Amelia Barber
@ameliabarberphd.bsky.social
Junior group leader at the University of Jena (@uni-jena.de)
CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholar
Fungal pathoecology, antimicrobial resistance, and genome stuff.
Always up for an adventure or bike ride.
https://barber-lab.com
CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholar
Fungal pathoecology, antimicrobial resistance, and genome stuff.
Always up for an adventure or bike ride.
https://barber-lab.com
Pinned
Third lab retreat in the books! We once again headed to the city of Eisenach for two days of project presentations, soft skills workshops, and science discussions. We also played the beautiful Mycology board game!
Reposted by Amelia Barber
Do you work with the Aspergillus fumigatus model isolates Af293 or CEA10? If so, we want to collaborate with you! In return for your lab's participation we will sequence your strain for free and provide co-authorship on the final paper.
Learn more here: asp-fumi-seq-project-2025.vercel.app
Learn more here: asp-fumi-seq-project-2025.vercel.app
November 12, 2025 at 7:28 PM
Do you work with the Aspergillus fumigatus model isolates Af293 or CEA10? If so, we want to collaborate with you! In return for your lab's participation we will sequence your strain for free and provide co-authorship on the final paper.
Learn more here: asp-fumi-seq-project-2025.vercel.app
Learn more here: asp-fumi-seq-project-2025.vercel.app
Reposted by Amelia Barber
What enables a fungus to invade a mammal host? @marco-guerreiro.bsky.social unravels signatures of translation adaptation among pathogenic and non-pathogenic species of Trichosporonales. See more: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
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
January 27, 2026 at 6:55 PM
What enables a fungus to invade a mammal host? @marco-guerreiro.bsky.social unravels signatures of translation adaptation among pathogenic and non-pathogenic species of Trichosporonales. See more: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Amelia Barber
This article is now published! academic.oup.com/nargab/artic...
We’ve added a few new analyses. First off, we show that, while gene presence absence variation (PAV) scales with evolutionary distance in both plants and animals, the base level and rate of accrual are both twice as high in plants.
We’ve added a few new analyses. First off, we show that, while gene presence absence variation (PAV) scales with evolutionary distance in both plants and animals, the base level and rate of accrual are both twice as high in plants.
January 30, 2026 at 12:41 PM
This article is now published! academic.oup.com/nargab/artic...
We’ve added a few new analyses. First off, we show that, while gene presence absence variation (PAV) scales with evolutionary distance in both plants and animals, the base level and rate of accrual are both twice as high in plants.
We’ve added a few new analyses. First off, we show that, while gene presence absence variation (PAV) scales with evolutionary distance in both plants and animals, the base level and rate of accrual are both twice as high in plants.
Reposted by Amelia Barber
Sharing our lab’s first publication! Probing clinical isolates of Cryptococcus, a disease-causing fungus of the lungs and brain, we found multiple heat-mobile elements that ‘jump’ in the genome at body temperature (!) with the ability to drive adaptive changes. journals.plos.org/plosgenetics...
January 17, 2026 at 12:33 PM
Sharing our lab’s first publication! Probing clinical isolates of Cryptococcus, a disease-causing fungus of the lungs and brain, we found multiple heat-mobile elements that ‘jump’ in the genome at body temperature (!) with the ability to drive adaptive changes. journals.plos.org/plosgenetics...
Looking forward to bringing the 🍄 perspective to this exciting meeting on AMR and microbial genomics!
Dear #AMR #genomics and big data community: please be informed that the programme of the Wellcome AMR conference in Hinxton on March 23-26th is now online: coursesandconferences.wellcomeconnectingscience.org/event/antimi... - please register before Feb 24th for onsite participation
Antimicrobial Resistance – Genomes, Big Data and Emerging Technologies — 20260323
Highlighting the importance of genomic data in the fight against AMR
coursesandconferences.wellcomeconnectingscience.org
January 14, 2026 at 11:48 AM
Looking forward to bringing the 🍄 perspective to this exciting meeting on AMR and microbial genomics!
Reposted by Amelia Barber
We've got ISSUES. Literally.
