Very excited with the online publication of our modeling work on the evolution of sexual reproduction during obligate endosymbiosis: doi.org/10.1098/rstb.... The first publication of Alkmini Zania 🎉; together with Paulien Hogeweg.

So, for me novelty is most apparent in how people communicate about science. However: although all truly novel things require new words, not all new words guarantee something novel. Sometimes we are unaware of existing frameworks or we’re overselling something. We’re human after all.

My personal rule of thumb: when one genuinely needs new words to describe something. When that’s a series of words (e.g. “developmental systems drift”), it’s bringing concepts together in a unique way. In more extreme cases the whole word is new (evolvability early 2000s, prion in the 80s, etc)

Thanks for the kind words and sharing Christian! :)

PhD Position in Computational Modelling of Fungal Evolution How do giant mobile elements called ‘Starships’ reshape fungal plant pathogens? Help us computationally model their spread and impact in nature and agriculture!

Phd Position alert 🚨

Join our project ASTRAfun (Adaptation and Starship Traffic in Root-Associated fungi), in which we will use computational models to unveil the hidden dynamics of fungal evolution.

It’s not going to be just regular fun. It’s going to ASTRAfun. 🤓

www.uu.nl/en/organisat...

ecoevorxiv.org/repository/v...

Plasmid conjugation from a heteroplasmic donor

New preprint! We show that conjugation accelerates the segregation of #plasmid alleles -> horizontal transfer is a route for allele segregation in MGE evolution. Led by Lisa Hartmann, with @mariosanter.bsky.social &Nils Hülter. Naturally, reviewed by @qedscience.bsky.social!
doi.org/10.64898/202...

@evolvedbiofilm.bsky.social This is the one I know on this topic as well, nothing else comes up

Microbes grow in spatially structured communities. Bäcker et al. comprehensively synthesize evidence that spatial organization drives microbial ecological and evolutionary processes across scales. #FEMSMicrobiolRev buff.ly/wceLoPr @bramvandijk.bsky.social

Computational modelling at it’s finest, with videos 💜

Thanks for sharing Jonathan, glad you like it :)

Of course: thank you to my co-authors:

@jeroenmeijer.bsky.social,
@simonvanvliet.bsky.social, @bedutilh.bsky.social,
@marcelbaecker.bsky.social, Hilje Doekes, Rosalind Allen, Daniel Garza, and Paulien Hogeweg! :)

These are just some examples of what space does to microbial ecology and evolution. There is so much to discover if we stop thinking about microbes as living in flasks! <3

... and finaly, it may help microbes when "exploring" complex fitness landscapes!

... it can help us understand collective behaviour when scavenging for resources...
@renskevroomans.bsky.social

... it helps explain the rediculous diversity of toxins, antibiotics, and antitoxins...

@bramvandijk.bsky.social (hey look, I can tag myself! :D)

... it yields interesting colony morphologies... @drmartinezrabert.bsky.social

...it provides distinct niches for differentiation...
@michael-barnett.bsky.social

...it protects cooperators from cheaters...
@escolizzi.bsky.social

Some of you may know I simulate a lot of biological systems. And after 15 years of doing this, I can confidently tell you: spatial structure is never irrelevant.

It shapes the frequency of mutants... (Fusco et. al, 2016)

In case you missed it: our review titled "Spatial structure: shaping the ecology and evolution of microbial communities" is out! 🚨

Let me hit you with some highlights on why spatial structure matters. (and why you should care!)

Sharing is appreciated 🙏 🧵👇

doi.org/10.1093/fems...

Oxygen metabolism in descendants of the archaeal-eukaryotic ancestor - Nature Sequencing of marine sediments finds 136 newly identified Heimdallarchaeia and several novel lineages, and indicates that Heimdallarchaeia evolved distinct metabolic capabilities from other&nbsp;Asgar...

Oxygen metabolism in descendants of the archaeal-eukaryotic ancestor www.nature.com/articles/s41... #jcampubs

Phage–host interactions are a key driver of microbial ecology, but observing them in nature is hard!
With metaHi-C, we detect freshwater phage–host pairs and link their infection dynamics to evolution.

Together with @nadal-molero.bsky.social & Ana Martin-Cuadrado

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Last year, we proposed a model of plasmid evolution via fusion and fragmentation (via mge mediated recombination) generating mosaics, by studying historical isolates. Excited to see a MASSIVE paper from @jrpenades.bsky.social , @epcrocha.bsky.social expanding on this
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Genomic and physiological signatures of adaptation in pathogenic fungi - Nature Communications Emerging fungal pathogens have detrimental impacts on crops, animals, and humans, however little is known about their transition to a pathogenic lifestyle. This study demonstrates that the transition ...

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

100% agree Ed, there's so much more to discover! :)

Please check out our review on the impact of spatial structure in microbial ecosystems! In it, we discuss how spatial patterns impact microbial ecology and evolution, eventually impacting everything we see around us!

See @marcelbaecker.bsky.social's amazing summary below :)

🦠 𝚂𝙿𝙰𝙲𝙴 𝙼𝙰𝚃𝚃𝙴𝚁𝚂 ! 🦠

Everyone knows that space and spatial structure is super important in shaping the Microverse 🌎🌍🌏 Check out this amazing review where @marcelbaecker.bsky.social and @bramvandijk.bsky.social et al bring together a huge body of knowledge @microverse.bsky.social @binfutrecht.bsky.social

...not in shaking flasks, not in microtiter plates either 😉

Spatial structure: shaping the ecology and evolution of microbial communities Spatial structure naturally emerges in microbial communities, shaping growth, interactions, and evolution, and revealing how microscale processes scale up

Most microbes don't live in shaking flasks; spatial structure shapes how microbes interact and evolve at every scale, as we discuss in our recent review @jeroenmeijer.bsky.social @simonvanvliet.bsky.social @bedutilh.bsky.social @bramvandijk.bsky.social and others
academic.oup.com/femsre/artic... 🧵👇