Syeda Mehreen Tahir is a 5th year Ph.D. candidate in Environmental Biology at Arizona State University working with Dr. Jon Harrison and Dr. Arianne Cease. Her research focuses on nutritional immunology, examining how dietary protein-to-carbohydrate ratios shape immune function and disease outcomes. Using a multi-omics approach that integrates physiological assays, transcriptomics, and metabolomics, her work explores trade-offs between immune investment and pathogen susceptibility, with broader implications for host–pathogen interactions in variable nutritional environments. Mehreen is currently seeking postdoctoral opportunities and would be delighted to hear from potential collaborators or mentors at smtahir2@asu.edu.

This week's #SICB student awardee spotlight is on
Division of #Ecoimmunology and #Disease #Ecology
Best student talk: Syeda Mehreen Tahir
search.asu.edu/profile/3884...
for work on
High protein diet increases susceptibility of #desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria to Metarhizium bi

Great tit nestlings. Photo: Wikimedia commons

Fig. 2 from the article: indices of innate immune function measured in male and female great tit nestlings at the age of 14 days

New paper: in great tits, male nestlings grow bigger and show stronger immune defenses than females, showing fast growth doesn’t compromise immunity, likely thanks to priority access to food from parents.

➡️ vist.ly/4u2yv

#ornithology #birds #ecoimmunology #dimorphism #development 🪶

🐏 New study on wild bighorn sheep reveals major axes of immune variation across 581 individuals, driven by innate–adaptive trade-offs, inflammatory states, age, and sex.

A field‑ready toolkit for understanding wildlife immunity at scale.

🔗 vist.ly/4u8r6

#WildlifeHealth #EcoImmunology

see box 2 of the paper These studies illustrate how proteomics can enhance wildlife disease diagnostics and conservation monitoring. The application of CSF proteomics in diagnosing #neurodegenerative diseases (Neely et al. 2015) and the validation of urine proteomics as a non-invasive diagnostic tool for renal disease (Neely et al. 2018) demonstrate the broad translational potential of this approach...

ICB
"The ability to detect & monitor #disease at the molecular level can bridge critical knowledge gaps in wildlife health management, ultimately strengthening #conservation efforts.
see box 2 from
" #Proteomics Approaches to #Ecoimmunology..."
Amanda Vicente-Santos et al
doi.org/10.1093/icb/...

Fig. 1 Applications of proteomics in wildlife immunology. The left panel shows the main drivers of intra- and interspecific variance in immune phenotypes and their influence on larger-scale processes (adapted from Schoenle et al. 2018). Yellow boxes indicate drivers that can be studied using proteomics. The right panel shows three main categories of application of proteomics in ecoimmunology and example questions that have been addressed in the literature. The symbols (+, ●, *) match the drivers from the left panel. The animal silhouettes illustrate particular studies as examples of the wide range of species studied, where (a) Otčenášková et al. 2023, (b) Li et al. 2024, (c) Geng et al. 2015, (d) Kershaw et al. 2024, (e: Chaousis et al. 2021, (f) Gillis-Germitsch et al. 2021, (g) Neely et al. 2018, (h) Mangiaterra et al. 2022, (i) Raposo de Magalhães et al. 2020, (j) Vicente-Santos et al. 2023, (k) Ruengket et al. 2023, (l) Kuleš et al. 2024, (m) Kuleš et al. 2021.

ICB
#Proteomics Approaches to #Ecoimmunology:
New Insights into #Wildlife #Immunity and #Disease
by
Amanda Vicente-Santos ,
Natalia Sandoval-Herrera ,
Gábor Á Czirják ,
Benjamin A Neely ,
Daniel J Becker
doi.org/10.1093/icb/...

