This Week in Evolution

By Vincent Racaniello

Natural Sciences

What's This Week in Evolution about?

This Week in Evolution is a podcast on the biology behind what makes us tick.

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LAST EPISODE

TWiEVO 53: Virus evolution ...

04.04.2020

Nels and Vincent continue their discussion of SARS-CoV-2 from an evolutionary viewpoint, focusing on what the genome sequences tell us about the virus.

This Week in Evolution episodes:

04.04.2020 TWiEVO 53: Virus evolution by land and by sea and by CoV, part II Nels and Vincent continue their discussion of SARS-CoV-2 from an evolutionary viewpoint, focusing on what the genome sequences tell us about the virus.
02.26.2020 TWiEVO 52: Virus evolution by land and by sea and by CoV Nels and Vincent examine SARS-CoV-2 from an evolutionary viewpoint, examining what the spike glycoprotein sequence informs us about the origin of the virus.
01.22.2020 TWiEVO 51: The starting point paradox Nels and Vincent dive deep into evolution and consider how new proteins emerged billions of years ago, when there were no other proteins to serve as starting material.
12.24.2019 TWiEVO 50: I'm dreaming of a Y chromosome Nels and Vincent discuss signatures of sex chromosome evolution revealed by assembly of a young vertebrate Y chromosome from 3-spined stickleback fish.
11.29.2019 TWiEVO 49: A giant podcast on giant viruses Rich joins Nels and Vincent for a debriefing on the 4th Ringberg Symposium on Giant Virus Biology in Tegernsee, Germany.
10.31.2019 TWiEVO 48: Flipping out with choanos on caffeine Nels and Vincent reveal a new choanoflagellate that forms multicellular cup shaped colonies that respond to light to alternate between feeding and swimming behavior.
09.19.2019 TWiEVO 47: On the origin of beer species Nels and Vincent trace the origins of Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains used to make beer, and find that ales and lagers are made with yeasts that were derived from those used to make European grape wine and Asian rice wine.
08.31.2019 TWiEVO 46: Can an old tumor teach us new tricks? Nels and Vincent analyze the genomes of canine transmissible tumors to provide insight into the worldwide spread of the disease from its origin in a single dog 4000-8500 years ago, and its diversity, mutation, and evolution.
07.29.2019 TWiEVO 45: Microbial secrets of mouse-ear cress At ASM Microbe in San Francisco, Nels and Vincent meet up with Talia Karasov who reveals that in contrast to agriculture, wild plants are colonized by multiple lineages of pathogenic bacteria.
06.27.2019 TWiEVO 44: The enemy of my enemy is my phage At ASM Microbe in San Francisco, Nels and Vincent meet up with Paul Turner to talk about evolutionary considerations in using bacteriophages to treat infections with antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
05.25.2019 TWiEVO 43: Social evolution with a side of shrimp Dustin Rubinstein joins Nels and Vincent to discuss coevolution of genome architecture and social behavior, and studying social transitions in sponge-dwelling snapping shrimp.
04.24.2019 TWiEVO 42: Who's who in your genome Nels and Vincent review the contribution of multiple Denisovan lineages to the modern Papuan genome.
03.20.2019 TWiEVO 41: Where do baby genes come from? Nels and Vincent explore the evolution of new protein-coding genes de novo from nocoding DNA sequences, using the antifreeze protein of northern codfish as a model.
02.15.2019 TWiEVO 40: Eau de bee Nels and Vincent move back to reproductive isolation - this time, pre-zygotic, in the charismatic orchid bee where the males make chemically distinct perfumes to attract mates of the same species.
01.26.2019 TWiEVO 39: In a Legionella of their own Nels and Vincent look at the intracellular bacteria Legionella from an evolutionary perspective: the role of gene acquisition and reshuffling from plants, animals, fungi, and archaea in the emergence of human pathogens.
12.24.2018 TWiEVO 38: Evolving to evolve Nels and Vincent reveal a highly conserved protein that acts as an evolvability factor, increasing mutation and the ability of bacteria to become resistant to antibiotics.
11.17.2018 TWiEVO 37: A tangled tree on the Quammens David Quammen joins Nels and Vincent to talk about his new book, A Tangled Tree, including evolutionary trees, Carl Woese, Lynn Margulis, horizontal gene transfer, and much more.
10.24.2018 TWiEVO 36: All's not quiet on the telomeric front Mia joins Nels and Vincent to unravel their finding that the transposons that maintain the ends of chromosomes in Drosophilahave evolved in conflict with the genome.
09.21.2018 TWiEVO 35: Strawberry sex chromosomes forever Nels and Vincent reveal that female-specific DNA associated with sex in strawberries has repeatedly changed its genomic location, possibly linking new genes with sex.
08.16.2018 TWiEVO 34: You don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s PON Nels and Vincent discuss how the loss of an enzyme in marine mammals millions of years ago now makes them at risk for neurotoxicity caused by human-made organophosphorous pesticides.
07.25.2018 TWiEVO 33: Fly by virus Nels and Vincent are astounded by the finding of an insect-derived virus in a fungus that manipulates the behavior of flies.
06.19.2018 TWiEVO 32: Never not neutral Matt joins Nels and Vincent to discuss the neutral theory of evolution and its rejection in light of genome-scale data.
05.19.2018 TWiEVO 31: Virus archaeology, or when the human genome is the junk Nels and Vincent present ancient hepatitis B virus genome sequences from Bronze Age to Medieval period human remains.
04.21.2018 TWiEVO 30: Driving Miss Maize-y Nels and Vincent reveal how a motor protein in corn causes preferential transmission of chromosomes to egg cells, leading to non-Mendelian inheritance.
03.21.2018 TWiEVO 29: Evolution on the wing Nels and Vincent discuss the evolution of blood feeding to nonbiting in a mosquito, and evolution of bacterial virulence in the house finch caused by incomplete host immunity.
02.28.2018 TWiEVO 28: Genetics of skin pigmentation in Africa Sarah Tishkoff joins Nels and Vincent to explain work from her laboratory on the genetic basis of skin pigmentation in Africans.
01.13.2018 TWiEVO 27: Coldevo Taking a cue from the recent frigid weather, Nels and Vincent explore how modifications of a neuronal cold-sensing channel regulate diminished cold sensitivity in hibernating mammals.
12.07.2017 TWiEVO 26: My Scientist Vinny Vinny Lynch joins Nels and Vincent to discuss how a zombie gene in elephants protects these large, long lived animals from cancer.
