Judy Li (李静迪)

Complex interactions in the life cycle of a simple parasite shape the evolution of virulence Author summary Classical expectations on parasite evolution assume a trade-off between transmission rate and harm to the host (virulence), favoring parasites with intermediate virulence. However, rece...

OUT in @PLOS #Pathogens! 🦠🦟
We evolved a parasite to transmit early/late from its #Anopheles host—spending less/more time inside. We ask what this means for #transmission, social #behaviour, classical #virulence theory, and (mis)used composite virulence metrics.
#MicroSky
1/3
doi.org/10.1371/jour...

Mechanisms of host exploitation by a microsporidian parasite | Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences Parasites exploit their hosts to enhance their growth and reproduction, yet the mechanisms underlying host manipulation remain understudied for many taxa. The microsporidian Vavraia culicis, a potential biological control agent for mosquitoes, serves as ...

Our NEW paper is OUT in PROCEEDINGS B! 🦟
We show how a #microsporidia exploits its #Anopheles host throughout #infection using a bunch of different methods.
#MicroSky #EvoSky #SymbioSky
See below👇

royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...

Nature should be the model for microbial sciences | Journal of Bacteriology Historically, our understanding of microbes has been based on laboratory cultures. Much of what we know at a mechanistic level is based on “model organisms” which are species that readily grow in labo...

Today's reading: Nature should be the model for microbial sciences journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/... by @brettbakker.bsky.social @emilyraehyde.bsky.social and @pedroleao.bsky.social

Looks ideal for a talk I am working on on model organisms ...

Different ways to die: harnessing variation in Drosophila reveals loss of tolerance and resistance over age and sex-specific association between infection susceptibility and lifespan It is widely accepted that susceptibility to infection increases with age. The reason often invoked is the dysregulation of the immune system, which is both cause and consequence of ageing. However, w...

New preprint - varied routes to ⬆️ infection susceptibility over age - via bona fide immunosenescence, but also often via reduced tolerance 🪰🕰️🦠☠️

⬆️ risk to die from infection predicts lifespan in males. Great group effort from the lab!

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

Looking forward to seeing everyone, new and old, at the Microbial Population Biology GRS + GRC in just a couple days!

go.bsky.app/GGxRjzC

This is so cool! I wonder how these warfare interactions would evolve under environmental perturbations

Our paper demonstrating that within-species warfare interactions are ecologically important on human skin is now published in Nature Micro! www.nature.com/articles/s41...

The team's first preprint is out!

Led by ‪
‪@vishnuprasoodanan.bsky.social‬‬ & @omaistrenko.bsky.social , we asked a question (almost) as old as microbiology: how many prokaryotic species exist on Earth? More specifically, how much diversity is "hiding" in existing metagenomic data?

A 🧵.

Defining ultra-slow-growing extremophilic microorganisms as aeonophiles - Nature Microbiology In environments like the deep subsurface, microorganisms with long doubling times can remain metabolically active for millions of years — we propose referring to this class of extremophile as aeonophi...

A proposal from @karenlloyd.bsky.social and me: let's refer to ultra-slow-growing microbes, such as those found in the deep subsurface, as aeonophiles (aeon = long time).

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Gut microbiome evolution from infancy to 8 years of age - Nature Medicine In a unique cohort of twins followed from birth to 8 years of age, shotgun sequencing of stool samples reveals that the transmission, persistence and evolutionary adaptation of bacterial strains are s...

#NatMicroPicks

Tracking the gut microbiome evolution 🦠

A big data analysis of gut microbiome of kids from infancy to 8 years of age.

#MicroSky #MicrobiomeSky
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

A dead Black-headed Gull at a colony in Norfolk, UK, photographed by Dawn Balmer / BTO, and likely a victim of high pathogenicity avian influenza.

22 papers across two issues document the impact of #AvianInfluenza and assess effectiveness of management responses. They show the unprecedented scale of the outbreak, decimating populations across Europe, Africa, North and South America to the South Atlantic.
📚 bit.ly/bird-study-h...
#Ornithology

Last week to apply! nioo.knaw.nl/en/vacancies...

We are seeking two human health-focused researchers to join Ireland’s AMR One Health Thematic Network, helping bring science into national AMR policy. To apply, please send your CV and a brief cover letter to knockingoutamr@microbiologysociety.org. The deadline to apply is 2 July 2025.