Have you read ICB's issue 6 yet?

with Applied #ecoimmunology in #wildlife health and #conservation

& authors
@schulzscience.bsky.social

@karlycohen.bsky.social Cohen

@thomsanger.bsky.social Sanger

@cmdonatelli.bsky.social Donatelli

Stacy Farina

and more!

academic.oup.com/icb/issue/65/6

My last work about immunity in the wild 🐸🔦⬇️

#lightpollution #ALAN #ecoimmunology

Don't miss the Entangled Stories Art Science exhibit at #BSI25 and have a chat with @kathelse.bsky.social and @aliceangus.bsky.social about #ecoimmunology and fieldwork viewed through the lens of art! 👇

‘Entangled Stories’ an Eco-immunology ArtScience project Discover how a chance meeting on the Isle of May sparked a unique ArtScience collaboration between ecoimmunologists and artist Alice Angus. Supported by the BBSRC and BSI, the Entangled Stories projec...

To learn more about the exhibit you can read this piece written by @kathelse.bsky.social and @aliceangus.bsky.social #ecoimmunology

sites.manchester.ac.uk/lydia-becker...

This is a session not to be missed at #BSI25 #Ecoimmunology and is sponsored by @discovimmunol.bsky.social the newest of the BSI journals

🌿 How does the immune system work in the real world? Join Prof Amy Pedersen & Prof Andrea Graham for Ecoimmunology: the immune system in context.

Sponsored by Discovery Immunology. #BSI25 #Ecoimmunology

Mouse on branch, ecoimmunology collection

🌿 Celebrate #BiologyWeek by sharing your ecoimmunology research!

Our Special Collection explores how ecological factors shape immunity in humans & animals. Original research & reviews welcome.

📖 Submit here: https://bit.ly/3WmPhl3

#Ecoimmunology #Immunology

🌿 Calling all researchers!

Submit your work to the Ecoimmunology Special Collection exploring how ecological factors shape immune systems in humans & animals. Open to lab & field studies.

More info 👉 https://bit.ly/4m0x4EW

#Ecoimmunology #Immunology

🔬🐭 Make sure you follow @kathelse.bsky.social who leads our Eco-immunolology branch for all the latest on her team's exciting wild mouse research from the Isle of May! #ImmunoSky #Ecoimmunology

Figure 1. Coinfection and immune compromise in African lions (Panthera leo) under climate stress and increased abundance of hematophagous arthropods. Extreme drought conditions followed by heavy rainfall triggered the starvation and heavy tick infestation in herbivores, such as Cape buffalo (Syncerus cafferi). As African lions preyed on the herbivores, the ixodid ticks likely switched hosts and began feeding on the lions. Underlying immunosuppression, fueled by climatic conditions and ongoing canine distemper virus (CDV) circulation, exacerbated the clinical impacts of tick-acquired babesiosis

ICB
Understand more about how #climate change threatens #organismal health and #ecological stability in a myriad of ways -
read :
Understanding #climatechange threats to #vertebrate #wildlife by studying #ecoimmunology across biological scales
Fagre et al
doi.org/10.1093/icb/...

#SICB divisional spotlight on DEDE

The goal of the Division of #Ecoimmunology & #Disease Ecology is to facilitate communication, collaboration, #research, and data sharing among eco- #immunologists and disease #ecologists.
sicb.org/divisions/di...

Be sure to check out what a few of the ICB co authors of

Understanding #climate change threats to vertebrate #wildlife by studying #ecoimmunology across #biological scales

doi.org/10.1093/icb/...

are up to

Fagre

www.annafagre.com

Becker & Simonis

beckerlab.weebly.com

Meet ICB’s
Anna Fagre, co-author on
Understanding #climate change threats to #vertebrate #wildlife by studying #ecoimmunology across #biological scales

by Anna Fagre
youtube.com/shorts/8O4RO...
& by
Becker , Pulscher , @mollysimonis.bsky.social ,Duncan

academic.oup.com/icb/advance-...

https://fuesslab.wp.txstate.edu/

https://sites.google.com/site/cynthiajdowns/

#SICB spotlight on DEDE
sicb.org/divisions/di...
The goal of the Division of #Ecoimmunology and Disease #Ecology (DEDE) is to facilitate communication, collaboration, research, & data sharing among eco-#immunologists & #disease #ecologists.
Meet Chair Lauren Fuess & Chair elect Cynthia Downs

Eurasian hoopoe. Photo: Wikimedia commons (Stefanavramov).

