Our new paper is out in @nature.com! We uncovered how a naked mole-rat queen 👑 controls an entire colony: a natural contraceptive scent that suppresses reproduction in other females! A remarkable mammalian parallel to bees and ants! 🐝🐜 @garyrlewin.bsky.social youtu.be/enfv3zJrWKM?...

Naked mole-rats are ruled by a queen: this chemical puts her in power

YouTube video by nature video

youtu.be

📣 📣 📣 📣 To all Drosophilists: the call for Workshop proposals at the 2027 European Drosophila Research Conference in Bonn (20-23 September 2027) is OPEN! Go to link below for instructions. Closing date: 30 September 2026. 👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻 tinyurl.com/45y8trzd

In an article published today, we show that ancient feeding-related neuropeptides have been repurposed to control brood care in clonal raider ants. Photo: Bart Zijlstra, UNIL /1

Very honoured to present #UniFr and #Switzerland in the 2026 FKNE cohort ! Looking forward to be part of a network with so many bright minds, to promote (neuro)science research and education not only in Europe but also #LMICs, and to bring our comparative, cross-species approach to FKNE.

@fkne-scholars.bsky.social · 4w ago

Welcome to the 15 newly selected #FENSKavliScholars! Representing 12 European countries, they join a network of 30 Scholars across 21 countries and 25 nationalities. 🧠✨With thanks to @fens.org, @kavlifoundation.org, @alleninstitute.org and our partners for supporting FKNE. h1.nu/1t8Lw

How do duplicated receptor genes "find a home" in olfactory circuits? Great study by the Arguello lab shows the re-coding of olfactory channels across species. Neat combination of phylogenetic reconstruction, sc-transcriptomics and more. Check out the pre-print: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Evolutionary Recoding of Olfactory Sensory Neurons

Odorant receptors ( Or s) are the interface between an animal’s nervous system and its olfactory environment. In insect genomes, the Or s are often the largest gene family, and their rapid duplication...

biorxiv.org

The amazing JEDI crowd 2026! Hurray for an inspiring #Drosophila meeting at a gorgeous location. Thank you to everyone who attended!

SUPERMAGNETIC MICROPHAGES 🤯

Science Magazine@science.org · 2mo ago

Researchers have identified superparamagnetic macrophages in the livers of rock pigeons to be crucial for magnetic sensing. The finding uncovers an unexpected role for immune cells in sensory perception and may fundamentally change our understanding of animal navigation. https://scim.ag/4nTQ3nq

Happy to have the chance to share this commentary by @will-milligan.bsky.social & me: rdcu.be/fldBs.

Extended registration deadline for our conference (June 1st - 3rd in Palmela, Portugal) to May 15th! Join if you are a Junior #Drosophila PI or senior #postdoc about to transition to independence. Spread the word! 🎬Venue: www.youtube.com/watch?v=_P1n... 🔗Registration: fly-jedi.org/meetings/202...

Pousada de Palmela

YouTube video by Pestana Hotel Group

youtube.com

Here is a banger! Our new paper in @currentbiology.bsky.social is out! We have used museomics to sequence a 45yr old specimen of Drosophila enhydrobia, a rare and most unusual fly whose larvae are aquatic(!) and predatory(!). Very cool, big success. authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S...

My laboratory is looking for a motivated postdoc in the field of Neurobiology. We have multiple exciting projects, NIH funding. Experience using the Drosophila model is preferable. Please share erecruit.umsystem.edu/psc/tamext/K...

The School of Biosciences @unibirmingham.bsky.social is recruiting five Assistant/Associate Professors working across a range of areas, including neuroscience. Join a vibrant interdisciplinary research environment. Deadline: 14 April 2026 edzz.fa.em3.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/Candid...

Assistant or Associate Professor (Research and Education) - School of Biosciences - 107106 - Grade 8 or 9

Evidence of a developing track record in publishing work of high academic quality and impact is essential, as is an emerging portfolio (or clear potential) of external research funding. Applicants mus...

edzz.fa.em3.oraclecloud.com

The #fly community aims to achieve a comprehensive genomic study of the Drosophilidae family. @pankajd.bsky.social @bernardkim.bsky.social @petrovadmitri.bsky.social @darrenobbard.bsky.social present a comparative gene annotation for 301 #Drosophilidae species @plosbiology.org 🧪 plos.io/4c3pyrI

🚨 Postdoc opportunity to study memory or nutrition in #Drosophila 🪰 I am looking for a candidate to support for a 3 year Addison Wheeler Fellowship application lnkd.in/e2rvNf5x Interested? Please send a CV & cover letter with brief research outline by 20th February to vincent.croset@durham.ac.uk

Very happy for this @ejneuroscience.bsky.social editorial on the importance of diverse research animals in neuroscience. We make the case that embracing a plurality of model organisms enriches the field and accelerates both basic and translational research. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

How does the brain control locomotion? In our new preprint, we uncover a brain circuit in Drosophila that controls forward walking independently of turning. This dedicated locomotor circuit enables flexible motor control and might reflect a shared principle across species. doi.org/10.64898/202...

