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Ayush Valecha

@ayushvalecha.bsky.social
311 followers 896 following 8 posts

Doctoral Researcher modeling protective symbiosis @mpi-evolbio.bsky.social‬ #evolutionary_theory | #epidemiology | #microbiology

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Reposted by Ayush Valecha
Functional Ecology @funecology.bsky.social · 7h
👀Behind the Paper!👀 Author Cristóbal Anguita explores the concept of a compensatory ecological trap, the challenge of operating at very different timescales, and the importance of allowing a research question to mature🐦️ Read it here👇️ buff.ly/UmS8NKe @cristobalanguita.bsky.social  🧪🌍️
buff.ly
Cristóbal Anguita | When easy food becomes risky
In this ‘Behind the Paper’ post, author Cristóbal Anguita – a researcher at the Wildlife Ecology Laboratory at the University of Chile – discusses his article “When is…
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Thomas Lesaffre 🌱 @thomaslesaffre.bsky.social · 14/10/2026
🌺 New preprint with J.Pannell and @charlesmullon.bsky.social on the joint evolution of selfing and sex allocation! This joint evolution leads to an unexpected outcome: the emergence of androdioecy, which may either be stable or only a step on the path to complete selfing. 📝 ➡️ tinyurl.com/wf9xsv6v
Streamplot taken from the paper showing the joint evolutionary dynamics of the pollen export rate (x-axis) and the competitive advantage maternal plants grant their own pollen relative to other sources (y-axis). Stream arrows indicate the direction of selection.
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Nature Ecology & Evolution @natecoevo.nature.com · 13/10/2026
New Review 👇 Interaction matrices as unifying tools for navigating ecological complexity www.nature.com/articles/s41... In this Review, the authors outline the interaction matrix as a widely used tool in community ecology and discuss how to tackle its challenges.
nature.com
Interaction matrices as unifying tools for navigating ecological complexity - Nature Ecology & Evolution
The interaction matrix is a widely used tool in community ecology. In this Review, the authors outline this approach and discuss how to tackle its challenges.
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International Initiative for Theoretical Ecology @iite-ecotheory.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
📣Next Tuesday, our online seminar speaker will be Mingyu Luo (UCLA) @mingyuluo.bsky.social, presenting: ⭐The many meanings of ecological stability⭐ Do join us - its free and open to all! Zoom link: liu-se.zoom.us/j/63158449287 Global times: www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/f...
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Systems Ecology @systems-ecology.bsky.social · 12/10/2026
When do plant–pollinator networks persist, collapse, or admit new species? In a new research article, Fernanda Valdovinos derives thresholds linking adaptive foraging and floral rewards to species persistence across scales. systems-ecology.org/index.php/se...
systems-ecology.org
Analytical thresholds reveal mechanisms of cross-scale dynamics in adaptive mutualistic networks | Systems Ecology
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Eva Nowack @evanowack.bsky.social · 12/10/2026
🔬Postdoc position available! Interested in uncovering the molecular mechanisms underlying host-endosymbiont interactions? Join our group and help us explore these fascinating biological partnerships! Deadline: 29. Oct Details & application: karriere.hhu.de/index.php?ac... Please spread the word!
karriere.hhu.de
Postdoc (m/f/d) in Endosymbiosis Research
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Vincent CASTRIC @vincentcastric.bsky.social · 12/10/2026
Interested in anything Silene 🌱 ? Don't miss this online symposium ! 🙏 @univlille.bsky.social @cnrsecologie.bsky.social @newphyt.bsky.social
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Casey terHorst @ecoevolab.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
The stand-alone meeting of the American Society of Naturalists @asn-amnat.bsky.social in an old mansion on Long Island is starting to book up! Registration is open until Nov 1 OR until we hit 200 registrants, so grab your spot before it's gone! www.amnat2027.org
amnat2027.org
ASN Stand Alone Meeting 2027
Jan 8-12 - Long Island, NY. Learn more about the conference and register here!
