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Mya Breitbart

@viromegirl.bsky.social

5.1K followers 2K following 580 posts

Professor at the University of South Florida. Marine microbiology and virology, with a smattering of eukaryotes here and there because focus is for losers. Characterizing the global virome, one virus at a time. Owned by a very cute dog and cat. She/her .. more

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Mya Breitbart is an American biologist and professor of biological oceanography at the University of South Florida's College of Marine Science. She is best known for her contributions to the field of viral metagenomics. Popular Science recognized her because of her approach of not trying to sequence individual viruses or organisms but to sequence everything in a given ecosystem. .. more

Environmental science 38%

Biology 28%

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Mya Breitbart @viromegirl.bsky.social · 8d

We're hiring for several positions (a post-bac researcher in #transcriptomics, a #phage #postdoc, a senior researcher (broad topics) and a graduate student to work on #ciliates) - find info here: www.marine.usf.edu/genomics/app...

Apply - Genomics

www.marine.usf.edu

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Mya Breitbart @viromegirl.bsky.social · 1d

So exciting!!! Congrats Gina and Johana!

Reposted by Mya Breitbart

Johana Rotterova @micrott.bsky.social · 2d

With all the craziness in the world, good lab news bring real joy.💚🪇 With Breitbart's Lab help, long lab hours & determination not to give up, Gina has established a culture of the coral-eating Philaster!🪸🧫🔬I'm so proud of her!🥇 @gfullller.bsky.social
@miapi314.bsky.social #ProtistsOnSky #MicroSky

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Reposted by Mya Breitbart

Didier Mazel @amazeld.bsky.social · 8d

A fresh view on phage specificity, which challenges the traditional view of a narrow host spectrum of phages by unveiling that multihost associations are common across ecosystems kudos at @mmarbout.bsky.social &
@rkoszul.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Phages with a broad host range are common across ecosystems - Nature Microbiology

Proximity-ligation-based sequencing from 111 samples and 5 environments reveals that a substantial proportion of phages infect multiple species.

www.nature.com

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Reposted by Mya Breitbart, Allan Konopka

Kristen DeAngelis 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🍉 @kristenobacter.bsky.social · 8d

UMass Amherst Microbiology is hiring a tenure-track virologist. Come work with me! 🦠🧪
careers.umass.edu/amherst/en-u...

Details - Assistant Professor - Virology | Human Resources | UMass Amherst

careers.umass.edu

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Reposted by Mya Breitbart

Ian Hewson @ianhewson.bsky.social · 13d

Day 2 of Diadema kickoff. Today was all about Diadema itself (cf environmental parameters). We were excited to see so many apparently healthy animals in shallow water! We also set up an experiment to examine microbial participation in echinoderm tissue decay. Such a great start to this time series!

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Reposted by Mya Breitbart

Ian Hewson @ianhewson.bsky.social · 14d

Day 1 of NSF sponsored Diadema antillarum scuticociliatosis time series in Brewers Bay, St Thomas, USVI with @drchriskellogg.bsky.social @viromegirl.bsky.social @aquaticmicrolab.bsky.social and Prof Marilyn Brandt at UVI. After months of planning it was time to figure out what makes sense from

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Reposted by Mart Krupovìč, Mya Breitbart

Andrian Gajigan @adi-gajigan.bsky.social · 23d

Naiavirus: an enveloped giant virus with a pleomorphic, flexible tail
nature.com/articles/s41467-025-63463-6

Naiavirus: an enveloped giant virus with a pleomorphic, flexible tail - Nature Communications

Rodrigues and Queiroz et al. report the discovery of Naiavirus, the largest enveloped virus, isolated from a Brazil biome. With an oval capsid and flexible tail, its giant genome holds many novel gene...

nature.com

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Reposted by Mya Breitbart

BejaLab @bejalab.bsky.social · Sep 10

Iron-respiring microbes could have a role in sulfur cycling www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Iron-respiring microbes could have a role in sulfur cycling

A species of bacteria grows when both ferrihydrite and sulfide are present, but not when either is absent.

www.nature.com

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Reposted by Michael Wagner, Mya Breitbart

cemess_vienna @cemess.bsky.social · Sep 10

Deadline approaching on Sept 17! We are hiring a Full Professor of Environmental Biogeochemistry of Metals at #CeMESS at the University of Vienna.

Learn more: 🔗 edge.univie.ac.at/news-talks/n...

@edge-vienna.bsky.social @univie.ac.at #EnvironmentalBiochemistry

We are hiring: Full Professor of Environmental Biogeochemistry of Metals

Human activities are driving rapid environmental change on a global scale, with pollutants playing a critical role in pushing planetary systems beyond safe limits. These changes have profound conseque...

edge.univie.ac.at

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Reposted by Scott C. Doney, Julie L. Lockwood, Elena Litchman , and 1 more Scott C. Doney, Julie L. Lockwood, Elena Litchman, Mya Breitbart

lukethompsonphd.bsky.social @lukethompsonphd.bsky.social · Sep 8

My group at NOAA/Miami is hiring a postdoc to lead a marine eDNA biodiversity effort (Bio-GO-SHIP). You'll develop and deploy high-throughput metabarcoding assays for ocean DNA. Help make foundational contributions to global marine biodiversity monitoring! t.co/p53s7E0YiL

https://explore.msujobs.msstate.edu/cw/en-us/job/509519

t.co

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Mya Breitbart @viromegirl.bsky.social · Aug 30

I was so lucky to always have Elio’s curious ear and mind as a grad student. Truly the best.

