The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
@rokaslab.bsky.social
The Laboratory of Antonis Rokas at Vanderbilt University. Tweets should be interpreted as bookmarks, not as endorsements. All opinions are Antonis'.
http://www.rokaslab.org
http://www.rokaslab.org
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
With @linder-surprise.bsky.social and the @rokaslab.bsky.social, we recently expanded upon an analysis where glucose uptake rates were inversely correlated with the cell surface area-to-volume ratio, testing 282 species in the Saccharomycotina yeast subphylum.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org
November 11, 2025 at 4:38 PM
With @linder-surprise.bsky.social and the @rokaslab.bsky.social, we recently expanded upon an analysis where glucose uptake rates were inversely correlated with the cell surface area-to-volume ratio, testing 282 species in the Saccharomycotina yeast subphylum.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
New work led by members of the @rokaslab.bsky.social! ☺️ 1,154 yeast genomes in the Saccharomycotina subphylum were surveyed for their relationship between reduced gene repertoires broadly associated with genome stability functions and elevated evolutionary rates.🧬
academic.oup.com/mbe/advance-...
academic.oup.com/mbe/advance-...
Stable hypermutators revealed by the genomic landscape of genes involved in genome stability among yeast species
Abstract. Mutator phenotypes are short-lived due to the rapid accumulation of deleterious mutations. Yet, recent observations reveal that certain fungi can
academic.oup.com
November 11, 2025 at 4:51 PM
New work led by members of the @rokaslab.bsky.social! ☺️ 1,154 yeast genomes in the Saccharomycotina subphylum were surveyed for their relationship between reduced gene repertoires broadly associated with genome stability functions and elevated evolutionary rates.🧬
academic.oup.com/mbe/advance-...
academic.oup.com/mbe/advance-...
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
My book 'The Tree of Life' is published in the USA and Canada today.
Available as book, on kindle and as audio.
I would be really grateful for reposts.
www.amazon.com/Tree-Life-So...
www.amazon.ca/Tree-Life-So...
Available as book, on kindle and as audio.
I would be really grateful for reposts.
www.amazon.com/Tree-Life-So...
www.amazon.ca/Tree-Life-So...
November 11, 2025 at 12:01 PM
My book 'The Tree of Life' is published in the USA and Canada today.
Available as book, on kindle and as audio.
I would be really grateful for reposts.
www.amazon.com/Tree-Life-So...
www.amazon.ca/Tree-Life-So...
Available as book, on kindle and as audio.
I would be really grateful for reposts.
www.amazon.com/Tree-Life-So...
www.amazon.ca/Tree-Life-So...
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
Mini @rokaslab.bsky.social reunion with Dr. Abigail Lind @abigailllind.bsky.social
Amazing seminar... What is in our gut and what is it doing!?
I assume our students are flocking to try EukDetect!
Amazing seminar... What is in our gut and what is it doing!?
I assume our students are flocking to try EukDetect!
November 7, 2025 at 7:40 PM
Mini @rokaslab.bsky.social reunion with Dr. Abigail Lind @abigailllind.bsky.social
Amazing seminar... What is in our gut and what is it doing!?
I assume our students are flocking to try EukDetect!
Amazing seminar... What is in our gut and what is it doing!?
I assume our students are flocking to try EukDetect!
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
Pleased to share our preprint which builds off of recent work connecting glucose uptake rates and cell morphology across yeast species:
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org
November 6, 2025 at 3:05 PM
Pleased to share our preprint which builds off of recent work connecting glucose uptake rates and cell morphology across yeast species:
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
Welsey Roberts presents his evidence that teaching #evolution works and it doesn't have to be religion OR evolution. @ncse.bsky.social #teaching #scicomm
November 4, 2025 at 2:56 PM
Welsey Roberts presents his evidence that teaching #evolution works and it doesn't have to be religion OR evolution. @ncse.bsky.social #teaching #scicomm
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
NEW Publication🥳
Rapid #evolution is thought to be disadvantageous due to the accumulation of deleterious #mutations. We identify multiple lineages of rapidly evolving and stable #yeast that are many millions of years old
🔗: academic.oup.com/mbe/advance-...
Rapid #evolution is thought to be disadvantageous due to the accumulation of deleterious #mutations. We identify multiple lineages of rapidly evolving and stable #yeast that are many millions of years old
🔗: academic.oup.com/mbe/advance-...
November 3, 2025 at 6:29 PM
NEW Publication🥳
Rapid #evolution is thought to be disadvantageous due to the accumulation of deleterious #mutations. We identify multiple lineages of rapidly evolving and stable #yeast that are many millions of years old
🔗: academic.oup.com/mbe/advance-...
Rapid #evolution is thought to be disadvantageous due to the accumulation of deleterious #mutations. We identify multiple lineages of rapidly evolving and stable #yeast that are many millions of years old
🔗: academic.oup.com/mbe/advance-...