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Chadi Saad-Roy @chadisaadroy.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Very excited to share our latest paper, with my terrific student @prakharj.bsky.social, and wonderful collaborators Dan Coombs, Caroline Wagner, and @troyday.bsky.social We use simple models to explore how interventions could mitigate post-infection morbidity www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
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Ann T. Tate @annttate.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Please RT: Do you use math to address interesting biological problems? Join us at Vanderbilt BioSci! We are conducting an open-rank TT search in Theoretical Biology: apply.interfolio.com/194619. We are a friendly and collaborative department with interests spanning a range of biological disciplines!
apply.interfolio.com
Apply - Interfolio {{$ctrl.$state.data.pageTitle}} - Apply - Interfolio
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bioRxiv Ecology @biorxiv-ecology.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Epidemiological model selection unravels the molecular processes of antiviral resistance from experimental phytoplankton-virus dynamics www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/20…
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Pavel Payne @pavelpayne.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
I'm really excited to share my latest research paper with the world. It has been a long and bumpy road to finish this project and get it published, but finally, it is out!
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Molecular Biology and Evolution @molbioevol.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
@pavelpayne.bsky.social et al. show that bacterial herd immunity can promote homologous recombination, suggesting bacterial immune systems can shape molecular evolution not only by blocking infection but also by regulating genetic exchange 🔗 academic.oup.com/mbe/article/... #societyjournal #evobio
academic.oup.com
Herd immunity underlies homologous recombination in stationary phase bacteria
Abstract. Homologous recombination is ubiquitous across evolution, generating variation through genetic reshuffling. Although bacteria lack meiotic recombi
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Rachel M. Wheatley @rachelmwheatley.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
🔊 Fully-funded 4 year PhD: How does the microbiome evolve under repeated pathogen exposure? 🦠 Project looking at how commensal microbes resist pathogen invasion, impact of antibiotics on these outcomes, and selective pressures in the microbiome. Come join us at QUB! www.gla.ac.uk/postgraduate...
gla.ac.uk
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Fishers Fishes @fishersfishes.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Talk Alert! 4th talk in the series "Understanding Evolution". Featuring @shikharabhat.bsky.social ! Shikhara will talk about senescence as an emergent phenomenon in complex organisms. 📆 2nd October 2026 | ⏱️ 9:30 PM IST Joining Link: us06web.zoom.us/j/4515627500... #Ageing
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Lucas Moriniere @lucasmoriniere.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Attention, phage friends! Our new work on predicting phage-host interactions is out in Nature Microbiology since yesterday! 👉 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Phylogeny-agnostic strain-level prediction of phage–host interactions from genomes using machine learning - Nature Microbiology
This platform identifies phages capable of infecting specific bacterial strains using genome sequences alone and could enable rational phage-therapy design and precision microbiome engineering.
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Nature Ecology & Evolution @natecoevo.nature.com · 30/09/2026
This experimental and computational study asks how spatial structure and nutrient availability impact spread of resistant mutants and explores the impact of several treatment schedules to find a strategy that balances population control and resistance confinement 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
A microbial therapy-mimicry assay shows how spatial resource dynamics control resistance escape - Nature Ecology & Evolution
This experimental and computational study asks how spatial structure and nutrient availability impact spread of resistant mutants and explores the impact of several treatment schedules to find a strat...
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Jeremy Van Cleve @vancleve.theoretical.bio · 29/09/2026
My group is recruiting a Ph.D student for Fall 2027! We're a friendly group of mathematically-minded and computationally-inspired biologists studying topics including social evolution, host-pathogen interactions, genetics, and demography. See vancleve.theoretical.bio for more info!
vancleve.theoretical.bio
van cleve research group
Van Cleve Research Group – theoretical evolution & ecology at the University of Kentucky
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PLOS Biology @plosbiology.org · 30/09/2026
Mounting an #immune response is energetically costly, and so host defenses are often influenced by internal metabolic states. This study identifies a gut-brain signaling mechanism in C. elegans, shaping pathogen avoidance and molecular immune responses. 🧪 #AcademicSky #hostPathogen plos.io/3T9f6bi
Conceptual diagram for how NHR-68 integrates lipid metabolism with behavioral and molecular immunity.
NHR-68 acts in the intestine to regulate linoleic acid homeostasis through control of fat-3 expression. Changes in intestinal lipid metabolism influence an AWC-dependent pathogen-avoidance circuit through currently unidentified intestine-to-neuron signaling mechanisms, enhancing survival during P. aeruginosa infection. In parallel, NHR-68 suppresses PMK-1/p38 MAPK and DAF-16/FOXO immune pathways, coordinating behavioral and molecular defenses to optimize host protection. Created in BioRender. Sang, Y. (2026).
