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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab
@thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
78 followers 47 following 36 posts
We are The Hoffman Lab based at Bielefeld University, Germany! Our group aims to understand the genetic basis of fitness variation in and among natural populations. We work on pinnipeds 🦭, fungi 🍄 and birds 🐥. https://thehoffmanlab.com/
thehoffmanlab.com
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · 5h
And the full paper in Ecology and Evolution @ecol-evol.bsky.social here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

#InclusiveAcademia #ConferenceEquity #DiversityInScience
How Can We Make Scientific Events More Inclusive? Insights From Q&A Sessions and Surveys From an International Conference
We studied equity, diversity and inclusivity (EDI) issues at an academic conference using observational and experimental behavioural data collected during question-and-answer (Q&A) sessions in additi....
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · 5h
How can we make scientific events such as #conferences more #inclusive? Read about the study we conducted during #Behaviour2023 as a nice and concise summary in the press-release here 👉 aktuell.uni-bielefeld.de/2025/10/06/r...
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · 5h
#InclusiveAcademia #ConferenceEquity #DiversityInScience
thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · 5h
Check out the paper in Ecology and Evolution here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
How Can We Make Scientific Events More Inclusive? Insights From Q&A Sessions and Surveys From an International Conference
We studied equity, diversity and inclusivity (EDI) issues at an academic conference using observational and experimental behavioural data collected during question-and-answer (Q&A) sessions in additi...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · 2d
Last week a very happy (and presumably very tired 😁) @ramonammm.bsky.social handed in her PhD thesis titled "Comparing Polar Ocean Soundscapes" 🥳🥳 🥳

Congratulations with this huge milestone! Looking forward to the defence and of course the celebrations afterwards!
Ramona smiling broadly and holding her thesis in front of her A picture of the front of Ramona Mattmueller's thesis titled "Comparing Polar Ocean Soundscapes"
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · 17d
For the full publication, check out Nature Ecology and Evolution
@natecoevo.nature.com 👉 www.nature.com/articles/s41... 6/6
www.nature.com
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · 17d
For a lay summary by the university, check out the press release (in German) 👉 aktuell.uni-bielefeld.de/2025/08/11/s... 5/6
Schädliche Gene mindern den Paarungserfolg bei Birkhühnern
Die Studie eines Forschungsteams unter der Leitung der Biologin Rebecca Chen wurde im Fachjournal Nature Ecology & Evolution veröffentlicht.
aktuell.uni-bielefeld.de
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · 17d
We analysed if coding and non-coding mutations have different fitness effects, and showed that mutations in regulatory regions of the genome seem to play a disproportionate role in explaining lifetime reproductive success! 4/6
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · 17d
Black grouse aggregate on leks where males fight to defend non-resource holding territories. Their ability to attend leks during the lekking season is critical to secure matings with females, and we show that lek attendance indicates their underlying genetic quality. 3/6
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · 17d
Our PhD candidate @rebeccachen.bsky.social showed that predicted deleterious mutations, both in homo- and heterozygosity, are associated with lower lek attendance in black grouse males, which reduces their mating success. 2/6
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · 17d
Do predicted deleterious mutations explain fitness variation in wild populations?
Our recent publication addresses exactly this question in black grouse, a lekking Galliform. 1/6
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · 25d
We have a brand new genome for porcini mushroom! First chromosome-scale, haplotype-resolved reference genome for Boletus edulis. A great resource for fungal genetics, and the rest of Etienne's PhD!
etiennebrejonl.bsky.social
Etienne BREJON @etiennebrejonl.bsky.social · Apr 24
The paper is now published in #G3journal !🧬🍄 you can learn more about this weird fungal genome here 👉 doi.org/10.1093/g3jo...
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · Sep 5
DNA as street decoration? Of course! Our very own @k-hench.bsky.social made some beautiful pictures of the @eseb2025.bsky.social street decorations at the “Festes de Gràcia”.

Check out some of his pictures and read more about why we were there: thehoffmanlab.com/2025/09/05/e...
ESEB 2025
Four of our lab members presented their work at the Congress of the European Society for Evolutionary Biology (ESEB 2025) in Barcelona in August. Beril presented a pilot study linked to her multi-p…
thehoffmanlab.com
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · Aug 21
The genome and epigenome are not independent, so why analyse them separately? 🤔 Come and discuss our hypotheses on the interplay between deleterious mutations and epigenetic mechanisms today with @rebeccachen.bsky.social at #ESEB2025 poster number 85! 🧪🧬
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Reposted by the Hoffman Lab
amandabretman.bsky.social
Amanda Bretman @amandabretman.bsky.social · Aug 20
@annekep.bsky.social shows us a super impressive long term study in Antarctica fur seals to explore interactions between inbreeding and climate change 🦭
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · Aug 20
Do inbred females suffer disproportionately from climate change induced changes in selection pressure? Come and find out in @annekep.bsky.social's talk today at the @eseb2025.bsky.social conference 12:00 PM - 12:15 PM in meeting room 115 #ESEB2025
Title slide of the presentation. The left side has a blue background with in white the title: "Inbreeding-mediated individual responses to climate change in Antarctic fur seals" by David Vendrami, Anneke Paijmans, Emily Humble, Ane Liv Berthelsen, Jaume Forcada and Joe Hoffman. On the right side there is a picture of a Antarctic fur seal female with light grey/brown fur coloration and a darker colored pup on her right side
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · Aug 19
Interested in the temporal and spatial dynamics of mutation load? Come find @k-hench.bsky.social who is investigating this in Antarctic fur seals! Poster session 2, S44 355 5-7PM tonight @eseb2025.bsky.social #eseb2025
Kosmas pointing to his scientific poster titled "dynamics of mutation load in the Antarctic fur seal" at the ESEB2025 conference
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · Aug 19
#eseb2025
thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · Aug 19
How do deleterious mutations affect male black grouse fitness? Find out at @rebeccachen.bsky.social's presentation today at @eseb2025.bsky.social 2:00 PM-2:15 PM, meeting room 131 🧬
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · Aug 18
Interested in the genomic consequences of commercial sealing? Check out Beril's poster (number 266) tonight at #ESEB2025 where she presents her study on differences in genomic inbreeding levels, bottleneck strength, and genetic load in two populations of South American fur seals 🦭🧬🧪
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · Aug 14
“Exploring the link between epigenetics and deleterious mutations” by @rebeccachen.bsky.social on Thursday 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM Poster Session 3 (P03.085)

#ESEB2025 #MutationLoad #InbreedingDepression #Epigenetics #MarineMammals #BlackGrouse
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · Aug 14
“Inbreeding-mediated individual responses to climate change in Antarctic fur seals” by @annekep.bsky.social on Wednesday 12:00 PM 12:15 PM (meeting room 115)
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · Aug 14
“Dynamics of Mutation Load in the Antarctic Fur Seal (Arctocephalus gazella)” by @k-hench.bsky.social on Tuesday 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM Poster Session 2 (P02.355)
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · Aug 14
“Genetic architecture of male reproductive success in a lekking bird: insights from predicted deleterious mutations” by @rebeccachen.bsky.social on Tuesday 2:00 PM 2:15 PM (meeting room 131)
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thehoffmanlab.bsky.social
the Hoffman Lab @thehoffmanlab.bsky.social · Aug 14
“Tracing genomic consequences of historical sealing in South American fur seal populations” by Beril Yildiz on Monday 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM Poster Session 1 (P01.266)
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