📢 𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐏𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬: 𝐂𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐂𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐒𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 🧪

Submit your research, reviews, or letters on significant advances in cell biology and integrative science. 🧬

📌 Editor-in-Chief: Masayoshi Yamaguchi
🔗 Submit here: https://bit.ly/4blRwOR

#CellBiology #MolBio #Bioscience #ScienceSky #AcademicSky

HaploThread: a scalable desktop tool for efficient haplotype network inference and interactive visualization Abstract. This note introduces HaploThread, a user-friendly desktop software with a graphical user interface designed for constructing and visualizing hapl

Xu et al. introduce HaploThread, a user-friendly desktop software with a graphical user interface designed for constructing and visualizing haplotype networks.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molb...

#evobio #molbio #compbio

MBE | Holostean genomes reveal evolutionary novelty in the vertebrate immunoproteasome that have implications for MHCI function

Barker et al. investigate the evolution of PSMB8, a core component of the immunoproteasome, suggesting that the unique PSMB8 types in holosteans contribute to a molecular basis of immune surveillance that is unlike that of other vertebrates.

🔗 academic.oup.com/mbe/article/...

#evobio #molbio

The Genetic Architecture of Venom Resistance: A Novel Approach to Target Identification and Coevolutionary Discovery Abstract. All species evolve under selective pressures that emerge from their interactions, often antagonistic, with other species. Phenotypes mediating sp

Ward, @drokyta.bsky.social et al. investigated the genetics of venom resistance using venom of the Florida blue centipede and Drosophila melanogaster as model prey, revealing a stark contrast in the nature of venom resistance between prey sexes.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag048

#evobio #molbio

MBE | Large-scale genomic phylogeography provides insights into evolutionary history and conservation priorities of the white-bellied pangolin (Phataginus tricuspis)

Gu et al. leveraged hundreds of genomes and mitogenomes of the African white-bellied pangolin, uncovering the evolutionary history of this species and indicating the need for urgent attention and priority conservation action.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag049

#evobio #molbio

Intraspecific genome size variation is attributed to adaptive silencing of transposable elements in Hordeum species Abstract. A substantial variation in genome size has been observed among individuals of the same species. Theory predicts that increased genome size may co

Potapenko et al. studied two species of barley, finding that TE silencing is central to genome size regulation, with selection maintaining smaller genomes among individuals with higher fitness in favorable habitats.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag051

#evobio #molbio #TEsky #PlantSky

Molecular Biology and Evolution | March 2026 cover

The March cover of Molecular Biology and Evolution features the work of Leria and Maldonado, who investigated biosilicification and skeletal evolution in sponges.

Follow the link for this month's articles:
🔗 academic.oup.com/mbe/issue/43/3

#evobio #molbio #societyjournal

Molecular clock dating using complex mixture models: applied to ancient symbionts Abstract. Molecular clocks are a fundamental technique in evolutionary biology for establishing the timing and tempo of organismal divergence. However, cur

@sishuowang.bsky.social & Meade introduce phyloHessian, using complex mixture substitution models in molecular dating. Empirical analysis of ancient symbiont lineages leads to a revised understanding of their host association origins.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag039

#evobio #molbio #compbio

Tiny, 45 base long RNA can make copies of itself Self-copying RNAs may have been a key stop along the pathway to life.

🔄 Tiny, 45 base long RNA can make copies of itself

arstechnica.com/science/2026...

#rna #molecules #replication #molbio

Defective splicing of Y-chromosome-linked gigantic genes contributes to hybrid male sterility in Drosophila Abstract. The Y chromosome evolves rapidly, often differing dramatically even between closely related species. While such divergence has long been suspecte

Fontan et al. show that sequence divergence within introns can disrupt essential gene expression through defective splicing, providing a mechanistic link between rapid Y chr. evolution and hybrid sterility.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag045

#evobio #molbio #drosophila

@jullienflynn.bsky.social

MitoNGS: an online platform to analyze fish metabarcoding data in high resolution Abstract. Environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding has become a powerful tool for assessing fish biodiversity in aquatic ecosystems. However, accurate specie