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
We just joined Southern Hemisphere efforts and co-authored a review on yeast research from this side of the world 🌎 Turns out, there’s a lot to tell—and much more to come! Huge thanks to Varela’s team and @pablo-villa.bsky.social for the great collaboration 🍻
academic.oup.com/femsyr/artic...
academic.oup.com/femsyr/artic...
The Southern Hemisphere yeast frontier: from nature dwellers to accomplished fermenters
This mini-review discusses the different yeast species found in the Southern Hemisphere.
academic.oup.com
October 30, 2025 at 11:50 PM
We just joined Southern Hemisphere efforts and co-authored a review on yeast research from this side of the world 🌎 Turns out, there’s a lot to tell—and much more to come! Huge thanks to Varela’s team and @pablo-villa.bsky.social for the great collaboration 🍻
academic.oup.com/femsyr/artic...
academic.oup.com/femsyr/artic...
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
Check out our newest issue where we interview Antonis Rokas, who uses DNA data from fungi, animals, and plants to study the patterns and processes of evolutionary diversity at Vanderbilt University. @rokaslab.bsky.social www.cell.com/current-biol...
Q & A
Interview with Antonis Rokas, who uses DNA data from fungi, animals, and plants to
study the patterns and processes of evolutionary diversity at Vanderbilt University.
www.cell.com
October 31, 2025 at 2:56 PM
Check out our newest issue where we interview Antonis Rokas, who uses DNA data from fungi, animals, and plants to study the patterns and processes of evolutionary diversity at Vanderbilt University. @rokaslab.bsky.social www.cell.com/current-biol...
Registrations and abstract submissions are now open for the always stellar #fungal #genetics conference at lovely Asilomar, CA - March 17-22, 2026. Thank you to @genetics-gsa.bsky.social for the amazing partnership with the fungal community. Hope to see you there!
October 31, 2025 at 6:44 PM
Registrations and abstract submissions are now open for the always stellar #fungal #genetics conference at lovely Asilomar, CA - March 17-22, 2026. Thank you to @genetics-gsa.bsky.social for the amazing partnership with the fungal community. Hope to see you there!
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
I built a small app (GenomeCheck ✅ - github.com/meadm/Genome...) for assessing genome assemblies and catching mislabeled data. It can be run on Streamlit Community Cloud (genomecheck.streamlit.app), Docker (meadm/genomecheck:latest), or locally via the GitHub repo. Let me know what you think!
GitHub - meadm/GenomeCheck: Streamlit app within a docker container for carrying out genome QC and comparisons
Streamlit app within a docker container for carrying out genome QC and comparisons - meadm/GenomeCheck
github.com
October 30, 2025 at 5:13 PM
I built a small app (GenomeCheck ✅ - github.com/meadm/Genome...) for assessing genome assemblies and catching mislabeled data. It can be run on Streamlit Community Cloud (genomecheck.streamlit.app), Docker (meadm/genomecheck:latest), or locally via the GitHub repo. Let me know what you think!
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
Look at how cute this town is where the workshop will be bsky.app/profile/jlst...
October 29, 2025 at 7:26 PM
Look at how cute this town is where the workshop will be bsky.app/profile/jlst...
Great workshop, fantastic location, amazing instructors! If you are interested in obtaining advanced training in phylogenomics / comparative genomics research, apply now!
Come join the Workshop on Phylogenomics in Cesky Krumlov, Czechia, from January 25 through February 7, 2026!
Applications close November 15!
#phylogenetics #evolution #genomics #ai
evomics.org/apply-worksh...
Applications close November 15!
#phylogenetics #evolution #genomics #ai
evomics.org/apply-worksh...
Apply: Workshop on Phylogenomics 2026 - Evolution and Genomics
Application for the 2026 Workshop on Phylogenomics Use this form to apply for the 2026 Workshop on Phylogenomics being held in Cesky Krumlov, Czechia from 25th January through 7th February, ...
evomics.org
October 29, 2025 at 7:49 PM
Great workshop, fantastic location, amazing instructors! If you are interested in obtaining advanced training in phylogenomics / comparative genomics research, apply now!
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
To commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the landmark Scopes “Monkey" Trial, we’ve created a special quiz to test your knowledge! This historic trial sparked a national conversation about science, education, and the role of evolution in the classroom. ncse.ngo/scopes-monke... #Scopes100 #trivia
Scopes "Monkey" Trial Quiz | National Center for Science Education
To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Scopes "Monkey" Trial, NCSE has developed a quiz to help you test your knowledge of this pivotal event. When you're done with the quiz, you can check out mo...
ncse.ngo
October 29, 2025 at 2:54 PM
To commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the landmark Scopes “Monkey" Trial, we’ve created a special quiz to test your knowledge! This historic trial sparked a national conversation about science, education, and the role of evolution in the classroom. ncse.ngo/scopes-monke... #Scopes100 #trivia
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
Hot of the Press!
