Our latest study, “The impact of climate and habitat on body shape and size evolution in whip spiders (Amblypygi),” is now available as a preprint. Whip spiders are an ancient group of arachnids...

Sexual cannibalism (SC), where one mating partner consumes the other in the context of mating, is especially prevalent among spiders. However, the evolution of SC in spiders is still not fully unders...

CLASSIFICATION: Faculty DEPARTMENT: Biological Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences FLSA STATUS: Exempt SUPERVISION RECEIVED: Principal Investigator for NSF-BIO grant# 2337605 POSITION SUMMARY: The Proud Lab in the Department of Biological Sciences at Moravian University is seeking a Postdoctoral Scholar to join a highly collaborative, NSF-funded research project focused on the evolutionary history and biogeography of Opiliones (NSF Grant #2337605). They will work closely with the Principal Investigator, undergraduate researchers, and international collaborators to reconstruct evolutionary relationships, evaluate patterns of evolution, and test biogeographic hypotheses using a phylogenomic framework based on ultraconserved elements (UCEs). This position offers opportunities to build an independent research program, gain significant teaching and mentoring experience, and contribute meaningfully to a collaborative and supportive academic community. This is a full-time positio...

Psilocybin appears to alter brain networks linked to repetitive negative thoughts, which may explain how the drug helps to treat some mental health conditions

Registration is now open for the 35th European Congress of Arachnology, which will take place in Zadar, Croatia, from August 31st to September 5th, 2025. Organised by the Ruđer Boškovi&#26...

In/post-source fragments (ISFs) arise during electrospray ionization or ion transfer in mass spectrometry when molecular bonds break, generating ions that can complicate data interpretation. Although ISFs have been recognized for decades, their contribution to untargeted metabolomics - particularly in the context of the so-called “dark matter” (unannotated MS or MS/MS spectra) and the “dark metabolome” (unannotated molecules) - remains unsettled. This ongoing debate reflects a central tension: while some caution against overinterpreting unidentified signals lacking biological evidence, others argue that dismissing them too quickly risks overlooking genuine molecular discoveries. These discussions also raise a deeper question: what exactly should be considered part of the metabolome? As metabolomics advances toward large-scale data mining and high-throughput computational analysis, resolving these conceptual and methodological ambiguities has become essential. In this perspective, we propose a refined definition of the “dark metabolome” and present a systematic overview of ISFs and related ion forms, including adducts and multimers. We examine their impact on metabolite annotation, experimental design, statistical analysis, computational workflows, and repository-scale data mining. Finally, we provide practical recommendations - including a set of dos and don’ts for researchers and reviewers - and discuss the broader implications of ISFs for how the field explores unknown molecular space. By embracing a more nuanced understanding of ISFs, metabolomics can achieve greater rigor, reduce misinterpretation, and unlock new opportunities for discovery.

PhD Position – Animal Metabolomics & Ecology

Canada Excellence Research Chair in Biodiversity Genomics