Patrick Phillips

Friends! I am so happy to share our new preprint!

Hydrogen peroxide has been the most common reactive chemical threat to life forms since the Great Oxygenation Event 2.5 billion years ago.

How do animals like C. elegans sense it fast and escape?

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

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showing how microscope resolution has improved more than 10,000× over the past 200 years. The horizontal axis shows year (1800s to 2025). The left vertical axis shows feature size, from 1 micrometer (small bacteria) down to 0.01 nanometers (atomic nuclear structure). The right vertical axis shows resolving power in inverse angstroms. A blue curve at the bottom represents light microscopy, limited by visible-light diffraction to about 200 nanometers. A tan curve rising sharply in the mid-20th century represents electron microscopy, reaching nanometer-scale resolution. A red region near 0.1 nanometers shows aberration-corrected electron microscopy surpassing the electron diffraction limit. A blue region at the top shows ptychography achieving the highest resolving power through overlapping diffraction patterns and computation. Dots label key scientists and institutions at milestones. Overall trend shows steady, then dramatic gains in resolution over time.

The resolution of microscopes has increased over 10,000 fold over the last 200 years.

It's allowed scientists to examine not only cells, but bacteria, then viruses, their protein structure, and, eventually, the individual atoms that comprise them.

Epimutations: raw material for evolution? - The EMBO Journal Epigenetics is fundamental to cell differentiation as it enables cells with identical genomes to adopt distinct fates. Some epigenetic information can also be transmitted between generations, in a pro...

Need a bit of escapism? Not exactly Lord of the Rings, but in similar vein:
doi.org/10.1038/s443...

Your soul looks thin yet expansive.

Not totally sure why my son wanted a thermal camera for Christmas, but we’re now prepared to drop our first techno demo track.

A novel, fig-associated microbe promotes reproductive success via variable life history mechanisms in C. elegans and C. inopinata Variation in life history strategies is among the most striking features of animal diversity. Simultaneously, the microbes an animal interacts with are a critical and dynamic aspect of the host enviro...

Very excited to share this work led by Austin Link, a graduate student in our lab. We have discovered a novel, fig-associated microbe that promotes reproductive success via variable life history mechanisms in two nematode species.

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Very interested. We run a primary literature discussion section for the 300 level evolution class I’m teaching this winter.

YouTube video by Columbia Sportswear Expedition Impossible | Columbia Sportswear

Watch this if you haven't. Pro science viral marketing at its best — and 100% authentic to Tim Boyle's sense of humor and plain spoken approach to the rational. Proud of homegrown @columbiasportswear.bsky.social for the approach. www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxJO...

Research Associate in Biology The Department of Biology at the University of Virginia invites applicants for a post-doctoral Research Associate position in the lab of Professor Amanda Gibson as part of an NSF-funded project. The Gibson lab is broadly interested in the evolution of avoidance versus resistance as modes of parasite defense. This project specifically tests the idea that host dispersal evolves as an escape in space from parasites, and it evaluates the downstream consequences of dispersal for the evolution of host resistance. The work makes use of the experimental tools and resources available for the model nematode C. elegans and its natural parasites. Associated projects entail evolve-and-resequencing, quantitative trait mapping, and field sampling with spatial analyses. The selected candidate will also mentor undergraduate students in independent research projects through a summer program for incoming transfer students. Find out more about the lab at https://coevolving.org. REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS: o A PhD in Biology or a related field by the start date. PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS: Demonstrated conceptual and technical strengths in host-parasite interactions, evolutionary ecology, evolutionary genetics, and/or dispersal biology Experience in basic lab and molecular work A strong background in experimental design, data analysis, and data management Excellent written and oral communication, demonstrated by a strong publication record, consistent with the candidate’s career stage, and presentations at conferences Demonstrated ambition, creativity, independence, and ability to work well with others Experience in and dedication to mentoring junior trainees APPLICATION PROCEDURE: Apply online https://jobs.virginia.edu/us and search for R0078709. Attach a cover letter outlining your qualifications and motivation for pursuing the position, curriculum vitae, and contact information for three individuals who can provide professional reference letters. In the cover letter, please address your fit with the qualifications above and your experience in mentoring undergraduates. Please note that multiple documents can be uploaded in the box. APPLICATION DEADLINE: Review of applications will begin on January 15, 2026. The University will perform background checks on all new hires prior to employment. Anticipated start date for this position is May, 2026, but the start date is flexible. This is a one-year appointment; however, appointment may be renewed for additional two, one-year increments, contingent upon available funding and satisfactory performance. For questions about the position, please contact Amanda Gibson, Associate Professor, at akg5nq@virginia.edu. For questions about the application process, please contact Richard Haverstrom, Academic Recruiter, at rkh6j@virginia.edu. For information on the benefits available to postdoctoral associates at UVA, visit postdoc.virginia.edu and hr.virginia.edu/benefits. The University of Virginia is an equal opportunity employer. All interested persons are encouraged to apply, including veterans and individuals with disabilities. Click here to read more about UVA’s commitment to non-discrimination and equal opportunity employment. PLEASE READ: The job postings for this page have been moved to a new location. Please visit the UVA Careers Websites to navigate to the appropriate site, or click UVA Careers in the upper right corner of this page to view open positions. If have already applied and need to log in to your existing Workday account, please click Sign In in the upper right corner of this page. Please do not sign in until you have visited and applied through a UVA Careers website.

