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Aida Andres

@aidaandres.bsky.social

1.1K followers 530 following 54 posts

Scientist. Evolutionary Biology, Population Genetics. Genetic adaptations to pathogens & the environment. Professor & Director, UCL Genetics Institute, GEE Deptartment, University College London. Associate Editor GBE. https://wp.cs.ucl.ac.uk/evol-genome/

wp.cs.ucl.ac.uk

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Reposted by Aida Andres

Current Biology @currentbiology.bsky.social · 7d

Sad news: Jane Goodall has died. She did more than any other human for our understanding and appreciation of our closest relatives, the chimpanzees.

That chimpanzees are Endangered tells you everything about our species and about what made her so exceptional.

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/01/o...

Jane Goodall, Eminent Primatologist Who Chronicled the Lives of Chimps, Dies at 91

www.nytimes.com

Reposted by Aida Andres

Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution @official-smbe.bsky.social · 7d

🔁 Please share - we remind the SMBE community that the Call for Symposia for SMBE2026 in Copenhagen is open.

We invite you to submit a symposium proposal to help shape the scientific content of our annual meeting.

🗓️ Deadline: October 15th

More information: smbe2026.org/symposia

#SMBE2026

SMBE2026 | Final call for symposia

Reposted by Aida Andres

Science Magazine @science.org · 7d

Jane Goodall has died at the age of 91.

In 2020, Goodall spoke with Science Editor-in-Chief H. Holden Thorp for a #ScienceEditorial reflecting on the 60th anniversary of her arrival in Gombe to study wild chimpanzees. Read more: https://scim.ag/472Chb8

"… Goodall’s … is a story of genuine scientific curiosity, determination, and respect for
nature and humanity …" H. Holden Thorp, Editor-in-chief, Science journals

Reposted by Aida Andres

EL PAÍS @elpais.com · 7d

🔴 ÚLTIMA HORA | Muere la etóloga y primatóloga británica Jane Goodall a los 91 años social.elpais.com/wmfcr4

Muere la etóloga británica Jane Goodall a los 91 años

Revolucionó la ciencia desde los sesenta con sus métodos innovadores y fascinantes descubrimientos sobre los chimpancés salvajes

social.elpais.com

Aida Andres @aidaandres.bsky.social · 19d

Pooja Swali @poojaswali.bsky.social presenting her very interesting work on ancient pathogens. @ugiatucl.bsky.social

Aida Andres @aidaandres.bsky.social · 19d

Two that I have pictures for, from UCL. Finley Grover presenting his work on the signatures of local adaptation in mtDNA in humans. @ugiatucl.bsky.social

Aida Andres @aidaandres.bsky.social · 19d

Fantastic Autumn Symposium and Mixer from the London Centre for Ecology and Evolution (CEE @ceevol.bsky.social) at the LSHTM brilliantly organised by Mojca Kristan @mkristan.bsky.social Lots of great talks on ecology and evolution by members of all CEE’s institutions.

Reposted by Aida Andres

Jas Rees @jasminrees.bsky.social · 22d

10/ If true, this has the potential to drive or exacerbate micronutrient-linked health disparities across populations - especially when over-farming and climate change continues to decrease soil quality. It is hard to ignore potential public/global health connotations🌎

Reposted by Aida Andres

Jas Rees @jasminrees.bsky.social · 22d

9/ Why is this important? We suggest dietary micronutrients have shaped the recent evolution of humans and likely contributed to population differentiation in diet-related genes - possibly resulting in average differences in their micronutrient uptake, metabolism or regulation.

