Vasilis Kokkoris
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vkokkoris.bsky.social
Vasilis Kokkoris
@vkokkoris.bsky.social
Assistant Professor @VU Amsterdam
Fungi, Ecology, Genetics, Microscopy, Symbiosis. #Scientist, #educator, #artist and #philosophy lover! 🌱🍄🔬👨‍🔬🎹🎵🏳️‍🌈
https://www.vasilis-kokkoris.com/
Pinned
I had such fun thinking, reading and writing this Tansley Review on #arbuscular #mycorrhizal #fungal mycelia. We need a more fungal-centric view to better understand not only the AM fungi, but also their many ecological roles.
@newphyt.bsky.social

🔗 nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/share/DHGB3S....
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
Coming to the @egu.eu General Assembly in 2026? Consider submitting an abstract to our mycorrhizae session if you are working on these organisms and their linkages to ecosystem functioning. Last year, this new session was a huge hit, so let's make year two even better!
November 4, 2025 at 2:16 PM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
I had such fun thinking, reading and writing this Tansley Review on #arbuscular #mycorrhizal #fungal mycelia. We need a more fungal-centric view to better understand not only the AM fungi, but also their many ecological roles.
@newphyt.bsky.social

🔗 nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/share/DHGB3S....
October 30, 2025 at 4:56 PM
Grateful to receive the KNAW Early Career Award 2025, recognizing my research on fungi and commitment to mentorship! Special thanks to @tobykiers.bsky.social, @thomasshimizu.bsky.social, @anilevetu.bsky.social and to our amazing lab team @vuamsterdam.bsky.social
👏 Twaalf jonge onderzoekers zijn door de KNAW onderscheiden met een 𝗞𝗡𝗔𝗪 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱. Met deze prijs erkent de KNAW hun wetenschappelijke talent maar ook hun rol als bijv. docent.
Benieuwd naar hun onderzoek? Kijk dan hier: www.knaw.nl/nl/nieuws/di...
October 16, 2025 at 10:18 AM
Vikos Gorge is the deepest canyon in the world relative to its width — a UNESCO Global Geopark and a natural wonder carved by the Voidomatis River! Thrilled to be out here with @spun.earth mapping endemic fungal networks and sampling in this incredible ecosystem 🇬🇷 #Zagori #VikosGorge #biodiversity
Recently, we mapped endemic fungal networks in Zagori 🇬🇷 with @seanmaston.bsky.social, @vkokkoris.bsky.social and team.

Vikos Gorge is a hotspot for endangered species, with underground systems supported by rock formations ~160 million yrs old.

We're now returning to cover more ground.
October 10, 2025 at 11:27 AM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
🚨 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
September 8, 2025 at 10:24 AM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
Over 70% of Earth's ecoregions have yet to be sampled for arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi.

By analyzing eDNA sample locations, we found most soils are unsampled. Drylands are especially overlooked despite covering almost 1/3 of the Earth's terrestrial land.

academic.oup.com/femsle/artic...
September 2, 2025 at 7:57 AM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
Celebrating the small wins in academia….a reminder to myself (and maybe you….)

Please share with someone you think might also need this reminder :)

open.substack.com/pub/matthias...
Celebrating the small wins in academia
A little reminder...
open.substack.com
August 21, 2025 at 9:14 AM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
#Viewpoint: Bring back the #phenotype

César Marín & Michael J. Wade 👇

📖 nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

#LatestIssue #PlantScience
June 4, 2025 at 1:31 PM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
Our new newsletter is now published!
Dig into the latest updates on IMS’s 20th anniversary, ICOM2026 preparations, our new website & logo, top 10 research papers, and upcoming events. Read more at mycorrhizas.org/news. Stay connected! #Mycorrhiza
July 23, 2025 at 7:17 PM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
Who lives underground?

Find out now in our new paper published in @nature.com.

Key finding: 90% of predicted mycorrhizal biodiversity hotspots lie outside protected areas.

Read here: buff.ly/WmDqAP3 🧵
July 23, 2025 at 3:20 PM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
The database of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in Australia is out!

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

You can access data summaries via the website www.ausamf.com

We have data from 610 sites with data from another 500 locations to be added by the end of the year!