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bioRxiv Ecology @biorxiv-ecology.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Do higher-order moments improve inference of population dynamics? www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/20…
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Stu West @stuwest.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Great new theory paper looking at whether a parasitoid should kill its host or farm it, to slowly eat from the outside link.springer.com/article/10.1... @ryosukeiritani.bsky.social
link.springer.com
The evolution of host exploitation by parasitoids: the timing of attack and consumption - Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology
Parasitoid wasps exhibit remarkable diversity in life-history traits and are categorized into two major groups based on the timing of consumption: those that begin consuming the host before further ho...
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Will Ratcliff @wcratcliff.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
New paper out with @kaylastoy.bsky.social: academic.oup.com/evlett/advan...
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Joshua Weitz @joshuasweitz.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Wonderful profile of our new colleague in the Dept. of Biology in Maryland, @couchmicroscopy.bsky.social with secrets yet to be uncovered into a major evolutionary transition hanging out in murky waters. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/26/s...
nytimes.com
In an $80 Motel Room, a Discovery to Shed Light on the Origins of Life (Gift Article)
A scrappy science project led to a significant discovery: two new species of a rare organism that could elucidate a fundamental transition in the history of life on our planet.
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Kaiser Lab @clocksevolution.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
www.evolbio.mpg.de/offene-tuer
evolbio.mpg.de
Tag der offenen Tür
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Purushottam Dixit @pdixit.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
1/ Our new paper is out in PRX Life. Physicists' often treat microbiomes as disordered systems with coexistence in very high-dimensional niche spaces. We asked whether empirical data supports this picture, and found the data point somewhere else: journals.aps.org/prxlife/abst...
journals.aps.org
Low-Dimensional Coexistence in Complex Microbial Ecosystems
Analysis of nearly 200 human gut microbiome datasets shows that microbial coexistence is governed by a few effective ecological dimensions, rather than the high-dimensional niches assumed by prevailing theory.
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André Marques @amarques.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Out today in Nature: sex without crossovers. Rhynchospora tenuis makes pollen, fertilises and sets seed, yet 0 crossovers in 10,997 pollen nuclei. Chromosome drive and ~87% seed abortion rebuild the mother's genotype, so the offspring are clones. doi.org/10.1038/s415...
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Will Ratcliff @wcratcliff.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
1/17 Submissions are now open for the 2027 Microbial Population Biology GRC! We expect this meeting to be extraordinarily oversubscribed. If you want to come, time is of the essence--apply ASAP! June 27–July 2 • Andover, NH www.grc.org/microbial-po...
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Lily Khadempour @khadlily.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
I'm happy to share my new paper "A new conceptual framework for host-microbe symbiosis" If you've seen me give a talk in the last 5 years, then you've seen me talk about this. It's been a journey. academic.oup.com/ismehm/artic... #MicroSky #MicrobiomeSky
academic.oup.com
A new conceptual framework for host-microbe symbiosis
Abstract. Host-microbe relationships are studied across biological disciplines, with unique but overlapping conceptual frameworks arising from each of them
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Daniel Padfield @padpadpadpad.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
I have an MRC-funded PhD project available (gw4biomed.ac.uk/how-does-tem...) on how warming will change the problem of AMR. Join a small and friendly group (padpadpadpad.netlify.app/about) in (sometimes) sunny Cornwall. 🧪🦠 #microsky **Please share** the ad below with anyone who may be interested.
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arXiv q-bio.PE Populations and Evolution @qbiope-bot.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Zhuolin Qu, Abhi Ashwath: Structures of the Basic Reproduction Number $R_0$ Across Compartmental Disease Models arxiv.org/abs/2609.13668 arxiv.org/pdf/2609.13668 arxiv.org/html/2609.13668
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CIDRAP @cidrap.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
High-flying superbugs: Bouncy castles tied to MRSA skin infections An outbreak of the resistant bacteria affected 47 children who attended a neighborhood party in Ireland, plus a close contact. Read more: bit.ly/4d3Bp95
Young boys and girls on a multicolored bouncy castle
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Paul Hoskisson 🧫 🦠🐸 @paulhoskisson.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Fascinating stuff - Acquisition and erosion of toxin-antitoxin systems in bacterial chromosomes academic.oup.com/mbe/advance-...
academic.oup.com
Acquisition and erosion of toxin-antitoxin systems in bacterial chromosomes
Abstract. Toxin-antitoxin systems (TAs) are widespread in bacterial genomes. Yet, their integration, persistence, and impact in chromosome dynamics remain
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Mart Krupovic @mkrupovic.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Why did some #viruses evolve to be #giants while others did not? Our perspective piece on this topic with Eugene Koonin. www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
pnas.org
Why did some viruses evolve to be giants while others did not? | PNAS
Viruses are ubiquitous mobile genetic elements that are obligate symbionts of cellular life forms and replicate exclusively within host cells. The ...