We scraped >100k special issues & over 1 million articles to bring you a PISS-poor paper. We quantify just how many excess papers are published by guest editors abusing special issues to boost their CVs. How bad is it & what can we do?
arxiv.org/abs/2601.07563
A 🧵 1/n
We scraped >100k special issues & over 1 million articles to bring you a PISS-poor paper. We quantify just how many excess papers are published by guest editors abusing special issues to boost their CVs. How bad is it & what can we do?
arxiv.org/abs/2601.07563
A 🧵 1/n
January 13, 2026 at 8:27 AM
We've got ISSUES. Literally.
We scraped >100k special issues & over 1 million articles to bring you a PISS-poor paper. We quantify just how many excess papers are published by guest editors abusing special issues to boost their CVs. How bad is it & what can we do?
arxiv.org/abs/2601.07563
A 🧵 1/n
We scraped >100k special issues & over 1 million articles to bring you a PISS-poor paper. We quantify just how many excess papers are published by guest editors abusing special issues to boost their CVs. How bad is it & what can we do?
arxiv.org/abs/2601.07563
A 🧵 1/n
Reposted by Amelia Barber
⚡️Fully funded #PhD position in my lab at Stockholm University / SciLifeLab! If you’re interested in #lichens, #symbiosis, fungal biology, or meta-omics, please apply. Deadline Feb 1. Read more here: su.varbi.com/en/what:job/...
January 12, 2026 at 2:15 PM
⚡️Fully funded #PhD position in my lab at Stockholm University / SciLifeLab! If you’re interested in #lichens, #symbiosis, fungal biology, or meta-omics, please apply. Deadline Feb 1. Read more here: su.varbi.com/en/what:job/...
Reposted by Amelia Barber
Zoom in, look closer! Our Microverse Wimmelbild hides the faces, ideas & discoveries that made 2025 unforgettable. Can you spot them all? Season’s greetings & here’s to a curious, collaborative 2026! Illustration: Hannes Naumann
December 18, 2025 at 10:41 AM
Zoom in, look closer! Our Microverse Wimmelbild hides the faces, ideas & discoveries that made 2025 unforgettable. Can you spot them all? Season’s greetings & here’s to a curious, collaborative 2026! Illustration: Hannes Naumann
Reposted by Amelia Barber
Anyone looking for roommates for #Fungal26 in Asilomar?
I will participate and I am looking for someone to share a room for the week!
I'm a female PhD student, looking to share a room with another female. Please DM me if you'd like to team up with me 😄
Reposts appreciated!
I will participate and I am looking for someone to share a room for the week!
I'm a female PhD student, looking to share a room with another female. Please DM me if you'd like to team up with me 😄
Reposts appreciated!
December 4, 2025 at 2:22 PM
Anyone looking for roommates for #Fungal26 in Asilomar?
I will participate and I am looking for someone to share a room for the week!
I'm a female PhD student, looking to share a room with another female. Please DM me if you'd like to team up with me 😄
Reposts appreciated!
I will participate and I am looking for someone to share a room for the week!
I'm a female PhD student, looking to share a room with another female. Please DM me if you'd like to team up with me 😄
Reposts appreciated!
Reposted by Amelia Barber
Third lab retreat in the books! We once again headed to the city of Eisenach for two days of project presentations, soft skills workshops, and science discussions. We also played the beautiful Mycology board game!
November 25, 2025 at 9:12 PM
Third lab retreat in the books! We once again headed to the city of Eisenach for two days of project presentations, soft skills workshops, and science discussions. We also played the beautiful Mycology board game!
Third lab retreat in the books! We once again headed to the city of Eisenach for two days of project presentations, soft skills workshops, and science discussions. We also played the beautiful Mycology board game!
November 25, 2025 at 9:12 PM
Third lab retreat in the books! We once again headed to the city of Eisenach for two days of project presentations, soft skills workshops, and science discussions. We also played the beautiful Mycology board game!
Reposted by Amelia Barber
We're looking for a PhD student! If you're interested in #fungal #genomics & #TEs, meiotic drive, or pathogens, please consider applying. The project is about toxin/antidote genes in the human fungal pathogen A. fumigatus. uu.varbi.com/en/what:job/...
November 19, 2025 at 9:20 AM
We're looking for a PhD student! If you're interested in #fungal #genomics & #TEs, meiotic drive, or pathogens, please consider applying. The project is about toxin/antidote genes in the human fungal pathogen A. fumigatus. uu.varbi.com/en/what:job/...
