Olga Lastovetsky
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olastovetsky.bsky.social
Olga Lastovetsky
@olastovetsky.bsky.social
61 followers 73 following 6 posts
Assistant Professor at University College Dublin, Ireland. PI #MIntlab, studying bacterial-fungal symbioses, evolution, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi
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Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
spun.earth
SPUN is #hiring 👉 spun.bamboohr.com/careers

We're looking to fill the following positions:

1. Fungal Molecular Ecologist
2. Designer
3. Communications Assistant

Apply now and share with your networks 🌍

#Careers #Fungi #ScienceJobs #ScienceCommunication #Mycology
November 25, 2025 at 11:37 AM
olastovetsky.bsky.social
Had a great time presenting at the latest ROOT-BENEFIT COST Action WG2 webinar youtu.be/NqJJvwWcLOI highlighting our research on #AMF and their endobacteria #MInt @rootbenefit.bsky.social
Sixth Webinar Root-Benefit COST ACTION WG2 (Part 2): Dr. Olga Lastovesky (University College Dublin)
YouTube video by Root-Benefit European COST ACTION
youtu.be
November 10, 2025 at 3:58 PM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
newphyt.bsky.social
✨ Paper spotlight ✨

Mycelial Dynamics in Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

(🧵 1/5) Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi form vast underground hyphal networks that support plant life.
Fig. 2 Phylogenetically distinct structures produced by the arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungal mycelium.
October 30, 2025 at 12:11 AM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
rootbenefit.bsky.social
📢 It is tomorrow!!!
The first webinar in our second WG2 series!!
We will have the pleasure of having two excellent speakers:
- Prof. Andrea Genre (University of Turin, Italy).
- Dr. Olga Lastovetsky (University College Dublin, Ireland)
#costaction
conectava.csic.es/B/raf-k1s-mp...
October 23, 2025 at 11:11 AM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
nature.com
Metagraph: the new search engine that can quickly sift through the staggering volumes of biological data housed in public repositories

go.nature.com/48lM8Kh
‘Google for DNA’ brings order to biology’s big data
MetaGraph compresses vast data archives into a search engine for scientists, opening up new frontiers of biological discovery.
go.nature.com
October 8, 2025 at 4:22 PM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
newphyt.bsky.social
Sexually dimorphic # microbiota in #Ginkgo #biloba

📖https://buff.ly/Th3jr4k
by Lin et al.

@WileyPlantSci #PlantSci
Host-mediated homogeneous selection on specific bacterial and fungal taxa exhibits significant sexual dimorphism in Ginkgo biloba.
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
September 29, 2025 at 10:01 PM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
spun.earth
What Everyone Should Know About Fungi by Age 15

4️⃣ Mycorrhizal fungi help draw down ~13 billion tons of carbon into the soil annually–nearly 1/3 of global emissions from fossil fuels.

See the top 10 list (buff.ly/56WQ1oO) and follow for new fungal facts.
September 29, 2025 at 11:42 AM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
msafungi.bsky.social
📢🍄Job alert🍄📢
The Department of Plant Biology at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is hiring an Assistant Professor in Mycology/Plant-Fungal Interactions. Deadline to apply: 31 October 2025.
illinois.csod.com/ux/ats/caree...
Assistant Professor- Department of Plant Biology
Duties & Responsibilities
illinois.csod.com
September 13, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
phdcomics.com
It's a pro con
September 13, 2025 at 5:05 PM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
asm.org
The 2025 agar art contest is open and accepting submissions until Oct. 26! The theme is “Microbes Make the World Go Round.” Submit your artwork and showcase the vital role microbes play in our daily lives. All are welcome to apply! See contest details: asm.org/events/asm-a...
Agar art: Microbes make the world go ground.
September 12, 2025 at 5:21 PM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
westerdijkinst.bsky.social
🚀The Future is Fungi Award is back—ready to back the next wave of fungi innovators! 
The awards' mission is to catalyze groundbreaking fungal innovations that address some of humanity’s biggest environmental challenges—and to support the startups and science entrepreneurs pioneering these solutions.
September 13, 2025 at 8:02 AM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
science.org
Giraffes, long considered a single species, are in fact four. https://scim.ag/4n2po6f
Giraffes are four distinct species, major report confirms
The revised classification will help ensure different giraffe populations are adequately protected, conservationists say
scim.ag
August 31, 2025 at 7:32 PM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
asm.org
#MicrobiologyMonday: How do fungi see the world?🍄👁️They can detect colors using photoreceptors, with blue light serving as a key signal to guide fungal growth. In #MMBRJournal, researchers explore the role of photoreceptors in fungal biology: asm.social/2yD
Examples of the responses to light of fungi. (A) Light induces the biosynthesis of the orange carotenoid pigment neurosporaxanthin in the vegetative mycelia of N. crassa, but this pigment is synthesized in large quantities in vegetative spores (conidia). When N. crassa grows in tubes with slanted media, orange conidia accumulate at the top of the tube, allowing the visualization of the difference between the orange mycelia of the wild-type and the white mycelia of the blind mutant white collar-1 (wc-1). (B) Blue light guides the growth, phototropism, of fruiting bodies, sporangiophores, of Phycomyces blakesleeanus. Light applied from one side of the sporangiophore during 5 minutes is sufficient to observe a change in the direction of growth. The photograph shows a side view (upper part) or the top view (bottom part) of a plate with P. blakesleeanus fruiting bodies growing toward light (arrow).
August 25, 2025 at 4:36 PM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
natmicrobiol.nature.com
Out now!

