Bioinformatics, Phylogeny and Evolutionary Genomics Group

Members

Our group focuses on two main axes: phylogenomics (i.e. the inference of evolutionary history based on genomics data) and evolutionary genomics (understanding the molecular and population processes that drive genome evolution). We see genomes both as a subject of research (how do genomes evolve, why are they structured the way they are?), but also as a main source of empirical knowledge about the macroevolutionary patterns (what do they tell us about the history of life on Earth?), or about the phenotypes and life-history strategies of organisms. Our works heavily rely on methodological developments (bioinformatics, modeling and statistical inference).

Evolution of genome architecture and expression

Genomes are the result of a long-term evolutionary process, shaped by multiple evolutionary forces. Some genomic features are adaptive (i.e. are beneficial for the fitness of organisms), others result from non-adaptive processes (random drift and biased gene conversion - BGC) or are caused by conflicts between multiple levels of selection (e.g. meiotic drive or the spread of selfish genetic elements). We explore different aspects of genome architecture (base composition landscapes, genome structure and size, impact of transposable elements, …) or functioning (gene expression, lncRNAs, epigenetic landscapes, …), and try to disentangle the relative contribution of adaptive and non-adaptive processes to their evolution. For this purpose, we consider both the molecular mechanisms (mutation, repair, recombination) and the population processes (selection, drift, BGC, …) that shape genetic variation.

Phylogenomics

We are interested in reconstructing the history of life on Earth. This research unfolds along several axes. First, we develop phylogenomic databases of aligned genetic sequences (e.g. BIBI, RiboDB or HOGENOM). Second, we conduct methodological research on how to accurately reconstruct deep phylogenies, infer divergence times, reconstruct ancestral genetic sequences, gene repertoires and life-history traits. This methodological work is translated into publicly available software programs (e.g. SeaView, PhyloBayes, Coevol). Finally, we apply these approaches to several important problems, among which: reconstructing the phylogeny of animals, of archaea, or the global tree of life; using phylogenies and ancestral gene repertoires to investigate the evolution of complex systems and the emergence of molecular and cellular functions in the three domains of life; reconstructing ancestral genetic sequences, a research activity that has industrial and biotechnological applications.

Teaching and outreach

We teach at University Lyon 1 (Master Bioinfo@Lyon), INSA, ENS Lyon, we organize bioinformatics internships. We regularly give conferences on evolution (tree of life, human evolution, genetic diversity, …).
Prospective students and postdocs are invited to apply, as we often welcome visitors for internships or research projects.
 
Keywords: Molecular evolution and Population Genomics; Phylogenomics; Computational Genomics; Comparative genomics; Bioinformatics; Statistical inference.

Publications

Display of 61 to 90 publications on 1073 in total

Genomic portrait and relatedness patterns of the Iron Age Log Coffin culture in northwestern Thailand

Selina Carlhoff, Wibhu Kutanan, Adam B Rohrlach, Cosimo Posth, Mark Stoneking, Kathrin Nägele...

Nature Communications . 14 ( 1 ) : 8527

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-44328-2

Journal article

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Genome-wide variation in the Angolan Namib Desert reveals unique pre-Bantu ancestry

Sandra Oliveira, Anne-Maria Fehn, Beatriz Amorim, Mark Stoneking, Jorge Rocha

Science Advances . 9 ( 38 )

DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adh3822

Journal article

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South Asian maternal and paternal lineages in southern Thailand and the role of sex-biased admixture

Wipada Woravatin, Mark Stoneking, Metawee Srikummool, Jatupol Kampuansai, Leonardo Arias, Wibhu Kutanan

PLoS ONE . 18 ( 9 ) : e0291547

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0291547

Journal article

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The genomic diversity of Taiwanese Austronesian groups: Implications for the “Into- and Out-of-Taiwan” models

Dang Liu, Albert Min-Shan Ko, Mark Stoneking

PNAS Nexus . 2 ( 5 )

