Chris Wallace
@chr1sw.bsky.social
Using statistics and genomics to understand cause and potential treatments for chronic immune mediated diseases.
R, emacs, rake.
Cambridge, UK.
https://chr1swallace.github.io
R, emacs, rake.
Cambridge, UK.
https://chr1swallace.github.io
I was very pleased to be able to make it to Paul Fine's retirement lecture last week. He was an amazing PhD supervisor to me, and the lecture highlighted how impactful his work had been, from polio to leprosy, and Malawi to the @johnsnowsociety.bsky.social.
It was Paul Fine’s retirement lecture at LSHTM last week. He’s had a fascinating career, and I’ve learned a huge amount from him over the years.
A key takeaway for me: it’s worth making most of interesting & unexpected opportunities when they arise, even if they push you outside your comfort zone.
A key takeaway for me: it’s worth making most of interesting & unexpected opportunities when they arise, even if they push you outside your comfort zone.
Paul Fine's Retirement Celebration
lshtm.cloud.panopto.eu
December 13, 2025 at 7:50 PM
I was very pleased to be able to make it to Paul Fine's retirement lecture last week. He was an amazing PhD supervisor to me, and the lecture highlighted how impactful his work had been, from polio to leprosy, and Malawi to the @johnsnowsociety.bsky.social.
Reposted by Chris Wallace
Home Office Ministers state publicly, on the record, that they are deliberately making life worse for older people and people with disabilities who depend on care services, but it's worth it because it reduces net migration.
December 9, 2025 at 3:18 PM
Home Office Ministers state publicly, on the record, that they are deliberately making life worse for older people and people with disabilities who depend on care services, but it's worth it because it reduces net migration.
Football: a game of four quarters, now.
News: Every 2026 World Cup match will feature two "hydration breaks," no matter the weather.
Each half will pause for exactly three minutes midway through.
It's a player welfare measure. It also has sporting & commercial implications.
More @theathleticfc.bsky.social:
Each half will pause for exactly three minutes midway through.
It's a player welfare measure. It also has sporting & commercial implications.
More @theathleticfc.bsky.social:
2026 World Cup to feature three-minute hydration breaks in every half throughout tournament
Every game will pause for three minutes in the middle of each half, which will essentially split the match into quarters.
www.nytimes.com
December 8, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Football: a game of four quarters, now.
What skill did you master that you will never, ever use again?
Perl one liners.
(Master-ish)
Perl one liners.
(Master-ish)
What skill did you master that you will never, ever use again?
Sorting letters and parcels by hand in a Royal Mail depot to be sent around the country to the point where I didn't need to think about it because my brain knew which pigeonhole or bin each postcode went into.
Sorting letters and parcels by hand in a Royal Mail depot to be sent around the country to the point where I didn't need to think about it because my brain knew which pigeonhole or bin each postcode went into.
What skill did you master that you will never, ever use again?
In my case, using plastic explosives to make shaped charges, to direct a blast in a certain direction.
In my case, using plastic explosives to make shaped charges, to direct a blast in a certain direction.
December 8, 2025 at 1:21 PM
What skill did you master that you will never, ever use again?
Perl one liners.
(Master-ish)
Perl one liners.
(Master-ish)
Working with tableGrob seems awfully low level. 6 lines of code just to add a line below the column names, or creating a whole new grob to name the columns. Has no one written a nice interface? There are so many for plotting, but I can't find one for tables. #rstats
December 3, 2025 at 8:22 AM
Working with tableGrob seems awfully low level. 6 lines of code just to add a line below the column names, or creating a whole new grob to name the columns. Has no one written a nice interface? There are so many for plotting, but I can't find one for tables. #rstats
Reposted by Chris Wallace
Tomorrow!
www.varianteffect.org/seminar-seri...
www.varianteffect.org/seminar-seri...
December 1, 2025 at 3:54 PM
Tomorrow!
www.varianteffect.org/seminar-seri...
www.varianteffect.org/seminar-seri...
Reposted by Chris Wallace
I was diagnosed with #HIV in 1998, when I was 30.
Many of my friends had died of AIDS. I did not expect to live to 50.
I’m 58 now.
HIV treatment works.
Treatment also makes it impossible for me to pass HIV on during sex.
Ensure HIV treatment for all.
End HIV stigma.
#WorldAIDSDay
Many of my friends had died of AIDS. I did not expect to live to 50.
I’m 58 now.
HIV treatment works.
Treatment also makes it impossible for me to pass HIV on during sex.
Ensure HIV treatment for all.
End HIV stigma.
#WorldAIDSDay
December 1, 2025 at 8:46 AM
I was diagnosed with #HIV in 1998, when I was 30.
Many of my friends had died of AIDS. I did not expect to live to 50.
I’m 58 now.
HIV treatment works.
Treatment also makes it impossible for me to pass HIV on during sex.
Ensure HIV treatment for all.
End HIV stigma.
#WorldAIDSDay
Many of my friends had died of AIDS. I did not expect to live to 50.
I’m 58 now.