🍫🦠A defined microbial community reproduces attributes of fine flavour #chocolate fermentation

By Gabriel Castrillo, David Salt & co

#microsky #microbiomesky 🧪

Read it here: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A defined microbial community reproduces attributes of fine flavour chocolate fermentation - Nature Microbiology
An in-depth microbiological and metagenomic analysis of Colombian farm and fermentation facilities resulted in the design of a defined microbial community that can reproduce the flavour of fine chocol...
www.nature.com
August 18, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
emily-white.bsky.social
One of my favourite papers of 2025 so far and its on chocolate! 🍫

A defined microbial community reproduces attributes of fine flavour chocolate fermentation

🧪 Read the paper here: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
🔎 The associated news & views here: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A defined microbial community reproduces attributes of fine flavour chocolate fermentation - Nature Microbiology
An in-depth microbiological and metagenomic analysis of Colombian farm and fermentation facilities resulted in the design of a defined microbial community that can reproduce the flavour of fine chocol...
www.nature.com
August 18, 2025 at 3:19 PM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
genetics-gsa.bsky.social
🍄Mark your calendars for March 17-22, 2026 for #Fungal26! Registration will open October 25, 2025. We can’t wait to see you at Asilomar in absolutely beautiful Pacific Grove, California. Start planning today!

🔗Stay updated on all the important information at buff.ly/BjAlE2j.
August 11, 2025 at 6:02 PM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
phdcomics.com
Have a minute? 😂
August 12, 2025 at 12:43 AM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
nature.com
Nearly one-third of all retracted papers at PLoS ONE can be traced back to just 45 researchers who served as editors at the journal

go.nature.com/4frnv04
Exclusive: retraction-prone editors identified at megajournal PLoS ONE
Nature - Study says small editor group handled many problematic manuscripts — and a Nature investigation finds out who they are.
go.nature.com
August 9, 2025 at 11:15 AM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
science.org
A new special issue of Science explores the immune system at the molecular and cellular level and how it has evolved to govern multiple facets of human health.

Learn more: scim.ag/3IYhnk7
This illustration depicts the changes in the immune system throughout an individual’s life span, from infancy to childhood, adulthood, and older age.
August 7, 2025 at 6:05 PM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
cp-cellhostmicrobe.bsky.social
Theory of host-microbe symbioses: Challenges & opportunities

Discussion on mathematical modeling of microbial symbioses with 3 noted areas requiring advancement: nested ecology w/in host or holobiont, holobiont population dynamics & symbiont-mediated speciation
www.cell.com/cell-host-mi...
Theory of host-microbe symbioses: Challenges and opportunities
Growing insight into microbial symbioses highlights the need to model these systems mathematically. We discuss three areas requiring theoretical advancement: nested ecology within a host or holobiont,...
www.cell.com
July 14, 2025 at 12:47 PM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
femsjournals.bsky.social
Living organisms utilize electrical signaling to perceive and respond to environmental stimuli.
Buffi et al. summarize methodological approaches and challenges in electrical signaling in filamentous #fungi.
buff.ly/92Ztpip
#FEMSMicrobiolRev
July 26, 2025 at 8:00 AM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
helm-linger.bsky.social
Excited to share our first paper on the symbiosis between chlamydiae and social amoebae showing in detail the adaptations of endosymbionts to the social life style of their host! 🎉
July 9, 2025 at 1:03 PM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
nature.com
Forty years after the first effort to extract mummy DNA, researchers have finally generated a full genome sequence from an ancient Egyptian

https://go.nature.com/44O0Sze
First human genome from ancient Egypt sequenced from 4,800-year-old teeth
Nature - Forty years after the first effort to extract mummy DNA, researchers have finally generated a full genome sequence from an ancient Egyptian.
go.nature.com
July 6, 2025 at 10:43 AM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
ifbc-2025.bsky.social
🚨 Final days to register! ⌛️
Don’t wait until the last minute ⏰ —secure your spot and get ready to connect with scientists from around the world in stunning Crete! 🌍🧫

Let’s advance fungal biology together!
🔗 ifbc2025.maich.gr
📣 REGISTER NOW!

🔁 Share to reach the whole myco-community!

#IFBC25
July 5, 2025 at 3:58 AM
Reposted by Olga Lastovetsky
asm.org
ASM’s Agar Art Exhibit is live tonight at E2Art Gallery in LA! Guests are exploring artwork created with living microbes by scientists and artists from around the world. Thanks for joining us to celebrate where art meets science. View the collection: asm.social/2tc
agar art agar art agar art
June 21, 2025 at 3:18 AM