Reposted by Mya Breitbart

Dr. Kat Napaaqtuk❄️ @napaaqtuk.bsky.social · Aug 30

Lovely tribute to Elio Schaechter, touching on his contribution to microbiology, #scicomm, undergrad teaching, and more. For those who read blogs, strongly recommend reading entries of Small Things Considered

🦠🔬

schaechter.asmblog.org

asm.org/podcasts/twi...

Missing the Company of Elio

Paying tribute to Elio Schaechter, former TWiM host, blogger, and microbiologist extraordinaire, and review of the finding that Archaea produce peptidoglycan hydrolases that kill bacteria - a form of ...

asm.org

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Reposted by Elena Litchman, Nicole Dubilier, Mya Breitbart , and 1 more Elena Litchman, Nicole Dubilier, Mya Breitbart, Jason Stajich

Vesna Grujcic @vesnagrujcic.bsky.social · Aug 30

How do microbes become permanent partners? 🌊🔬🦠 Check out our new study published in Current Biology showing how cyanobacterial genomes evolve step-by-step into endosymbionts of diatoms. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
@currentbiology.bsky.social @mehrshmali.bsky.social

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Reposted by Mya Breitbart

Mark O. Martin @markowenmartin.bsky.social · Aug 29

New week-new episode of the #MattersMicrobial podcast!! Dr. Roxanne Beinart of the University of Rhode Island joins the #QualityQuorum to chat about the work her group does on deep sea chemoautrophic communities & symbioses! Please spread the #GoodMicrobialWord?

youtu.be/mERRJOuEsB4?...

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Mya Breitbart @viromegirl.bsky.social · Aug 28

The AMG term has been problematic since we introduced it to be honest (they’re not all metabolism related, there’s an unclear relationship with lysogenic conversion factors, etc…) so I’m excited to read this!

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Reposted by Simon Roux, Mart Krupovìč, Mya Breitbart

Karthik Anantharaman @karthik-a.bsky.social · Aug 27

New paper alert! We suggest caution in the analyses of viral auxiliary metabolic genes and propose a new overarching term - 'auxiliary viral genes' (AVGs) to describe different types of such genes. @simrouxvirus.bsky.social #phagesky #Microsky www.nature.com/articles/s41...

A call for caution in the biological interpretation of viral auxiliary metabolic genes - Nature Microbiology

This Perspective discusses virus-encoded auxiliary metabolic genes and provides a framework for the biological interpretation of these genes.

www.nature.com

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Reposted by Scott C. Doney, Elena Litchman, Mya Breitbart

Rachel Gregor @rachelgregor.bsky.social · Aug 25

🌊🦠🧪 Delighted to share this work now out in @isme-microbes.bsky.social: doi.org/10.1093/isme... The currency of microbial life is chemistry, but there’s so much still unknown about how metabolic interactions shape communities. 1/

Vitamin auxotrophies shape microbial community assembly on model marine particles

Abstract. Microbial community assembly is governed by the flow of carbon sources and other primary metabolites between species. However, central metabolism

doi.org

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Reposted by Elena Litchman, Mya Breitbart, Juan Rocha

N.S. Vitek @nsvitek.bsky.social · Aug 20

🚨 Job Alert! 🚨

Assistant Professor in Global Change and Disease Ecology at Stony Brook University, Department of Ecology & Evolution. Deadline: October 1.

#AcademicJobs #tenuretrack #facultyjobs

apply.interfolio.com/171403

(I love being here. Come join!)

@stonybrooku.bsky.social

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Reposted by Mya Breitbart

Ákos T Kovács @evolvedbiofilm.bsky.social · Aug 20

Nitrogen availability shapes evolution of phage resistance in cyanobacteria

-in #ISMEJ

academic.oup.com/ismej/advanc...

#phagesky

Nitrogen availability shapes evolution of phage resistance in cyanobacteria

Abstract. Nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria play a key role in nitrogen and carbon biogeochemical cycles in aquatic ecosystems. Under nitrogen-limited conditio

academic.oup.com

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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · Aug 19

Hey everybody! @drjuliawester.bsky.social and I have a new paper!

We surveyed over 800 scientists, science communicators, and science educators who use social media.

Conclusion: Scientists no longer find Twitter useful or pleasant, and many have switched to Bluesky! 🧪🌎🦑

doi.org/10.1093/icb/...