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Ellinor Alseth @ellinoralseth.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
It's finally published! What a journey @brownlab.bsky.social and I have been on with this one (ask me about it over a pint 🍻). Super excited to be able to say that it's finally out in Trends (author gift link to follow)! 🦠🧫 #phagesky
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Meaghan Castledine @mcastd.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
🦠Fully funded PhD project with myself, Angus Buckling, Jo Lello and Phil Mitchelmore🦠 How should we design phage therapeutics for bacterial co-infections? How do interactions between pathogens affect treatment efficacy? Please get in touch if you have any Qs 💃 shorturl.at/39Xea
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JL Weissman @jlw-ecoevo.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
My lab is hiring two(!) postdocs interested in (1) building trait prediction models capable of resolving complex microbial traits from genomes and metagenomes, and/or (2) building mathematical models of microbial community dynamics www.microbialgamut.com/mGAMUT_postd...
microbialgamut.com
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Ricard Solé @ricardsole.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Starting from the idea of "language as a virus", we study the propagation dynamics of LLMs using an epidemic model with cooperation. A great collaboration with @brigan.bsky.social @marktas.bsky.social @sfelena.bsky.social @manlius.bsky.social D Krakauer $ @drmichaellevin.bsky.social
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Alexandria G. Lacoursière (she/her) @ecostatsdria.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
New paper out in @oikosjournal.bsky.social! So so grateful to have been part of this project with one of my mentors and friends, Dr Dave Jenkins. #ecology #science Read below: doi.org/10.1002/oik....
nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
A tipping point for tipping points
Tipping points (TPs) – often understood as abrupt changes to a system – have become a popular framework for ecology and environmental science across spatial and temporal scales. The underlying, quant...
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Ricard Solé @ricardsole.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Cancer evolves toward genomic instability, but how far can it go? Using a new class of model, our new paper identifies a critical boundary beyond which tumors collapse, suggesting new therapeutic strategies. @frazambelli.bsky.social @guimaguade.bsky.social www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
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Freya Harrison @friendlymicrobe.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
@rachelmwheatley.bsky.social and I really enjoyed putting together a special issue of Essays in Biochemistry on the social lives of bacteria. All the papers are now out, and here's our editorial :D @biochemsoc.bsky.social #MicroSky portlandpress.com/essaysbioche...
The journal cover, showing a CLASI-FISH image of a structured bacterial community.
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Rachel M. Wheatley @rachelmwheatley.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Our special issue on the social lives of bacteria is out today 🎉 it was a pleasure to edit this collection over the last year with @friendlymicrobe.bsky.social. Read our editorial here: portlandpress.com/essaysbioche...
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NSF-Simons NITMB @nitmb.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Phage Dormancy: Emerging Principles & Open Questions Explore some of the principles of viral decision-making at this week’s entry in the NITMB Seminar Series! Featuring Ido Golding, Professor of Biological Physics at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign www.nitmb.org/event/ido-go...
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Evolution Letters @evolletters.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Recombination helps evolution—but it can also cause mutations. New theory shows that even small increases in mutation near crossovers can oppose the evolution of higher recombination rates. By @sarperotto.bsky.social and Bret Payseur academic.oup.com/evlett/advan...
academic.oup.com
Elevated mutation near crossovers inhibits the evolution of recombination
Abstract. Recombination diversifies offspring genomes and helps ensure chromosome segregation during meiosis. Mutation rates are elevated near crossovers d
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PLOS Biology @plosbiology.org · 30/08/2026
Why do some #bacteria #evolve #antibiotic resistance more readily than others? This study shows that naturally occurring single nucleotide polymorphisms in the PhoQP system change how readily E. coli evolves trimethoprim resistance and which mutations enable it. 🧪 #AcademicSky plos.io/4qCDXQM
Proposed model for the contribution of polymorphisms towards evolvability of resistance, and the role of fitness cost of TMP resistance in determining the optimal level of PhoQ activity during evolution.
