Maurice Elphick
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mauriceelphick.bsky.social
Maurice Elphick
@mauriceelphick.bsky.social
130 followers 120 following 36 posts

Biologist
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=SBj_WCcAAAAJ&hl=en

Videos
Neuroscience 32%
Agriculture 22%
Posts Replies Media Videos

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

arnonelab.bsky.social
Arnone Lab @arnonelab.bsky.social · 5d
Our study, just published in #ScienceAdvances and funded by @hfspo.bsky.social, explores the post metamorphic cell composition of the sea urchin juvenile, revealing that its body is head-like. Long considered brainless creatures, they’re all brain instead!
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Single-nucleus profiling highlights the all-brain echinoderm nervous system
A sea urchin is a head with a brain-like organization and a vertebrate-type retinal signature.
www.science.org

mauriceelphick.bsky.social
Maurice Elphick @mauriceelphick.bsky.social · 6d
The website for the 12th European Conference on #Echinoderms (London, July 2026) has gone live today. I am pleased to be involved as a member of the organising committee. Please spread the word: www.euroechino.net
12th European Echinoderm Meeting 2026
description
www.euroechino.net

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

alexdemendoza.bsky.social
Alex de Mendoza @alexdemendoza.bsky.social · 21d
Come join the #LondonEvoDevo network half day meeting, hosted at @ucl.ac.uk on Friday November 7th, 2025. Submit your abstract by Oct 27th (or your interest in joining) here: forms.gle/TRbdrCkQTcY2.... Friendly vibes and free registration. More info here: londonevodevo.co.uk.
LondonEvoDevo
meeting's website
londonevodevo.co.uk

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

msarscentre.bsky.social
Michael Sars Centre @msarscentre.bsky.social · Oct 10
It was fantastic welcoming back Chema Martin @chemamd.bsky.social from @qmulsbbs.bsky.social at the Centre today 👏 He shared with us his latest work on spiralian larvae evolution, with fascinating insights on the timing of gene expression during development. Thank you for visiting us!
Chema Martin, wearing a dark blue sweater and green trousers, presents his work in front of a seated audience. Behind him, parts of a slide is visible on a screen. It shows a schematic of a planktonic larva.

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

alexdemendoza.bsky.social
Alex de Mendoza @alexdemendoza.bsky.social · Oct 8
Thrilled to share that the lab has been awarded a @wellcometrust.bsky.social Discovery Award to keep exploring the evolution of 6-methyladenine #6mA in Eukaryotes. We'll open postdoc (3️⃣) and tech (1️⃣) positions to start in 2026, please share with candidates or reach out if you’d like to join us.

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

biorxiv-evobio.bsky.social
bioRxiv Evolutionary Biology @biorxiv-evobio.bsky.social · Sep 29
From Neuropeptides to Toxins: Illuminating the Origins of Venom Complexity in Cone Snails https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.09.26.678268v1

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

christyschnitz.bsky.social
Christy Schnitzler @christyschnitz.bsky.social · Sep 29
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!

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

croce-urchin.bsky.social
Jenifer Croce @croce-urchin.bsky.social · Sep 26
Congratulations to Oğuz Akar who was awarded the title of Doctor in Philosophy in Cell and Biology yesterday!

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

jimalkhalili.bsky.social
Jim Al-Khalili @jimalkhalili.bsky.social · Sep 23
🧪 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

mauriceelphick.bsky.social
Maurice Elphick @mauriceelphick.bsky.social · Sep 15
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

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

danielkrentzel.bsky.social
Daniel Krentzel @danielkrentzel.bsky.social · Sep 10
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

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

qmul.bsky.social
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
Black square with the writing 'Queen Mary University of London Shortlisted for University of the Year' written on it in white, along with the Time Higher Education Awards 2025 logo in gold and white

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

ferdix.bsky.social
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

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

alexdemendoza.bsky.social
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

mauriceelphick.bsky.social
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

mauriceelphick.bsky.social
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

mauriceelphick.bsky.social
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...

mauriceelphick.bsky.social
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.

Reposted by Anthony Ricciardi, Maurice R. Elphick

linneansociety.bsky.social
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).

mauriceelphick.bsky.social
Maurice Elphick @mauriceelphick.bsky.social · Jun 28
Congratulations Pedro. Much deserved.

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

pedromartinezserra.bsky.social
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. 🥂🥂

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

pawelburkhardt.bsky.social
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

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

imranrahman.bsky.social
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

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

invertevo.bsky.social
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.

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

jexpbiol.bsky.social
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.

mauriceelphick.bsky.social
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

mauriceelphick.bsky.social
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

mauriceelphick.bsky.social
Maurice Elphick @mauriceelphick.bsky.social · Jun 2
Here in the School of Biological & Behavioural Sciences at QMUL we are seeking to appoint an Environmental Analytical Facility Technician. Please spread the word and encourage applications from suitable candidates. Deadline for applications is June 13th.

qmul-jobs.tal.net/vx/mobile-0/...
Environmental Analytical Facility Technician - QMUL Jobs
ID: 6011. Title: Environmental Analytical Facility Technician. Application Deadline:
qmul-jobs.tal.net

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

allancarbal.bsky.social
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.

Reposted by Maurice R. Elphick

matous-elphick.bsky.social
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