The next iteration of our ICTS School on Population Genetics and Evolution is scheduled from 5-17 March 2018. We will have a great set of teachers, with topics ranging from statistical genetics, demographic dynamics, epistatis, and life history evolution. We invite applications from advanced PhD students and postdocs (deadline 15 Nov 2017). Find more information... Continue Reading →
While collecting ants for his MSc thesis project on ant communities in the Andaman Islands, Gaurav Agavekar found two species of ants from the genus Tetramorium that turned out to be new to science. Along with Evan Economo's lab at OIST Japan, he recently described these species in a paper in PeerJ. The new species... Continue Reading →
SPEEC-Up 2017 was the first iteration of what we hope will be an annual 3-minute talk competition for students of ecology, evolution and conservation in Bangalore. The event was a lot of fun, and a great way to get introduced to a wide range of work from our neighbours. I am truly happy to have... Continue Reading →
I am recruiting a postdoctoral fellow to analyze bacterial communities associated with flour beetles. The postdoctoral fellow will work with a team of researchers towards the following goals: Quantify the repeatability of ecological and evolutionary changes in the gut microbiome of an insect adapting to a new diet Determine the metabolic and genetic basis of... Continue Reading →
The conference season is suddenly upon us! The lab will be out in full force this year since many of the first people to join the lab have cool results to report. Everyone has received various competitive grants to help support their travel, which is superb news! We are all looking forward to good feedback... Continue Reading →
Recently I wrote a Primer (a short tutorial/introduction for a subject of broad interest) to accompany a new paper in PLoS Biology demonstrating stress-specific mutation spectra in E. coli (Maharjan and Ferenci 2017). Stress-induced mutagenesis (SIM) is a fascinating phenomenon, whereby some organisms show a transient increase in mutation rates when exposed to stresses such as... Continue Reading →
The world around us is full of microbes that influence both biotic and abiotic components of ecosystems. For instance, nitrogen-fixing bacteria enrich the soil1, and algae in marine ecosystems provide sustenance to a variety of organisms2,3. On the other hand, pathogenic bacteria cause diseases across trophic levels, changing the environment around them dramatically. Such interactions have been extensively studied for a long period of time. However, non-pathogenic host-bacterial associations also influence host physiology and even host behaviour4,5. For example, in mice, differences in gut bacterial communities determine utilization of specific dietary components and the propensity for diseases like obesity and diabetes6,7. Gut bacteria are also linked to several neurological disorders such as depression and anxiety8. Such dependence of animal hosts on their gut microbes is not limited to humans, but extends across the tree of life.
On 31 Aug 2017, NCBS will host a one-day competition for 3-minute talks in Ecology, Evolution and Conservation. The event is jointly organized by multiple institutes in Bangalore to encourage cross-talk within local ecology circles. If you have an interesting story from your work, consider competing! You can find more details here.