The Gibson lab at UVA is hiring a postdoc to study dispersal as a parasite avoidance mechanism. Apply by mid-January: https://uva.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/UVAJobs/job/Charlottesville-VA/Research-Associate-in-Biology_R0078709. #postdoc

Inconceivable!

This is normally called embellishment, but embellishment has nothing to do with it. The sparkling light has existed in all its brightness from the very beginning in the world of phenomena. 3/3

This is why, no matter whether nature or human things are concerned, the artist conceals innumerable priceless gems in a place that common mortals dare not approach. 2/3

Natsume Söseki (1987): The artist can be defined as one who works within the four corners of the world to suppress what is called common sense and no longer inhabits more than three of them. 1/3

I’ve definitely seen lines at our famous campus Prince Puckler’s Ice Cream, but never a happy mob. That’s apparently what a perfect fall Saturday in Eugene following a Friday night football win brings.

Killian standing in front of a podium at his thesis defense!

Going to break my social media hiatus for a belated congratulations to @kdc509.bsky.social on an outstanding thesis defense last week! I cannot say enough good things about Killian - an amazing scientist and human being.

DAF-2/IGF-1 degradation: Males WAY outlive hermaphrodites! This is so cool. @patrickphillips.bsky.social

Lol @mads100tist.bsky.social. We've tried a number things for mass culture over the years, like self-enclosed "worm balls". But the reality is that running for the hills is a young-male's game.

Great work led by @rosealsaadi.bsky.social and @hlewack.bsky.social

Make males live more than 400% longer and prevent sexual disfunction late in life?! We're down with it. Our latest preprint: Disruption of the insulin signaling pathway in C. elegans dramatically increases male longevity and enhances reproductive health late in life. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Bowl of gnocchi in cream sauce next to a tea kettle.

Inspired by my recent workshop visit in Sicily, the lab had an Italian food potluck during lab meeting. I made pumpkin stuffed gnocchi in a nutmeg sage cream sauce, but we have no kitchen. So I finished the gnocchi in an electric tea kettle. Worked ok.

Grew up a huge Dodgers fan but the last serious game I watched was in grad school when Kurt Gibson made the greatest hit I’ve ever seen. So yes, I’ve turned on this baby after seeing the hoopla.

Picture of five people wearing berets and costume jewelry.

Happened to wear black today, so I got sucked into a lab Louvre heist Halloween dress up.

This is nuts, because we know that we can use synthetic biology to optimize these “beasts” of burden. Not sure of the application. I have visions bacterially manned gates sorting the worthiness of other bacteria.

I'm recruiting a postdoc for my group (based in beautiful Eugene, OR). Please get in touch if you're interested, esp if you'd like to chat at #ASHG25!

Available to read via #OpenAccess
The egg-counter: a novel microfluidic platform for characterization of Caenorhabditis elegans egg-laying
pubs.rsc.org/en/content/a...
Patrick C. Phillips et al
@patrickphillips.bsky.social @uoregon.bsky.social @stephenbanse.bsky.social

Very important paper for the geroscience hypothesis. Healthy aging is critical, even in the face of obvious disease states.

I don’t need to tell you, but one cool scaffolding idea is to take one example and to return to it at each stage of the course to slowly unpeel the genetics onion. Mouse coat color is perfect for that because you can go from transmission to molecular to biochemistry to population genetics.

Bateson and Punnett’s first example was rooster combs, which is cool. Mouse coat color is great because you can tie it directly to molecular function that explains the epistasis. Check out my 2008 NRG paper for examples and pictures. Also plant examples if you are into that kind of thing 😁

Homepage - Population, Evolutionary, and Quantitative Genetics Conference Visit our website to learn more.

Save the date! #PEQG26 June 9-12 2026 in Asilomar, CA. Happens only every 2yrs, but is my favorite conference. Full website coming soon, and registration and abstract submission opens November 14, but I'm allowed to tease that keynotes will be @jnovembre.bsky.social @jennytung.bsky.social and me!

"Random" variation in just a handful of genes explains differences in reproductive outcomes across genetically identical individuals. It's Ground Hog Day or Midnight Library for worms — if those stories also revealed epigenetic associations (I'm sure they were supposed to be in there someplace).