L. Felipe Benites
@lfelipeb.bsky.social
Postdoc at @Beyond_ASU | Gardener and Evolutionary Biologist | Astrobiology | Virus evolution | Children's book author | Experimental musician | Brasileiro.
https://lfbenites.com/
https://lfbenites.com/
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
On Wednesday, Nov 19, 2025, at 7 pm (PST), Dr. Alfonso Davila (NASA Ames Research Center) will give a free, illustrated, non-technical lecture entitled:
"The Search for Life on Saturn’s Intriguing Moon Enceladus"
in the Smithwick Theater at Foothill College, in Los Altos.
#bayarea 🧪
"The Search for Life on Saturn’s Intriguing Moon Enceladus"
in the Smithwick Theater at Foothill College, in Los Altos.
#bayarea 🧪
November 11, 2025 at 8:01 PM
On Wednesday, Nov 19, 2025, at 7 pm (PST), Dr. Alfonso Davila (NASA Ames Research Center) will give a free, illustrated, non-technical lecture entitled:
"The Search for Life on Saturn’s Intriguing Moon Enceladus"
in the Smithwick Theater at Foothill College, in Los Altos.
#bayarea 🧪
"The Search for Life on Saturn’s Intriguing Moon Enceladus"
in the Smithwick Theater at Foothill College, in Los Altos.
#bayarea 🧪
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
🚨vConTACT3 preprint live!🚨(Peer Review soon...!)
vConTACT3 delivers a unified, scalable, and transparent framework for genome-based virus taxonomy — helping translate big viral data into systematic classification.
🔗 Read the preprint: doi.org/10.1101/2025...
Improvements details below 👇
vConTACT3 delivers a unified, scalable, and transparent framework for genome-based virus taxonomy — helping translate big viral data into systematic classification.
🔗 Read the preprint: doi.org/10.1101/2025...
Improvements details below 👇
Scalable and systematic hierarchical virus taxonomy with vConTACT3
Viruses are key players in diverse ecosystems, but studying their impacts is technically and taxonomically challenging. Taxonomic complexities derive from undersampling, diverse DNA and RNA genomes wi...
doi.org
November 7, 2025 at 4:36 PM
🚨vConTACT3 preprint live!🚨(Peer Review soon...!)
vConTACT3 delivers a unified, scalable, and transparent framework for genome-based virus taxonomy — helping translate big viral data into systematic classification.
🔗 Read the preprint: doi.org/10.1101/2025...
Improvements details below 👇
vConTACT3 delivers a unified, scalable, and transparent framework for genome-based virus taxonomy — helping translate big viral data into systematic classification.
🔗 Read the preprint: doi.org/10.1101/2025...
Improvements details below 👇
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
Enjoying Portland’s fall moss before #EntSoc2025! Join me Sunday (8–8:20 AM, Room B114) for my talk on how space and species shape stingless bee colony microbiomes — part of the symposium 'Inside and Out: Roles of Environmental and Gut Symbioses' with lots of great talks!
November 7, 2025 at 9:07 PM
Enjoying Portland’s fall moss before #EntSoc2025! Join me Sunday (8–8:20 AM, Room B114) for my talk on how space and species shape stingless bee colony microbiomes — part of the symposium 'Inside and Out: Roles of Environmental and Gut Symbioses' with lots of great talks!
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
NYC and adjacent friends: I'm thrilled and terrified to be giving a public lecture in Manhattan at 6pm on Wednesday, 19 November. If you feel like coming into the city* for the evening, I'd love to see you there!
*Yes, NYC = "the city" for Jersey girls.
www.simonsfoundation.org/event/trade-...
*Yes, NYC = "the city" for Jersey girls.
www.simonsfoundation.org/event/trade-...
Trade, Borrow, or Steal: How Acquired Metabolism Drives Evolution
Trade, Borrow, or Steal: How Acquired Metabolism Drives Evolution on Simons Foundation
www.simonsfoundation.org
November 3, 2025 at 1:34 AM
NYC and adjacent friends: I'm thrilled and terrified to be giving a public lecture in Manhattan at 6pm on Wednesday, 19 November. If you feel like coming into the city* for the evening, I'd love to see you there!
*Yes, NYC = "the city" for Jersey girls.
www.simonsfoundation.org/event/trade-...
*Yes, NYC = "the city" for Jersey girls.
www.simonsfoundation.org/event/trade-...
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
This paper has been a must! Great collaboration with @mkrupovic.bsky.social and @yifanzhou.bsky.social, a N&V by a legend of halophilic archaea tinyurl.com/yc3dcv72, and one picture of one of our expeditions to Dallol making the cover of the November issue of @natmicrobiol.nature.com
rdcu.be/eLtCH
rdcu.be/eLtCH
November 2, 2025 at 5:52 PM
This paper has been a must! Great collaboration with @mkrupovic.bsky.social and @yifanzhou.bsky.social, a N&V by a legend of halophilic archaea tinyurl.com/yc3dcv72, and one picture of one of our expeditions to Dallol making the cover of the November issue of @natmicrobiol.nature.com
rdcu.be/eLtCH
rdcu.be/eLtCH
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
Can proteins fold and function with half of the amino acid alphabet?
Using only 10 residues, we designed stable, mutation-resilient structures—no aromatics or basics involved.
A minimalist foundation for ancient biology and synthetic design. tinyurl.com/37t8br4v
#ProteinDesign #OriginsOfLife
Using only 10 residues, we designed stable, mutation-resilient structures—no aromatics or basics involved.
A minimalist foundation for ancient biology and synthetic design. tinyurl.com/37t8br4v
#ProteinDesign #OriginsOfLife
Ancient amino acid sets enable stable protein folds
Early proteins likely arose from a chemically limited set of amino acids available through prebiotic chemistry, raising a central question in molecular evolution: could such primitive compositions yie...
tinyurl.com
November 3, 2025 at 4:48 PM
Can proteins fold and function with half of the amino acid alphabet?
Using only 10 residues, we designed stable, mutation-resilient structures—no aromatics or basics involved.
A minimalist foundation for ancient biology and synthetic design. tinyurl.com/37t8br4v
#ProteinDesign #OriginsOfLife
Using only 10 residues, we designed stable, mutation-resilient structures—no aromatics or basics involved.
A minimalist foundation for ancient biology and synthetic design. tinyurl.com/37t8br4v
#ProteinDesign #OriginsOfLife
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
Our lab website is up!
gonzalezpech-lab.com
gonzalezpech-lab.com
The Microbial Symbiosis Laboratory @TXST
gonzalezpech-lab.com
October 27, 2025 at 7:55 PM
Our lab website is up!
gonzalezpech-lab.com
gonzalezpech-lab.com
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
Hi folks! Is anyone recruiting masters students that pay a livable stipend? I have an excellent senior who is an incredible researcher and seeking a position. She is top notch and really interested in mechanistic questions- currently working on Aiptasia, Astrangia and Nematostella.
October 21, 2025 at 1:23 PM
Hi folks! Is anyone recruiting masters students that pay a livable stipend? I have an excellent senior who is an incredible researcher and seeking a position. She is top notch and really interested in mechanistic questions- currently working on Aiptasia, Astrangia and Nematostella.
Here’s my #protist pico tank in the office. It’s home to Laurencia, Codium, Lobophora, Heterosiphonia, Valonia, and my favorite of all, the giant single-celled Acetabularia, also known as the Mermaid’s Wine Glass.
October 17, 2025 at 10:05 PM
Here’s my #protist pico tank in the office. It’s home to Laurencia, Codium, Lobophora, Heterosiphonia, Valonia, and my favorite of all, the giant single-celled Acetabularia, also known as the Mermaid’s Wine Glass.
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
If you are planning to attend GSA Connects 2025 by
@geosociety.bsky.social next week, stop by the 'New Advances in Geobiology' session!
I will be talking about the evolution of skeletons as revealed by fossil biomolecules and biosignatures 🔬🧪🧬! #paleontology #fossils #astrobiology
@geosociety.bsky.social next week, stop by the 'New Advances in Geobiology' session!
I will be talking about the evolution of skeletons as revealed by fossil biomolecules and biosignatures 🔬🧪🧬! #paleontology #fossils #astrobiology
October 17, 2025 at 8:27 PM
If you are planning to attend GSA Connects 2025 by
@geosociety.bsky.social next week, stop by the 'New Advances in Geobiology' session!
I will be talking about the evolution of skeletons as revealed by fossil biomolecules and biosignatures 🔬🧪🧬! #paleontology #fossils #astrobiology
@geosociety.bsky.social next week, stop by the 'New Advances in Geobiology' session!
I will be talking about the evolution of skeletons as revealed by fossil biomolecules and biosignatures 🔬🧪🧬! #paleontology #fossils #astrobiology
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
Our work on viruses and virus satellites of haloarchaea and their DPANN symbionts is out today in Nature Microbiology!
