Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Nat Clarke @natclarke.bsky.social · 1h

Thanks! Yes, it was restrained in low melting point agarose. It’s not strictly necessary at these early stages, but helps for confocal

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Nat Clarke @natclarke.bsky.social · 2h

🚨 My lab is hiring at all levels!

Interested in animal origins & evolutionary cell biology?

I'm recruiting a postdoc, PhD students & a research assistant to study the molecular evolution of cell adhesion using marine invertebrates + comparative genomics.

🔗: clarkelab.com/join/

Please repost!

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Reposted by Nat Clarke

Babli Adhikary @babliadhikary.bsky.social · 3d

Are you interested in how multicellular vertices resolve in epithelia?
Checkout our recent bioRxiv preprint www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
(Scroll down to see some cool videos)

PAK4 promotes vertex remodeling to maintain epithelial integrity and barrier function

Cell-cell junctions are essential for epithelial integrity and barrier function, but the mechanisms regulating their remodeling remain unclear. Here, we investigated the role of the junctional kinase ...

www.biorxiv.org

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Reposted by Nat Clarke

Thibaut Brunet @thibautbrunet.bsky.social · 3d

Latest from ours: www.cell.com/cell-reports...

This is two stories in one: a case study/cautionary tale on developing genetic tools in new organisms, and the first hint at a gene regulatory network for choanoflagellate multicellular development (which turn out to involve a Hippo/YAP/ECM loop!) A 🧵

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Nat Clarke @natclarke.bsky.social · 3d

Amazing! Excited to read this. Congrats to you and the team!

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Reposted by Nat Clarke

ulrichtechnau.bsky.social @ulrichtechnau.bsky.social · 27d

We knew that cnidarians have stunning regenerative capacities. But the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying the self-organization of gastruloids of Nematostella surprised us. A story of cell sorting and Notch signaling. Please check out the work of Sanjay's PhD work: doi.org/10.1101/2025...

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Nat Clarke @natclarke.bsky.social · 27d

So excited for you! Beautiful website!

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Reposted by Nat Clarke

Laurent Formery @laurentformery.bsky.social · 27d

I am very happy to announce that the Echinox Lab will open in the BIOM unit at @obs-banyuls.fr in January 2026!! 🥳

We will use several echinoderm species to study animal body plan evolution.
🔽 Check our brand new lab website if you want to learn more about our future research
www.echinox.org

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Reposted by Nat Clarke

Thibaut Brunet @thibautbrunet.bsky.social · 29d

New short paper from our lab @currentbiology.bsky.social, in which we discover of a new mode of cell motility for choanoflagellates: flagellar gliding. www.cell.com/current-biol... - A 🧵

Flagellar gliding in choanoflagellates

Freire-Delgado and Brunet discover a new mode of cell motility in choanoflagellates, the closest relatives of animals. Under mild confinement, choanoflagellate move over surfaces without cell deformat...

www.cell.com

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Nat Clarke @natclarke.bsky.social · Sep 4

Beautiful work! Congrats to the whole team 🍾

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Reposted by Nat Clarke

paveltomancak.bsky.social @paveltomancak.bsky.social · Sep 4

We are all super happy and proud to see our work on the function and evolution of the #cephalic #furrow published in @nature.com. Let me say a few things about the background and history of this work on the #Evolution_of_Morphogenesis (1/12)

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Reposted by Nat Clarke

Raphaël Clément @raphclement.bsky.social · Aug 27

Mechanosensation and fast reorientation of ciliary structures: Marvin's work on the surprising locomotion capabilities of Trichoplax, an animal without neurons!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

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Reposted by Nat Clarke

genikhovich.bsky.social @genikhovich.bsky.social · Aug 27

www.nature.com/articles/s41... Cool paper by @emmanuelhaillot.bsky.social et al. from Uli Technau's group. @tclebedeva.bsky.social and I were also involved 🙃

Segregation of endoderm and mesoderm germ layer identities in the diploblast Nematostella vectensis - Nature Communications

Recent work suggested that diploblast embryos (Cnidaria) may have germ layers that are similar to those seen in bilaterians, but how these are specified remained unclear. Here, they use scRNA-seq and ...

www.nature.com

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Reposted by Nat Clarke

闵娅(Min Ya; Minya) PhD @minyaaa.bsky.social · Aug 12

My sister department EEB is hiring an animal evo-devo assistant prof! I'm the plant evo-devo person on the SC and happy to answer any questions! (spoiler alert: This is a GREAT place to be and with fantastic colleagues & support!!!!) @socdevbio.bsky.social
illinois.csod.com/ux/ats/caree...