Reposted by Aida Andres

Jas Rees @jasminrees.bsky.social · 22d

8/ In some cases, signatures of positive selection are identified in areas of the world with soil of known deficiencies or toxicities of micronutrients - potentially reflecting genetic adaptation to soil-driven micronutrient levels in the diet. Read our paper to see where 🤓

Reposted by Aida Andres

Jas Rees @jasminrees.bsky.social · 22d

6/ We used methods informed by extensive simulations to identify signatures of positive selection in ~300 genes associated with 13 essential trace minerals in 40 diverse human populations, considering monogenic, oligogenic and polygenic selection 🧬

Reposted by Aida Andres

Jas Rees @jasminrees.bsky.social · 22d

5/ We wanted to ask: have all micronutrients acted as selective pressures? Or only a few? And in which populations and timepoints? Is this likely to be driven by differing micronutrient levels in local soils? 🌎

Reposted by Aida Andres

Jas Rees @jasminrees.bsky.social · 22d

4/ But soils can be extremely variable in their micronutrient content (even amongst really close-by environments!) - and have previously been suggested to drive some isolated examples of local adaptation to dietary micronutrients in human populations 🧬

Reposted by Aida Andres

Jas Rees @jasminrees.bsky.social · 22d

3/ For much of human evolution, the amount of micronutrients in our diet have depended on the underlying soil content, since micronutrients are taken up by local plants and animals that then make up the human diet 🐔🍎🌽

Reposted by Aida Andres

Jas Rees @jasminrees.bsky.social · 22d

2/ Micronutrients - including trace minerals and vitamins - are essential components in the human diet, needed in very small and precise quantities. Deficiencies can be super harmful, leading to stunted growth and increased risk of infectious, metabolic or respiratory diseases 🤒

Reposted by Aida Andres

Jas Rees @jasminrees.bsky.social · 22d

1/ So pleased to share our paper on genetic adaptation to micronutrients in humans! Our biggest conclusion? Trace minerals in the diet have shaped human evolution far more than previously appreciated 🧬🌍👇
www.cell.com/ajhg/fulltex...

https://www.cell.com/ajhg/fulltext/S0002-9297(25)00315-5

Reposted by Aida Andres

Genome Biology and Evolution @genomebiolevol.bsky.social · 26d

We are proud to present the new logo of Genome Biology and Evolution! 🙌

Our new face reflects our continued commitment to serving the fields of genomics and evolutionary biology as a society journal belonging to @official-smbe.bsky.social

#genome #evolution #science #biology #societyjournal

Aida Andres @aidaandres.bsky.social · 27d

🧪 #Popgen

Aida Andres @aidaandres.bsky.social · 28d

Jasmin Rees PhD chapter as a paper just out at the AJHG @ajhgnews.bsky.social, with Sergi Castellano, who first envisioned the study. Jas investigated signatures of human local genetic adaptation in hundreds of micronutrient-associated genes.

The American Journal of Human Genetics @ajhgnews.bsky.social · 28d

📣New from @aidaandres.bsky.social & co
📄Global impact of micronutrients in modern human evolution

Aida Andres @aidaandres.bsky.social · 27d

Thank you!

Aida Andres @aidaandres.bsky.social · 28d

@ugiatucl.bsky.social @ucllifesciences.bsky.social

Reposted by Aida Andres

The American Journal of Human Genetics @ajhgnews.bsky.social · 28d

📣New from @aidaandres.bsky.social & co
📄Global impact of micronutrients in modern human evolution

Global impact of micronutrients in modern human evolution

In this study, Rees et al. evaluate the role of dietary micronutrients in driving local genetic adaptation and population differentiation in humans. The authors find evidence that micronutrient-associ...

Reposted by Aida Andres

Cell Press @cellpress.bsky.social · 28d

Our human ancestors from across the globe evolved in response to shortages and surpluses of micronutrients like iron, calcium, and zinc. spkl.io/63323AuOVP

@ajhgnews.bsky.social
Jasmin Rees, Sergi Castellano, & @aidaandres.bsky.social

Populations with genes related to micronutrient metabolism CREDIT Jasmin Rees

Reposted by Aida Andres

The American Journal of Human Genetics @ajhgnews.bsky.social · 28d

Read more about the latest work from @aidaandres.bsky.social & co!

Aida Andres @aidaandres.bsky.social · 28d

Amazing work by Jas, who single handedly performed the (very many) analyses and led the study incredibly well. She is a great communicator too, ask her about this work when you see her!

Aida Andres @aidaandres.bsky.social · 28d

The paper highlights the importance of studying past adaptive processes to understand human diversity and health.