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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín
@amanzanom.bsky.social
1.8K followers 430 following 270 posts
Senior Scientist 👨🏽‍🔬 @dome-vienna.bsky.social, @univie.ac.at 🇲🇽🇪🇺(🇦🇹🇫🇷🇪🇸) Symbionts, bacteria, insects, leeches, viruses, bioinformatics, evolution, genomics. Opinions are my very own. #SymbioSky https://besymblab.univie.ac.at/ https://ecoevo.social/@amanzanom
besymblab.univie.ac.at
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · Apr 22
After many years in the making (and an eternal cycle of adding new data....) our work on the discordance among phylogenomic datasets in #aphids is out!

@dome-vienna.bsky.social @inrae-france.bsky.social 🧪 #EvolSky

doi.org/10.1101/2024...
Phylogenetic trees displaying incongruence between reconstructions based on aphid and endosymbiotic bacteriasequences
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Reposted by Alejandro Manzano Marín
rodai.bsky.social
Roni Odai @rodai.bsky.social · 6d
Viral AlphaFold Database (VAD) is live in Science Advances

~27,000 predicted viral protein monomers & homodimers

Conserved folds across bacteria, archaea & eukaryotic viruses

New toxin–antitoxin system KreTA uncovered

Vast “functional darkness” remains uncharted

www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
The Viral AlphaFold Database of monomers and homodimers reveals conserved protein folds in viruses of bacteria, archaea, and eukaryotes
VAD is a Viral AlphaFold Database of protein monomers and homodimers from viruses infecting hosts across the tree of life.
www.science.org
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Reposted by Alejandro Manzano Marín
jack-tamisiea.bsky.social
Jack Tamisiea @jack-tamisiea.bsky.social · 7d
437 million years ago in what is now Wisconsin, the earliest known leeches were terrorizing trilobites. Instead of sucking blood, these critters were likely engulfing invertebrates whole or vacuuming out their insides!

Latest for @nytimes.com on a fantastic #fossil: www.nytimes.com/2025/10/01/s...
This Leech Had an Appetite for Something Other Than Blood
www.nytimes.com
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · 8d
Can't be that intense, but trying to cover some of these often overlooked entities when talking about virus ecology and evolution (the thematic of the course) with further reading for those that want to dig deeper into these cool viruses...
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · 8d
Great! I have all three, thanks!
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Reposted by Alejandro Manzano Marín
contaminatedsci.bsky.social
Tami Lieberman @contaminatedsci.bsky.social · 9d
Precisely calling mutations across hundreds of bacterial isolates has been hard, requiring manual filtering and expertise.

Until now, using AccuSNV.

Herui Liao trained an ML model based on our previous meticulously called SNVs.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
High-accuracy SNV calling for bacterial isolates using deep learning with AccuSNV
Accurate detection of mutations within bacterial species is critical for fundamental studies of microbial evolution, reconstructing transmission events, and identifying antimicrobial resistance mutati...
www.biorxiv.org
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Reposted by Alejandro Manzano Marín
peercomjournal.bsky.social
Peer Community Journal @peercomjournal.bsky.social · 9d
Last Friday, we published the 500th article of Peer Community Journal! 🥳
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · 9d
I think I have it covered, but have a feeling I am missing a recent work on the former..... can't seem to remember the citation... or maybe I'm making it up in my head.... Thanks for any pointers here
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · 9d
Hey #SymbioSky! (@symbionticism.bsky.social, @amelialindsey.bsky.social, @shropshirejd.bsky.social???)

I'm preparing material for a lecture on phages of beneficial endosymbionts. Looking for an up-to-date review on #phageWO and/or #Wolbachia....
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · 19d
#Symbionts with eroded genomes adjust gene expression according to host life-stage and environment

#SymbioSky

@kaltenpoth-lab.bsky.social

doi.org/10.1038/s443...
Symbionts with eroded genomes adjust gene expression according to host life-stage and environment | EMBO reports
imageimageThe symbionts of Donaciinae, despite having severely eroded genomes of around 0.5 Mbp, exhibit specific transcriptional responses that allow them to react to changes both within and across h...
doi.org
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · 19d
Evolution and comparative #genomics of #tick- #associated Francisella #endosymbionts: insights into metabolic pathways and historical biogeographic patterns

#SymbioSky

doi.org/10.1101/2025...
Evolution and comparative genomics of tick-associated Francisella endosymbionts: insights into metabolic pathways and historical biogeographic patterns
Ticks (Ixodida) are the second most important vectors of infectious diseases in vertebrates, after mosquitoes. They also maintain mutualistic relationships with bacteria, such as endosymbionts that pr...
doi.org
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · 19d
The facultative intracellular #symbiont #Lariskella is neutral for lifetime fitness and spreads through #cytoplasmicIncompatibility in the leaffooted bug, Leptoglossus zonatus

#SymbioSky

doi.org/10.3389/fmic...
Frontiers | The facultative intracellular symbiont Lariskella is neutral for lifetime fitness and spreads through cytoplasmic incompatibility in the leaffooted bug, Leptoglossus zonatus
The maternally-inherited, intracellular bacterium Lariskella (Alphaproteobacteria: Midichloreaceae) has been widely detected in arthropods including true bug...
doi.org
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · 19d
Diversity and spread of #cytoplasmicIncompatibility genes among maternally inherited #symbionts

#SymbioSky

doi.org/10.1371/jour...
Diversity and spread of cytoplasmic incompatibility genes among maternally inherited symbionts
Author summary Cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI) is a reproductive strategy used by certain bacteria to promote their spread within arthropod populations. These bacteria, inherited through the mother, ...
doi.org
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · 21d
Reposting for #SymbioSky
harmitmalik.bsky.social
Harmit Singh Malik @harmitmalik.bsky.social · 21d
www.cell.com/cell/abstrac...