Zhu, @susumu31.bsky.social et al. present MitoNGS, a platform designed for high-resolution analysis of fish metabarcoding data that allows for fish detection, biodiversity monitoring, conservation research, and bioresource management.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag046

#evobio #molbio

@jomcinerney.bsky.social proposes that genomes do not encode fixed functions but rather “probability distributions” over functional and phenotypic outcomes, and introduces “genomic perplexity” as a measure of gene-context incompatibility.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag041

#evobio #molbio

MBE | Mammalian mitochondrial DNA accumulates insertions and deletions with age in energetically demanding tissues

@edmundotogo.bsky.social et al. studied de novo indel mtDNA mutations across multiple age groups in three mammalian species, showing that indels accumulate rapidly with age in somatic tissues with high energetic demand or high proliferation.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molb...

#evobio #molbio #mtDNA

The core-pivotal index: a geometry-first approach to academic impact The defining goal of the academic endeavor is to establish a single perfect value that completely summarizes entire careers’ achievements. Such an index wo

@russcd.bsky.social ushers in a new era of academic metrics with the core-pivotal author index, which assigns all credit to authors that occupy the exact center of the author list, while non-central peripheral authors receive no credit whatsoever.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag026

#evobio #molbio

MBE | The role of society journals in protecting the scientific record

MBE Editors-in-Chief Claudia Russo and Brandon Gaut publish a new editorial on the role of society journals in protecting the scientific record.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag022

#evobio #molbio #societyjournal

@claurusso.bsky.social @bsgaut.bsky.social

Molecular Biology and Evolution A new look, the same rigor and commitment to the community

🙌 The new logo of Molecular Biology and Evolution is now live!

This new look will carry us forward while maintaining the same rigor and commitment to the molecular evolutionist community as an SMBE journal.

#evobio #molbio #science #biology #societyjournal

Leveraging low-cost short-read sequencing: revolutionizing complex trait genetics Abstract. The genetics of complex traits has been fundamentally transformed by the dramatic reduction in short-read sequencing costs, leading to a dramatic

Ruckman & Long review how affordable sequencing is transforming complex trait research, focusing on how affordable sequencing has fundamentally reshaped what questions evolutionary researchers can ask and how they can answer them.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag025

#evobio #molbio

MBE | The evolutionary genomics of meiotic drive Meiotic drivers gain transmission advantages by distorting equal, Mendelian segregation. This review discusses the evolutionary genomics of meiotic drive. The figure highlights the interactions of meiotic drive elements with other classes of selfish genetic elements including: direct interactions between drivers and transposable elements (TEs) (A) or satellites (C) that can facilitate the spread of drivers; other drive systems that cause the mutual destruction of all gametes (B; e.g. the presence of multiple toxin-antidote systems); indirect interactions where the host machinery responsible for silencing TEs are recruited to silence drivers (D); dosage-sensitive interactions involving sex-linked drivers that result in gene amplifications (E); and tradeoffs between suppressing drive and TEs (F).

For a new MBE Review, Presgraves et al. argue that many features of genome evolution, content, and organization seemingly inexplicable by adaptation or nearly neutral processes are instead best accounted for by meiotic drive.

🔗 academic.oup.com/mbe/article/...

#evobio #molbio

Regulatory features determine the evolutionary fate of laterally acquired genes in plants Abstract. Lateral gene transfer (LGT) is widespread in eukaryotes, including in animals and plants where it can fuel adaptive evolution and innovation. How

Collins et al. combined expression, methylation, and genomic data to investigate long-term persistence of laterally acquired genes in the grass Alloteropsis, showing that those capable of regulating their own expression are more likely to persist.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag042

#evobio #molbio

Invasion preferences suggest a possible role for Plasmodium falciparum parasites in the expansion of Duffy negativity in West and Central Africa Abstract. Duffy antigen receptor for chemokines (DARC) is the primary red blood cell (RBC) receptor for invasion of human RBCs by Plasmodium vivax and Plas

Manneh et al. used flow cytometry and microscopy-based approaches to investigate whether P. falciparum parasites preferentially invade specific Duffy RBC phenotypes and explored two potential explanations for invasion preference

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molb...

