Some MosSI Lab representation at the @royentsoc.bsky.social Student Forum - @luciendobel.bsky.social and @tarasusyjoe.bsky.social presenting on the mosquito microbiome. #EntoSci #MosquitoMicrobiome #MosSILab

Huge congratulations to Dr @aidanfoo.bsky.social who passed his viva yesterday!

@mosquitomicrobe.bsky.social
@gemma-langridge.bsky.social

And finally a huge congrats to Aidan and Shannon for both winning poster prizes!

Shannon presenting his recently published work on parasitic nematode specific RNA viruses and their role in antibody responses in vertebrate hosts. Also joined by our MRes student Sernyen.

@aidanfoo.bsky.social presenting on the contribution of siderophore mediated competition to Aedes aegypti colonisation

@luciendobel.bsky.social presenting on the role of the microbiome in Aedes aegypti oviposition site preference.

Lots of MosSI Lab representation at the LSTM 125th Scientific Symposium this week!

@mosquitomicrobe.bsky.social spoke about our Anopheles Wolbachia work.

🧬 To further investigate, we conducted a pangenome analysis, identifying sets of lineage-specific genes in mosquito-derived bacteria. These suggest potential selection for life in a mosquito environment and are exciting candidates for future research on mosquito-microbe interactions #Pangenomics

🌍 Phylogenetic analysis revealed clustering of mosquito-associated bacteria within three genera: Enterobacter, Serratia, and Elizabethkingia. These genera include lineages derived from mosquito hosts, that may reflect bacterial adaptation #Phylogenetics #Evolution

🧫 Genomes were screened against the virulence factor database, revealing genes related to adhesion, biofilm formation, and others. We also noticed a heavy bias towards the Enterobacteriaceae, highlighting the need for better virulence factor representation of non-model microorgs #VirulenceFactor

📊 Our genomes are high quality, with completeness averaging 99.67% and contamination below 0.6%. We also report metrics like N50, genome size distribution and correlations with the number of predicted gene. #QualityControl #GenomeQualityAssurance

🔍 MosAIC encompasses 142 bacterial species across 29 families. Bacteria were sourced from a range of mosquito species, life stages and locations. Collection curation was led by teams in UW-Madison and The Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine.