I’m excited to share our new preprint! We built a single-nucleus multiomic (snRNA-seq+snATAC-seq) atlas of leptin receptor-expressing hypothalamic neurons (LepRᴴʸᵖᵒ) and identified conserved cis-regulatory elements overlapping human obesity-linked variants and eQTLs🧠🧬
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Immensely grateful to the @SynRegLab for this work!
Congratulations to all authors!

TL;DR: Temporal control = cleaner, more accurate screens👍.
🔴CRISPR screens can hide true biology
🟢We introduce RESTRICT-seq, which activate Cas9 editing in precise time windows
🔵This revealed a hidden cancer resistance gene, PAK1, missed by standard CRISPR screening methods

Notably, PAK1 was upregulated EXCLUSIVELY in FGFR-negative patient tumors, and PAK1 inhibitors re-sensitized human + mouse metastatic SCC cells to anti-FGFR therapy; a strong therapeutic synergy.

Most importantly, RESTRICT-seq UNIQUELY flagged PAK1 as a key resistance driver — completely invisible by standard CRISPR screens, buried under the noise of non-specific gene dropouts.

This is the power of #PrecisionGenomics: drug-synergistic vulnerabilities clearly revealed.

When compared to conventional wtCas9 screens, the difference was striking!
RESTRICT-seq reduced clonal drift, ensuring gRNA counts reflect true biology; less artifacts!

To achieve this we engineered arCas9-SPARK, a live-cell biosensor that lets us track Cas9 movements in and out of the nucleus in real-time.
It's fast⚡️: In and Out within 15 min!

Excited to share the latest preprint from my lab!

We present RESTRICT-seq, a novel method for precision CRISPR screen!

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

My lab at NYU is hiring a postdoc interested in RNA biology and local translation in neurons following axonal injury/neurodegenerative diseases!! Apply here: apply.interfolio.com/165681

it is my distinguished honor to be this year's Spring Commencement Speaker at @PittBradford!

To the Class of 2025: I’m thrilled to celebrate your journey, resilience, and the boundless potential ahead. Let’s honor this incredible milestone together! 🎓
www.pittwire.pitt.edu/accolades-ho...