#evobio #molbio #malaria

MBE | Phylogenetic Analysis of NEAT1 and MALAT1 Long Non-Coding RNAs Highlights Structure–Function Relationships in Paraspeckle Biology

Arkhipova & Drukker identified orthologs of NEAT1 and MALAT1 - the only lncRNAs that use the tRNA-processing machinery for maturation - across 545 mammals to investigate differences in function and evolutionary conservation.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msaf265

#evobio #molbio

The mutation landscape of Daphnia obtusa reveals evolutionary forces shaping genome stability Abstract. Spontaneous mutations are the primary source of genetic variation and play a central role in shaping evolutionary processes. To investigate mutat

Deng et al. assembled the first chromosome-level reference genome for Daphnia obtusa and deep sequenced eight mutation-accumulation lines for ~500 generations, assessing the interplay among mutation, selection, and genome stability.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molb...

#evobio #molbio

MBE | Amhy/Amhr2y-mediated sex determination in two distantly related teleosts relies on the conserved Alk3-Smad5 axis

Zhou et al. establish Alk3 and Smad5 as essential and specific transducers of the Amhy/Amhr2-mediated sex-determination pathway, revealing a potentially conserved signaling axis across teleosts.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag038

#evobio #molbio

MBE | Evolutionary remodeling of the FXR binding pocket drove functional divergence and ligand discrimination

Yamamoto, @cdokafor.bsky.social et al. used structural and functional analysis to identify the set of evolutionary substitutions that recapitulate the shift in ligand preference from the FXR/LXR ancestor to the ancestral vertebrate FXR.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag031

#evobio #molbio

Genetic formation and regional disparities of Kra–Dai and Hmong–Mien speakers inferred from ancient genomes of cave burial populations in southwest China Abstract. Cave burial is a funerary practice believed to be associated with modern Kra–Dai (KD) and Hmong–Mien (HM) speakers for thousands of years. Howeve

Tao et al. sequenced 14 ancient genomes from cave burial sites in Guangxi, revealing continuous gene flow from northern lineages into ancient cave burial populations.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag034

#evobio #molbio #humanevolution

RECUR: identifying recurrent amino acid substitutions from multiple sequence alignments Abstract. Identifying recurrent changes in biological sequences is important to multiple aspects of biological research—from understanding the molecular ba

Robbins, Liu & Kelly present RECUR, a method for identifying recurrent amino acid substitutions from multiple sequence alignments that is fast, easy to use, and scalable to thousands of sequences.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag036

#evobio #molbio #compbio

TreeProfiler: large-scale metadata profiling along gene and species trees Abstract. Profiling biological traits along gene or species tree topologies is a well-established approach in comparative genomics, widely employed to infe

@dengziqi1991.bsky.social et al. present TreeProfiler, a tool for automated annotation and interactive exploration of hundreds of features along large gene and species trees, with seamless summarization of mapped traits at internal nodes.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molb...

#evobio #molbio #compbio

Mammalian cells form hibernating disomes akin to those in bacterial cells - but connected via ribosomal RNA

www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

co-first with: @andschwarz.bsky.social

with: @lea-dietrich.bsky.social, @sgiando.bsky.social, @erin-schuman.bsky.social and many more

🧵 0/6
#MolBio 🧪

Genomic adaptations for tail-length evolution in arboreal snakes Abstract. Adaptation to arboreal environments requires overcoming gravitational constraints, driving repeated morphological innovations across snake lineag

Wang et al. reveal that arboreality evolved independently in multiple snake clades, with tail elongation as a recurrent morphological adaptation, and identify accelerated evolution in genes associated with somite specification.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag029

#evobio #molbio

Dynamic regulation of spermatogenesis and hybrid sterility revealed by single-cell analysis in yak and cattle Abstract. Spermatogenesis is a highly orchestrated germ cell differentiation process involving the dynamic regulation of cell fate transitions. Dissecting

Wu et al. performed scRNA-seq and meiotic analyses on germ cells and somatic cell subtypes of testes in cattle and yak, elucidating the molecular regulatory network involved in cattle spermatogenesis

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag027

#evobio #molbio