mara lawniczak
@marakat.bsky.social
senior group leader @sangerinstitute. evolutionary geneticist malaria & biodiversity. lifetime member of darwin's posse. obsessive tidepooler. hearts cephalopods.
our lab leads the Malaria Cell Atlas, UK BIOSCAN, and ANOSPP projects.
our lab leads the Malaria Cell Atlas, UK BIOSCAN, and ANOSPP projects.
Pinned
mara lawniczak
@marakat.bsky.social
· Feb 24
Register your interest in participating in the Global Culicidae Reference Genomes Project
We are seeking mosquito biologists around the world who would be interested in collecting and contributing specimens of any vector species that currently lacks a reference genome.
Aim: We are aiming ...
tinyurl.com
if you have an interest in improving the genomic resources available for mosquitoes, please fill in our google form at tinyurl.com/MosquitoReferenceGenomes. please share this with colleagues who might be interested. thank you! [3/3]
a life changing opportunity made possible by the Nobel Prize funds awarded to John Sulston -- the @sangerinstitute.bsky.social runs the Sanger Prize scheme, open to an undergrad from any LMIC to spend 3 months here learning all about genomics. more details here www.sanger.ac.uk/about/study/...
November 20, 2025 at 5:39 PM
a life changing opportunity made possible by the Nobel Prize funds awarded to John Sulston -- the @sangerinstitute.bsky.social runs the Sanger Prize scheme, open to an undergrad from any LMIC to spend 3 months here learning all about genomics. more details here www.sanger.ac.uk/about/study/...
final week to apply for @sangerinstitute.bsky.social PhD programme (due Nov 27th) -- free to apply, open to anyone anywhere, and a superb training opportunity for students interested in genomic approaches applied to biodiversity, pathogens, vectors, and of course us pesky humans.
November 20, 2025 at 12:07 PM
final week to apply for @sangerinstitute.bsky.social PhD programme (due Nov 27th) -- free to apply, open to anyone anywhere, and a superb training opportunity for students interested in genomic approaches applied to biodiversity, pathogens, vectors, and of course us pesky humans.
Reposted by mara lawniczak
How does life evolve to adapt to modern cities?
Out now in Science, my PhD work with @lindymcbr.bsky.social uncovers the ancient origin of the “London Underground mosquito” – one of the most iconic examples of urban adaptation.
🧵(1/n)
@science.org
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ady4515
Out now in Science, my PhD work with @lindymcbr.bsky.social uncovers the ancient origin of the “London Underground mosquito” – one of the most iconic examples of urban adaptation.
🧵(1/n)
@science.org
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ady4515
Ancient origin of an urban underground mosquito
Understanding how life is adapting to urban environments represents an important challenge in evolutionary biology. In this work, we investigate a widely cited example of urban adaptation, Culex pipie...
www.science.org
October 25, 2025 at 4:46 AM
How does life evolve to adapt to modern cities?
Out now in Science, my PhD work with @lindymcbr.bsky.social uncovers the ancient origin of the “London Underground mosquito” – one of the most iconic examples of urban adaptation.
🧵(1/n)
@science.org
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ady4515
Out now in Science, my PhD work with @lindymcbr.bsky.social uncovers the ancient origin of the “London Underground mosquito” – one of the most iconic examples of urban adaptation.
🧵(1/n)
@science.org
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ady4515
Reposted by mara lawniczak
#Microsporidia are #parasites of growing importance. @amjadkhalaf.bsky.social @mblaxter.bsky.social @marakat.bsky.social &co present 40 new genomes from #DarwinTreeofLife sequencing of their arthropod hosts, revealing insights into #tetraploidy & #reproduction @plosbiology.org 🧪 plos.io/48HsAQJ
October 22, 2025 at 1:07 PM
#Microsporidia are #parasites of growing importance. @amjadkhalaf.bsky.social @mblaxter.bsky.social @marakat.bsky.social &co present 40 new genomes from #DarwinTreeofLife sequencing of their arthropod hosts, revealing insights into #tetraploidy & #reproduction @plosbiology.org 🧪 plos.io/48HsAQJ
new publication by @amjadkhalaf.bsky.social who mined arthropod reference genome data for hidden microsporidia reads and then did a whole lot of assembling and sleuthing! great job @amjadkhalaf.bsky.social !
Really, really happy that our work on microsporidian genomes is now out in @plosbiology.org! A huge thank you to my coauthors, my supervisors @mblaxter.bsky.social & @marakat.bsky.social, the editors @roliroberts.bsky.social & Joseph Heitman, and the reviewers ❤️ plos.io/48HsAQJ
October 22, 2025 at 1:33 PM
new publication by @amjadkhalaf.bsky.social who mined arthropod reference genome data for hidden microsporidia reads and then did a whole lot of assembling and sleuthing! great job @amjadkhalaf.bsky.social !