11.22.2017 TWiEVO 25: Pigeons show the way Nels and Vincent discuss a genomic analysis of the passenger pigeon, which shows that species with large and stable populations may be at risk of extinction after a sudden environmental change.
10.26.2017 TWiEVO 24: Good viruses visiting bad neighborhoods Marco Vignuzzi joins Nels and Vincent to discuss recent work from his laboratory on redirecting RNA virus evolution in sequence space.
09.20.2017 TWiEVO 23: The Alus are going to be alright Nels and Vincent reveal how the protein DHX9 suppresses RNA processing defects caused by invasion of the Alu retroelement into the human genome.
08.30.2017 TWiEVO 22: E pluribus cerevisiae Maitreya Dunham joins Nels and Vincent to explain how her laboratory uses experimental evolution to study yeast flocculation, the community-building cell aggregation trait.
07.13.2017 TWiEVO 21: A virus with a green thumb Rich Condit joins Nels and Vincent to explain how a vaccinia virus protein customizes ribosomes to favor the translation of viral mRNAs with a stretch of A residues in the 5'-untranslated region. Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Become a ...
06.20.2017 TWiEVO 20: In the company of cnidarians Nels and Vincent explore the role of TSR proteins during colonization of cnidarians by dinoflagellates. Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Become a patron of TWiEVO TSR domain proteins in cnidarian-dinoflagellate symbiosis A. elegantissima image credit Letters read on TWiEVO ...
05.24.2017 TWiEVO 19: The beauty of the story Jonathan Weiner, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Beak of the Finch, joins Nels and Vincent to talk about his career and his writing. Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Guest: Jonathan Weiner Become a patron of TWiEVO Jonathan's Columbia University ...
04.10.2017 TWiEVO 18: Raiders of the lost orco Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Guests: Ni-Chen 'Sylvia' Chang, Waring 'Buck' Trible, and Sean K. McKenzie Buck and Sean join Vincent in New York, while Sylvia is with Nels in Salt Lake City to discuss the first mutant ant ...
03.13.2017 TWiEVO 17: The curious cases of clam cancers Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Guest: Stephen Goff Nels joins Vincent in New York City to speak with Stephen Goff about transmissible clam cancers and the silencing of integrated retroviral genomes. Become a patron of TWiEVO A sixth modality ...
02.25.2017 TWiEVO 16: Breaking in the making of genes Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Nels and Vincent reveal how introns - the parts of pre-mRNAs that are removed by splicing - were generated by DNA transposons in two different picoeukaryotes. Become a patron of TWiEVO Introns from DNA ...
01.22.2017 TWiEVO 15: From cockroaches to grizzly bears Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Guest: Hopi Hoekstra Nels and Vincent speak with Hopi Hoekstra about her career and the work of her laboratory on developmental mechanisms of stripe patterns in rodents. Become a patron of TWiEVO Hoekstra Laboratory ...
12.22.2016 TWiEVO 14: TWi-light on the Wasatch Front Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Guests: Jessica Brown, Michael Kay, Wayne Potts, June Round, and Janis Weis From the Microbial Pathogenesis Retreat of the University of Utah School of Medicine, held at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Nels ...
11.16.2016 TWiEVO 13: This week in ants Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Guest: Corrie Moreau Corrie joins Nels and Vincent to talk about her comparative analysis of the genomes of mutualist ants that nest in plants, and non-symbiotic species. Become a patron of TWiEVO Links for ...
10.19.2016 TWiEVO 12: Take a left at the goats Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Guest: Josh Drew Josh joins Nels and Vincent to talk about his research on the evolution and conservation of aquatic tropical biodiversity, and the historical ecology of 19th century American Whalers. Become a patron ...
09.27.2016 TWiEVO 11: Microbial accomplices in multicellularity Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Guest: Nicole King Nicole joins Nels and Vincent to discuss the finding of her laboratory that multicellular development of choanoflagellates, the closest living relatives of animals, is regulated by bacterial lipids. Become a patron ...
08.13.2016 TWiEVO 10: Spicing up peppered moths with a selfish gene Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Nels and Vincent review experiments showing that the replacement of a pale moth with a black one during the industrial revolution was caused by a transposable element. Links for this episode Last experiment of ...
07.05.2016 TWiEVO 9: How to crash your gene drive Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Guest: Jim Bull Nels and Vincent speak with Jim Bull about the results of genetic models which suggest that the evolution of inbreeding in response to lethal gene drive might make population control difficult ...
06.08.2016 TWiEVO 8: Everyone's a little bit Neanderthal Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Nels visits Vincent in the MicrobeTV studio in New York and talks about how key genes of the Homo sapiens innate immune response were acquired from Neanderthals. Links for this episode Introgressed Neanderthal haplotype ...
04.23.2016 TWiEVO 7: Pigeon fashion week, feathery boots edition Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Guest: Mike Shapiro Mike joins Nels and Vincent to talk about his work on what controls whether pigeons have scaly or feathered feet, and reveals that the hindlimbs of domestic birds with feathery feet ...
03.19.2016 TWiEVO 6: Butterflies are free to shuffle Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Nels and Vincent continue with an emerging sub-theme of TWiEVO - organisms with wings - as they reveal how enhancer shuffling produces diverse butterfly wing patterns. Links for this episode Enhancer shuffling for butterfly ...
02.20.2016 TWiEVO 5: Looking at straw colored fruit bats through a straw Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello Guests: Kartik Chandran and Sara Sawyer Sara and Kartik join Nels and Vincent to talk about the filovirus receptor NPC1 regulates Ebolavirus susceptibility in bats. Links for this episode Sara on TWiV #193 Kartik ...
01.23.2016 TWiEVO 4: Taking the mystery out of the mystery of mysteries Nitin joins Nels and Vincent to explain how he identified a gene that is responsible for male inviability in hybrids from a cross between two species of fruit flies.