A: Polymorphisms influence evolvability under drug pressure if they have epistatic interactions with adaptive mutations. Positive epistasis between pre-existing polymorphisms and adaptive mutations promotes the evolution of resistance, i.e., enhances evolvability of resistance. In contrast, negative epistasis diminishes evolvability. In addition, polymorphisms with negative epistasis can also drive adaptation to antibiotics through novel mutational paths. B: PhoQP signalling pathway across different mutants from the present study. The impact of PhoQ activity on trimethoprim resistance due to DHFR expression is correlated with fitness cost due to RpoS cross-activation. Genetic variation in the pathway is brought about by naturally occurring polymorphisms or drug-selected adaptive mutations. These genetic changes in the pathway activate signalling to different extents at the molecular level, thereby altering global transcriptome to different extents. Scaling of trimethoprim resistance level and fitness cost leads to changes in the concentration of antibiotic required to select for different levels of PhoQ/PhoP pathway activity. The presence of a hypersensitising allele of DHFR drove E. coli towards a high activity, high cost PhoQ mutant demonstrating how polymorphisms can change the mutational landscape of adaptation to antibiotics
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Waggoner Lab @labwaggoner.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Review @nature.com Systems vaccinology and the architecture of human immunity www.nature.com/articles/s41...
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Andy Gardner @andygardner.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
New paper: "Sexual conflict and sexual pleiotropy" (#OpenAccess), with Thomas Hitchcock (@imprintedgene.bsky.social), Tracey Chapman & Jennifer Perry (@jennyperry.bsky.social) doi.org/10.1098/rspb... @royalsocietypublishing.org @standrewsopenres.bsky.social #OA
Illustration of the distinction between sexual conflict and sexual pleiotropy. (A) Sexual conflict: a male and female disagree over a jointly produced phenotype, for example whether a female releases more eggs after mating or withholds resources for future reproduction. Releasing more eggs now costs the female but benefits the male, who will not sire her future offspring. Sexual conflict occurs when selection favours female withholding and male-induced release. (B) Sexual pleiotropy: males and females are favoured to express different values of a trait encoded by genes expressed in both sexes. An allele associated with larger body size may benefit male carriers while harming female carriers or vice versa. Antagonistic sexual pleiotropy occurs when selection favours opposite alleles in each sex.
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Maxine Pruvôt @maxinepruvot.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Happy to share the publication of my first PhD research article! 'Connecting models, networks, and experiments: Revisiting the role of viruses in marine carbon cycling' Out now in Limnology and Oceanography @aslo.org Full text: doi.org/10.1002/lno....
doi.org
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Mason Kulbaba @mason-kulbaba.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
The Plant Eco-Evo lab is now established at @uwinnipeg.bsky.social. NSERC funding is available to support graduate and undergraduate research. If interested in the evolutionary ecology of plant reproduction and/or adaptation, please reach out! See mason-kulbaba.github.io #botany #ecology #evolution
mason-kulbaba.github.io
Mason Kulbaba
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Arvid Ågren @arvidagren.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Why grouping intralocus and interlocus phenomena under one umbrella of “sexual conflict” is a mistake. Insightful paper from @imprintedgene.bsky.social, @andygardner.bsky.social y.social, Tracey Chapman, and @jennyperry.bsky.social yperry.bsky.social. royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...
royalsocietypublishing.org
Sexual conflict and sexual pleiotropy
Abstract. Natural selection might favour brightly coloured males and drab females. A male and a female might disagree about whether to mate. Such tensions
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Lee Henry @henrylabsymbio.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
🧵 New paper out in Nature Communications! 🐜🦠 How can an ancient nutritional symbiosis persist for millions of years, yet still be lost without killing its host? In Cardiocondyla ants, the answer appears to be remarkable metabolic flexibility. Paper: doi.org/10.1038/s414... 1/6
doi.org
Metabolic plasticity supports a flexible nutritional symbiosis in Cardiocondyla ants - Nature Communications
Ancient symbioses may enable ants to thrive in diverse niches, but how these relationships are regulated remains unclear. This study reveals that some ants can dynamically regulate symbiont-derived be...
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