Daniel Sauter
@sauterlab.bsky.social
Virologist & Research Group Leader at @unituebingen.bsky.social Fascinated by viruses, innate immunity, evolution — and birds 🐦 #Virology #HIV #HERVs #Retrotransposons #Placenta #Evolution #Birds
The next JVI Seminar Series webinar is on Aug. 12. Drs. Talbot and Wrobel will discuss the 2026 Bundibugyo ebolavirus outbreak in Congo and Uganda, incl. the outbreak's epidemiology and the race to develop vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics. cassyni.com/events/MgrHz...
In case you missed the first opportunity: the New Voices in Virology collection of the Journal of Virology and @asm.org is back! Early-career virologists are invited to apply and share their research in this special minireview collection. Apply here: journals.asm.org/journal/jvi/...
New Voices in Virology: Call for Applications
Celebrate the next generation of leaders in virology research. Explore minireviews from rising stars in the field.
journals.asm.org
Daniel Sauter@sauterlab.bsky.social · 9mo agoReally great initiative by the Journal of Virology and @asm.org — the “New Voices in Virology” feature highlights an excellent group of early-career virologists. journals.asm.org/journal/jvi/... #virology
Did you know? Palm cockatoos (Probosciger aterrimus) make their own drumsticks to impress females with their drumming skills. This is one of the few known examples of non-human instrumental music. See and hear them in action: tinyurl.com/55487ybx 📸 gmarion85 via flickr (CC0) #Birds #FeatheredFriday
Historic papers in virology - today, 20 years ago, Keele and colleagues traced the origins of pandemic HIV-1 to geographically distinct chimpanzee populations in Cameroon, showing that HIV-1 groups M and N arose from simian immunodeficiency viruses infecting chimpanzees (P. t. troglodytes).
Did you know? Red-breasted nuthatches (Sitta canadensis) use glue to protect their nests from predators and competing birds. They collect sticky conifer resin and smear it around the nest entrance. Source: tinyurl.com/3n2jdtmj 📸 GlacierNPS, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0) #Birds #FeatheredFriday
How exciting is this????? A new monkey species discovered in 2026 - what a beautiful new discovery !!!!https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c15y5wgj4x8o
New monkey species with orange lips found 'hiding' in DRC forest
Scientists describe "amazing feeling" to look into the face of an animal that so few people knew existed.
bbc.com
Experts publish recommendations on managing low-level but detectable HIV
Experts publish recommendations on managing low-level but detectable HIV
An international panel of scientists reviewed the evidence to construct a framework of recommendations on the management of low-level but detectable HIV. The guidance, published in The Lancet HIV by Dr Tommaso Clemente and colleagues, brings together evidence from a scoping review and expert judgement in order to create a shared point of reference for clinicians.
aidsmap.com
Completed our work on reconstructing the viral histories of human, simian and prosimian immunodeficiency viruses across multiple evolutionary timescales, with @mghafari.bsky.social & @psimmond.bsky.social royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...
Reconstructing the viral histories of human, simian and prosimian immunodeficiency viruses across multiple evolutionary timescales
Abstract. The evolutionary history of simian and prosimian immunodeficiency viruses (SIVs and pSIVs) remains difficult to resolve, because divergence-time
royalsocietypublishing.org
The historic papers in virology series continues with another major milestone. Today, 56 years ago, two papers in Nature reported the discovery of an RNA-dependent DNA polymerase, now known as reverse transcriptase, the hallmark enzyme of retroviruses that synthesizes DNA from an RNA template.
Did you know? Yellowhammers (Emberiza citrinella) try to stand out from the crowd with their songs. They adjust the rhythm of their song to be as asynchronous as possible from their neighbours. Source: tinyurl.com/d8p6vhmk 📸 HLI-Photography, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0) #Birds #FeatheredFriday
Open #PhDposition in our group! Interested in #virology, #immunology, and #placenta biology? Apply to join our team! The project is part of the #aging research consortium CRC 1506. More info: tinyurl.com/zw3y2mhv and www.uni-ulm.de/fileadmin/we....
Research Group “Mechanisms of innate antiviral immunity” | Universitätsklinikum Tübingen
tinyurl.com
📣 POSTDOC position available in the Feschotte Lab at Cornell to work on #TRANSPOSONS! More details below. Pls send informal application or inquiry ASAP by DM or email to cf458_at_cornell.edu. Pls spread the word 🙏 #TEsky www.thefeschottelabatcornell.com
The Feschotte Lab at Cornell
thefeschottelabatcornell.com
@unaids.org's report warns of a ‘perilous moment’ for the HIV response. Without renewed commitment & sustained investment, decades of progress towards ending AIDS could be at risk. The report highlights the impact of disruptions to global funding & the political choices needed to put people first.