Older episodes

This Week in Evolution

What's This Week in Evolution about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

This Week in Evolution episodes:

TWiEVO 53: Virus evolution by land and by sea and by CoV, part II

TWiEVO 52: Virus evolution by land and by sea and by CoV

TWiEVO 51: The starting point paradox

TWiEVO 50: I'm dreaming of a Y chromosome

TWiEVO 49: A giant podcast on giant viruses

TWiEVO 48: Flipping out with choanos on caffeine

TWiEVO 47: On the origin of beer species

TWiEVO 46: Can an old tumor teach us new tricks?

TWiEVO 45: Microbial secrets of mouse-ear cress

TWiEVO 44: The enemy of my enemy is my phage

TWiEVO 43: Social evolution with a side of shrimp

TWiEVO 42: Who's who in your genome

TWiEVO 41: Where do baby genes come from?

TWiEVO 40: Eau de bee

TWiEVO 39: In a Legionella of their own

TWiEVO 38: Evolving to evolve

TWiEVO 37: A tangled tree on the Quammens

TWiEVO 36: All's not quiet on the telomeric front

TWiEVO 35: Strawberry sex chromosomes forever

TWiEVO 34: You don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s PON

TWiEVO 33: Fly by virus

TWiEVO 32: Never not neutral

TWiEVO 31: Virus archaeology, or when the human genome is the junk

TWiEVO 30: Driving Miss Maize-y

TWiEVO 29: Evolution on the wing

TWiEVO 28: Genetics of skin pigmentation in Africa

TWiEVO 27: Coldevo

TWiEVO 26: My Scientist Vinny

TWiEVO 25: Pigeons show the way

TWiEVO 24: Good viruses visiting bad neighborhoods

TWiEVO 23: The Alus are going to be alright

TWiEVO 22: E pluribus cerevisiae

TWiEVO 21: A virus with a green thumb

TWiEVO 20: In the company of cnidarians

TWiEVO 19: The beauty of the story

TWiEVO 18: Raiders of the lost orco

TWiEVO 17: The curious cases of clam cancers

TWiEVO 16: Breaking in the making of genes

TWiEVO 15: From cockroaches to grizzly bears

TWiEVO 14: TWi-light on the Wasatch Front

TWiEVO 13: This week in ants

TWiEVO 12: Take a left at the goats

TWiEVO 11: Microbial accomplices in multicellularity

TWiEVO 10: Spicing up peppered moths with a selfish gene

TWiEVO 9: How to crash your gene drive

TWiEVO 8: Everyone's a little bit Neanderthal

TWiEVO 7: Pigeon fashion week, feathery boots edition

TWiEVO 6: Butterflies are free to shuffle

TWiEVO 5: Looking at straw colored fruit bats through a straw

TWiEVO 4: Taking the mystery out of the mystery of mysteries

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