Projects
The Evolutionary History of Polar Terrestrial Diatoms Ghent University
Microorganisms drive the global carbon and nutrient cycles that underlie essential ecosystem functioning. Yet, our understanding of microbial speciation, evolutionary history and biogeography remains elusive. Especially terrestrial protists are heavily understudied. Given the rapid and irreversible environmental changes affecting the Polar Regions today, this knowledge-gap is critical for the Arctic and Antarctic, where terrestrial microalgae ...
experimental exploration of the uncertain road from whole genome duplication to evolutionary success Ghent University
Polyploidisation or whole genome duplication (WGD), is a widespread phenomena amongst
Eukaryotes but is especially abundant in the plant lineage. The extra genome copy can open a road
to evolutionary success by providing genetic material that is free to evolve new functionalities.
Nevertheless, WGD is generally not well tolerated due to subsequent changes in cell geometry and
genomic shock. ...
The bacterial leaf symbiosis: Origin, function, evolutionary gain and transmission mode of endophytes in bacteriophilous Rubiaceae KU Leuven
Interactions between plants and symbiotic microorganisms are one of the most widespread and
prevalent mutualisms on Earth. Most research focuses on plant-bacteria interactions with
immediate applications. Although not illogical, such narrow focus has the inherent risk of ignoring
associations that might prove beneficial in the future. In Rubiaceae, several species interact with
Burkholderia bacteria that are ...
SRP-Onderzoekszwaartepunt: Towards Exploratory and Time-Resolved Structural Biology Vrije Universiteit Brussel
BOF-ZAP professorship in development biology of plants Ghent University
Molecular Investigation of Pathways in Evolutionary Toxicology KU Leuven
Inferring the cross-species connectivity of signal transduction pathways serves two key purposes. First, it helps determine the potential impact on a species when a pathway is triggered. Second, it establishes whether the pathway is conserved across evolution. This knowledge aids in selecting appropriate test systems for predicting chemical-induced toxicity in humans and establishing human disease models in other species.
This study ...