Nat Walker-Hale

Convergent Molecular Evolution Associated With Repeated Transitions to Gregarious Larval Behavior in Heliconiini Abstract. Collective behavior forms the basis for many antipredator strategies. Within Lepidoptera, larval gregariousness has evolved convergently across m

Gregarious behaviour in butterfly larvae has evolved multiple times - Cicconardi, @ebablab.bsky.social et al. use genome data of 60 Heliconiini species, identifying signatures of convergent molecular evolution, on both coding and noncoding loci.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msaf179

#evobio #molbio

Differential gene reactions reveal drought response strategies in African acacias We studied the genetic basis of drought response in two well-known and widespread species of African acacia by analyzing gene expression reactions across a water deprivation experiment using a newly ...

Congrats to (newly graduated) Dr. Ellen Weinheimer for her new publication in @theplantjournal.bsky.social on drought responses in the iconic umbrella acacia of the African savannas using a "differential gene reaction" analysis developed for this project onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/....

Estimation of demography and mutation rates from one million haploid genomes Samples of millions of genomes provide substantial information about recent demography and mutation, but standard population-genetic methods make assumptions not met in these data. We introduce DR EVI...

📣Online NOW!
📄Estimation of demography and mutation rates from one million haploid genomes
🧑‍🤝‍🧑 @jgschraiber.bsky.social @jeffspence.github.io @docedge.bsky.social

Escape from X inactivation drives sex differences and female trait variation X chromosome inactivation (XCI) partially balances gene dosage between sexes, yet expression from the inactive X (Xi) is variable across genes. In this study, we investigate whether gene-level Xi expr...

1/13 In a new preprint, we (with @xliaoyi.bsky.social‬ in the ‪@arbelharpak.bsky.social‬ lab) find that expression from the “inactivated” X (Xi) is consequential for both female-male differences in gene expression and variation among females in disease and physiology: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Check out our new special feature: Monitoring and Restoring Gene Flow in the Increasingly Fragmented Ecosystems of the Anthropocene www.pnas.org/topic/574 #biodiversity #evolution #ecology #popgen #ClimateEmergency

Long-term parasite decline associated with near extinction and conservation of the critically endangered kākāpō parrot Boast et al. analyze a unique fecal record of the endangered kākāpō parrot to reveal >800 years of changing parasite communities. Parasite losses occur during the species’ decline to near extinction a...

Parasite extinctions in threatened species may be far more prevalent than previous estimates suggest. Our new study of kākāpō dung spanning from ~1,500 years ago to present, finds >80% of parasite species were lost as the host species declined.

Nice work by @maxhaase.bsky.social about the strange history of yeast centromeres - got to see him present it at #yeast2025

Illustration depicting the ways in which fungi can exchange genetic material with each other. Starship mediated HGT is confirmed experimentally in this preprint.

We did it! We caught Starship #transposons moving between #fungal species in the lab, including between species separated by ~100my. We think Starships are a mediator of HGT in fungi, akin to conjugative elements in bacteria. Check out the preprint. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Complex genetic variation in nearly complete human genomes - Nature Using sequencing and haplotype-resolved assembly of 65 diverse human genomes, complex regions including the major histocompatibility complex and centromeres are analysed.

Telomere-to-telomere DNA sequencing is set to transform the field of human genetics in coming years. For a flavour of what's coming, see this exciting work on nearly complete genomes of 65 individuals from diverse populations, out today in @nature.com by @glennislogsdon.bsky.social & colleagues. 👇🧬🧪

Segmental duplication-mediated rearrangements alter the landscape of mouse genomes Segmental duplications (SDs) are dynamic regions of mammalian genomes that drive structural variation and phenotypic diversity. However, genome-wide characterization of the SD landscape and the rearra...

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

We are hiring! If you have experience in plant genomics + AI, or promoter engineering + synthetic biology, check out our two open postdoc positions (computational + wetlab): www.vandepoelelab.be/Jobs please re-share RT #ERC

Enzymatic epimerization of monoterpene indole alkaloids in kratom - Nature Chemical Biology Monoterpene indole alkaloids are formed via a 3S stereoselective condensation between secologanin and tryptamine. Here the authors uncover the mechanism of epimerization behind uncommon 3R-containing ...

Enzymatic epimerization of monoterpene indole alkaloids in kratom by @oconnorlab.bsky.social

From: www.nature.com/articles/s41...

#PlantScience #SecMet

From the paper: Wood of Sphenophyllum with some fungal hyphae in transverse section (arrows)

From the paper : Detail of branching fungal hyphae within the wood of Sphenophyllum.

New accepted paper from @thibault-durieux.bsky.social's PhD reporting various fungal remains within the stem of a fossil plant from the Permian of France 🌿🍄⛏️ #paleobotany #paleomycology
#fossil #botany
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

New Ways to Root Phylogenomic trees: the Smart, the symbiotic, the violent To root a phylogenomic tree is very important to study the evolutionary relationship between species. However, typically the substitution models (say GTR, LG, etc.) people use are time-reversible m…

some thoughts on new methods to root a phylogenomic tree: the smart, the symbiotic, the violent

sishuowang2022.wordpress.com/2025/06/19/n...

