Kitty Clouston
@kittyclouston.bsky.social
Engineering microbes for greener chemical production
Into biotech, heavy music, climate & social justice
📍Edinburgh / Bangalore
linktr.ee/kittyclouston
Into biotech, heavy music, climate & social justice
📍Edinburgh / Bangalore
linktr.ee/kittyclouston
Pinned
Regulation of nucleus‐encoded trans‐acting factors allows orthogonal fine‐tuning of multiple transgenes in the chloroplast of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii
A strain of Chlamydomonas has been generated that allows independent regulation of two genes in the chloroplast by addition of vitamins B12 and thiamine to the culture medium.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Could not be more proud to share my first ever (and co-first author) publication! Here's a brief rundown. 1/n
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
Are you looking for a PhD in Plant Science? Check our our project on barley canopy architecture. Combine genetics and physics to understand how awns influence barley grain development. Find out more here: lnkd.in/eWhWammJ Apply by 14th December. #PhDPosition
#PlantSci @instmolplantsci.bsky.social
#PlantSci @instmolplantsci.bsky.social
LinkedIn
This link will take you to a page that’s not on LinkedIn
lnkd.in
November 10, 2025 at 1:22 PM
Are you looking for a PhD in Plant Science? Check our our project on barley canopy architecture. Combine genetics and physics to understand how awns influence barley grain development. Find out more here: lnkd.in/eWhWammJ Apply by 14th December. #PhDPosition
#PlantSci @instmolplantsci.bsky.social
#PlantSci @instmolplantsci.bsky.social
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
The Wallace Lab is expanding in 2026, with five new Postdoctoral Research Associate positions now open. If you're passionate about engineering biology for sustainability, we'd love to hear from you! 🧬 ♻️
Deadline: 12th November 2025, details below ⬇️
Deadline: 12th November 2025, details below ⬇️
October 29, 2025 at 12:34 PM
The Wallace Lab is expanding in 2026, with five new Postdoctoral Research Associate positions now open. If you're passionate about engineering biology for sustainability, we'd love to hear from you! 🧬 ♻️
Deadline: 12th November 2025, details below ⬇️
Deadline: 12th November 2025, details below ⬇️
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
Musings on manifesting a world of sanitary homes and hospitals, and thoughts on an essay that defines rhythm, in this week’s pick from the Nature archive
go.nature.com/49aKFqA
go.nature.com/49aKFqA
Hopes of realizing a dream ‘city of health’
Snippets from Nature’s past.
go.nature.com
October 21, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Musings on manifesting a world of sanitary homes and hospitals, and thoughts on an essay that defines rhythm, in this week’s pick from the Nature archive
go.nature.com/49aKFqA
go.nature.com/49aKFqA
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
Out First Release in @science.org this week:
The development of a directed evolution strategy with proof of concept in plant immune protein engineering.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
The development of a directed evolution strategy with proof of concept in plant immune protein engineering.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Engineered geminivirus replicons enable rapid in planta directed evolution
Directed evolution can rapidly generate genetic variants with new and enhanced properties, yet efficient platforms for performing such evolution directly in plant cells have been lacking. We developed...
www.science.org
October 7, 2025 at 9:54 AM
Out First Release in @science.org this week:
The development of a directed evolution strategy with proof of concept in plant immune protein engineering.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
The development of a directed evolution strategy with proof of concept in plant immune protein engineering.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
#EngBio ECRs Meetup returns on 20 Oct. Join us to hear great talks from Konstantina Beritza and
Caroline Faessler 🌱
@camplantsci.bsky.social
Sign up here👉 tickettailor.com/events/engin...
#plantsciences #marinemicroalga #Nicotianabenthamiana
Caroline Faessler 🌱
@camplantsci.bsky.social
Sign up here👉 tickettailor.com/events/engin...
#plantsciences #marinemicroalga #Nicotianabenthamiana
September 30, 2025 at 8:50 AM
#EngBio ECRs Meetup returns on 20 Oct. Join us to hear great talks from Konstantina Beritza and
Caroline Faessler 🌱
@camplantsci.bsky.social
Sign up here👉 tickettailor.com/events/engin...
#plantsciences #marinemicroalga #Nicotianabenthamiana
Caroline Faessler 🌱
@camplantsci.bsky.social
Sign up here👉 tickettailor.com/events/engin...
#plantsciences #marinemicroalga #Nicotianabenthamiana
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
Big Doughnutty News.
Just out in Nature: the all-new 2025 Doughnut. Transformed from a single-year snapshot to an annual global monitor of 21st century social & ecological thriving. Available to all in an open-access paper by @andrewlfanning.bsky.social and me. 🧵 1/
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Just out in Nature: the all-new 2025 Doughnut. Transformed from a single-year snapshot to an annual global monitor of 21st century social & ecological thriving. Available to all in an open-access paper by @andrewlfanning.bsky.social and me. 🧵 1/
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
October 2, 2025 at 6:50 AM
Big Doughnutty News.