A host organelle (in sea slugs) integrates stolen chloroplasts for animal photosynthesis
A host organelle integrates stolen chloroplasts for animal photosynthesis
Sea slugs steal foreign chloroplasts and store them in specialized organelles that facilitate photosynthesis and eventual digestion to mediate starvation resistance.
www.cell.com
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · 21d
reposting for #giantVirus feed
adi-gajigan.bsky.social
Andrian Gajigan @adi-gajigan.bsky.social · 21d
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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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · 24d
Digging into the evolutionary history of the fungus-growing-ant #symbiont, #Escovopsis (Hypocreaceae)

@ngerardo.bsky.social & many others I wouldn't find here....

#SymbioSky #MicroSky #EvolSky

doi.org/10.1038/s420...
Digging into the evolutionary history of the fungus-growing-ant symbiont, Escovopsis (Hypocreaceae) - Communications Biology
Comprehensive analysis of Escovopsis fungi across the Americas traces its evolution, distribution, and adaptations, providing insights into their complex symbiotic relationship with ants.
doi.org
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · 27d
On the topic of new additions to the lab, Pegah (@pegah-kalatehjari.bsky.social) joined the group last month. She will delve into symbiont transmission in #leeches working under the #SymBirth_FWF1k project (doi.org/10.55776/TAI...). Exciting times ahead!

#SymbioSky @dome-vienna.bsky.social
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · 27d
#Hirudo orientalis made it to the lab: an exciting new symbiotic system!
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Reposted by Alejandro Manzano Marín
berasymbionts.bsky.social
Aileen Berasategui @berasymbionts.bsky.social · Sep 8
🚨 Save the date! Thrilled to be co-organizing the next iteration of the @embl.org Symposium on the Cellular Mechanics of Symbiosis (📅 March 17-20), w/ @floravincent.bsky.social, @hassansalem.bsky.social & Tom Richards.
www.embl.org/about/info/c...
#EESSymbiosis #Symbiosis #SymbioSky #MicroSky 🦠
The cellular mechanics of symbiosis: sensing friend from foe
www.embl.org
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Reposted by Alejandro Manzano Marín
rmwaterhouse.bsky.social
Rob Waterhouse @rmwaterhouse.bsky.social · Sep 6
Molecular evolution of dietary shifts in ladybirds 🐞 expansions of digestive & detoxifying #gene families in the herbivorous ladybirds, & absence of most plant cell wall-degrading enzymes in the ladybirds from the transition to carnivory link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Molecular evolution of dietary shifts in ladybird beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae): from fungivory to carnivory and herbivory - BMC Biology
Background Dietary shifts are major evolutionary steps that shape ecological niches and biodiversity. The beetle family Coccinellidae, commonly known as ladybirds, first transitioned from a fungivorou...
link.springer.com
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Reposted by Alejandro Manzano Marín
sympiotr.bsky.social
Piotr Lukasik @sympiotr.bsky.social · Aug 28
New preprint from our lab! We show that #Bartonellaceae bacteria, mostly known as mammalian #pathogens, also colonizes #planthoppers. The planthopper #symbionts typically resemble related ant symbionts in nutritional functions, but show a much greater breadth of #genome sizes and functions. 1/2
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · Aug 22
The before and after paella...

w/ @berasymbionts.bsky.social, @hassansalem.bsky.social, @marlenygarcial.bsky.social, @francespi.bsky.social, and co. (couldn't find them here....)

#ESEB2025
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · Aug 22
@symbnet.bsky.social alumni crowd at #ESEB2025
w/ @berasymbionts.bsky.social & @vandriienko.bsky.social #SymbioSky
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · Aug 22
Thanks to @eseb2025.bsky.social for facilitating attending with family. Still more to be done, but on a good track. 'Till 2027!
amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · Aug 22
#ESEB2025 just wrapped up today. Had a great time talking about #leeches, meeting with friends, family, and checking out cool science making.
@berasymbionts.bsky.social @hassansalem.bsky.social @annamichalik.bsky.social @danieltamarit.bsky.social @willemsenanouk.bsky.social @nicrodemo.bsky.social
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amanzanom.bsky.social
Alejandro Manzano Marín @amanzanom.bsky.social · Jul 30
Come to think about it, This is a good use of that field. I have always set my opinions of the other reviewer comments in my review itself..... Although I guess it fits better in a direct dialogue to the editor. Although it may also serve the authors to know there are conflicting opinions....🤔🤔