2025 - Biodiversity Modelling Summer School. Coding biodiversity: building scenarios with a global ecosystem model
August 18 to 22, 2025 - University of British Columbia, Vancouver. Apply now!!! www.usherbrooke.ca/ecoles-de-po...

Latest Microbial Primer on 'polymicrobial infections' from @jenniferfarrell.bsky.social @brownlab.bsky.social and published by the @microbiologysociety.org. Check out all Primers which are useful introductions to topics and they are good for teaching. www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/micr...

Started a starter pack for the presenters and attendees of the 2025 Animal-Microbe Symbiosis Gordon Research Conference. Let me know if I should add (or remove) you!

go.bsky.app/Pnzz1R9

SAME!!!

My first GRC! Really enjoy the experience and everyone in the community is so lovely ❤️

Within-host competition causes pathogen molecular evolution and perpetual microbiota dysbiosis Abstract. Pathogens newly invading a host must compete with resident microbiota. This within-host microbial warfare could lead to more severe disease outco

I'm very pleased to share the latest paper from my post doc with @kayla-king.bsky.social. We looked at how host microbiota can influence pathogen virulence evolution in a C. elegans model of infection: academic.oup.com/ismej/articl...

The microbiome of the human facial skin is unique compared to that of other hominids | mSystems Understanding how and why human skin bacteria differ from our closest animal relatives provides crucial insights into human evolution and health. While we have known that human facial skin hosts disti...

Our work on the facial skin microbiome of non-human primates is out in mSystems!

We show there is no close relative of Cutibacterium on the faces of gorillas and chimps at the Lincoln Park Zoo, furthering the mysterious origin of the dominant human skin colonizer.

journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

Impact of maternal obesity and mode of delivery on the newborn skin and oral microbiomes Introduction. Previous studies have shown vast differences in the skin and oral microbiomes of newborns based on delivery method [Caesarean section (C-section) vs vaginal]. Exposure to or absence of…

Impact of maternal obesity and mode of delivery on the newborn skin and oral microbiomes. Available in #JMedMicro:
doi.org/10.1099/jmm....

This is such interesting results! I wonder if you see any role of gut microbiomes play in shaping the sex difference? We found that male gut microbiomes may be more responsive to perturbation (from both abiotic and biotic) compared to female gut microbiomes.

From air to insight: the evolution of airborne DNA sequencing technologies Historically, the analysis of airborne biological organisms relied on microscopy and culture-based techniques. However, technological advances such as PCR and next-generation sequencing now provide re...

New paper alert! Review of what is state-of-the-art in airborne DNA sequencing. @microbiologysociety.org @richardmleggett.bsky.social www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/jour...

Join Us! | King Lab Are you interested in joining the King Lab? More information here!

Come join us at beautiful UBC! The King Lab is recruiting a Post-doc Fellow to develop mathematical theory on infectious disease evolution and emergence, together with Ben Ashby (SFU) #zoonoses #biodiversity www.zoology.ubc.ca/kinglab/join...

Dr. Sarah Otto of @zoology.ubc.ca says that while the avian flu virus hasn't shown much evidence of human-to-human transmission it was evolving rapidly to spread to other species like cows, and scientists are looking at parts of the virus that could attach to human cells.

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Acidovorax sacchari sp. nov., a pathogen causing red stripe of sugarcane in Japan. Published #OpenAccess and fee-free in #IJSEM using a #PublishAndRead agreement:
doi.org/10.1099/ijse...

Big news: we are setting up a new non-profit organization to run bioRxiv and medRxiv. It's called openRxiv [no it's not a new preprint server; it's dedicated organization to oversee the servers] openrxiv.org 1/n

On #InternationalWomensDay today, I celebrate all women who’ve paved the way and are breaking barriers today. To every woman daring to ask ‘why?’ and ‘how? Together, we continue breaking barriers and shaping a future where every girl can dream big and achieve even bigger. 🌍🔬💫 #WomenInSTEM

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Want an uplifting podcast that’s a great antidote to the current attacks on justice, equity, diversity and inclusion? Thank you Dr. Emilia Huerta-Sanchez and Rori Rohlfs! www.sciencewisepodcast.org

In our latest episode of Microbe Talk, Clare spoke to @jingdi.bsky.social author of #MicrobioJ Microbial Primer about microbiome-host symbiosis, microbial responses to temperature shifts and where she hopes to see in the future of the niche field. Listen here https://buff.ly/4h21uEz