Reposted by Amelia Barber
TEs aren’t just genomic parasites, they’re also engines of genomic novelty.
Our new study with ~2,000 Z. tritici genomes shows repeated TE mobilization waves during global expansion.
With @danielcroll.bsky.social & @guidopuccetti.bsky.social
🧬 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#TEworldwide
Our new study with ~2,000 Z. tritici genomes shows repeated TE mobilization waves during global expansion.
With @danielcroll.bsky.social & @guidopuccetti.bsky.social
🧬 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#TEworldwide
Historic transposon mobilisation waves create distinct pools of adaptive variants in a major crop pathogen - Nature Communications
In this study, the authors analysed a large genomic dataset to trace how jumping genes shaped the global spread of a major wheat pathogen and reveal bursts of activity over decades that drove adaptati...
www.nature.com
November 12, 2025 at 1:17 PM
TEs aren’t just genomic parasites, they’re also engines of genomic novelty.
Our new study with ~2,000 Z. tritici genomes shows repeated TE mobilization waves during global expansion.
With @danielcroll.bsky.social & @guidopuccetti.bsky.social
🧬 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#TEworldwide
Our new study with ~2,000 Z. tritici genomes shows repeated TE mobilization waves during global expansion.
With @danielcroll.bsky.social & @guidopuccetti.bsky.social
🧬 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#TEworldwide
Reposted by Amelia Barber
@tobybarilbio.bsky.social and I are very excited to release MycoMobilome! A very extensive effort to discover, QC and annotate TEs across the fungal kingdom.
👉 Ready-to-use for your own genome with a simple tutorial!
👉 Metadata about TEs discovered in your genome!
👉 Contribute and get recognition!
👉 Ready-to-use for your own genome with a simple tutorial!
👉 Metadata about TEs discovered in your genome!
👉 Contribute and get recognition!
1/ Ever needed to annotate TEs in a fungal genome, but didn't know where to start?
We have released #MycoMobilome, a community-focused non-redundant database of transposable element consensus sequences for the fungal kingdom, constructed from >4,000 fungal genomes!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
We have released #MycoMobilome, a community-focused non-redundant database of transposable element consensus sequences for the fungal kingdom, constructed from >4,000 fungal genomes!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
October 29, 2025 at 4:32 PM
@tobybarilbio.bsky.social and I are very excited to release MycoMobilome! A very extensive effort to discover, QC and annotate TEs across the fungal kingdom.
👉 Ready-to-use for your own genome with a simple tutorial!
👉 Metadata about TEs discovered in your genome!
👉 Contribute and get recognition!
👉 Ready-to-use for your own genome with a simple tutorial!
👉 Metadata about TEs discovered in your genome!
👉 Contribute and get recognition!
Reposted by Amelia Barber
1/ Ever needed to annotate TEs in a fungal genome, but didn't know where to start?
We have released #MycoMobilome, a community-focused non-redundant database of transposable element consensus sequences for the fungal kingdom, constructed from >4,000 fungal genomes!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
We have released #MycoMobilome, a community-focused non-redundant database of transposable element consensus sequences for the fungal kingdom, constructed from >4,000 fungal genomes!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
October 29, 2025 at 9:02 AM
1/ Ever needed to annotate TEs in a fungal genome, but didn't know where to start?
We have released #MycoMobilome, a community-focused non-redundant database of transposable element consensus sequences for the fungal kingdom, constructed from >4,000 fungal genomes!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
We have released #MycoMobilome, a community-focused non-redundant database of transposable element consensus sequences for the fungal kingdom, constructed from >4,000 fungal genomes!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by Amelia Barber
A great turnout for our latest Microverse Seminar! 🍕🔬
@ameliabarberphd.bsky.social, Junior Group Leader #FungalInformatics, shared fascinating insights in her talk “From Ecology to Genomes: Unraveling Fungal Pathogenicity Across Scales.”
Lively discussions and great connections followed!
@ameliabarberphd.bsky.social, Junior Group Leader #FungalInformatics, shared fascinating insights in her talk “From Ecology to Genomes: Unraveling Fungal Pathogenicity Across Scales.”