Scientists no Longer Find Twitter Professionally Useful, and have Switched to Bluesky

Synopsis. Social media has become widely used by the scientific community for a variety of professional uses, including networking and public outreach. For

doi.org

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Reposted by Mya Breitbart

Maria Popova @mariapopova.bsky.social · Aug 18

“To stare into the spiral top of a whelk or cone shell is to see the swirl of the Milky Way.”

If you love the intersection of art and science, cultural history and conservation, this lovely read is for you: www.themarginalian.org/2022/07/21/s...

Seashells and the Spiral of Wonder at the Intersection of Art and Science

“Seashells were money before coin, jewelry before gems, art before canvas… To stare into the spiral top of a whelk or cone shell is to see the swirl of the Milky Way.”

www.themarginalian.org

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Reposted by Mya Breitbart, Melanie C. Green, Aaron Sojourner , and 1 more Mya Breitbart, Melanie C. Green, Aaron Sojourner, Jessica A. Gephart

Rachel Germain @gerlame.bsky.social · Aug 17

🚨postdoc opportunity at UBC🚨 applications are now open for the Killam Postdoctoral Fellowship, due internally Oct. 15 - www.postdocs.ubc.ca/award/killam...

I can nominate 1 person and give feedback on that nominee's materials - if interested plz email me by Sept. 10 - join us!

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Reposted by Simon Roux, Elena Litchman, Mya Breitbart , and 1 more Simon Roux, Elena Litchman, Mya Breitbart, Smith

Mark Peifer (He, him) @peiferlabunc.bsky.social · Aug 12

I’m looking for folks to send me specimens of golden oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus citrinopileatus) collected from natural areas all over North America. I need specimens from everywhere other than Wisconsin: 2/n
pringlelab.github.io/gom_communit...

Pringle Lab UW-Madison

pringlelab.github.io

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Reposted by Simon Roux, Elena Litchman, Mya Breitbart

Cameron Thrash @jcamthrash.bsky.social · Aug 11

Do you like coastal/estuarine microbiology, time-series data, and/or metagenomics? Have we got a dataset for you #NSFfunded

Metagenomes and 1,313 metagenome-assembled genomes from a northern Gulf of Mexico coastal time series www.nature.com/articles/s41... #jcampubs

Metagenomes and 1,313 metagenome-assembled genomes from a northern Gulf of Mexico coastal time series - Scientific Data

Scientific Data - Metagenomes and 1,313 metagenome-assembled genomes from a northern Gulf of Mexico coastal time series

www.nature.com

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Reposted by Mya Breitbart, Stacie B. Dusetzina

Liz Neeley @lizneeley.bsky.social · Aug 9

Each Friday, I summarize what happened this week in science 🧪& higher ed. This was Week 29:

- new executive order makes a mockery of peer review
- UCLA facing demand for $1 Billion, patents are latest attack on Harvard
- mRNA, climate assessments & so much more at buttondown.com/liminalcreat...

Week 29

Within, amongst, against

buttondown.com

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Mya Breitbart @viromegirl.bsky.social · Aug 8

Please do!

Reposted by Steven J. Cooke, Márk E. Hauber, Mya Breitbart

Prosanta Chakrabarty @prosanta.bsky.social · Aug 8

Fun news: I'm hiring a postdoc in ichthyology!

Please spread the word #TeamFish, and message me if you have questions.

(Job requisition id is R00107333 if LSU link below takes you elsewhere.)

lsu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/LSU/de...

Postdoctoral Researcher

All Job Postings will close at 12:01a.m. CST (1:01a.m. EST) on the specified Closing Date (if designated). If you close the browser or exit your application prior to submitting, the application progre...

lsu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com

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Reposted by Jay T. Lennon

Mya Breitbart @viromegirl.bsky.social · Aug 8

Did you know that @ASMicrobiology Academy is accepting 2026 fellowship nominations? Individuals are elected based on scientific excellence, originality and leadership. If you think you might qualify for fellowship, check out the criteria and ask someone to nominate you!🦠 asm.org/Academy/Crit...

Criteria for Election to Fellowship in the American Academy of Microbiology | ASM.org

Criteria used by American Academy of Microbiology fellowship nomination reviewers to determine whether an individual is elected to the Academy.

asm.org

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Reposted by Karen A. Kidd, Mya Breitbart, Jason Stajich , and 5 more Karen A. Kidd, Mya Breitbart, Jason Stajich, Rebecca Williams, Michael Müller, Mélissa Mialon, Larry W. Hunter, Shaun C. Hendy

Lydia Jennings, PhD @1nativesoilnerd.bsky.social · Aug 8

New article led by Tara McAllister & co-authored by Lelani Walker, @niiyokamigaabaw.bsky.social, myself, Bradley Moggridge, Serena Naepi, Brittany Kamai and @napaaqtuk.bsky.social

www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Decolonize scientific institutions, don’t just diversify them

Indigenous scholars set out eight steps to stop marginalization in academia and to enable a shared Indigenous agenda in science.

www.nature.com

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