Organisms often face new, changing or otherwise challenging environments, which can drive evolutionary adaptations. However, different populations and species often respond differentially to the same environmental change, potentially altering their evolutionary trajectories. For instance, some organisms flourish in new environments, whereas others go extinct. What factors determine individual and population-level responses, and what are the... Continue Reading →
Lab turns 10!
This month the lab completes a decade of existence. I am proud of all the fun science we have done as a group over the years, and the myriad ways in which all of us have grown. A lot of earlier themes are wrapping up and there are new exciting directions to pursue. Onward, to... Continue Reading →
Paper review: Resource allocation and tradeoffs
In the second installment of our series of reviews on the lab's favourite papers, Shubha Govindarajan writes about a classic paper that gave a new perspective on individual variation and tradeoffs. Read on! Fig 1 from van Noordwijk & de Jong 1986, American Naturalist Acquisition and Allocation of Resources: Their Influence on Variation in Life... Continue Reading →
1st meeting of network on prokaryotic genome evolution
We are happy to finally announce the 1st meeting of our special topic network on synthesizing micro- and macro- evolutionary processes shaping prokaryotic genomes, supported by ESEB. The meeting will be hosted at the Milner Center for Evolution at the University of Bath, UK, from 30 May to 1 June 2022. We have a great... Continue Reading →
New paper: Selection biases results of mutation accumulation experiments
Our paper reporting the impact of selection bias in mutation accumulation (MA) experiments is now published! A few years ago, Mrudula had tested the effect of single mutations accumulated in MA experiments (see Sane et al 2018, Evolution), finding that a surprisingly large fraction were beneficial. In the new paper, mathematician Lindi Wahl uses simulations... Continue Reading →
Survey: challenges of establishing a research career in India
The Indian National Young Academy of Science (INYAS) conducted a survey of ~800 young scientists establishing an independent research career in India. The report and associated recommendations will hopefully guide positive change. Read the full report here.
5th Bangalore School on Population genetics and Evolution
I am very pleased to announce the next iteration of our School on population genetics and evolution, co-organized with Kavita Jain (JNCASR) and generously hosted by ICTS Bangalore. The school will take place in a hybrid format from 17–28 Jan 2022, with covid precautions in place. The target audience is advanced PhD students and postdocs... Continue Reading →