The fight against #malaria is at a crossroads.
Together with colleagues worldwide, I’ve signed an Open Letter urging #IUCN members to keep the door open to responsible research and new tools that could help reverse stalled progress and save lives.
Add your voice here scienceforbiodiversity.org
Together with colleagues worldwide, I’ve signed an Open Letter urging #IUCN members to keep the door open to responsible research and new tools that could help reverse stalled progress and save lives.
Add your voice here scienceforbiodiversity.org
Science for Biodiversity
Synthetic biology: Hope for conservation requires keeping all options on the table.
scienceforbiodiversity.org
October 8, 2025 at 8:30 AM
The fight against #malaria is at a crossroads.
Together with colleagues worldwide, I’ve signed an Open Letter urging #IUCN members to keep the door open to responsible research and new tools that could help reverse stalled progress and save lives.
Add your voice here scienceforbiodiversity.org
Together with colleagues worldwide, I’ve signed an Open Letter urging #IUCN members to keep the door open to responsible research and new tools that could help reverse stalled progress and save lives.
Add your voice here scienceforbiodiversity.org
Reposted by mara lawniczak
Happy to share the Biodiversity Cell Atlas white paper, out today in @nature.com. We look at the possibilities, challenges, and potential impacts of molecularly mapping cells across the tree of life.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
September 24, 2025 at 3:12 PM
Happy to share the Biodiversity Cell Atlas white paper, out today in @nature.com. We look at the possibilities, challenges, and potential impacts of molecularly mapping cells across the tree of life.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by mara lawniczak
www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/new...
Mosquitoes that have been in the collection for nearly a hundred years are helping us in dealing with an even older but also current problem - malaria
@sangerinstitute.bsky.social @nhm-london.bsky.social
Mosquitoes that have been in the collection for nearly a hundred years are helping us in dealing with an even older but also current problem - malaria
@sangerinstitute.bsky.social @nhm-london.bsky.social
Genetic study of malaria-carrying mosquitoes tracks evolution of insecticide resistance | Natural History Museum
It crucially also reveals promising genetic targets for potential control.
www.nhm.ac.uk
September 19, 2025 at 11:53 AM
www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/new...
Mosquitoes that have been in the collection for nearly a hundred years are helping us in dealing with an even older but also current problem - malaria
@sangerinstitute.bsky.social @nhm-london.bsky.social
Mosquitoes that have been in the collection for nearly a hundred years are helping us in dealing with an even older but also current problem - malaria
@sangerinstitute.bsky.social @nhm-london.bsky.social
Reposted by mara lawniczak
One of the most dangerous malaria-carrying mosquitoes is rapidly evolving in response to control efforts, genetics has revealed.
Findings could inform smarter tools to monitor for and fight malaria. 🦟
Read more here ⤵️
http://bit.ly/4pwQKDv
Findings could inform smarter tools to monitor for and fight malaria. 🦟
Read more here ⤵️
http://bit.ly/4pwQKDv
Genomic evolution of major malaria-transmitting mosquito species uncovered
Sequencing hundreds of Anopheles funestus mosquitoes provides new insights into the evolutionary patterns of this important human malaria-transmitting species.
bit.ly
September 19, 2025 at 9:46 AM
One of the most dangerous malaria-carrying mosquitoes is rapidly evolving in response to control efforts, genetics has revealed.
Findings could inform smarter tools to monitor for and fight malaria. 🦟
Read more here ⤵️
http://bit.ly/4pwQKDv
Findings could inform smarter tools to monitor for and fight malaria. 🦟
Read more here ⤵️
http://bit.ly/4pwQKDv
Reposted by mara lawniczak
Our paper Genomic diversity of the African malaria vector Anopheles funestus was published in Science today! It features inversions, selection in action, museum specimens and putative new ecotypes. doi.org/10.1126/scie...
September 18, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Our paper Genomic diversity of the African malaria vector Anopheles funestus was published in Science today! It features inversions, selection in action, museum specimens and putative new ecotypes. doi.org/10.1126/scie...
Reposted by mara lawniczak
How many chromosomes can an animal have?
In our paper out now in @currentbiology.bsky.social we show that the Atlas blue butterfly has 229 chromosome pairs- the highest in diploid Metazoa! These arose by rapid autosome fragmentation while sex chromosomes stayed intact.
www.cell.com/current-biol...
In our paper out now in @currentbiology.bsky.social we show that the Atlas blue butterfly has 229 chromosome pairs- the highest in diploid Metazoa! These arose by rapid autosome fragmentation while sex chromosomes stayed intact.
www.cell.com/current-biol...
Constraints on chromosome evolution revealed by the 229 chromosome pairs of the Atlas blue butterfly
The genome of the Atlas blue butterfly contains ten times more chromosomes than most
butterflies, and more than any other known diploid animal. Wright et al. show that
this extraordinary karyotype is ...
tinyurl.com
September 11, 2025 at 3:22 PM
How many chromosomes can an animal have?
