news

Snakes reveal the origin of skin colours

• news
• 06-10-2020

A mutation of the lavender variant of corn snake allows the Milinkovitch lab to understand the mechanisms responsible for the extraordinary variety of skin colours in vertebrates.

Wildcats threatened by their domestic cousins

• news
• 29-09-2020

Wildcats in the Swiss Jura will undergo an irreversible genetic replacement by domestic cats if no preventive measures are taken.

Hoxb13 in mouse tail allometry

• news
• 31-08-2020

Jozsef Zakany will host a last seminar before his retirement on September 24 at 4 pm in the A300 audience (Sciences II).

National Geographic Readers: Animals That Change Color

• news
• 27-04-2020

Michel Milinkovitch served as the scientific advisor for the content of the issue ‘Animals That Change Colors’ of the NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC KIDS magazine.

PhD School of Life Sciences

• news
• 24-03-2020

Call for applications to the PhD School of Life Sciences. Application deadline: Apr 15th, 2020

The secrets of the iridescent egg sac revealed

• news
• 20-02-2020

Milinkovitch Lab an international researchers identify that a 3D photonics structure in the egg-sac envelope of Hida salamanders causes visible iridescence is water and UV iridescence in air.

The elephant’s trunk will inspire a revolutionary robot

• news
• 19-12-2019

An international team, including UNIGE, will analyse the African elephant’s trunk, and its exceptional agility and versatility, to create a robot guided by touch.

Ivan Rodriguez and Alan Carleton just received an ERC Synergy Grant

• news
• 16-10-2019

The project aims at exploring the function and dysfunction of the claustrum, a poorly understood neural structure in the mamalian brain.

The Anthropology Unit makes the cover of "G3"

• news
• 02-08-2019

A study from Estella Poloni’s group: Did controlled use of fire impact the evolution of human genomic diversity ?

How the dragon got its frill

• news
• 27-06-2019

Michel Milinkovitch's team uncovers the developmental process generating the Chamydosaurus frill.

«Afrique: 300'000 ans de diversité humaine»

• news
• 14-06-2019

The geneticists and prehistorians of the Anthropology Unit of the University of Geneva tell you about human history on the African continent. An extraordinary exhibition not to be missed!

The evolution of snake skin nano-structures

• news
• 10-05-2019

The Milinkovitch Lab characterizes the complexity and diversity of surface nano-gratings in 353 species of snakes.

Claudio S. Quilodrán, Juan Montoya-Burgos and Mathias Currat make the cover of "Evolution" magazine

• news
• 17-04-2019

Hybridization and introgression during density‐dependent range expansion: European wildcats as a case study.

Michel Milinkovitch receives an ERC Advanced Grant

• news
• 28-03-2019

An ERC Advanced Grant has been awarded to Michel Milinkovitch. The grant is endowed with 2.5 million Euros over 5 years.

The LANE is in the National Geographic

• news
• 28-02-2019

Our work on the African elephant skin is highlighted in the National Geographic Magazine.

How bird feather patterns form

• news
• 22-02-2019

How are feathers formed and what determines their number and distribution on the skin? Today, researchers at the University of Geneva (UNIGE) and the University of Edinburgh (Scotland) have demonstrated that genetic signaling between cells and mechanical processes combine in the bird skin to form a line of propagation, along which the feather buds develop.

Why do Hydra end up with just a single head?

• news
• 18-01-2019

The ability of Hydra to regenerate or maintain a single head results from a subtle balance between activating and inhibiting activities. The latter has just been identified by a UNIGE group.

Monitoring the environment with artificial intelligence

• news
• 14-12-2018

UNIGE researchers have developed an approach that combines genomics and machine learning tools to explore the microbial biodiversity of ecosystems.

Stem cells organize themselves into pseudo-embryos

• news
• 03-10-2018

Scientists have developed murine artificial pseudo- embryos capable of forming the three major axes of the body. An innovative tool to potentially replace mammalian embryos in many experimental conditions.

How the African elephant cracked its skin to cool off

• news
• 02-10-2018

UNIGE researchers have observed that elephants regulate their body heat through their skin, which cracks into deep cracks, absorbing a maximum water.

Benthic monitoring of oil and gas offshore platforms in the North Sea using environmental DNA metabarcoding.

