Yesterday I defended my PhD and I couldn't be happier. An incredible journey full of fascinating questions 🪲 and amazing people. Grateful for the support of my advisor @hassansalem.bsky.social, my committee, labmates, family, friends, and the @mpi-bio-fml.bsky.social Excited for the next chapter 🐝

Huge thanks to Ruth Ley, Heike Brötz-Oesterhelt & Andreas Brune for being part of Marleny’s committee. And the Mutualisms Lab for a masterful hat & celebration! Marleny is off to an exciting postdoc w/ Philipp Engel in Lausanne 🇨🇭

Congratulations to @marlenygarcial.bsky.social for defending her PhD today 👩‍🎓 She is an outstanding researcher, labmate and friend who makes every project, discussion, and coffee break better. It’s been a privilege to work with you. I can't wait to see all the amazing science you'll do next! ✨🪲🐝

Our group’s inaugural PhD 🎉🍾 Toasting the successful & excellent defense of Dr. Garcia-Lozano 🎈 Congratulations, @marlenygarcial.bsky.social!!

Thrilled to share our work in @natcomms.nature.com! Thankful for a great collaboration ☺️ Grateful for the support of the @humboldt-foundation.de and the @mpi-bio-fml.bsky.social More details below.

How specific are heritable symbioses? And what can we learn from swapping obligate symbionts across host species? We address this in our latest, led by @inespons.bsky.social & in our collaboration w/ @microbiome.bsky.social 🦠🪲 Out today in @natcomms.nature.com! 1/n www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Very excited to share that my first 1st author publication is available at the journal of #NewPhytologist ! Congratulations to the entire team that worked on this project including the #KewFungarium Team. 👏 🍄‍🟫 If you are interested in the topic, feel free to read it here: doi.org/10.1111/nph....

🚨 Save the date! Thrilled to be co-organizing the next iteration of the @embl.org Symposium on the Cellular Mechanics of Symbiosis (📅 March 17-20), w/ @floravincent.bsky.social, @hassansalem.bsky.social & Tom Richards. www.embl.org/about/info/c... #EESSymbiosis #Symbiosis #SymbioSky #MicroSky 🦠

Had an amazing time at #ESEB2025 in Barcelona, learning new science, meeting great people, and presenting my PhD work on genomic signatures of symbiosis in a beetle-associated fungus. Surreal that my poster won 2nd place! Grateful to the #MutualismsLab, MPI Biology & ESEB for the support 🍄🪲

Looking forward to a stellar week of evolutionary biology! Join us for talks by @berasymbionts.bsky.social (S08.01), Marleny Garcia-Lozano (S08.02), and me (S07.02), plus posters from Aftab Ayas (P02.124) & Frances Pitsillides (P02.152).

The Tübingen & Amsterdam crews have landed in Barcelona for #ESEB2025! Cooling off with helados before the science (and festivities) begin🍦