Assistant Professor, Evolution, Ecology & Behavior

Duties & Responsibilities

illinois.csod.com

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Reposted by Nat Clarke

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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Reposted by Nat Clarke

Gautam Dey @gautamdey.bsky.social · Aug 7

Want to acquire #ExM images like this and help us understand the true extent of cytoskeletal diversity across the tree of life? This position might be for you!

embl.wd103.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/EMBL/j...

With @dudinlab.bsky.social
@embl.org @biology-unige.bsky.social @moorefound.bsky.social

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Nat Clarke @natclarke.bsky.social · Aug 8

Gorgeous!!

Reposted by Nat Clarke

Omaya Dudin 𓂆 ¦🍉¦🦠¦🔬¦ @dudinlab.bsky.social · Aug 7

Join our crazy beautiful project of ExM Atlas !
One more position to fill, this time for a Research Technician at @embl.org in @gautamdey.bsky.social lab.

Come have fun with us !.

Gautam Dey @gautamdey.bsky.social · Aug 7

Want to acquire #ExM images like this and help us understand the true extent of cytoskeletal diversity across the tree of life? This position might be for you!

embl.wd103.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/EMBL/j...

With @dudinlab.bsky.social
@embl.org @biology-unige.bsky.social @moorefound.bsky.social

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Reposted by Nat Clarke

A. Sánchez Alvarado @planaria1.bsky.social · Aug 6

Evolution’s eye game is wild, but mollusks take it to another level

CRISPR in apple snails gives us a new model to dissect how nature rebuilds complex organs like the camera-type eyes we humans possess

It turns out Evolution doesn’t just innovate, it rewinds, remixes, & regenerates

rdcu.be/ezw0t

A genetically tractable non-vertebrate system to study complete camera-type eye regeneration

Nature Communications - Accorsi et al. show that the apple snail Pomacea canaliculata has eyes similar to humans and can fully regenerate them. They then developed genetic tools to establish these...

url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com

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Reposted by Nat Clarke

Bhamla Lab @ Georgia Tech @bhamlalab.bsky.social · Jul 30

Hiring 4 postdocs — organismal biophysics, soft robotics, frugal Raman diagnostics, or your own bold idea.

3-year funding, $65K+ benefits. GT (Atlanta) now → CU Boulder BioFrontiers Institute in Fall ’26.

PDF/details in next post. Tag/share if someone comes to mind. 🧪🪲🪳#livingphysics

Recruitment poster for the Bhamla Lab. Top shows Georgia Tech and CU Boulder logos. Main headline: “Hiring Multiple Postdoctoral Researchers: Organismal Biomechanics, Soft Robotics, and Raman Diagnostics.” Left column lists four roles—Organismal Biology, Bioinspired Engineering, Raman Diagnostics, and a Curiosity‑Based slot—plus note of 3‑year funding from DARPA, NSF, NIH, and Schmidt. Right side features a vintage collage of a Victorian‑era scientist with robotic arm, insects, and globe, and a circular “Physics of Life” diagram linking biology, physics, engineering, and mathematics. Tan background, Bhamla Lab crest at top.

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Nat Clarke @natclarke.bsky.social · Jul 17

Thanks! I’m currently in the middle of deciding on scopes for the lab, so very useful to know what others are getting

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Nat Clarke @natclarke.bsky.social · Jul 17

Very nice! Congrats! Just out of curiosity, what features make it optimal for ExM?

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Nat Clarke @natclarke.bsky.social · Jul 16

I like to use JalView. When I want to be really meticulous about appearance, I export as a SVG file and edit it in Illustrator.

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Reposted by Nat Clarke

Scott Nichols @scottnichols.bsky.social · Jul 16

Please help get the word out - We are hiring at all levels (graduate students, technicians, and postdocs)! If you are interested in sponges, cell biology, evolution, immunity, and symbiosis, please don’t hesitate to contact me to learn more.

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Reposted by Nat Clarke

The Marine Biological Association @thembauk.bsky.social · Jul 16

🔬 We're Hiring: Become the next MBA Anne Warner Research Fellow

You’ll be at the forefront of groundbreaking research, leading a team of scientists to unlock new insights in the realms of cell and molecular biology.

Apply by 17th September 2025

mymba.mba.ac.uk/job/mba-anne...

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