@mkrupovic.bsky.social @deemteam.bsky.social @anagtz.bsky.social
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
@mkrupovic.bsky.social @deemteam.bsky.social @anagtz.bsky.social
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Viruses and virus satellites of haloarchaea and their nanosized DPANN symbionts reveal intricate nested interactions - Nature Microbiology
An exploration of the viromes of haloarchaea and their ultra-small DPANN symbionts reveals plasmid-derived satellites of viruses from both archaeal groups, highlighting the complexity of nested symbio...
www.nature.com
October 17, 2025 at 9:54 AM
Our work on viruses and virus satellites of haloarchaea and their DPANN symbionts is out today in Nature Microbiology!
@mkrupovic.bsky.social @deemteam.bsky.social @anagtz.bsky.social
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
@mkrupovic.bsky.social @deemteam.bsky.social @anagtz.bsky.social
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
1/10 Genome maintenance by telomerase is a fundamental process in nearly all eukaryotes. But where does it come from?
Today, we report the discovery of telomerase homologs in a family of antiviral RTs, revealing an unexpected evolutionary origin in bacteria.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Today, we report the discovery of telomerase homologs in a family of antiviral RTs, revealing an unexpected evolutionary origin in bacteria.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Antiviral reverse transcriptases reveal the evolutionary origin of telomerase
Defense-associated reverse transcriptases (DRTs) employ diverse and distinctive mechanisms of cDNA synthesis to protect bacteria against viral infection. However, much of DRT family diversity remains ...
www.biorxiv.org
October 17, 2025 at 5:22 PM
1/10 Genome maintenance by telomerase is a fundamental process in nearly all eukaryotes. But where does it come from?
Today, we report the discovery of telomerase homologs in a family of antiviral RTs, revealing an unexpected evolutionary origin in bacteria.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Today, we report the discovery of telomerase homologs in a family of antiviral RTs, revealing an unexpected evolutionary origin in bacteria.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
We have recently shown the large potential of organellar genome-resolved metagenomics by assembling 100s of new marine plastid MAGs (ptMAGs), including revealing the new deep-branching algal group leptophytes: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
New deep-branching environmental plastid genomes on the algal tree of life
Marine algae support the entire ocean ecosystem and greatly impact planetary biology. The availability of algae in culture poorly represents their large environmental diversity, and we still have a li...
www.biorxiv.org
October 17, 2025 at 7:33 AM
We have recently shown the large potential of organellar genome-resolved metagenomics by assembling 100s of new marine plastid MAGs (ptMAGs), including revealing the new deep-branching algal group leptophytes: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
We are happy to share our latest work in @nature.com . We study the genomic and cellular basis of facultative symbiosis in Oculina patagonica - a Mediterranean coral remarkable for its ability to survive long periods without algal symbionts. Led by Shani Levy and @xgrau.bsky.social
rdcu.be/eLbaZ
rdcu.be/eLbaZ
October 15, 2025 at 7:58 PM
We are happy to share our latest work in @nature.com . We study the genomic and cellular basis of facultative symbiosis in Oculina patagonica - a Mediterranean coral remarkable for its ability to survive long periods without algal symbionts. Led by Shani Levy and @xgrau.bsky.social
rdcu.be/eLbaZ
rdcu.be/eLbaZ
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
What is the physical basis of death? Can we manipulate cellular rules to avoid it? What does death mean for a machine? Is immortality possible? What does it mean for language, thought, or information to die? My new book @princetonupress.bsky.social is coming soon. press.princeton.edu/books/hardco...
October 15, 2025 at 12:30 AM
What is the physical basis of death? Can we manipulate cellular rules to avoid it? What does death mean for a machine? Is immortality possible? What does it mean for language, thought, or information to die? My new book @princetonupress.bsky.social is coming soon. press.princeton.edu/books/hardco...
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
We're excited to share with everyone a preprint of our manuscript that resolves the cellular origins of the symbiosome in cnidarian-algal symbiosis through proteomics of the symbiosome, RNAi, and CRISPR/Cas9 experiments. ⬇️
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Read on below!
1/12 🧵
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Read on below!
1/12 🧵
October 13, 2025 at 10:00 PM
We're excited to share with everyone a preprint of our manuscript that resolves the cellular origins of the symbiosome in cnidarian-algal symbiosis through proteomics of the symbiosome, RNAi, and CRISPR/Cas9 experiments. ⬇️
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Read on below!
1/12 🧵
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Read on below!
1/12 🧵
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
Our study on the first rhodopsin channels known to respond to UV light is now published in PNAS! And they come from our favourite protists, apusomonads! #protistonsky
www.pnas.org/doi/full/10....
www.pnas.org/doi/full/10....