A high-resolution atlas of the brain predicts lineage and birth order underlying neuronal identity: Cell Genomics www.cell.com/cell-genomic... Follow-up paper on sex, online in the New year

A high-resolution atlas of the brain predicts lineage and birth order underlying neuronal identity

Using an integrated single-cell transcriptomic atlas of the adult Drosophila central brain, Allen et al. uncover over 4,000 transcriptionally distinct neuronal subtypes. The authors show that adult ne...

cell.com

You could read my Dispatch, but only as a teaser for two brilliant papers from Bogdan Sieriebriennikov (Desplan lab) and Giacomo Glotzer (Kronauer lab), which you *must* read. Olfactory receptors: Making sense (and antisense) of monogenic expression: Current Biology www.cell.com/current-biol...

Olfactory receptors: Making sense (and antisense) of monogenic expression

Monogenic expression of odorant receptors (ORs) in individual sensory neurons is a hallmark of olfactory systems in insects and vertebrates. New studies highlight how transcriptional interference and ...

cell.com

Nature research paper: Evolution of taste processing shifts dietary preference go.nature.com/3XRWaMD

Evolution of taste processing shifts dietary preference - Nature

Calcium imaging of taste neurons and the ventral brain provides insight into evolutionary divergence of food choice in Drosophila species, supporting a role of sensorimotor processing in addition to peripheral receptor changes.

go.nature.com

Want to carry a PhD in London, in one of the best Universities in the world? We have two calls for PhD students to join our lab at Imperial College. Deadline January 12th. More details for applications in the link below. Feel free to keep in touch!

Excited to share the latest work from the lab: rdcu.be/eRWuD Great team effort, led by @enriberti.bsky.social first at @unil.bsky.social and now @unifr.bsky.social; with fantastic collaborators @ribeirocarlitos.bsky.social and @dahaniel.muench.bio.

An open webinar on our reproducibility project 'WHAT 400 DROSOPHILA PAPERS Teach Us about Doing Better Science' on December 9th 2PM EEST time (1PM Swiss time). Registration below

🚨RA/PhD position available in evolutionary neurobiology 🚨 Working on a deep dive into circuit changes during mushroom body expansion in Heliconius butterflies @camzoology.bsky.social - employment benefits - 4 years funding - 1000% fun Deadline: 14/1/2026 Details: www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/researc...

Preparations for the next JEDI meeting are underway! The upcoming Junior European #Drosophila Investigator / #NewPI meeting is planned for Portugal in June. Final dates and additional details will be announced soon - stay tuned for updates!​

I'm looking to recruit a post-doc to help push forward our growing interests in insect ecotoxicology. Apply here by Nov 30th! (thanks for reposting) career5.successfactors.eu/sfcareer/job...

The lab is hiring Research Assistants to look at how changes in gene regulation impact motivation for addictive stimulants. www.kaunlab.com/post/researc...

Research Assistant opening

The Kaun Lab is hiring new full-time Research Assistants!The position is ideal for someone interested in investigating how changes in gene regulation impact individual variation in addictive substance...

kaunlab.com

Excited to share our new #biorxivpreprint: “Sexual dimorphism in the complete connectome of the Drosophila male central nervous system” www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... We describe the #connectomics reconstruction and analysis of an entire adult #maleCNS #drosophila central nervous system. 1/10

Excited to share our new #biorxivpreprint We discovered that the fruit fly #drosophila erecta requires food odor to mate and arousal is further enhanced by social group motion. Cross-species analysis of brain activity reveals a novel gate evolved from within a conserved circuit shorturl.at/gGYm7

We're now recruiting early career group leaders at the Crick to lead ambitious research programmes and explore bold scientific questions. Hear our Director, Edith Heard, explain why the Crick is a unique place for curiosity-driven research. Apply now ➡️ www.crick.ac.uk/careers-stud...