DOI: 10.1093/pnasnexus/pgad122

Journal article

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Genomic perspectives on human dispersals during the Holocene

Mark Stoneking, Leonardo Arias, Dang Liu, Sandra Oliveira, Irina Pugach, Jae Joseph Russell B Rodriguez

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America . 120 ( 4 )

DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2209475119

Journal article

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Look4LTRs: A Long terminal repeat retrotransposon detection tool capable of cross species studies and discovering recently nested repeats

Anthony Garza, Emmanuelle Lerat, Hani Girgis

DOI: 10.1101/2023.07.28.551030

Preprint

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Phylogenomic analysis of protein‐coding genes resolves complex gall wasp relationships

Jack Hearn, Erik Gobbo, José Luis Nieves-Aldrey, Antoine Branca, James Nicholls, Georgios Koutsovoulos...

Systematic Entomology .

DOI: 10.1111/syen.12611

Journal article

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How genomics can help biodiversity conservation

Kathrin Theissinger, Carlos Fernandes, Giulio Formenti, Iliana Bista, Paul Berg, Christoph Bleidorn...

Trends in Genetics .

DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2023.01.005

Journal article

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Bridging the gap between the evolutionary dynamics and the molecular mechanisms of meiosis : a model based exploration of the PRDM9 intra-genomic Red Queen

Alice Genestier, Laurent Duret, Nicolas Lartillot

PLoS Genetics . 20 ( 5 ) : e1011274

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1011274

Journal article

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Compositionally Constrained Sites Drive Long-Branch Attraction

Lénárd L Szánthó, Nicolas Lartillot, Gergely J Szöllősi, Dominik Schrempf

Systematic Biology . 72 ( 4 ) : 767 - 780

DOI: 10.1093/sysbio/syad013

Journal article

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Identifying the Best Approximating Model in Bayesian Phylogenetics: Bayes Factors, Cross-Validation or wAIC?

Nicolas Lartillot

Systematic Biology . 72 : 616 - 638

DOI: 10.1093/sysbio/syad004

Journal article

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Genes and sites under adaptation at the phylogenetic scale also exhibit adaptation at the population-genetic scale

Thibault Latrille, Nicolas Rodrigue, Nicolas Lartillot

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America . 120 ( 11 ) : e2214977120

DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2214977120

Journal article

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Deciphering evolutionary trajectories of lactate dehydrogenases provides new insights into allostery.

Adeline Robin, Céline Brochier-Armanet, Quentin Bertrand, Caroline Barette, Eric Girard, Dominique Madern

Molecular Biology and Evolution . msad223

DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msad223

Journal article

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Proposed mechanism for the selection of lactase persistence in childhood

Alexandre Fabre, Anne Fabre, Céline Bon, Paul Guerry, Laure Ségurel

BioEssays . 45 ( 7 )

DOI: 10.1002/bies.202200243

Journal article

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Bradyrhizobium commune sp. nov., isolated from nodules of a wide range of native legumes across the Australian continent

Bénédicte Lafay, Elina Coquery, Phil M. Oger

International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology . 73 ( 7 ) : 005971

DOI: 10.1099/ijsem.0.005971

Journal article

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Population designations in biomedical research: limitations and perspectives

Caroline Gombault, Guillaume Grenet, Laure Ségurel, Laurent Duret, François Gueyffier, Pascal Cathébras...

HLA: Immune Response Genetics . 101 ( 1 ) : 3-15

DOI: 10.1111/tan.14852

Journal article

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Self-compassion and savouring buffer the impact of the first year of the COVID-19 on PhD students' mental health

Marine Paucsik, Christophe Leys, Gabriel Marais, Céline Baeyens, Rebecca Shankland

Stress and Health .

DOI: 10.1002/smi.3142

Journal article

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Dosage compensation evolution in plants: theories, controversies and mechanisms

Aline Muyle, Gabriel Ab Marais, Václav Bačovský, Roman Hobza, Thomas Lenormand

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences . 377 ( 1850 ) : 20210222

DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0222

Journal article

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MacSyFinder v2: An improved search engine to model and identify molecular systems in genomes

Bertrand Néron, Rémi Denise, Charles Coluzzi, Marie Touchon, Eduardo Rocha, Sophie Abby

JOBIM .