Just out in Nature: the all-new 2025 Doughnut. Transformed from a single-year snapshot to an annual global monitor of 21st century social & ecological thriving. Available to all in an open-access paper by @andrewlfanning.bsky.social and me. 🧵 1/
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Just out in Nature: the all-new 2025 Doughnut. Transformed from a single-year snapshot to an annual global monitor of 21st century social & ecological thriving. Available to all in an open-access paper by @andrewlfanning.bsky.social and me. 🧵 1/
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
UKRIO @ukrio.bsky.social is introducing an Authorship Integrity Toolkit:
a set of practical, adaptable resources designed to support both individual researcher contributors in their day-to-day practice and organisations in developing policies and managing projects.
ukrio.org/resources/th...
a set of practical, adaptable resources designed to support both individual researcher contributors in their day-to-day practice and organisations in developing policies and managing projects.
ukrio.org/resources/th...
The Authorship Integrity Toolkit - UK Research Integrity Office
The Authorship Integrity Toolkit Practical resources to support responsible authorship in research UKRIO is pleased to present the Authorship Integrity Toolkit – a new collection of resources to help ...
ukrio.org
October 3, 2025 at 4:07 AM
UKRIO @ukrio.bsky.social is introducing an Authorship Integrity Toolkit:
a set of practical, adaptable resources designed to support both individual researcher contributors in their day-to-day practice and organisations in developing policies and managing projects.
ukrio.org/resources/th...
a set of practical, adaptable resources designed to support both individual researcher contributors in their day-to-day practice and organisations in developing policies and managing projects.
ukrio.org/resources/th...
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
Another #PhD project available for applications in #photosynthesis with @ecarmosilva.bsky.social @sci-tech-lancaster.bsky.social looking at ways to improve Rubisco. Details below including how the successful nominee will play a direct role in shaping the project proposal tinyurl.com/2a8szv3y
Improving Rubisco for sustainable crop production at Gatsby Charitable Foundation on FindAPhD.com
PhD Project - Improving Rubisco for sustainable crop production at Gatsby Charitable Foundation, listed on FindAPhD.com
tinyurl.com
October 2, 2025 at 5:06 PM
Another #PhD project available for applications in #photosynthesis with @ecarmosilva.bsky.social @sci-tech-lancaster.bsky.social looking at ways to improve Rubisco. Details below including how the successful nominee will play a direct role in shaping the project proposal tinyurl.com/2a8szv3y
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
“The experience [of AI] actually mirrored society.”
OpenAI is huge in India. Its models are steeped in caste bias.
India is OpenAI’s second-largest market, but ChatGPT and Sora reproduce caste stereotypes that harm millions of people.
www.technologyreview.com
October 1, 2025 at 1:19 PM
“The experience [of AI] actually mirrored society.”
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
Announcing Science and the Parliament 2025!
Join us at Dynamic Earth to delve into the future of STEM in Scotland, with an exhibition, keynote speeches and more. This year’s theme is environment, climate change and human health.
Registration is open: rsc.li/parliament-event25
#ChemSky
Join us at Dynamic Earth to delve into the future of STEM in Scotland, with an exhibition, keynote speeches and more. This year’s theme is environment, climate change and human health.
Registration is open: rsc.li/parliament-event25
#ChemSky
September 29, 2025 at 3:52 PM
Announcing Science and the Parliament 2025!
Join us at Dynamic Earth to delve into the future of STEM in Scotland, with an exhibition, keynote speeches and more. This year’s theme is environment, climate change and human health.
Registration is open: rsc.li/parliament-event25
#ChemSky
Join us at Dynamic Earth to delve into the future of STEM in Scotland, with an exhibition, keynote speeches and more. This year’s theme is environment, climate change and human health.
Registration is open: rsc.li/parliament-event25
#ChemSky
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
“Many scholars from historically overexploited countries (often referred to as the global south) expected that exposing the problem would trigger change. Four years on, I see it clearly: the scientific system was never designed for equity,” writes Dolors Armenteras in Nature. #Academicsky 🧪
Equity in science is a beautiful lie — and I’m done pretending
Science isn’t really moving towards equity; institutions are just perfecting the appearance of equity. We need to build an alternative system.
go.nature.com
September 26, 2025 at 1:51 AM
“Many scholars from historically overexploited countries (often referred to as the global south) expected that exposing the problem would trigger change. Four years on, I see it clearly: the scientific system was never designed for equity,” writes Dolors Armenteras in Nature. #Academicsky 🧪
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
As the new term begins, here are 99 lab hacks to make your working lives easier
go.nature.com/4pEZ6ZJ
go.nature.com/4pEZ6ZJ
It’s a new term: here are 99 lab hacks
Nature asked contributors, editors and working researchers to share their best advice for scientists.
go.nature.com
September 24, 2025 at 12:21 PM
As the new term begins, here are 99 lab hacks to make your working lives easier
go.nature.com/4pEZ6ZJ
go.nature.com/4pEZ6ZJ
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
No algorithm or software would ever have come up with the glorious car-smash of the Velvet Underground or Roxy Music. The kind of happenstance alchemy that can never be programmed: a crack in a voice, an offbeat, disturbed air.’