Lively discussions and great connections followed!
October 29, 2025 at 8:02 AM
A great turnout for our latest Microverse Seminar! 🍕🔬
@ameliabarberphd.bsky.social, Junior Group Leader #FungalInformatics, shared fascinating insights in her talk “From Ecology to Genomes: Unraveling Fungal Pathogenicity Across Scales.”
Lively discussions and great connections followed!
@ameliabarberphd.bsky.social, Junior Group Leader #FungalInformatics, shared fascinating insights in her talk “From Ecology to Genomes: Unraveling Fungal Pathogenicity Across Scales.”
Lively discussions and great connections followed!
Congrats to the group's first PhD student, the newly minted Dr. Brassington!!
Phillip relocated back to Oceania in the period between submitting his dissertation and his oral defense, so we had to make do with a virtual defense, but I am still incredibly proud of him.
Phillip relocated back to Oceania in the period between submitting his dissertation and his oral defense, so we had to make do with a virtual defense, but I am still incredibly proud of him.
October 17, 2025 at 2:35 PM
Congrats to the group's first PhD student, the newly minted Dr. Brassington!!
Phillip relocated back to Oceania in the period between submitting his dissertation and his oral defense, so we had to make do with a virtual defense, but I am still incredibly proud of him.
Phillip relocated back to Oceania in the period between submitting his dissertation and his oral defense, so we had to make do with a virtual defense, but I am still incredibly proud of him.
Reposted by Amelia Barber
Registration open for #Fungal26 genetics-gsa.org/fungal-2026/ at Asilomar.
Homepage - 33rd Fungal Genetics Conference
Visit our website to learn more.
genetics-gsa.org
October 16, 2025 at 5:59 PM
Registration open for #Fungal26 genetics-gsa.org/fungal-2026/ at Asilomar.
Reposted by Amelia Barber
Population structure in a fungal human pathogen is associated with clinical prevalence
#Aspergillus flavus
@annemakerofhats.bsky.social @ameliabarberphd.bsky.social @rokaslab.bsky.social
#fungi #infection #PopulationGenomics #mycology
#Aspergillus flavus
@annemakerofhats.bsky.social @ameliabarberphd.bsky.social @rokaslab.bsky.social
#fungi #infection #PopulationGenomics #mycology
Population structure in a fungal human pathogen is potentially linked to pathogenicity - Nature Communications
Genetic diversity between clinical and environmental fungal isolates of Aspergillus flavus is poorly studied. Here, the authors analysed genomic data from a global set of clinical and environmental A. flavus isolates and report that clinical prevalence is associated with population structure.
bit.ly
October 16, 2025 at 2:47 PM
Population structure in a fungal human pathogen is associated with clinical prevalence
#Aspergillus flavus
@annemakerofhats.bsky.social @ameliabarberphd.bsky.social @rokaslab.bsky.social
#fungi #infection #PopulationGenomics #mycology
#Aspergillus flavus
@annemakerofhats.bsky.social @ameliabarberphd.bsky.social @rokaslab.bsky.social
#fungi #infection #PopulationGenomics #mycology
Reposted by Amelia Barber
Very excited to see the final version of our kingdom-scale fungal genome defense manuscript out in @plosbiology.org !
This work has been a major project of @tbadet.bsky.social during his time in our lab.
We hope to stimulate much more exciting work on fungal TEs.
journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...
This work has been a major project of @tbadet.bsky.social during his time in our lab.
We hope to stimulate much more exciting work on fungal TEs.
journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...
October 16, 2025 at 8:46 AM
Very excited to see the final version of our kingdom-scale fungal genome defense manuscript out in @plosbiology.org !
This work has been a major project of @tbadet.bsky.social during his time in our lab.
We hope to stimulate much more exciting work on fungal TEs.
journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...
This work has been a major project of @tbadet.bsky.social during his time in our lab.
We hope to stimulate much more exciting work on fungal TEs.
journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...
Reposted by Amelia Barber
Want to understand how entire fungal chromosomes can be horizontally transferred?
Join us to unravel the mechanism/consequences of horizontal chromosome transfer in a fungal pathogen as part of an ERC-funded project. Postdoc/PhD positions available.
fungal-evolutionary-genetics.de/open-positio...
