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Reposted by Maurice Elphick

Jim Al-Khalili @jimalkhalili.bsky.social · 15d

🧪 I have a new TV offering: a 2-part Horizon special on BBC2 going out on 29th Sep and 6th October. It is called Secrets of the Brain. See
See www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

BBC Two - Secrets of the Brain, Series 1, Episode 1

Jim Al-Khalili reveals how the staggeringly complex human brain evolved.

www.bbc.co.uk

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Reposted by Maurice Elphick

Christy Schnitzler @christyschnitz.bsky.social · 9d

Now Hiring! Whitney Laboratory Assistant/Associate Professor in Marine Bioscience
Apply & More Info - explore.jobs.ufl.edu/en-us/job/53...
We seek a creative, collaborative scientist whose research harnesses or advances cutting-edge tools. Please help spread the word & reach out with any questions!

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bioRxiv Evolutionary Biology @biorxiv-evobio.bsky.social · 9d

From Neuropeptides to Toxins: Illuminating the Origins of Venom Complexity in Cone Snails https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.09.26.678268v1

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Jenifer Croce @croce-urchin.bsky.social · 12d

Congratulations to Oğuz Akar who was awarded the title of Doctor in Philosophy in Cell and Biology yesterday!

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Maurice Elphick @mauriceelphick.bsky.social · 23d

We are recruiting at @qmul.bsky.social
Please spread the word and encourage applications from potential applicants with relevant expertise.
qmul-jobs.tal.net/vx/mobile-1/...

Environmental Analytical Facility Technician - QMUL Jobs

ID: 7383. Title: Environmental Analytical Facility Technician. Application Deadline:

qmul-jobs.tal.net

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Daniel Krentzel @danielkrentzel.bsky.social · 28d

Super happy to see CLEM-Reg out in @natmethods.nature.com! A short thread on the algorithm behind it and how to try it out for yourself🧵(1/9)

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

CLEM-Reg: an automated point cloud-based registration algorithm for volume correlative light and electron microscopy - Nature Methods

CLEM-Reg automates the three-dimensional alignment of volume correlative light and electron microscopy datasets by leveraging probabilistic point cloud registration techniques for fast and accurate re...

www.nature.com

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Reposted by Maurice Elphick

Queen Mary University of London @qmul.bsky.social · Sep 4

Queen Mary is delighted to be a ‘University of the Year’ finalist in the #THEAwards!

And we're so proud Professors @larschittka.bsky.social and @alastairhackney.bsky.social have been shortlisted for Outstanding Research Supervisor of the Year. @timeshighered.bsky.social

tinyurl.com/ebe8yx23

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Ferdinand Marlétaz @ferdix.bsky.social · Aug 13

After nearly twenty years in the making, our attempt at understanding what makes the chaetognath phylum so unique has finally been published! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
with #LauraPiovani @dariagavr.bsky.social @alexdemendoza.bsky.social @chemamd.bsky.social and others /1

The genomic origin of the unique chaetognath body plan - Nature

Genomic, single-cell transcriptomic and epigenetic analyses show that chaetognaths, following extensive gene loss in the gnathiferan lineage, relied on newly evolved genes and lineage-specific tandem ...

www.nature.com

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Alex de Mendoza @alexdemendoza.bsky.social · Jul 28

Happy to see our latest work out in @molbioevol.bsky.social. We revisit the evolution of 5-methylcytosine across neglected eukaryotic supergroups, establishing an ancestral repressive role silencing genome invaders, both transposons and viral elements👾: academic.oup.com/mbe/advance-... 🧵 1/7

Repressive cytosine methylation is a marker of viral gene transfer across divergent eukaryotes

Abstract. Cytosine DNA methylation patterns vary widely across eukaryotes, with its ancestral roles being understood to have included both transposable ele

academic.oup.com

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Maurice Elphick @mauriceelphick.bsky.social · Jul 27

Very interesting paper that provides new insights into the evolution of ligand-gated chloride channels.

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Functional analysis of ligand-gated chloride channels in a cnidarian sheds light on the evolution of inhibitory signalling

γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) is the predominant inhibitory transmitter in the vertebrate nervous system. Fast inhibitory signalling is mediated by type A GABA receptors (GABAARs), which form pentameric ...

www.biorxiv.org

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Maurice Elphick @mauriceelphick.bsky.social · Jul 23

www.seresearch.qmul.ac.uk/cefg/

Centre for Evolutionary and Functional Genomics

QMUL Faculty of Science and Engineering Research Centres

www.seresearch.qmul.ac.uk

Maurice Elphick @mauriceelphick.bsky.social · Jul 23

Here in @qmulsbbs.bsky.social at @qmul.bsky.social we are seeking to appoint (deadline for applications 17th August 2025) a Reader (Associate Professor) in EVOLUTIONARY GENOMICS to join the QMUL Centre for Evolutionary & Functional Genomics. Please spread the word.
qmul-jobs.tal.net/vx/appcentre...