October 14, 2025 at 3:44 PM
Our study on the first rhodopsin channels known to respond to UV light is now published in PNAS! And they come from our favourite protists, apusomonads! #protistonsky
www.pnas.org/doi/full/10....
www.pnas.org/doi/full/10....
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
A giant virus awakens virophage-like PLVs in the green alga Tetraselmis https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.10.09.676808v1
October 13, 2025 at 5:16 PM
A giant virus awakens virophage-like PLVs in the green alga Tetraselmis https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.10.09.676808v1
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
Pretty excited to share our new preprint!
Non-photosynthetic Plastid Replacement by a Primary Plastid in the Making
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Non-photosynthetic Plastid Replacement by a Primary Plastid in the Making
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
October 10, 2025 at 3:34 AM
Pretty excited to share our new preprint!
Non-photosynthetic Plastid Replacement by a Primary Plastid in the Making
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Non-photosynthetic Plastid Replacement by a Primary Plastid in the Making
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
Is a healthy microbiome one that is rich in phages? 🦠 Excited to share our paper out in Lancet Microbe with @bkoskella.bsky.social & @dholtappels.bsky.social where we test whether virome diversity can be used a broad signature of microbiome health 📈
New research article
Evaluation of bacteriophages as a signature of #microbiome health: a systematic review and meta-analysis
www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...
#IDSky #ClinMicro #ViroSky #Phage #OpenAccess #OA
Evaluation of bacteriophages as a signature of #microbiome health: a systematic review and meta-analysis
www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...
#IDSky #ClinMicro #ViroSky #Phage #OpenAccess #OA
October 10, 2025 at 1:12 PM
Is a healthy microbiome one that is rich in phages? 🦠 Excited to share our paper out in Lancet Microbe with @bkoskella.bsky.social & @dholtappels.bsky.social where we test whether virome diversity can be used a broad signature of microbiome health 📈
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
Lol the Nobels can't even acknowledge women's contribution to discovery. But sure let's acknowledge The Machines.
October 9, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Lol the Nobels can't even acknowledge women's contribution to discovery. But sure let's acknowledge The Machines.
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
There's a PhD position now available with me in Bath, on the evolution of symbiosis. www.findaphd.com/phds/project.... The supervisory team also includes @anja1.bsky.social @phil-donoghue.bsky.social and others. NB, this is open both to UK-based students *and* to international students :)
The genomic basis of symbiotic integration at University of Bath on FindAPhD.com
PhD Project - The genomic basis of symbiotic integration at University of Bath, listed on FindAPhD.com
www.findaphd.com
October 9, 2025 at 9:39 AM
There's a PhD position now available with me in Bath, on the evolution of symbiosis. www.findaphd.com/phds/project.... The supervisory team also includes @anja1.bsky.social @phil-donoghue.bsky.social and others. NB, this is open both to UK-based students *and* to international students :)
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
Today my @nytimes.com colleagues and I are launching a new series called Lost Science. We interview US scientists who can no longer discover something new about our world, thanks to this year‘s cuts. Here is my first interview with a scientist who studied bees and fires. Gift link: nyti.ms/3IWXbiE
nyti.ms
October 8, 2025 at 11:29 PM
Today my @nytimes.com colleagues and I are launching a new series called Lost Science. We interview US scientists who can no longer discover something new about our world, thanks to this year‘s cuts. Here is my first interview with a scientist who studied bees and fires. Gift link: nyti.ms/3IWXbiE
Reposted by L. Felipe Benites
Microscopic, yet seen from space. Invisible, yet astronauts watch them glow.
Billions of tiny artists shape climate, feed the seas, and write history in calcium armor.
Meet them in 2 days.
#InvisibleHeroes #OceanGuardians #ClimateWarriors #protistsonsky
Illustrations: Rosie Sheward
Billions of tiny artists shape climate, feed the seas, and write history in calcium armor.
Meet them in 2 days.
#InvisibleHeroes #OceanGuardians #ClimateWarriors #protistsonsky
Illustrations: Rosie Sheward
October 8, 2025 at 10:25 AM
Microscopic, yet seen from space. Invisible, yet astronauts watch them glow.
Billions of tiny artists shape climate, feed the seas, and write history in calcium armor.
Meet them in 2 days.
#InvisibleHeroes #OceanGuardians #ClimateWarriors #protistsonsky
Illustrations: Rosie Sheward
Billions of tiny artists shape climate, feed the seas, and write history in calcium armor.
Meet them in 2 days.
#InvisibleHeroes #OceanGuardians #ClimateWarriors #protistsonsky
Illustrations: Rosie Sheward