• publication
• 19-10-2020

Mauffrey F, Cordier T, Apothéloz-Perret-Gentil L, Cermakova K, Merzi T, Delefosse M, Blanc P, Pawlowski J. Mol Ecol 2020 Oct;():. 10.1111/mec.15698.

Patterning and growth control in vivo by an engineered GFP gradient

• publication
• 16-10-2020

Stapornwongkul KS, de Gennes M, Cocconi L, Salbreux G, Vincent JP. Science. 2020;370(6514):321-327. doi:10.1126/science.abb8205

Genome mapping of a mutation in corn snakes indicates that vertebrate chromatophore vesicles are lysosome-related organelles.

• publication
• 07-10-2020

Ullate-Agote A, Burgelin I, Debry A, Langrez C, Montange F, Peraldi R, Daraspe J, Kaessmann H, Milinkovitch MC, Tzika AC. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020 Oct;():. 2003724117. 10.1073/pnas.2003724117.

The polymorphism of Hydra microsatellite sequences provides strain-specific signatures.

• publication
• 29-09-2020

Schenkelaars Q, Perez-Cortes D, Perruchoud C, Galliot B. PLoS ONE 2020 ;15(9):e0230547. 10.1371/journal.pone.0230547. PONE-D-20-06012.

Monitoring the ecological status of rivers with diatom eDNA metabarcoding: a comparison of taxonomic markers and analytical approaches for the inference of a molecular diatom index.

• publication
• 27-09-2020

Apothéloz-Perret-Gentil L, Bouchez A, Cordier T, Cordonier A, Guéguen J, Rimet F, Vasselon V, Pawlowski J. Mol. Ecol. 2020 Sep;():. 10.1111/mec.15646.

Environmental (e)DNA: what's behind the term? Clarifying the terminology and recommendations for its future use in biomonitoring.

• publication
• 24-09-2020

Pawlowski J, Apothéloz-Perret-Gentil L, Altermatt F. Mol. Ecol. 2020 Sep;():. 10.1111/mec.15643.

From scales to armour: scale losses and trunk bony plate gains in ray-finned fishes

• publication
• 17-09-2020

Alexandre Lemopoulos, Juan I. Montoya-Burgos. BioRxiv, https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.09.09.288886

Planktonic foraminifera genomic variations reflect paleoceanographic changes in the Arctic: evidence from sedimentary ancient DNA.

• publication
• 17-09-2020

Pawłowska J, Wollenburg JE, Zajączkowski M, Pawlowski J. Sci Rep 2020 Sep;10(1):15102. 10.1038/s41598-020-72146-9. 10.1038/s41598-020-72146-9.

Similar patterns of genetic diversity and linkage disequilibrium in Western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) and humans indicate highly conserved mechanisms of MHC molecular evolution.

• publication
• 17-09-2020

Vangenot C, Nunes JM, Doxiadis GM, Poloni ES, Bontrop RE, de Groot NG, Sanchez-Mazas A. BMC Evol. Biol. 2020 Sep;20(1):119. 10.1186/s12862-020-01669-6. 10.1186/s12862-020-01669-6.

Projecting introgression from domestic cats into European wildcats in the Swiss Jura.

• publication
• 11-09-2020

Quilodrán CS, Nussberger B, Macdonald DW, Montoya-Burgos JI, Currat M. Evol Appl 2020 Sep;13(8):2101-2112. 10.1111/eva.12968. EVA12968. PMC7463310.

Safety of the Geneva Cocktail, a Cytochrome P450 and P-Glycoprotein Phenotyping Cocktail, in Healthy Volunteers from Three Different Geographic Origins.

• publication
• 28-08-2020

Rollason V, Mouterde M, Daali Y, Čížková M, Priehodová E, Kulichová I, Posová H, Petanová J, Mulugeta A, Makonnen E, Al-Habsi A, Davidson R, Al-Balushi KK, Al-Thihli K, Cerná M, Al-Yahyaee S, Černý V, Yimer G, Poloni ES, Desmeules J. Drug Saf 2020 Aug;():. 10.1007/s40264-020-00983-8. 10.1007/s40264-020-00983-8.

Benthic foraminiferal metabarcoding and morphology-based assessment around three offshore gas platforms: Congruence and complementarity.