#phylo
@tweethinking.bsky.social @andrewjroger.bsky.social

The paper is now online. The paper explains how even the simplest population genetic model can improve statistical power and explain the properties of admixed GWAS.

genomebiology.biomedcentral.com/articles/10....

Phylogenomics and metabolic engineering reveal a conserved gene cluster in Solanaceae plants for withanolide biosynthesis Nature Communications - Withanolides are plant steroids with potent bioactivities found in many medicinal plants including Withania somnifera, but their biosynthetic pathway is largely unknown....

Extremely happy to see our withanolide biosynthesis paper out in @natcomms.nature.com‬ rdcu.be/evHOF
Fantastic team effort with the Pucker group @bpucker.bsky.social‬ @puckerlab.bsky.social‬ at @unibonn.bsky.social and Heretsch, Herde and Witte groups at @unihannover.bsky.social. Funded by @dfg.de

Research Fellow (Postdoctoral) at University of Birmingham An opportunity for an academic position as a Research Fellow (Postdoctoral) is available, as advertised on jobs.ac.uk. Apply now and explore other academic job openings.

I have a Postdoctoral Research Fellow position starting in January to study the evolution of seed gene networks using the fern Ceratopteris! Interested? More info here:
www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DNU179/r...

Closing date 31st July. 🙂
#PlantScience
#PlantSciencejobs

The Extinction of Truth Or, a Colossal Pile of Bullshit

Re-upping given the moa deëxtinction nonsense from #ColossalBio and it’s cofounder Ben Lamm, it’s nominally about dire wolf “deëxtinction” but applies just as well to moas

substack.com/inbox/post/1...

A million shades of green: understanding and harnessing plant metabolic diversity
Rocky Payet, Anne Osbourn et al presents a step-by-step guide to starting a project that characterises plant secondary metabolites
www.embopress.org/doi/full/10....

The BEAST X logo - an octopus wrapping its noodley appendages round the letter X.

BEAST X v10.5.0 finally released – you can't just do beta releases forever. github.com/beast-dev/be...

Details and instructions for installing on the BEAST website: beast.community

The Transcriptional Architecture of Bacterial Biosynthetic Gene Clusters Bacterial biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) drive the production of diverse bioactive specialized metabolites regulated by transcription factors (TFs) in response to environmental signals. In this met...

Useful paper: "The Transcriptional Architecture of Bacterial Biosynthetic Gene Clusters" #microsky #streptomyces

pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1...

New Postdoc position (2yrs) available in our #EvoMPMI lab @JohnInnesCentre. Come and work with on harnessing the diversity of immune mechanisms to protect plants. jobs.jic.ac.uk/Details.asp?va…

These animals are not dire wolves, they’re gene edited gray wolves; don’t fall for the #ColossalBio #DisInformation de-extinction is science fiction not fact…

Going green: Recycling transcriptomes to infer evolutionary relationships, gene duplication, gene tree conflict, and patterns of molecular evolution in the Apocynaceae Background and Aims: The flowering plant family Apocynaceae exhibits diverse adaptations with biological and pharmaceutical significance, many of which have been studied with RNA-seq. However, despite...

@shawn-anthony.bsky.social helped ~20 undergrads learn transcriptomics in this budget friendly investigation into the dogbane family. A fun way to investigate the molecular evolution of the group. Also, a chance to collaborate with @phylonatworks.bsky.social and Jarrad! doi.org/10.1101/2025...

Stem Cell–Derived, Fully Differentiated Islets for Type 1 Diabetes | NEJM Zimislecel is an allogeneic stem cell–derived islet-cell therapy. Data on the safety and efficacy of zimislecel in persons with type 1 diabetes are needed. We conducted a phase 1–2 study of zimisle...

What an amazing time to be a biomedical scientist.

www.nejm.org/doi/abs/10.1...

PCR Primer Design | Notion Prerequisite Protocols

Here's a tutorial I wrote on how I design detection and cloning primers using Primer3. Hopefully it's helpful for students. 💚

binomicalabs.notion.site/PCR-Primer-D...

A new paper in Nature Ecol & Evol by
@rosafernandez.bsky.social et al. shows a #punctuated burst of genome evolution in #annelids as they transitioned from marine to land and freshwater habitats.

Left: An early-flowering plant in the wild (at the Angit site in Southern Italy. Right: Flowering time of progeny from wild plants and control genotypes in the greenhouse (22°C long days).

The FLC gene helps determine #FloweringTime variation in #Arabidopsis. Analysis of FLC mutants across 62 natural #genetic backgrounds by @plantevolution.bsky.social shows how #PanGenetics analysis of hub genes can reveal the extent of their broader genetic network @plosbiology.org 🧪 plos.io/3ZkZNvV

Long-term flowering-time data on Japanese mountain cherry (recorded since the 9th century!) shows a shift in full-flowering date beginning in the late 19th century.

Fascinating new @newphyt.bsky.social paper by @jgpausas.bsky.social

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1...

Discovery of FoTO1 and Taxol genes enables biosynthesis of baccatin III - Nature An approach that combines single-nucleus RNA sequencing and multiplexed perturbation identifies genes that enable the biosynthesis of direct precursors of the anti-cancer drug Taxol, whose curren...

Discovery of FoTO1 and Taxol genes enables biosynthesis of baccatin III www.nature.com/articles/s41... @nature.com