Dr David Skerrett-Byrne

I hope this piece sparks new conversations around bi-parental preconception care and inspires others to explore the sperm epigenome's effects on placenta, pregnancy, and seize an opportunity for improving intergenerational health
outcomes.

Massive thanks to my incredible co-authors
@annesopepin.bsky.social, Katharina, Johannes, @robertife.bsky.social, Martin & the wonderful @epitep.bsky.social for your warm collaboration, sharing of ideas, and support to make this paper a reality.

To make these connections tangible, we also built ShinySpermPlacenta 💻
An interactive app based on high-fat diet mouse models sperm epigenomes + IMPC data.
👉 Explore here: lnkd.in/gU-x2654

In this review, we bring together the latest evidence showing how a father’s nutrition, through the sperm epigenome, can influence:
🌳 The placenta
🤰 Pregnancy outcomes
👶 Long-term metabolic health of the next generation

I’ve long been fascinated by how sperm and paternal experiences might shape the placenta, and even contribute to disorders like preeclampsia.

That curiosity goes back to my first @reproductionsrb.bsky.social conference, where I met the inspiring @drnathannan.bsky.social & Tu'uhevaha Kaitu'u-Lino.

🚨 New Review Out 🚨
Thrilled to share our latest review in Molecular Nutrition & Food Research:
“Dad’s Diet Shapes the Future: How Paternal Nutrition Impacts Placental Development and Childhood Metabolic Health”
👉 lnkd.in/g8_VWKCp

🚨 Exciting news for #ESEB2025!
Join us in Barcelona for our symposium:

Cooperation, Conflict & the Evolution of Socially Transferred Materials (S08)
📅 Thursday, 21 Aug 2025
🕥 10:30–12:30 | 🕔 17:00–19:00 (Poster Session)

🌐 Welcome to the Social Transfer Network (STN) on Bluesky! We’re an interdisciplinary community exploring how materials/signals (from molecules to microbes) transfer between individuals and shape health, behavior, and evolution. #STM

🚨 Has PRIDE helped your research?

Take 15 mins to tell funders why open data matters!
📊 Fill out the EMBL-EBI 2025 survey 👉
www.surveymonkey.com/r/QGFMBH8?ch...

Your feedback helps keep PRIDE open, FAIR & impactful.
🙏 Please share!
#FAIR #OpenData #Proteomics #MassSpectrometry #PRIDE

Just 1 week away from our next Bring-Your-Own-Fluid Seminar 🔬☕️ | 11th June

🔗 Interested in our excellent rapid-fire talks on sperm, seminal fluid and placenta below?!
👉 DM me or comment below for the Zoom link!

🚨Abstract submission and registration is open for our yearly conference, in conjunction with Endocrine Society of Austalia and Australian New Zealand Obesity Society and Endocrine Nurses Society of Australasia 🚨

Students/ECRs/MCRs: don't forget to nominate for relevant awards

Two academic (lecturer) positions available at the University of Otago in Aotearoa/New Zealand! One in Conservation Biology, another in Evolutionary Ecology. Links for positions below:
otago.taleo.net/careersectio...
otago.taleo.net/careersectio...

🔗 Stay Connected:
📬 Join the Network: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

🌐 Visit our Website:
socialtransfer.net

📅 June 11th, 2025
🕣 08:15 UK / UTC+1
🕤 09:15 Europe / UTC+2
🕔 17:15 Australia / UTC+10

🔗 Interested?
👉 DM me or comment below for the Zoom link!

"Clues from the Placenta: Predicting Pregnancy Complications"
Dr. Lucy Bartho
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Translational Obstetrics Group, The University of Melbourne, Australia

"The seminal effect – How seminal fluid can influence developmental programming"
Dr. Hannah Morgan
Research Associate, Maternal and Fetal Health Research Centre, University of Manchester, England

This engaging, 1h session will feature three rapid-fire talks followed by lively discussions:
🔬🎤 Programme:
"Altered sperm RNAs drive embryonic changes following heat stress"
Dr. @natrigg.bsky.social
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Infertility and Reproduction @hmriaustralia.bsky.social, Australia

🔬☕️ Bring-Your-Own-Fluid (BYOF) Seminar is back! | June 11, 2025

The Social Transfer Network are thrilled to invite you to the next edition of our BYOF Seminar! What’s BYOF, you ask? It’s either the social fluid you study or that comforting cup of coffee or tea in your hand, your choice! 😉

Huge thanks to everyone who packed out the venue, the amazing Pint of Science team for putting it all together, and to Ioannis for a wonderful talk on Frankenbodies! 🧟‍♂️👏

Science, storytelling, and a pint! That’s my kind of night.🍻🐨🔬

But also such wonderful forum to highlight to the community, the cutting-edge science we're doing at @www.helmholtz-munich.de and the University of Newcastle.

Had an absolute blast at @pintofscience.de last night! 🧪✨

It was a thrill to take the audience on a wild ride through the bizarre and fascintating world of Australian wildlife reproduction, and yes, there were some slightly terrifying images involved 🐨😉

Excited to see you all there.🐨🤩

Thanks for the shout out Ben! I think I know exactly which paper you mean, which we sourced data from. Just saw you had @originalastacus.bsky.social on the podcast, super keen to check it out. 😊

Pint of Science Munich Explore Pint of Science Deutschland events in Munich

Grab a pint & dive into science! 🍻

Pint of Science is back in Munich:
🗓️ May 19–21, 2025
🕢 19:30–22:00

#HelmholtzMunich researchers share big ideas – from AI to antibodies.

🎟️ Info & tickets: t1p.de/lvpuv

#pint25 #pint25de

Thank you!!☺️

Thanks Niamh! ☺️

Big thanks to the incredible team behind this work, I'm so appreciative! Thank you Taylor, Brett, Tim, Raffaele, Adrián, Patricia, @ftuettelmann.bsky.social, Sabine, Valérie, Helmut, Susan, & Martin
@hmriaustralia.bsky.social
@srfsocietyuk.bsky.social

🔍 To make this wealth of data accessible, we've developed ShinySpermKingdom, a interactive dynamic tool for researchers and clinicians to explore beyond static Excel sheets. Dive into our datasets and gain deeper insights into sperm biology across species.
👉 lnkd.in/gWCzr3yk

Key Highlights:
🌟 >13,800 proteins expressed in sperm across 9 species
🌟 A core set of 135 conserved proteins underpins essential sperm functions
🌟 Knockout mouse models confirm these roles for in motility and fertilization capacity
🌟 Clinical evidence underscoring these proteins’ importance

🥳🤩Thrilled to share that our paper is officially published in Reproduction!

Our study, "Towards a kingdom of reproductive life - the core sperm proteome," integrates cross-species proteomic data from 12 vertebrates, revealing fundamental insights into sperm biology and fertility
👉 lnkd.in/e-4eYqwK