HIV treatment works.
Treatment also makes it impossible for me to pass HIV on during sex.
Ensure HIV treatment for all.
End HIV stigma.
#WorldAIDSDay
Reposted by Chris Wallace
How does fever work?
Our new Science paper shows how elevated body temperature can protect against severe influenza and that avian-origin viruses escape this defence.
This is likely one reason why bird flus and some pandemic influenzas can be so severe.🧵
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Our new Science paper shows how elevated body temperature can protect against severe influenza and that avian-origin viruses escape this defence.
This is likely one reason why bird flus and some pandemic influenzas can be so severe.🧵
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Avian-origin influenza A viruses tolerate elevated pyrexic temperatures in mammals
Host body temperature can define a virus’s replicative profile—influenza A viruses (IAVs) adapted to 40° to 42°C in birds are less temperature sensitive in vitro compared with human isolates adapted t...
www.science.org
November 27, 2025 at 7:55 PM
How does fever work?
Our new Science paper shows how elevated body temperature can protect against severe influenza and that avian-origin viruses escape this defence.
This is likely one reason why bird flus and some pandemic influenzas can be so severe.🧵
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Our new Science paper shows how elevated body temperature can protect against severe influenza and that avian-origin viruses escape this defence.
This is likely one reason why bird flus and some pandemic influenzas can be so severe.🧵
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by Chris Wallace
Since 2011 the fuel duty freeze has cost the Treasury £133 billion.
This huge amount could have paid for lower train and bus fares, better stations, safer walking, wheeling and cycling and much more!
www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...
This huge amount could have paid for lower train and bus fares, better stations, safer walking, wheeling and cycling and much more!
www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...
Rachel Reeves will freeze fuel duty to dodge ‘political suicide’
The chancellor will also highlight a rise in the minimum wage and plans to cut energy bills as she tries to win over voters by focusing on cost of living
www.thetimes.com
November 25, 2025 at 4:56 PM
Since 2011 the fuel duty freeze has cost the Treasury £133 billion.
This huge amount could have paid for lower train and bus fares, better stations, safer walking, wheeling and cycling and much more!
www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...
This huge amount could have paid for lower train and bus fares, better stations, safer walking, wheeling and cycling and much more!
www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...
Reposted by Chris Wallace
Passive voice should be avoided.
November 20, 2025 at 7:03 AM
Passive voice should be avoided.
Today I learned that one French translation of virtual is dématérialisé. The image in my mind of watching paper forms dematerialise as they become virtual apps is quite compelling!
November 18, 2025 at 9:23 AM
Today I learned that one French translation of virtual is dématérialisé. The image in my mind of watching paper forms dematerialise as they become virtual apps is quite compelling!
Amazing how the numbers vary between years and how the variability seems country specific. Almost as if there's something in their home country that they are trying to get away from, rather than something in the UK pulling them here. The latter would produce similar effects across countries.
Where do refugees to the UK come from? (House of Commons library)
November 16, 2025 at 2:49 PM
Amazing how the numbers vary between years and how the variability seems country specific. Almost as if there's something in their home country that they are trying to get away from, rather than something in the UK pulling them here. The latter would produce similar effects across countries.
Grant applications be like "justify this and that and everything for each item"
but also
"in 300 words" 🤯🤯🤯
but also
"in 300 words" 🤯🤯🤯
November 14, 2025 at 3:32 PM
Grant applications be like "justify this and that and everything for each item"
but also
"in 300 words" 🤯🤯🤯
but also
"in 300 words" 🤯🤯🤯
Reposted by Chris Wallace
Great thread by @pwgtennant.bsky.social about PPI in methodological research.
In my view, people are too hung up on what the 'PP' stands for. Yes, Patients and/or the Public are often the end users of research ... but sometimes they're not!
Were it called 'End-User Involvement' it'd be much better.
In my view, people are too hung up on what the 'PP' stands for. Yes, Patients and/or the Public are often the end users of research ... but sometimes they're not!
Were it called 'End-User Involvement' it'd be much better.
When PPI is appropriate, we should encourage it. When it’d be better to talk to applied researchers, that should be encouraged instead. And when a research team doesn't think either is appropriate, let them justify that decision. But let’s not get too prescriptive.
🧵 12/12
🧵 12/12
November 13, 2025 at 5:49 PM
Great thread by @pwgtennant.bsky.social about PPI in methodological research.
In my view, people are too hung up on what the 'PP' stands for. Yes, Patients and/or the Public are often the end users of research ... but sometimes they're not!
Were it called 'End-User Involvement' it'd be much better.
In my view, people are too hung up on what the 'PP' stands for. Yes, Patients and/or the Public are often the end users of research ... but sometimes they're not!
Were it called 'End-User Involvement' it'd be much better.
Hot tip. Calling me eminent and/or esteemed in an unsolicited email makes me less likely, not more, to want to accept your conference invite. It is possible this may be a British thing.
November 13, 2025 at 6:05 PM
Hot tip. Calling me eminent and/or esteemed in an unsolicited email makes me less likely, not more, to want to accept your conference invite. It is possible this may be a British thing.