In our paper out now in @currentbiology.bsky.social we show that the Atlas blue butterfly has 229 chromosome pairs- the highest in diploid Metazoa! These arose by rapid autosome fragmentation while sex chromosomes stayed intact.
www.cell.com/current-biol...
In our paper out now in @currentbiology.bsky.social we show that the Atlas blue butterfly has 229 chromosome pairs- the highest in diploid Metazoa! These arose by rapid autosome fragmentation while sex chromosomes stayed intact.
www.cell.com/current-biol...
Reposted by mara lawniczak
🚀🧬🔥 Hot off the press — 2025!
Don’t miss this must-read publication: bit.ly/4mJwFb7
This groundbreaking paper sets the stage for Earth BioGenome Project Phase II — where EBP is gearing up to scale genome sequencing 10× faster than ever before! 🌍✨
Don’t miss this must-read publication: bit.ly/4mJwFb7
This groundbreaking paper sets the stage for Earth BioGenome Project Phase II — where EBP is gearing up to scale genome sequencing 10× faster than ever before! 🌍✨
September 4, 2025 at 2:40 PM
🚀🧬🔥 Hot off the press — 2025!
Don’t miss this must-read publication: bit.ly/4mJwFb7
This groundbreaking paper sets the stage for Earth BioGenome Project Phase II — where EBP is gearing up to scale genome sequencing 10× faster than ever before! 🌍✨
Don’t miss this must-read publication: bit.ly/4mJwFb7
This groundbreaking paper sets the stage for Earth BioGenome Project Phase II — where EBP is gearing up to scale genome sequencing 10× faster than ever before! 🌍✨
Reposted by mara lawniczak
Malaria cases surge in Zimbabwe largely due to abrupt cut in USAID that affected mosquito net provision and surveillance measures. The Zimbabwean government trying to step up but can’t make up for the damage the sudden cessation. Climate change further increases mosquito burden too
Malaria ‘back with a vengeance’ in Zimbabwe as number of deaths from the disease triple
Withdrawal of USAID funds threatens decades of progress, say experts, with cuts to research and shortage of mosquito nets putting thousands at risk across the country
www.theguardian.com
July 19, 2025 at 7:56 AM
Malaria cases surge in Zimbabwe largely due to abrupt cut in USAID that affected mosquito net provision and surveillance measures. The Zimbabwean government trying to step up but can’t make up for the damage the sudden cessation. Climate change further increases mosquito burden too
Reposted by mara lawniczak
Postdoc position opening in my group! Research projects: pangenomes for diverse organisms, genome evolution, biocomputing, language models. Please reach out if interested!
July 17, 2025 at 7:53 AM
Postdoc position opening in my group! Research projects: pangenomes for diverse organisms, genome evolution, biocomputing, language models. Please reach out if interested!
Reposted by mara lawniczak
new from the lab -- we investigate 100% ethanol, DMSO salt solution (DESS), EDTA, RNAlater, and AllProtect as possible approaches for short term room temperature preservation of mosquito HMW DNA, nuclei for Hi-C, and RNA towards high quality reference genome creation. the key findings/tips are ....
Breaking the cold chain: solutions for room temperature preservation of mosquitoes leading to high quality reference genomes https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.07.03.662936v1
July 7, 2025 at 7:20 AM
new from the lab -- we investigate 100% ethanol, DMSO salt solution (DESS), EDTA, RNAlater, and AllProtect as possible approaches for short term room temperature preservation of mosquito HMW DNA, nuclei for Hi-C, and RNA towards high quality reference genome creation. the key findings/tips are ....
new from the lab -- we investigate 100% ethanol, DMSO salt solution (DESS), EDTA, RNAlater, and AllProtect as possible approaches for short term room temperature preservation of mosquito HMW DNA, nuclei for Hi-C, and RNA towards high quality reference genome creation. the key findings/tips are ....
Breaking the cold chain: solutions for room temperature preservation of mosquitoes leading to high quality reference genomes https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.07.03.662936v1
July 7, 2025 at 7:20 AM
new from the lab -- we investigate 100% ethanol, DMSO salt solution (DESS), EDTA, RNAlater, and AllProtect as possible approaches for short term room temperature preservation of mosquito HMW DNA, nuclei for Hi-C, and RNA towards high quality reference genome creation. the key findings/tips are ....
several years ago, the @ebpgenome.bsky.social sample collection and processing subcommittee ran a survey to understand more about people's successes and failures with HMW DNA extractions across the tree of life -- we planned to publish the results of this survey alongside the randomly drawn ...
June 4, 2025 at 3:15 PM
several years ago, the @ebpgenome.bsky.social sample collection and processing subcommittee ran a survey to understand more about people's successes and failures with HMW DNA extractions across the tree of life -- we planned to publish the results of this survey alongside the randomly drawn ...