Ian Penman on Brian Eno: www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
Ian Penman on Brian Eno: www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
Ian Penman · Infinite Wibble: Brian v. Eno
At a time when most conversation about the arts remained stuck in an Oxbridge common room, Eno was a one-man laboratory...
www.lrb.co.uk
September 23, 2025 at 3:18 PM
No algorithm or software would ever have come up with the glorious car-smash of the Velvet Underground or Roxy Music. The kind of happenstance alchemy that can never be programmed: a crack in a voice, an offbeat, disturbed air.’
Ian Penman on Brian Eno: www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
Ian Penman on Brian Eno: www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
wake up girlies, new lab website just dropped 🌈 🦠
🚀 Our new lab website is live! Visit wallacelab.bio to learn more about our team, our mission, and our latest work. Most importantly, get in touch to explore opportunities to connect and collaborate.
The future of chemistry is microbial.
The future of chemistry is microbial.
September 23, 2025 at 11:21 AM
wake up girlies, new lab website just dropped 🌈 🦠
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
Ever wondered where your paracetamol comes from? Spoiler: crude oil. In this study – led by Nick Johnson from our lab in collaboration with @astra-zeneca.bsky.social – we show how biology and chemistry can work together to create a more sustainable alternative. (1/n)
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A biocompatible Lossen rearrangement in Escherichia coli - Nature Chemistry
Biocompatible chemistry merges chemo-catalytic reactions with cellular metabolism for sustainable small-molecule synthesis. Now a biocompatible Lossen rearrangement has been demonstrated to control ba...
www.nature.com
September 23, 2025 at 11:09 AM
Ever wondered where your paracetamol comes from? Spoiler: crude oil. In this study – led by Nick Johnson from our lab in collaboration with @astra-zeneca.bsky.social – we show how biology and chemistry can work together to create a more sustainable alternative. (1/n)
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
Excited to announce some new plasmid offerings in my shop at atinygreencell.com! Here's a thread of the current catalog. All proceeds directly support my lab and my continued effort to build useful open-source tools. Feel free to get in touch if you want to know more. Please share! 💚
1/7
1/7
Sebastian's Biotech Bazaar
Designer of fine, hand-crafted, bespoke, and fully open source biotechnology tools for educators and researchers. Plasmids, lab equipment, cell lines, and seeds. An ever-growing collection of high qua...
ATinyGreenCell.com
July 8, 2025 at 9:24 PM
Excited to announce some new plasmid offerings in my shop at atinygreencell.com! Here's a thread of the current catalog. All proceeds directly support my lab and my continued effort to build useful open-source tools. Feel free to get in touch if you want to know more. Please share! 💚
1/7
1/7
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
Are you a scientist with an interest in photography? We're delighted to announce that the Royal Society Publishing Photography Competition is now open for entries until 15 August 2025! 🎉 Find out more: royalsociety.org/journals/pub... #RSPphotocomp
June 2, 2025 at 9:15 AM
Are you a scientist with an interest in photography? We're delighted to announce that the Royal Society Publishing Photography Competition is now open for entries until 15 August 2025! 🎉 Find out more: royalsociety.org/journals/pub... #RSPphotocomp
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
Recombinases your thing? In the latest from my lab, Veronica Greco shows how @nanopore sequencing + automated liquid handling provides the perfect platform for characterising these systems at scale! Awesome collaboration with @jennbrophy.bsky.social @sarah-guiziou.bsky.social doi.org/10.1101/2025...
May 29, 2025 at 6:49 AM
Recombinases your thing? In the latest from my lab, Veronica Greco shows how @nanopore sequencing + automated liquid handling provides the perfect platform for characterising these systems at scale! Awesome collaboration with @jennbrophy.bsky.social @sarah-guiziou.bsky.social doi.org/10.1101/2025...
