSky

🗞️ New preprint from the lab, led by our postdoc Ana Garoña (not on here) in collab with @andreagiometto.bsky.social: “Experimental evolution of cellular miniaturization reveals a mechanism for cell size evolution”, aka: “honey, we shrank the yeasts!” 🎥
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Congrats Saravanan!!

An 8-nm precise map in live cells, which revealed #actin aster formation by #myosin V-driven transport of #formin.

Happy to see this work now out! 😃

In collaboration with @kaksonen.bsky.social lab

#yeast #pombe #cell_fusion

@biology-unige.bsky.social

Awesome animation about the molecular complexity of endocytosis!

Check out Javi’s discovery of a membrane scission mechanism that is a few billion years old!

How do new centromeres evolve while staying compatible with the division machinery?

Discover it in our new Nature paper! We show centromeres transition gradually via a mix of drift, selection, and sex, reaching new states that still work with the kinetochore.

👉 doi.org/10.1038/s41586-025-09779-1

So happy to announce our new preprint, “A geothermal amoeba sets a new upper temperature limit for eukaryotes.” We cultured a novel amoeba from Lassen Volcanic NP (CA, USA) that divides at 63°C (145°F) 🔥 - a new record for euk growth!
#protistsonsky 🧵

Rapid aging and disassembly of actin filaments from two evolutionary distant yeasts Actin is an essential cytoskeletal protein that is extremely well conserved across the tree of life. Similarities and differences in the way actin from different species self-assembles into filaments ...

interesting work revealing differences between evolutionary distant actins!

"..... ADP-actin filaments depolymerize faster and are mechanically more flexible in Saccharomyces cerevisiae compared to Schizosaccharomyces pombe. "

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

Myosin 2 drives actin contractility in fast-crawling species outside of the amorphean lineage Myosin 2-dependent actin contractility—the force that powers cell division and migration in animals, fungi, and other Amorphea—had been previously unknown outside this single eukaryotic group. Guest e...

Our work on Naegleria Myosin 2 is out!

Naegleria encodes 3 Myo2s which contract its actin network—the first evidence of contractile Myo2 outside of Amorphea.
Myo2 is actually widespread in Naegleria's relatives and correlates with fast cell crawling.

Read more: www.cell.com/current-biol...

This Halloween, we have a spooky evolutionary story for you.
The brainchild of @delaconcepcionjc.bsky.social, Nick Irwin and our fantastic collaborators is now out in @natplants.nature.com www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Here’s why I love this work — and why I think you’ll enjoy it too. 👇

🚨Our collaboration with @centriolelab.bsky.social & @gautamdey.bsky.social is out today in @cp-cell.bsky.social
We show that #Expansion #Microscopy is a broad-spectrum modality for Euks, enabling 3D phenotypic maps rooted to phylogeny.
#ProtistsOnSky #SciComm #SciSky

www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...

Now Christopher Toret is talking about collective invasion organisations in eukaryotic multicellular transitions. #Multicellverse

PhD or Master's position available for Fall 2026!

Interested in how actin drives cell crawling, eating, dividing, or osmoregulation? What about pathogenesis of a brain-eating amoeba? Or eukaryotic evolution? If so, apply through my website: katrinavelle.wixsite.com/science/cont...
Please share!

Schematic of MAPK signalling in fission yeast, budding yeast and Metazoa. No MAPK scaffold was known for ERK-like MAPK in fission yeast, as opposed to budding yeast Ste5 and metazoan KSR1/2.

Mammalian cells have KSR, budding yeast has Ste5… and fission yeast has Sms1 as the MAPK scaffold for sexual reproduction!

Very excited to share my postdoc work where we discover that the hemi-arrestin Sms1 binds all components of the MAPK cascade, including ERK-like Spk1

doi.org/10.1101/2025...

Be our new colleague! 🎉
The Dept of Molecular and Cellular Biology at the University of Geneva is hiring an Assistant Professor or Associate Professor.

👉 More details here: lnkd.in/e8Z9eAm4
👉 Our department: mocel.unige.ch

Please feel free to share this opportunity with your network.

Symposium in Lund September 25th The cellular roots of evolutionary change Sep 25 14:30 - 17:00 Blå hallen, Ekologihuset, Sölvegatan 37, Lund How does cell- and developmental biology improve our understanding of the evolutionary process? Join us for an afternoon of discussions about cells, development and evolution. Program 14:30 Introduction 14:40 Arild Husby, Plasticity of a life history trade-off: from GRN to high level phenotypes 15:10 Markéta Kaucká, Cell type evolution 15:40 Coffee break 16:00 Gunter Wagner, From cells to tissues and organs: nothing in evolutionary biology makes sense except in the light of cell biology 16:30 Emilia Santos, Interplay between genetics and phenotypic plasticity in the adaptation to novel environments Bonus Sep 26: 09:00 Robin Pranter, Thesis defense - Neural crest cells and the evolution of a phenotypic syndrome Lund University

How does cell end developmental biology inform our understanding of evolution? Join us for an afternoon of discussion about #cells, #development, #plasticity and #evolution.
Zoomlink Sep 25th: lu-se.zoom.us/j/62473328732
Zoomlink Sep 26th: lu-se.zoom.us/j/67411449026
#EvoDevo @biologylu.bsky.social

FocalPlane features... membrane trafficking Thursday 25 September, 15:00 -17:00 BST (UTC+1) Chaired by Francesca Bottanelli, Felix Campelo and Ishier Raote Nick Ader (UNC Greensboro) Keep it together! Mechanisms of membrane maintenance and biogenesis Hannes Maib (University of Sheffield) Multiplex and super resolution imaging of phosphoinositide conversion during receptor trafficking Mónica Quiñones-Frías (Brandeis University) Loss of ER-Shaping protein Atlastin causes synaptic ER stress and membrane trafficking defects Keynote speaker Gillian Griffiths (Yale University) Unexpected membrane dynamics in T cells

Next Thursday Sept 25 (4-6pm CET) we have our first #FocalPlaneFeatures together with our #membranetrafficking community! Thanks to all who submitted such exciting abstracts. The final program is out, featuring a keynote by Gillian Griffiths. Register here: focalplane.biologists.com/2025/09/16/f...

hey bluesky 👋 visa hurdles mean I’m looking for opportunities outside the US. I’m a computational biologist (bacterial + phage genomics, postdoc in Koonin’s group @ NIH). I am interested in teaming up on funding apps. reach out if this resonates!

Do you know what happens when you touch a carnivorous sundew plant?
If the touch is strong and large enough, a cytosolic calcium wave will spread from the site of touch throughout the whole plant, but if you only touch one tentacle (see post below), the calcium wave will be local and less intense.