• publication
• 25-08-2020

Frontalini F, Cordier T, Balassi E, Armynot du Chatelet E, Cermakova K, Apothéloz-Perret-Gentil L, Martins MVA, Bucci C, Scantamburlo E, Treglia M, Bonamin V, Pawlowski J. Environ Int 2020 Aug;144():106049. S0160-4120(20)32004-3. 10.1016/j.envint.2020.106049.

Harmonizing hybridization dissonance in conservation.

• publication
• 23-07-2020

Quilodrán CS, Montoya-Burgos JI, Currat M. Commun Biol 2020 Jul;3(1):391. 10.1038/s42003-020-1116-9. 10.1038/s42003-020-1116-9.

The Proteocephalus Species-Aggregate in Freshwater Centrarchid and Percid Fishes of the Nearctic Region (North America).

• publication
• 15-07-2020

Scholz T, Choudhury A, Uhrová L, Brabec J. J. Parasitol. 2019 Oct;105(5):798-812. 440739. 10.1645/19-89.

Nitric Oxide Mediates Neuro-Glial Interaction that Shapes Drosophila Circadian Behavior.

• publication
• 01-07-2020

Kozlov A, Koch R, Nagoshi E. PLoS Genet. 2020 Jun;16(6):e1008312. 10.1371/journal.pgen.1008312. PGENETICS-D-19-01150.

Mechanochemical Crosstalk Produces Cell-Intrinsic Patterning of the Cortex to Orient the Mitotic Spindle

• publication
• 29-06-2020

Andrea Dimitracopoulos, Pragya Srivastava, Agathe Chaigne, Zaw Win, Roie Shlomovitz, Oscar M Lancaster, Maël Le Berre, Matthieu Piel, Kristian Franze, Guillaume Salbreux, Buzz Baum . Curr Biol. 2020;S0960-9822(20)30984-2. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2020.06.098

Xenophyophores (Rhizaria, Foraminifera), including four new species and two new genera, from the western Clarion-Clipperton Zone (abyssal equatorial Pacific).

• publication
• 26-06-2020

Gooday AJ, Durden JM, Holzmann M, Pawlowski J, Smith CR. Eur. J. Protistol. 2020 Jun;75():125715. S0932-4739(20)30045-6. 10.1016/j.ejop.2020.125715.

DiscoSnp-RAD: de novo detection of small variants for RAD-Seq population genomics.

• publication
• 23-06-2020

Gauthier J, Mouden C, Suchan T, Alvarez N, Arrigo N, Riou C, Lemaitre C, Peterlongo P. PeerJ 2020 ;8():e9291. 10.7717/peerj.9291. 9291. PMC7293188.

Binding affinities of 438 HLA proteins to complete proteomes of seven pandemic viruses and distributions of strongest and weakest HLA peptide binders in populations worldwide.

• publication
• 01-06-2020

Barquera R, Collen E, Di D, Buhler S, Teixeira J, Llamas B, Nunes JM, Sanchez-Mazas A. HLA 2020 May;():. 10.1111/tan.13956.

Influence of Paleolithic Range Contraction, Admixture and Long-Distance Dispersal on Genetic Gradients of Modern Humans in Asia.

• publication
• 22-05-2020

Branco C, Ray N, Currat M, Arenas M. Mol. Ecol. 2020 May;():. 10.1111/mec.15479.

Current approaches for the efficient isolation and identification of plant and fungal secondary metabolites

• event
• Geneva Plant Seminars
• 02.12.2020 11:15, 1S059 (Sciences III)

Emerson Ferreira Queiroz (Phytochimie et Produits Naturels Bioactifs, Section des Sciences Pharmaceutiques, UNIGE).
hosted by: Luis Lopez Molina .

Biochemistry of RNA processing machines

• event
• Conference
• 14.10.2020 14:00, 3079 (Sciences III)

Gunter Meister (University of Regensburg, Germany).
hosted by: Ramesh Pillai .

How to tango with four: Adaptation of meiotic chromosome behaviour to genome duplication

• event
• Geneva Plant Seminars
• 07.10.2020 11:15, 1S059 (Sciences III)

Kirsten Bomblies (Institute of Molecular Plant Biology, ETH Zurich).
hosted by: Roman Ulm .