Thanks to all collaborators
AusAMF: The Database of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungal Communities in Australia
Motivation Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi are central to plant nutrient acquisition, soil carbon dynamics, and ecosystem resilience. Yet, their biogeography remains incompletely characterised, pa...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
July 17, 2025 at 5:33 AM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
I found a cool cordyceps on a stink bug the other day! Pretty rad! What do you think?
July 14, 2025 at 4:53 PM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
🚨 Final days to register! ⌛️
Don’t wait until the last minute ⏰ —secure your spot and get ready to connect with scientists from around the world in stunning Crete! 🌍🧫

Let’s advance fungal biology together!
🔗 ifbc2025.maich.gr
📣 REGISTER NOW!

🔁 Share to reach the whole myco-community!

#IFBC25
July 5, 2025 at 3:58 AM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
🌱 Hello, BlueSky! 👋
We’re excited to join this space and connect with new communities!
To celebrate, we’re launching our new logo and completely redesigned website
Now available in English, Spanish & French
Take a look 👉 mycorrhizas.org
We’re just getting started here — follow us for updates!
July 3, 2025 at 9:31 PM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
New paper out! @plantspeopleplanet.bsky.social
Led by @aguilart.bsky.social

We argue mycelial network connectivity can define functional groups of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. We explore how different fungi balance efficiency vs. resilience.

nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Connecting the dots: Network structure as a functional trait in arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi
Soil health and sustainable land management are critical to addressing global challenges such as food security, climate resilience, and biodiversity loss. Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi form under...
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
July 2, 2025 at 9:42 PM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
July issue of @cp-trendsmicrobiol.bsky.social is now online, with our review by @xinmingxu.bsky.social @neftalyl.bsky.social on Composing a microbial symphony and a matching cover illustration by @lizahaart.bsky.social

#SynCom #PlantMicrobiome #MicrobiomeEcology at #LeidenBiology
July 1, 2025 at 2:53 PM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
Spent last week at the microscope 🔬✨, and seeing arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi up close for the first time—hyphae, arbuscules, vesicles—was absolutely mind-blowing. Small but mighty partners of plant roots 🌿. Sharing a few of my favourite shots.
#Mycorrhiza #fungi
July 1, 2025 at 7:20 AM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
Measuring physical properties of fungal network has never been easier and with that, an opportunity to re-define fungal functional diversity. Check our contribution on this issue for AMF: nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

As always, a fun collab with @frewecologist.bsky.social
Connecting the dots: Network structure as a functional trait in arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi
Soil health and sustainable land management are critical to addressing global challenges such as food security, climate resilience, and biodiversity loss. Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi form under...
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
July 1, 2025 at 7:30 AM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
‘Wildest thing’: solar-powered slug steals chloroplasts and stores them for emergencies
doi.org/10.1038/d415...

A comment on this @cellpress.bsky.social paper: "A host organelle integrates stolen chloroplasts for animal photosynthesis"
doi.org/10.1016/j.ce...
June 26, 2025 at 11:59 AM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
Excited to share that I am taking on a new role as Editor in Chief of npj Soil Ecology, a new journal dedicated to communicating high-quality research and scholarship exploring all aspects of the ecology of soils from gene to ecosystem scales.

www.nature.com/npjsoilecol/
June 25, 2025 at 5:26 PM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
So happy I had a chance to contribute to this review! Nice summary and thoughts on past, present and future attempts to transform #arbuscular #mycorrhizal #fungi 🍄🧬
🧪🧬Should we reignite genetic manipulation attempts on #arbuscular #mycorrhizal #fungi? Our review in @cp-trendsmicrobiol.bsky.social suggests the time is ripe.

With: Midge Woodward @paszkowskilab.bsky.social @alexdallaire.bsky.social

Open access🔗 doi.org/10.1016/j.ti...

#scicomm
June 23, 2025 at 12:33 AM
🧪🧬Should we reignite genetic manipulation attempts on #arbuscular #mycorrhizal #fungi? Our review in @cp-trendsmicrobiol.bsky.social suggests the time is ripe.

With: Midge Woodward @paszkowskilab.bsky.social @alexdallaire.bsky.social

Open access🔗 doi.org/10.1016/j.ti...

#scicomm
June 20, 2025 at 6:37 AM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris
What you always wanted to know about fungal sex, but were afraid to ask...

🍄❤️🍄 from our #fungi special by Sheng, Sun Marco Coelho, Márcia David-Palma, Jun Huang, Zhuyun Bian and Joe Heitman

www.cell.com/current-biol...
Fungal sexual reproduction and mating-type loci
Sun et al. highlight the tremendous diversity of fungal reproductive modes and the underlying genetics, in particular the organization and function of mating-type loci.
www.cell.com
June 16, 2025 at 4:03 PM
Reposted by Vasilis Kokkoris