New paper entitled “Phagocytosis of microbial symbionts supports embryonic nutrition in the sponge Halichondria panicea” is out now in @microbiomej.bsky.social! link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Phagocytosis of microbial symbionts supports embryonic nutrition in the sponge Halichondria panicea - Microbiome

Background Animal development is frequently supported by microbial symbionts that contribute to host nutrition, metabolism, and physiology. While the functional importance of microbiomes in adult host...

link.springer.com

My new book, Phylogenetic Biology, is now published. Available online for free at dunnlab.org/phylogenetic... . Physical copies can be purchased at shop.lightningsource.com/b/085?params... or your favorite bookstore.

'Cell-autonomous immunity and the endosymbiotic theory: Septins at the origin?' doi.org/10.32942/X2X...

‘How can we ever trust this company again knowing what it’s done? We need a big response and a real promise to do things differently moving forward,’ says Elisabeth Bik. #ChemSky @elisabethbik.bsky.social @reeserichardson.bsky.social @sholtodavid.bsky.social www.chemistryworld.com/news/thermo-...

Thermo Fisher antibody data manipulation is a breach of trust, say researchers

Science sleuths say the problem is impacting research progress and Thermo's response falls short

chemistryworld.com

Our News & Views article “Body-plan organizer in comb jellies hints at animal ancestry” now published in @nature.com 🎉 We discuss fascinating work revealing organizer activity in comb jellies & the evolution of animal development. rdcu.be/fsLWq @ruthstyfhals.bsky.social @msarscentre.bsky.social

So excited to announce our search for 4 postdocs (funded by the Simons Foundation) who will use genomics to "test how ecological interactions, natural selection, natural enemies, hybridization & environmental gradients shape...tropical tree communities" in Panama: stri.si.edu/story/bci-ev... ...1

Happy #FluorescenceFriday! I captured this shot of a group of embryonic macrophages expressing LifeAct and H2B migrating inside tissue. These cells can use lamellipodia, filopodia, or blebs to migrate, and are frequently switching between these different modes or combining them. So fascinating.

I had a ton of fun the other day talking with @nonresidentdesi.bsky.social and @scifri.bsky.social 's Flora Lichtman and Rasha Aridi about murderous microbes and the things that we are trying to learn from them. Happy for the opportunity to bring some new awareness to the world of protists!

Science Friday@scifri.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Researchers like Ben Larson and Glen D’Souza are piecing together the world of killer microbes, including why they turn on each other and if their tiny weapons could be harnessed to fight disease. Listen to the podcast now: www.sciencefriday.com/segments/kil...

From my last PhD paper, now in The Conversation: how deep sea sponges thrive in the dark. Their microbial partners oxidise ammonia and break down tough algal carbon. theconversation.com/deep-sea-spo... #Metagenomics 🧪 #Bioinformatics 🧬💻 #SymbioSky

Deep-sea sponges survive in complete darkness in ways we didn’t know before

Beyond the sunlit ocean lies a vast abyss where organisms have to recycle every scrap available.

theconversation.com

The list of Ecology/Evolution/Marine Bio Labs recruiting grad students for Fall 2027 is live! PIs enter your position info here: forms.gle/MAGd4ohyPeoY... students (and PIs not recruiting) share the composite list: docs.google.com/spreadsheets... Please share widely! 🧪

Ecology/Evolution/Marine Biology labs recruiting for Fall 2027

Please complete this form if you are a PI recruiting graduate students for a Fall 2027 start. If you are NOT recruiting, feel free to share the response sheet with prospective students looking for lab...

forms.gle

Successfully defended my PhD last Thursday :) Dissertation Title: “Exploring foundations of animals of host–microbe interactions in a freshwater sponge” Lab: @scottnichols.bsky.social #sponge #immunology #symbiosis

Interested in working on the evolution of photosynthetic endosymbioses? Come join us! I have 2 open positions in my new group @cemess.bsky.social in Vienna 3yr postdoc info: tinyurl.com/4emkjpn4 4yr PhD info: tinyurl.com/mtxmsjpy Apply by 1st June! Please share/repost #Protists #Symbiosis #PhD

The RasgonLab is anticipating several postdoc openings to work on development & application of CRISPR in arthropods, dependent on final approval of funds and HR approval of positions. Candidates must already be physically located in the USA. H1B visa sponsorship is not possible. Email me for info

🎉Excited to share our new preprint! TIR domains from diverse animals, including human TLR4, are catalytically active and produce cyclic ADP-ribose (cADPR). This enzymatic activity is widespread in animals and conserved across the tree of life. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Interested in miRNAs, early animal evolution, and RNA biology? We’re recruiting a BBSRC-funded Postdoctoral Research Associate @bristolbiosci.bsky.social #Postdoc #microRNA #RNAbiology Apply by 14 May 2026. 👉 www.bristol.ac.uk/jobs/find-in...