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Maurice Elphick @mauriceelphick.bsky.social · Jul 9

Great to be at #ICCE19 in Sendai Japan with Nayeli Escudero Castelan, Tabinda Islam and Kite Jones presenting our research on neuropeptide signalling in echinoderms.

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Reposted by Maurice Elphick

The Linnean Society of London @linneansociety.bsky.social · Jul 1

Today marks a special anniversary for us. On July 1, 1858, the theory of evolution by natural selection was first presented at a Linnean Society meeting. Papers written by Charles Darwin & Alfred Russel Wallace were read, shaping a groundbreaking idea still powering science today: buff.ly/uBdX7N1

“On the tendency of Species to form Varieties” paper by Wallace and Darwin originally published in the Journal of the Linnean Society of London, Zoology. Read on 1st July 1858 at the Society.

Portrait of Darwin (1809-1882) commissioned by the Society in 1883 which can be found in the Society’s Meeting Room.

Portrait of Alfred Russel Wallace (1823-1913).

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Maurice Elphick @mauriceelphick.bsky.social · Jun 28

Congratulations Pedro. Much deserved.

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Reposted by Maurice Elphick

Pedro Martinez @pedromartinezserra.bsky.social · Jun 28

I am grateful to have been promoted to the highest rank as Research Professor (ICREA) following my récent 5-year evaluation-a meaningful milestone at the end of my academic path. 🥂🥂

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Reposted by Maurice Elphick

Pawel Burkhardt @pawelburkhardt.bsky.social · Jun 28

Our new paper is out: "The 3D architecture of the ctenophore aboral organ & the evolution of complex integrative centers in animals.

We reveal a remarkable cell type diversity, nerve net condensation, a multilayered circuit & gene expression profiles.

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... #ctenophores

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Imran Rahman @imranrahman.bsky.social · Jun 26

Delighted to share our paper in @currentbiology.bsky.social iology.bsky.social‬ with a palaeo-evo-devo perspective on the evolution of symmetry in echinoderms. Led by Steffi Woodgate with Frankie Dunn, @echinerd.bsky.social, @laurentformery.bsky.social & Sam Zamora
www.cell.com/current-biol...-5

A new Cambrian stem-group echinoderm reveals the evolution of the anteroposterior axis

Woodgate et al. describe a new bilaterally symmetrical echinoderm, Atlascystis acantha, from the Cambrian of Morocco. Comparisons of plate growth with other echinoderms reveal that Atlascystis possess...

www.cell.com

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Journal of Experimental Biology @jexpbiol.bsky.social · Jun 23

Bean bugs shut down their ovaries over winter to save energy and now Jili Xi & co reveal that the hormone corazonin coordinates the insect's preparations for winter as the days grow shorter

journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/...

Photo of a bean bug (Riptortus pedestris). Photo credit: Jili Xi.

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Reposted by Maurice Elphick

Christopher B. Cameron @invertevo.bsky.social · Jun 23

RT. Fully funded PhD position in my lab to investigate the origin, composition and function of Ambulacrarian ossicles.

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Maurice Elphick @mauriceelphick.bsky.social · Jun 12

Neuropeptide receptors as therapeutic drug targets.

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Targeting GRPR for sex hormone-dependent cancer after loss of E-cadherin - Nature

A study finding an oestrogen-sensing signalling pathway that promotes melanoma metastasis only in female mice emphasizes the importance of recognizing sex-specific factors in cancer management.

www.nature.com

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Maurice Elphick @mauriceelphick.bsky.social · Jun 6

Biodiversity2Drugs—Renaissance of exploring nature-derived peptides for GPCR ligand discovery bpspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

BPS Publications

Click on the article title to read more.

bpspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Reposted by Maurice Elphick

Biodiversa+ (European Biodiversity Partnership) @biodiversa.eu · Apr 9

🔬 Nature's pharmacy unlocked: #Biodiversity2Drugs explores the vast diversity of peptides from nature to develop safer and more effective medicines, highlighting the importance of biodiversity conservation for human health. #BiodivNBS
www.biodiversa.eu/2025/04/08/b...

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Reposted by Maurice Elphick

Allan Carrillo-Baltodano @allancarbal.bsky.social · Jun 2

It's finally here! Great start of the summer. We got our latest preprint from @chemamd.bsky.social in @qmulsbbs.bsky.social @qmulse.bsky.social, showing evidence of developmental system drift in the specification of dorsoventral (belly vs back) axis in annelids 🪱🪱🪱
#DevBio #EvoDevo

Image shows larvae of four different species of marine annelid worms, stained for muscle (magenta) and cilia (yellow). All with lateral views, with the mouth towards the left, and the future head pointing up. Images are to scale.

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Reposted by Maurice Elphick

Matouš Elphick @matous-elphick.bsky.social · Jun 1

This Month, I'm doing 100 Push-ups a day to raise money for @cancerresearchuk.org. Now more than ever, we need to fund the research that saves lives. Every rep and every donation counts!

fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/matouss...

Matous's Giving Page

I'm Matouš, a first-year PhD student at the Francis Crick Institute, funded by Cancer Research UK. I use computer-based methods to study kidney cancer and better understand how tumours interact with t...

fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org

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