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
The nine teams we're funding in Synthetic Plants are paving the way for more productive, resilient, and sustainable plants. 🌱
Discover how they'll deliver growth in agriculture for the UK + beyond: link.aria.org.uk/sp-c-bs
Discover how they'll deliver growth in agriculture for the UK + beyond: link.aria.org.uk/sp-c-bs
June 2, 2025 at 9:44 AM
The nine teams we're funding in Synthetic Plants are paving the way for more productive, resilient, and sustainable plants. 🌱
Discover how they'll deliver growth in agriculture for the UK + beyond: link.aria.org.uk/sp-c-bs
Discover how they'll deliver growth in agriculture for the UK + beyond: link.aria.org.uk/sp-c-bs
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
With their clever setup to visualize ongoing endosymbiotic gene transfers (EGTs), Enrique Gonzalez-Duran, Ralph Bock and team reveal how double-strand break repair limits excessive EGT. Check out their new Nature Plants paper and my News and Views summary! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A gatekeeper for gene transfers - Nature Plants
Large-scale genetic screening for plastid-to-nucleus gene transfers identifies that fast double-strand break repair functions as a key barrier for nuclear integration of organellar DNA and provides in...
www.nature.com
May 16, 2025 at 12:52 PM
With their clever setup to visualize ongoing endosymbiotic gene transfers (EGTs), Enrique Gonzalez-Duran, Ralph Bock and team reveal how double-strand break repair limits excessive EGT. Check out their new Nature Plants paper and my News and Views summary! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
First up, opening night: Should we be thinking more radically about the problems with capitalism? Can we imagine an alternative way of organising our societies? with @graceblakeley.substack.com @abbyinnes.bsky.social & Ryan Shorthouse @brightblueuk.bsky.social
Alternatives to capitalism
6.30pm Mon 16 Jun | Grace Blakeley, Abby Innes | Free event at the LSE Festival: Visions for the Future | Ticket required
www.lse.ac.uk
May 19, 2025 at 2:16 PM
First up, opening night: Should we be thinking more radically about the problems with capitalism? Can we imagine an alternative way of organising our societies? with @graceblakeley.substack.com @abbyinnes.bsky.social & Ryan Shorthouse @brightblueuk.bsky.social
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
Would you like to write for New Scientist? We always work with freelancers, but occasionally I put out a call like this for new writers. I'm looking for 300-700 word news stories about new discoveries. Don't pitch us press releases or the big journals, we have those covered. Pay starts at 51p/word
May 19, 2025 at 11:37 AM
Would you like to write for New Scientist? We always work with freelancers, but occasionally I put out a call like this for new writers. I'm looking for 300-700 word news stories about new discoveries. Don't pitch us press releases or the big journals, we have those covered. Pay starts at 51p/word
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
🧵5 Top Free Alternatives to BioRender for Scientific Illustrations!
These five websites offer free scientific illustrations for biologists. Great for presentations, research papers and other research communication needs.
Save and share the post!
These five websites offer free scientific illustrations for biologists. Great for presentations, research papers and other research communication needs.
Save and share the post!
May 13, 2025 at 7:55 PM
🧵5 Top Free Alternatives to BioRender for Scientific Illustrations!
These five websites offer free scientific illustrations for biologists. Great for presentations, research papers and other research communication needs.
Save and share the post!
These five websites offer free scientific illustrations for biologists. Great for presentations, research papers and other research communication needs.
Save and share the post!
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
This is a wild paper. The anaerobic biochemistry is definitely worth your while (and beyond me to explain), but let me try to explain why this is also an evolutionary bombshell. This is about how nitrogen fixation evolved as we know it.
I'm truly excited to announce our new publication in @nature.com unraveling a central picture of the Methyl-coenzyme M reductase (MCR) activation machinery and it's strong ATP dependency - kudos to @rnfr2d2.bsky.social for the fantastic illustration!
LINK: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
LINK: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
April 16, 2025 at 5:31 PM
This is a wild paper. The anaerobic biochemistry is definitely worth your while (and beyond me to explain), but let me try to explain why this is also an evolutionary bombshell. This is about how nitrogen fixation evolved as we know it.
Reposted by Kitty Clouston
Interesting thread 🧵 from @georghochberg.bsky.social dissecting the evolution of nitrogenases from cofactors of methane-producing enzymes. The “molecular paleontology” possible with modern technology is so cool. 🧪🧶🧬
This is a wild paper. The anaerobic biochemistry is definitely worth your while (and beyond me to explain), but let me try to explain why this is also an evolutionary bombshell. This is about how nitrogen fixation evolved as we know it.
I'm truly excited to announce our new publication in @nature.com unraveling a central picture of the Methyl-coenzyme M reductase (MCR) activation machinery and it's strong ATP dependency - kudos to @rnfr2d2.bsky.social for the fantastic illustration!
LINK: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
LINK: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
May 12, 2025 at 7:11 PM
Interesting thread 🧵 from @georghochberg.bsky.social dissecting the evolution of nitrogenases from cofactors of methane-producing enzymes. The “molecular paleontology” possible with modern technology is so cool. 🧪🧶🧬