Check it out! From @rokaslab.bsky.social and Oberlies Lab @uncgresearch.bsky.social
Machine-Readable Structural Information Is Essential for Natural Products Research | Journal of Natural Products pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
Check it out! From @rokaslab.bsky.social and Oberlies Lab @uncgresearch.bsky.social
Machine-Readable Structural Information Is Essential for Natural Products Research | Journal of Natural Products pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
Machine-Readable Structural Information Is Essential for Natural Products Research
Structural drawings of secondary metabolites encapsulate a wealth of information, but their static nature hinders their sharing and reuse. At a time when research increasingly relies on, and benefits from, access to comprehensive natural products “big data”, this hindrance is contrary to the norms of science. This Perspective discusses current challenges in sharing and accessing structure data and offers a simple solution, namely, publishing machine-readable text descriptors for new secondary metabolites. Requiring such descriptors will be straightforward to implement for both authors and publishers and will help derive even greater value from the efforts expended to understand the chemistry of Nature.
pubs.acs.org
October 20, 2025 at 3:57 PM
Hot of the Press!
Check it out! From @rokaslab.bsky.social and Oberlies Lab @uncgresearch.bsky.social
Machine-Readable Structural Information Is Essential for Natural Products Research | Journal of Natural Products pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
Check it out! From @rokaslab.bsky.social and Oberlies Lab @uncgresearch.bsky.social
Machine-Readable Structural Information Is Essential for Natural Products Research | Journal of Natural Products pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
Population structure in a fungal human pathogen is associated with clinical prevalence
#Aspergillus flavus
@annemakerofhats.bsky.social @ameliabarberphd.bsky.social @rokaslab.bsky.social
#fungi #infection #PopulationGenomics #mycology
#Aspergillus flavus
@annemakerofhats.bsky.social @ameliabarberphd.bsky.social @rokaslab.bsky.social
#fungi #infection #PopulationGenomics #mycology
Population structure in a fungal human pathogen is potentially linked to pathogenicity - Nature Communications
Genetic diversity between clinical and environmental fungal isolates of Aspergillus flavus is poorly studied. Here, the authors analysed genomic data from a global set of clinical and environmental A. flavus isolates and report that clinical prevalence is associated with population structure.
bit.ly
October 16, 2025 at 2:47 PM
Population structure in a fungal human pathogen is associated with clinical prevalence
#Aspergillus flavus
@annemakerofhats.bsky.social @ameliabarberphd.bsky.social @rokaslab.bsky.social
#fungi #infection #PopulationGenomics #mycology
#Aspergillus flavus
@annemakerofhats.bsky.social @ameliabarberphd.bsky.social @rokaslab.bsky.social
#fungi #infection #PopulationGenomics #mycology
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
I'm very excited to announce that UNC Biology has 6 faculty positions open this year! The first is for an Asst Professor who studies organismal resilience using an integrative approach 1/n
unc.peopleadmin.com/postings/307...
unc.peopleadmin.com/postings/307...
October 12, 2025 at 2:20 PM
I'm very excited to announce that UNC Biology has 6 faculty positions open this year! The first is for an Asst Professor who studies organismal resilience using an integrative approach 1/n
unc.peopleadmin.com/postings/307...
unc.peopleadmin.com/postings/307...
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
Want to understand how entire fungal chromosomes can be horizontally transferred?
Join us to unravel the mechanism/consequences of horizontal chromosome transfer in a fungal pathogen as part of an ERC-funded project. Postdoc/PhD positions available.
fungal-evolutionary-genetics.de/open-positio...
Join us to unravel the mechanism/consequences of horizontal chromosome transfer in a fungal pathogen as part of an ERC-funded project. Postdoc/PhD positions available.
fungal-evolutionary-genetics.de/open-positio...
Open Positions
ERC-funded project on the mechanism of horizontal transfer of entire fungal chromosomes PhD PostDoc
fungal-evolutionary-genetics.de
October 13, 2025 at 9:39 AM
Want to understand how entire fungal chromosomes can be horizontally transferred?
Join us to unravel the mechanism/consequences of horizontal chromosome transfer in a fungal pathogen as part of an ERC-funded project. Postdoc/PhD positions available.
fungal-evolutionary-genetics.de/open-positio...
Join us to unravel the mechanism/consequences of horizontal chromosome transfer in a fungal pathogen as part of an ERC-funded project. Postdoc/PhD positions available.
fungal-evolutionary-genetics.de/open-positio...