Join us to unravel the mechanism/consequences of horizontal chromosome transfer in a fungal pathogen as part of an ERC-funded project. Postdoc/PhD positions available.
fungal-evolutionary-genetics.de/open-positio...
Open Positions
ERC-funded project on the mechanism of horizontal transfer of entire fungal chromosomes PhD PostDoc
fungal-evolutionary-genetics.de
October 13, 2025 at 9:39 AM
Want to understand how entire fungal chromosomes can be horizontally transferred?
Join us to unravel the mechanism/consequences of horizontal chromosome transfer in a fungal pathogen as part of an ERC-funded project. Postdoc/PhD positions available.
fungal-evolutionary-genetics.de/open-positio...
Join us to unravel the mechanism/consequences of horizontal chromosome transfer in a fungal pathogen as part of an ERC-funded project. Postdoc/PhD positions available.
fungal-evolutionary-genetics.de/open-positio...
Reposted by Amelia Barber
If you saw my talk on the population structure of #Aspergillus flavus at Fungal Genetics in 2024, you might have heard someone ask "how does Aspergillus oryzae fit into the picture?"
If so, you heard my answer was "wait and see--we're working on this exact topic"
Well, the wait is over! Preprint ⬇️
If so, you heard my answer was "wait and see--we're working on this exact topic"
Well, the wait is over! Preprint ⬇️
Population-Specific Transcriptomic Shifts Underlie Secondary Metabolic Diversification in Aspergillus flavus and the Domestication of Aspergillus oryzae https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.10.02.680074v1
October 7, 2025 at 7:50 PM
If you saw my talk on the population structure of #Aspergillus flavus at Fungal Genetics in 2024, you might have heard someone ask "how does Aspergillus oryzae fit into the picture?"
If so, you heard my answer was "wait and see--we're working on this exact topic"
Well, the wait is over! Preprint ⬇️
If so, you heard my answer was "wait and see--we're working on this exact topic"
Well, the wait is over! Preprint ⬇️
Reposted by Amelia Barber
Open postdoc position in in my lab in Berlin @mpiib-berlin.mpg.de.
Join us to push the frontier in ancient microbial genomics. Please apply until Oct 17th. Reach out in case you have any questions.
www.mpiib-berlin.mpg.de/2193291/job_...
Join us to push the frontier in ancient microbial genomics. Please apply until Oct 17th. Reach out in case you have any questions.
www.mpiib-berlin.mpg.de/2193291/job_...
September 15, 2025 at 8:03 AM
Open postdoc position in in my lab in Berlin @mpiib-berlin.mpg.de.
Join us to push the frontier in ancient microbial genomics. Please apply until Oct 17th. Reach out in case you have any questions.
www.mpiib-berlin.mpg.de/2193291/job_...
Join us to push the frontier in ancient microbial genomics. Please apply until Oct 17th. Reach out in case you have any questions.
www.mpiib-berlin.mpg.de/2193291/job_...
Fabio doing some excellent scicomm about his postdoc project in the group!
🌱🔥🫁 From compost heaps to human lungs: Understanding how Aspergillus fumigatus has acquired the ability to infect humans
Opportunistic fungal pathogens like Aspergillus fumigatus primarily live in the environment, thriving in very diverse ecosystems such as soils and compost heaps.
Opportunistic fungal pathogens like Aspergillus fumigatus primarily live in the environment, thriving in very diverse ecosystems such as soils and compost heaps.
September 11, 2025 at 8:28 PM
Fabio doing some excellent scicomm about his postdoc project in the group!
Reposted by Amelia Barber
Excited to share our new publication, out today in Nature! www.nature.com/articles/s41.... @kanchanj.bsky.social led this fascinating fungal-bacterial interaction project. We are grateful for our wonderful collaborators Brian Peters and David Underhill.
Commensal yeast promotes Salmonella Typhimurium virulence - Nature
Commensal Candida albicans enhances the virulence and dissemination of Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Typhimurium.
www.nature.com
September 3, 2025 at 4:32 PM
Excited to share our new publication, out today in Nature! www.nature.com/articles/s41.... @kanchanj.bsky.social led this fascinating fungal-bacterial interaction project. We are grateful for our wonderful collaborators Brian Peters and David Underhill.