Did you know? Blackbirds (Turdus merula) and other urban birds flee about 1 meter sooner when approached by women than when approached by men: tinyurl.com/4vn92j4u. This study is definitely a candidate for the Ig Nobel Prize. 📸 WikiPokos, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0) #Birds #FeatheredFriday
Did you know? Chaco Chachalaca, Morepork, Bananaquit and Green Mango are not fancy drinks or BBQ snacks, but bird species. Check out the following list for additional great bird names: birdhistory.substack.com/p/the-100-gr.... 📸 Pseudopanax, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0) #Birds #FeatheredFriday
A landmark #ScienceTranslationalMedicine study shows that latent #HIV can convert CD4+ T cells to CD8+ T cells and identifies the latter as a previously overlooked component of the viral reservoir—a surprising finding with critical implications for HIV cure efforts. https://scim.ag/43N0lwa
HIV-1 infection converts CD4+ T cells to HLA class II–restricted CD8+ T cells
HIV-1–driven CD4-to-CD8 T cell conversion results in a distinct cellular reservoir of viral persistence.
scim.ag
Did you know? Rock pigeons (Columba livia) have magnetic macrophages that help them to navigate. If you deplete these macrophages, the pigeons cannot find their way back home on cloudy days: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... 📸 ccfarmer, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0) #Birds #FeatheredFriday
Wie sprechen wir heute über HIV? Ab dem 11. Juni lädt eine Ausstellung im #Stadtmuseum #Tübingen dazu ein, Vorurteile zu #HIV zu hinterfragen. Studierende der @unituebingen.bsky.social haben die Ausstellung mit der #Aidshilfe Tübingen-Reutlingen und unserem Institut konzipiert tinyurl.com/y2bw25sj
Sprechen über HIV - Stadtmuseum Tübingen
Die Ausstellung lädt dazu ein, anhand von Hörstationen, Interviews und interaktiven Elementen alte Bilder und Vorurteile zu hinterfragen.
stadtmuseum-tuebingen.de
Wrote a short piece on Transposable Elements as catalysts of evolutionary innovation for a forthcoming special issue of @naturerevgenet.bsky.social on, duh, Evolutionary Innovation! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Transposable elements as catalysts of evolutionary innovation - Nature Reviews Genetics
In this Comment, Cedric Feschotte highlights evidence from diverse lineages showing that transposable elements are key drivers of evolutionary innovation, repeatedly introducing regulatory and coding ...
nature.com
Cool story on Ectocarpus (Brown algae) giant virus activation from Susana Coelho's group: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Latent endogenous giant viruses drive active infection and inheritance in a multicellular algal host - Nature Microbiology
Giant endogenous viral elements integrated into the multicellular alga Ectocarpus are reactivated by specific temperature cues, driving productive latent viral infections.
nature.com
In light of the ongoing situation with Ebola in the DRC, I'm sorry to have to remind you that evolutionary biology makes it abundantly clear that ignoring a catastrophic disease outbreak because it's there, not here, is a terrible, terrible idea.
Evolutionary consequences of delaying intervention for monkeypox
Since May, 2022, clusters of monkeypox infections have caused global concern. At present, this concern has been tempered by the fact that, even when uncontrolled, the number of infections is growing s...
thelancet.com
Made some comments on the initial phylogenetic analysis of Bundibugyo viral sequences for SMC: www.sciencemediacentre.org/expert-react... The analysis is here: virological.org/t/initial-ge...
Initial genomes from May 2026 Bundibugyo Virus Disease Outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda
Initial genomes from May 2026 Bundibugyo Virus Disease Outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, reveal a new spillover event Context On 15 May 2026, the Ministry of Public Health, ...
virological.org
Amazing speed from the teams in Uganda and the DRC - impressive! Three genomes released so far - a few quick takes: 1️⃣ New genomes ~equidistant from 2007 and 2012 outbreaks. 2️⃣ Represents new spillover from reservoir. 3️⃣ Limited diversity, so too early to speculate on timing. Great work ⭐!
Kristian G. Andersen@kgandersen.bsky.social · 3mo ago
We are all Roger. This is a despicable attack on the very essence of what academic science is about. Reason. Humanity. International collaboration.
Science Magazine@science.org · 3mo agoBreaking news: Indiana University plant microbiologist Roger Innes has been locked out of his laboratory by the school in response to a request by one of his federal funders. The move comes after Innes complained about the government’s prosecution of Chinese postdocs. https://scim.ag/4tsDqRr
WHO's Disease Outbreak News on #hantavirus linked to MV Hondius here: bit.ly/49AGmUM
Hantavirus cluster linked to cruise ship travel, Multi-country
On 2 May 2026, a cluster of passengers with severe respiratory illness aboard a cruise ship was reported to the World Health Organization (WHO). At that time, according to the ship operator, 147 passe...
bit.ly
1/3 Statement from the International #Hantavirus Society regarding #Andes virus
Statement from the International Hantavirus Society and members of the international hantavirus research and clinical community regarding Andes virus transmission and the current outbreak investigatio...
This statement summarizes current scientific evidence regarding Andes virus (ANDV) transmission dynamics, including documented person-to-person transmission, outbreak epidemiology, infection control c...
zenodo.org
Super quick sequencing from the Swiss team!! I found some time to do a quick phylo analysis posted here: virological.org/t/complete-s... #hantavirus #ANDV
Complete sequence of Orthohantavirus andesense virus: Swiss resident 2026
Thank you for sharing! Had some free time and had a go at making some segment trees. Brief methods: Downloaded all taxid 1980456 nucleotide sequences Separated by segment and made some preliminary ...
virological.org
Did you know? American barn owls (Tyto furcata) have asymmetrical heads, with one ear higher than the other. This enables them to locate their prey more precisely: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29279251/ 📸 LubosHouska, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0) #Birds #FeatheredFriday
