Please circulate: I will have a postdoc opening soon, ideally with a start date sometime this summer or fall. If you're interested in empirical population genetics, computational methods development, and/or evolutionary modeling via simulation, don't hesitate to reach out. For more info on the lab:

In our recent paper in PLoS Computational Biology, we used AlphaFold2 Multimer to predict the structural details of ~28,000 protein-protein interactions from high-confidence STRING pairs in Drosophila, and identified interesting patterns in disordered regions. journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol...

A predicted structural interactome reveals binding interference from intrinsically disordered regions

Author summary Understanding which proteins interact with each other and how they interact is essential for uncovering fundamental biology and for identifying new pathways involved in health and disea...

journals.plos.org

We wrote a review on using machine learning to study evolutionary genetics and molecular evolution in Trends in Genetics. It is open access—please take a look if you are interested in this topic www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... @cp-trendsgenetics.bsky.social

Machine learning for evolutionary genetics and molecular evolution

Over the past decade, the rapid expansion of large-scale data and advances in computational power have allowed machine learning (ML), especially deep …

sciencedirect.com

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Strain variation identifies a neural substrate for behavioral evolution in Drosophila

Sexual selection acts on heritable differences within species, driving the parallel diversification of signal production in one sex and behavioral res…

sciencedirect.com

De novo genes arise from previously non-coding sequences. This evolutionary path — when randomly expressed sequences become folded and active proteins — challenges our understanding of genetic innovation. New Review by @bornberglab.bsky.social and @lacholt.bsky.social out now!

Nature Reviews Genetics@natrevgenet.nature.com · 6mo ago

New online! Emergence and evolution of protein-coding de novo genes

Very excited to share the work by Alice Gadau. We found that D. suzukii (the invasive pest that loves ripe fruit) doesn’t hate CO₂, while classic lab flies avoid it. That tiny sensory shift helps explain a big ecological transition. journals.plos.org/plosgenetics...

Molecular evolution of CO2-sensing ab1C neurons underlies divergent sensory responses in the Drosophila suzukii species group

Author summary Animals rely on their senses to locate food sources and identify suitable reproductive sites in their environment. Closely related species can evolve strikingly different preferences as...

journals.plos.org

Registration for the 2026 NY Area Population Genetics meeting is now open, at events.simonsfoundation.org/e0mEoL?rt=8k.... Registration is free but required; if you are submitting an abstract, note that the deadline is *January 30th*.

Molly Przeworski@mollyprz.bsky.social · 9mo ago

SAVE THE DATE: the yearly NY Population Genetics meeting will be back on March 9 2026, generously hosted by the @simonsfoundation.org. Details to follow. Please RT.

Fly Friends: The Larry Sandler Award recognizes the PhD student with the most amazing these using Drosophila as a model. Just three days left to nominate someone. For more info on the process and the link to nominations, see: genetics-gsa.org/drosophila-2...

Our NY area population genetics meeting is back and "upgraded", as Simons Foundation @simonsfoundation.org generously agreed to host. Please save the date: March 9, 2026. Look forward to seeing many of you from NY and beyond.

Molly Przeworski@mollyprz.bsky.social · 9mo ago

SAVE THE DATE: the yearly NY Population Genetics meeting will be back on March 9 2026, generously hosted by the @simonsfoundation.org. Details to follow. Please RT.

We are deeply saddened to share that our friend and colleague Jim Hudspeth passed away on Saturday. We will remember and continue to be inspired by Jim’s integrity, his humility, and his unwavering commitment to discovery.

A. James Hudspeth, neuroscientist who unlocked secrets of hearing, has died - News

A. James Hudspeth, a Rockefeller neuroscientist who discovered how sound waves are converted into electrical signals in the ear's cochlea, died Saturday at his home in Manhattan. A pioneering scientist and dedicated mentor, he was the university's F.M. ...

rockefeller.edu

I am delighted to be starting as an assistant professor in the Department of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology at the University of Florida in January 2026. The lab is broadly interested in the functional, developmental, and evolutionary genetics of cell types and organs across flies and beyond 🪰🧬

Our latest paper is out: rdcu.be/ev6Ym — one of my favorite projects. It began about 8 years ago when Nobel laureate Torsten Wiesel asked me: what transcription factors regulate new genes? I had no idea then. Now we have some answers.

Gene regulatory networks and essential transcription factors for de novo-originated genes

Nature Ecology & Evolution - A combination of computational methods applied to single-cell RNA sequencing data and genetic experiments shows that a small number of transcription factors are...

rdcu.be

I'm very excited to share a new method my grad student @linhngk.bsky.social and I have developed. Here's Topsicle a new computational method for analyzing long read sequencing data and estimate telomere length. Please see our preprint or this thread for detail! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Topsicle: a method for estimating telomere length from whole genome long-read sequencing data

Telomeres protect chromosome ends and its length varies significantly between organisms. Because telomere length variation is associated with various biomedical and eco-evolutionary phenotypes, many b...

biorxiv.org

Rockefeller's @lizhao.bsky.social has spent nearly a decade cataloguing evolutionarily young genes. Now, complementary studies in @pnas.org and @natecoevo.nature.com are the first to demonstrate how these new genes are regulated and expressed.