Poster

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ICEscreen: a valuable tool for automatic detection of ICEs and IMEs in Firmicutes

Nathalie N. Leblond-Bourget, Julie Lao, Sophie Payot, Thomas Lacroix, Gérard Guédon, Charles Coluzzi...

Réunion du GDR3546 Eléments transposables .

Conference paper

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ICEscreen: a tool to detect Firmicute ICEs and IMEs, isolated or enclosed in composite structures

Julie Lao, Thomas Lacroix, Gérard Guédon, Charles Coluzzi, Sophie Payot, Nathalie Leblond-Bourget...

NAR Genomics and Bioinformatics . 4 ( 4 ) : lqac079

DOI: 10.1093/nargab/lqac079

Journal article

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NAR Breakthrough Article Origins of transfer establish networks of functional dependencies for plasmid transfer by conjugation

Manuel Ares-Arroyo, Charles Coluzzi, Eduardo P.C. Rocha

Nucleic Acids Research . 51 ( 7 ) : 3001–3016

DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkac1079

Journal article

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Streptococcus suis as a reservoir of antibiotic resistance genes carried by Mobile Genetic Elements transferring by conjugation

Sophie Payot, Virginie Libante, Yves Nombre, Charles Coluzzi, Johan Staub, Gérard Guédon...

5th International Caparica Congress in Antibiotic Resistance (IC2AR 2022) .

Conference paper

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Evolution of Plasmid Mobility: Origin and Fate of Conjugative and Nonconjugative Plasmids

Charles Coluzzi, Maria Pilar Garcillán-Barcia, Fernando de la Cruz, Eduardo P.C. Rocha

Molecular Biology and Evolution . 39 ( 6 ) : msac115

DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msac115

Journal article

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Intracellular Salmonella Paratyphi A is motile and differs in the expression of flagella-chemotaxis, SPI-1 and carbon utilization pathways in comparison to intracellular S. Typhimurium

Helit Cohen, Claire Hoede, Felix Scharte, Charles Coluzzi, Emiliano Cohen, Inna Shomer...

PLoS Pathogens . 18 ( 4 ) : 35 p.

DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1010425

Journal article

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ICEscreen

Hélène Chiapello, Charles Coluzzi, Nathalie N. Leblond-Bourget, Thomas Lacroix, Julie Lao, Gérard Guédon

Software

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Modelling the spatiotemporal spread of beneficial alleles using ancient genomes

Rasa Muktupavela, Martin Petr, Laure L. Segurel, Thorfinn Korneliussen, John Novembre, Fernando Racimo

DOI: 10.1101/2021.07.21.453231

Preprint

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Interpreting mismatches between linguistic and genetic patterns among speakers of Tanimuka (Eastern Tukanoan) and Yukuna (Arawakan)

Leonardo Arias, Nicholas Q Emlen, Sietze Norder, Nora Julmi, Magdalena Lemus Serrano, Thiago Chacon...

Interface Focus . 13

DOI: 10.1098/rsfs.2022.0056

Journal article

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Ethical challenges in genetic research among Philippine Indigenous Peoples: Insights from fieldwork in Zamboanga and the Sulu Archipelago

Jae Joseph Russell B Rodriguez, John Meldwin D Cuales, Michael James B Herrera, Louward Allen M Zubiri, Richard N. Muallil, Altan I. Ishmael...

Frontiers in Genetics . 13 : 901515

DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2022.901515

Journal article

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The transmission of human mitochondrial DNA in four‐generation pedigrees

Qi Liu, Muhammad Faaras Iqbal, Tahir Yaqub, Sehrish Firyal, Yiqiang Zhao, Mark Stoneking...

Human Mutation . 43 : 1259-1267

DOI: 10.1002/humu.24390

Journal article

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