Fig. 1A from the article: Differences between resident (orange) and migratory (green) hoopoes during the breeding season in circulating levels of immunoglobulin IgY.

Fig. 4A from the article. Sex differences in complement activity (lysis score) by migratory status.

NEW PAPER: immune differences in Eurasian hoopoes are linked to migratory behaviour in two partially migratory populations - resident birds show more stable body features than migrants and a different adaptive immune response.

➡️ vist.ly/3n7c8h4

#ornithology #ecoimmunology #migration #birds

Lets introduce #ecoimmunology - a field exploring immune variation in the real world. Take a look @discovimmunol.bsky.social

🚨 Call for Papers still open!

Contribute to the Ecoimmunology collection—exploring how real-world factors shape immunity in humans & animals 🌍🧬

Submit now: naturalised models, wild species, holistic human studies & more

🔗 bit.ly/3Sg9rvC

#EcoImmunology

Common snipe. Photo: Wikimedia commons (Alpsdake)

Fig. 1 from the article: The PHA-induced immune response in relation to total blood haemoglobin (Hb) concentration (A) and size-corrected body mass index (SMI) (B) in the common snipe during autumn migration.

NEW PAPER: Migrating common snipes in better condition show stronger immune responses, suggesting high-quality individuals maintain immunity. Abundant food at stopovers may help replenish reserves for immunity.

➡️ vist.ly/3mzcark

#ornithology #migration #EcoImmunology

Fig. 1 from the article: Departure moments of blackbirds on Vlieland were associated with positive tailwinds, low cloud cover scores, and low scaled mass indices at arrival. In panel (a), horizontal lines represent the time each individual spent on the stopover location since the moment of first capture (open plotting symbols) until the moment of departure (vertical end line). In panel (b), cloud cover at sunrise or the moment of an individual's departure are plotted over date.

Fig. 2 from the article: Minimal adequate model fits with (dotted blue line), and without (solid red line) a random intercept for the day of tagging, with corresponding 95% confidence intervals (shaded blue and red areas, respectively). Lines show the ratio between the risk of departure, relative to an individual with all other covariates set at the sample's mean, for (a) scaled mass index, (b) haptoglobin level (the residual concentration over pre-scan absorbance at 450 nm)

Fig. 2 from the article: Minimal adequate model fits with (dotted blue line), and without (solid red line) a random intercept for the day of tagging, with corresponding 95% confidence intervals (shaded blue and red areas, respectively). Lines show the ratio between the risk of departure, relative to an individual with all other covariates set at the sample's mean, for (c) tailwind component, and (d) cloud cover score.

NEW PAPER: determinants of stopover duration in migratory blackbirds: lean birds extend stopovers, immune status has a weak effect. Weather conditions (cloud cover, tailwinds) are more influential.

➡️ https://vist.ly/3mtjme6

#ornithology #migration #ecoimmunology #birds
.

Very interesting PhD opportunity with @minsterbantam.bsky.social Mark Viney, Kathryn Else; at the University of Liverpool on co-infections in wild rodents #ecoimmunology

Understanding how environmental changes impact #immunology is crucial as these changes introduce novel pathogens 🦠

This open access paper explores how #ecoimmunology can augment global EcoHealth programmes 🌎

Read it here 👉https://bit.ly/412cMEr

@sheencr.bsky.social @lydiabeckeriii.bsky.social

I'm here, people!! I totally didn't realize that Bluesky was a thing 🤦‍♀️ I have missed my online research community so much since the previous dumpster fire went down. I can't wait to reconnect with you all! #ecoimmunology #ornithology #birds #immunology #microbiome #microbes