How new genes get switched on - News

Scientists discovered an identical neural circuit that operates differently in male and female mice.

rockefeller.edu

If you are an SMBE member and received the election email (it may have gone to your junk folder), I would be honored if you would consider voting for me for councilor. You may also choose to vote for other scientists, and I encourage you to participate in the election. Thank you!

I hope to take a PhD student in the coming application cycle. Please reach out if you are interested in joining our lab in EEB at Yale, especially if interested in working on the natural history/ phylogenetics/ morphology/ population biology/ development/ genomics of siphonophores. dunnlab.org

Postdoc job opportunity! We're looking for ECR in evolutionary genomics to study the relation between intra-specific gene expression variability, polymorphism, and macro-evolutionary rates. We have the data in 3 fishes & amphioxus, just waiting for your expertise and enthusiasm! tinyurl.com/3aewk286

Congratulations to Feng Zhang (Vallee Scholar 2013) (Broad Inst, MIT, HHMI Investigator) who received an honorary doctorate from Duke University on Sunday! today.duke.edu/2025/04/duke...

Duke to Award Three Honorary Degrees at 2025 Commencement Ceremony | Duke Today

today.duke.edu

I’m very glad to share our recent publication @pnas.org , led by UnJin Lee from our lab at @rockefelleruniv.bsky.social : pnas.org/doi/10.1073/.... In this work, he 1) developed a method to efficiently compare single-cell RNA-seq data from rapidly evolving tissues across multiple species, and

Comparative single-cell analysis of transcriptional bursting reveals the role of genome organization in de novo transcript origination | PNAS

Spermatogenesis is a key developmental process underlying the origination of newly evolved genes. However, rapid cell type–specific transcriptomic ...

pnas.org

We are witnessing the destruction of science in America | Paul Darren Bieniasz

We are witnessing the destruction of science in America | Paul Darren Bieniasz

If we stay on this administration’s course, future life-saving medicines may never be invented

theguardian.com

I lost my job at the National Science Foundation yesterday, along with 167 of my colleagues, including some dear friends. This was the best job I've ever had, and I thought it would be my last. The PI community has been sympathetic and supportive, without exception. I will miss working for you.

We're excited to announce the 2025 Larry Sandler Award recipient, @peiwei-chen.bsky.social 🎉 This award recognizes students completing a PhD in Drosophila research. Dr. Chen will present the Larry Sandler Memorial Lecture on evolutionary innovation in genome defense at #Dros25 in March. 1/3🧵

Dear All, I believe that this thread will become one of my most important contributions to the fly field (I hope I will make other contributions)! Here, I introduce the Soy Milk Machine Fly Food Method, a.k.a., DeepCook!#Drosophila#NewPI

So sad to hear of the passing of Scott Hawley. In 2008, Michael Ashburner, Scott Hawley, and Casey Bergman held a Drosophila genetics and genomics course in China. This course was instrumental in shaping me as a junior researcher, and I am forever grateful about this eye-opening experience.

My book, An Intuitive Primer on Effective Functional Genomics Study Design, is published! I’d really appreciate it if you could help spread the word, and I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback. I hope people will find it useful. It’s available on Amazon: tinyurl.com/mx2hewen

Undergrads: apply to NYU's Summer Undergraduate Research Program in Biology! 10 weeks of research in a structured setting, featuring terrific mentors, exciting biology, housing in New York, and a stipend. as.nyu.edu/biology/outr...

Abstract submission for SMBE2025 in Beijing is open. If you study gene duplication or new genes, please consider submitting an abstract for a talk for Symposium 7, The Origin, Evolution, and Phenotypic Contributions of New Genes. smbe2025.scimeeting.cn/en/web/index.... Deadline is Jan 30, 2025.

Dear Drosophila PIs, Please consider nominating your excellent recent graduate students for the Larry Sandler Award. The required materials are straightforward: their CV, thesis abstract, and your letter. genetics-gsa.smapply.io/prog/larry_s...

Nicolas Svetec, David Begun, and I wrote a review article about de novo genes. If you are interested in this topic please take a look at this final open-access version at AnnualReviews www.annualreviews.org/content/jour...

When I feel discouraged by the immigration policy, I often find comfort in watching Yo-Yo Ma and his sister's performance for President Kennedy - and the introduction by Leonard Bernstein. Share this with those who might also like it www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiwk...

7-Year-Old Cellist Prodigy Yo-Yo Ma's Debut Performance for President JFK | The Kennedy Center

YouTube video by The Kennedy Center

youtube.com