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
We had an amazing @official-smbe.bsky.social satellite meeting in Puerto Varas. Great science, colleagues & Patagonian experience. Thanks the organizers @pablo-villa.bsky.social et al & SMBE for putting this together!
October 10, 2025 at 11:46 AM
We had an amazing @official-smbe.bsky.social satellite meeting in Puerto Varas. Great science, colleagues & Patagonian experience. Thanks the organizers @pablo-villa.bsky.social et al & SMBE for putting this together!
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
If you saw my talk on the population structure of #Aspergillus flavus at Fungal Genetics in 2024, you might have heard someone ask "how does Aspergillus oryzae fit into the picture?"
If so, you heard my answer was "wait and see--we're working on this exact topic"
Well, the wait is over! Preprint ⬇️
If so, you heard my answer was "wait and see--we're working on this exact topic"
Well, the wait is over! Preprint ⬇️
Population-Specific Transcriptomic Shifts Underlie Secondary Metabolic Diversification in Aspergillus flavus and the Domestication of Aspergillus oryzae https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.10.02.680074v1
October 7, 2025 at 7:50 PM
If you saw my talk on the population structure of #Aspergillus flavus at Fungal Genetics in 2024, you might have heard someone ask "how does Aspergillus oryzae fit into the picture?"
If so, you heard my answer was "wait and see--we're working on this exact topic"
Well, the wait is over! Preprint ⬇️
If so, you heard my answer was "wait and see--we're working on this exact topic"
Well, the wait is over! Preprint ⬇️
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
What started as a project characterizing variation in metabolic rates across yeasts turned into an interesting story about convergent evolution acting on the same key genes through distinct molecular mechanisms with @hittingerlab.bsky.social & @rokaslab.bsky.social.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Convergent evolution of aerobic fermentation through divergent mechanisms acting on key shared glycolytic genes
As the tree of life becomes increasingly accessible to molecular investigations, describing mechanisms underlying evolutionary convergence and constraint will be crucial to understanding diversificati...
www.biorxiv.org
October 6, 2025 at 5:18 PM
What started as a project characterizing variation in metabolic rates across yeasts turned into an interesting story about convergent evolution acting on the same key genes through distinct molecular mechanisms with @hittingerlab.bsky.social & @rokaslab.bsky.social.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
The Department of Biology at the University of Kentucky is hiring a Microbiologist (broadly defined). Microbial eco-evo folks, this is your sign to come work with us. Not in the search committee, but happy to answer questions.
ukjobs.uky.edu/postings/600...
#microbiology #ecology
ukjobs.uky.edu/postings/600...
#microbiology #ecology
Assistant or Associate Professor in Microbiology
The Department of Biology in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, KY seeks to fill a tenure-eligible faculty position at the Assistant or Associate Professor le...
ukjobs.uky.edu
October 1, 2025 at 3:20 PM
The Department of Biology at the University of Kentucky is hiring a Microbiologist (broadly defined). Microbial eco-evo folks, this is your sign to come work with us. Not in the search committee, but happy to answer questions.
ukjobs.uky.edu/postings/600...
#microbiology #ecology
ukjobs.uky.edu/postings/600...
#microbiology #ecology
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
Assistant Professor- Department of Plant Biology
Duties & Responsibilities
illinois.csod.com
September 29, 2025 at 6:17 PM
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
Our lab is hiring!!
We are looking for a research assistant who will be involved with our experimental evolution studies on how stress affects population dynamics in E. coli.
Great opportunity for recent grads!
E-mail for more info and apply here:
ecsr.fa.us2.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/Candid...
We are looking for a research assistant who will be involved with our experimental evolution studies on how stress affects population dynamics in E. coli.
Great opportunity for recent grads!
E-mail for more info and apply here:
ecsr.fa.us2.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/Candid...
September 29, 2025 at 2:11 PM
Our lab is hiring!!
We are looking for a research assistant who will be involved with our experimental evolution studies on how stress affects population dynamics in E. coli.
Great opportunity for recent grads!
E-mail for more info and apply here:
ecsr.fa.us2.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/Candid...
We are looking for a research assistant who will be involved with our experimental evolution studies on how stress affects population dynamics in E. coli.
Great opportunity for recent grads!
E-mail for more info and apply here:
ecsr.fa.us2.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/Candid...
Reposted by The Rokas Lab at Vanderbilt University
Eis: machine learning to reverse-engineer #evolution. Brassington (@amandalea.bsky.social): Evolutionary mismatch. Rose: Genome-scale models. Bruder (@megbehri.bsky.social): Computational & experimental microbial evolution.
September 26, 2025 at 8:36 PM
Eis: machine learning to reverse-engineer #evolution. Brassington (@amandalea.bsky.social): Evolutionary mismatch. Rose: Genome-scale models. Bruder (@megbehri.bsky.social): Computational & experimental microbial evolution.