Cambridge-Africa ALBORADA research funding call is now open - great for getting new collaborations started www.cambridge-africa.cam.ac.uk
Supporting research on African priorities :: Cambridge-Africa
Cambridge-Africa is a University programme that supports African researchers and promotes mutually beneficial collaborations and equitable partnerships between Africa and Cambridge
www.cambridge-africa.cam.ac.uk
June 4, 2025 at 12:06 PM
Cambridge-Africa ALBORADA research funding call is now open - great for getting new collaborations started www.cambridge-africa.cam.ac.uk
Reposted by mara lawniczak
Researcher Amita Gupta has spent more than a decade planning and running a $70-million trial to study a new tuberculosis drug, enrolling ~6,000 participants in 13 countries. It might all have been for nothing.
That's because a new NIH policy has abruptly cut off billions to trials abroad. 🧪
That's because a new NIH policy has abruptly cut off billions to trials abroad. 🧪
NIH grant cuts will axe clinical trials abroad — and could leave thousands without care
US agency’s new policy could abruptly end studies of infectious diseases and cancer, leaving researchers scrambling for funds.
www.nature.com
June 2, 2025 at 3:12 PM
Researcher Amita Gupta has spent more than a decade planning and running a $70-million trial to study a new tuberculosis drug, enrolling ~6,000 participants in 13 countries. It might all have been for nothing.
That's because a new NIH policy has abruptly cut off billions to trials abroad. 🧪
That's because a new NIH policy has abruptly cut off billions to trials abroad. 🧪
Reposted by mara lawniczak
New preprint! We generate 40 new high-quality microsporidian genomes from infected arthropod hosts that were sequenced to create reference genomes by the Darwin Tree of Life project. 8 of our genomes are chromosome-level, and we’re able to generate Hi-C data for 7! 🧬
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Forty New Genomes Shed Light on Sexual Reproduction and the Origin of Tetraploidy in Microsporidia
Microsporidia are single-celled, obligately intracellular parasites with growing public health, agricultural, and economic importance. Despite this, Microsporidia remain relatively enigmatic, with man...
www.biorxiv.org
May 16, 2025 at 10:58 AM
New preprint! We generate 40 new high-quality microsporidian genomes from infected arthropod hosts that were sequenced to create reference genomes by the Darwin Tree of Life project. 8 of our genomes are chromosome-level, and we’re able to generate Hi-C data for 7! 🧬
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
a bit of light in dark times for infectious disease research and ultimately control www.gatesfoundation.org/ideas/articl...
My new deadline: 20 years to give away virtually all my wealth
During the first 25 years of the Gates Foundation, we gave away more than $100 billion. Over the next two decades, we will double our giving.
www.gatesfoundation.org
May 8, 2025 at 6:56 PM
a bit of light in dark times for infectious disease research and ultimately control www.gatesfoundation.org/ideas/articl...
if you are trying to get HMW DNA out of any species, have a look at the stellar progress from Sanger Tree of Life core lab who have now extracted DNA from 1000s of species. Paper showcasing things learned along the way now up on bioRxiv at www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
April 14, 2025 at 1:25 PM
if you are trying to get HMW DNA out of any species, have a look at the stellar progress from Sanger Tree of Life core lab who have now extracted DNA from 1000s of species. Paper showcasing things learned along the way now up on bioRxiv at www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
propose reference genomes that you can supply tissue for for any mosquito species here tinyurl.com/MosquitoReferenceGenomes
Miguel is inviting interested people to register to participate in the #Global #Culicidae #Reference Genomes Project! If you want to participate go here 👉🏾 docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
@sangerinstitute.bsky.social @levelab.bsky.social
@sangerinstitute.bsky.social @levelab.bsky.social
March 25, 2025 at 12:44 PM
propose reference genomes that you can supply tissue for for any mosquito species here tinyurl.com/MosquitoReferenceGenomes
Reposted by mara lawniczak
Next up is Miguel Garcia-Knight, head of @levelab.bsky.social at UNAM 🇲🇽, and he's telling us about adaptive #antiviral immunity and viral vector #ecology @sangerinstitute.bsky.social #IFR2025
March 25, 2025 at 12:09 PM
Next up is Miguel Garcia-Knight, head of @levelab.bsky.social at UNAM 🇲🇽, and he's telling us about adaptive #antiviral immunity and viral vector #ecology @sangerinstitute.bsky.social #IFR2025
speaking of new mosquito reference genomes, here is a new one for Culex pipiens pipiens wellcomeopenresearch.org/articles/10-...
February 26, 2025 at 6:15 PM
speaking of new mosquito reference genomes, here is a new one for Culex pipiens pipiens wellcomeopenresearch.org/articles/10-...