Where do you find an animal mitochondrial genome that is several Mbp in size and contains thousands of linear chromosomes? In a tiny #sponge Sycon ciliatum: doi.org/10.1098/rstb... #Porifera #Mitochondria

Extreme mitochondrial genome complexity in the calcaronean sponge Sycon ciliatum (Fabricius, 1780): fragmentation, gene duplication and mRNA editing

Abstract. Mitochondrial genomes (mt-genomes) of calcaronean sponges are among the most unusual in Metazoa. They are fragmented into multiple linear chromos

doi.org

Update: I am definitely hiring 2 PhD students; preference to those who can start spring 2027, but reach out if you’re looking to start in Fall 27. Want to start earlier? Reach out and we can talk about technician positions starting as early as this summer.

Dr. Lauren E. Fuess@laurenfuess.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Hi folks, there is a high likelihood I will be recruiting 1-2 PhD students to start in Spring 2027. Trying to get the word out early; please share broadly with your networks and encourage your students to reach out early. Info can be found on my webpage. fuesslab.wp.txstate.edu/opportunities/

For years I've been looking for the right guest to do a pod on this. The car-sales model that is dictated by law in the US -- you must go to a dealership & suffer for hours in order to buy one -- is one of the most nakedly anti-social special interest giveaways in history. Needs to be killed dead.

Erika Hall@erikahall.bsky.social · 5mo ago

US car dealers hate EVs because EVs need a lot less maintenance www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/202...

I'm hiring! I have 2 open positions: 🔬 Postdoc 🧪 Research associate We study how animal multicellularity evolved by exploring the molecular logic of cell adhesion using cell biology, 'omics, and tool-building in non-model organisms. Come join us! Details and application links 👇 Please repost

#Ichthyosporea are not just the 5–6 species we and others have helped establish as models. Our recent synthesis suggests that ~95% of their species-level diversity remains uncultivated. In other words, we still know only a fraction of the map! #protistsonSky @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @prbb.org

Hi folks, there is a high likelihood I will be recruiting 1-2 PhD students to start in Spring 2027. Trying to get the word out early; please share broadly with your networks and encourage your students to reach out early. Info can be found on my webpage. fuesslab.wp.txstate.edu/opportunities/

Excited to announce our new journal from @isme-microbes.bsky.social ISME Host Microbe is live and now accepting submissions. Look forward to receiving your papers! #Microsky 🧫 🦠

Our study on shape diversity in cnidarians is now published. The final version includes extensive new data that substantially extend the original bioRxiv preprint. Congrats to everyone who contributed to this work! www.cell.com/cell/fulltex... @embl.org

Deciphering mechanical determinants of morphological evolution

A comparative analysis of cnidarian larval morphogenesis combined with active surface theory identifies a set of mesoscale mechanical modules that predict species-specific shapes. Manipulating these m...

cell.com

Work with #ctenophores or similar emerging models of evolutionary biology? Whether you research or take care of them, we want to follow you! Reach out if this describes you 😀 Please repost! 🙏

Extraordinary new fossils from Newfoundland reveal an ancient mass extinction worse than the asteroid-driven calamity that killed the dinosaurs. #Paleontology #KotlinCrisis #FossilFriday 🧪🧪 New for @science.org

Earth’s first major extinction was worse than we thought

Fossil finds suggest nearly 80% of life on Earth died some 550 million years ago

science.org

Choanoflagellate transfection just got much cheaper: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... Congratulations @frutag33.bsky.social & team. #choanoflagellates #transfection

Wow. Foraminifera! ROV pilots paused and carefully zoomed in to collect footage of these single-celled microorganisms, or protists, at 843 m during the #OBVI #LivingBioreactors expedition w/ @schmidtsciences.bsky.social offshore of Argentina. Read the full caption: youtube.com/shorts/Yv_ud...

Our work on #hornwort #pyrenoids is finally out in @science.org! 🎉 We uncovered how hornworts pack their Rubisco into pyrenoids and successfully recreated them in Arabidopsis. A key step toward engineering more efficient photosynthesis in crops @btiscience.bsky.social www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

An unconventional Rubisco small subunit underpins the CO2-concentrating organelle in land plants

In many algae, photosynthesis is boosted by biophysical CO2-concentrating mechanisms, which pack the CO2-fixing enzyme Rubisco into liquid-like organelles called pyrenoids. Engineering C3 crops with a...

science.org

Thrilled to share that our preprint has been accepted in Science Advances! Grateful to an incredible team & collaborators. Link: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... 👏 @annaferraioli.bsky.social @maikekittelmann.bsky.social @msarscentre.bsky.social @erc.europa.eu @hfspo.bsky.social #ctenophores

The 3D architecture of the ctenophore aboral organ and the evolution of complex integrative centers in animals

The ctenophore aboral organ integrates multimodal sensory signals across distinct cell types.

science.org

Pawel Burkhardt@pawelburkhardt.bsky.social · last yr.

Ctenophores possess a unique aboral organ that acts as a multisensory center, controlling complex behaviors. We’ve now created a ctenophore model integrated with our 3D volume EM data. Puts it into perspective. Check out our recent work here: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... #ctenophores #volumeEM