This! Fancy web interfaces let you explore the data, but they are not the same as sharing the data. You can do both!
PSA: it’s all great if you provide an interactive dashboard to browse the data you painstakingly generated. But please do back up the data on persistent archive like zenodo. It’s too bad we can’t access the database when inevitably the server goes down and you moved onto other projects/institutions
October 31, 2025 at 7:16 PM
This! Fancy web interfaces let you explore the data, but they are not the same as sharing the data. You can do both!
New: GWAS of serurm antibody levels. Interesting findings include genetically correlated traits with hard-to-find shared causal variants, and apparently genetically uncorrelated traits sharing causal variants that operate in inconsistent directions www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1...
Large-scale GWAS meta-analysis of serum antibody levels reveals distinct genetic architectures
Antibodies are the principal effector proteins of humoral immunity. Dysregulated antibody production is a feature of a number of heritable immune-mediated diseases, such as the antibody deficiencies a...
www.medrxiv.org
October 30, 2025 at 1:30 PM
New: GWAS of serurm antibody levels. Interesting findings include genetically correlated traits with hard-to-find shared causal variants, and apparently genetically uncorrelated traits sharing causal variants that operate in inconsistent directions www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1...
This is a perennial issue with grant applications. They want to support blue sky, ground breaking research, but do not want to maintain the useful tools that result from such research. Science cannot build and grow without sustaining our foundations.
3/3 So, if anybody out there fancies making a donation to support this work or has a good idea where to get the money from contact me by DM.
Note that every grant I have ever written to support PREDICT breast has been rejected. The web tool has been used over 4 million times.
Note that every grant I have ever written to support PREDICT breast has been rejected. The web tool has been used over 4 million times.
October 28, 2025 at 8:18 PM
This is a perennial issue with grant applications. They want to support blue sky, ground breaking research, but do not want to maintain the useful tools that result from such research. Science cannot build and grow without sustaining our foundations.
Reposted by Chris Wallace
You never know which straw will break the camel's back. This, it turns out, is mine. The Tory shadow home sec gives a frankly racist statement about deporting people here legally in order that we have a mostly "culturally homogeneous" population. Just horrific. /1
“We welcome those who come to this country, legally, and give more than they take. We believe the right to stay here must not be automatic, but that those who play their part should be able to earn that right."
October 21, 2025 at 10:19 AM
You never know which straw will break the camel's back. This, it turns out, is mine. The Tory shadow home sec gives a frankly racist statement about deporting people here legally in order that we have a mostly "culturally homogeneous" population. Just horrific. /1
Reposted by Chris Wallace
Given Lam's appalling comments, the UK government needs to make it free for those with permanent leave to remain to obtain British citizenship, to promote people making the change, and to make it quicker.
They need to do that to remove understandable anxiety.
They need to do that to remove understandable anxiety.
October 20, 2025 at 6:52 PM
Given Lam's appalling comments, the UK government needs to make it free for those with permanent leave to remain to obtain British citizenship, to promote people making the change, and to make it quicker.
They need to do that to remove understandable anxiety.
They need to do that to remove understandable anxiety.
Reposted by Chris Wallace
I'm very excited to be attending my first #ASHG25 this week! Come find me at poster board 1090F to talk about flexible and efficient eQTL mapping with quasar!
October 13, 2025 at 1:23 PM
I'm very excited to be attending my first #ASHG25 this week! Come find me at poster board 1090F to talk about flexible and efficient eQTL mapping with quasar!
Reposted by Chris Wallace
The PhD opportunities in our group and in many others at @mrc-lms.bsky.social are now open!
lms.mrc.ac.uk/work-and-stu...
lms.mrc.ac.uk/work-and-stu...
October 10, 2025 at 11:57 AM
The PhD opportunities in our group and in many others at @mrc-lms.bsky.social are now open!
lms.mrc.ac.uk/work-and-stu...
lms.mrc.ac.uk/work-and-stu...
Reposted by Chris Wallace
📣Preprint alert - a tricky one, as there are no significant results (and we all know null-results are hard to publish)
Do PCSK9 levels affect survival in breast cancer patients?
We tried to replicate findings in cell lines and mouse model using 3 Mendelian Randomization approaches, but failed.
Do PCSK9 levels affect survival in breast cancer patients?
We tried to replicate findings in cell lines and mouse model using 3 Mendelian Randomization approaches, but failed.
PCSK9 and breast cancer survival: a Mendelian Randomization study https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.10.03.25337270v1
October 6, 2025 at 4:50 PM
📣Preprint alert - a tricky one, as there are no significant results (and we all know null-results are hard to publish)
Do PCSK9 levels affect survival in breast cancer patients?
We tried to replicate findings in cell lines and mouse model using 3 Mendelian Randomization approaches, but failed.
Do PCSK9 levels affect survival in breast cancer patients?
We tried to replicate findings in cell lines and mouse model using 3 Mendelian Randomization approaches, but failed.