Do predicted deleterious mutations explain fitness variation in wild populations? Our recent publication addresses exactly this question in black grouse, a lekking Galliform. 1/6

We have a brand new genome for porcini mushroom! First chromosome-scale, haplotype-resolved reference genome for Boletus edulis. A great resource for fungal genetics, and the rest of Etienne's PhD!

DNA as street decoration? Of course! Our very own @k-hench.bsky.social made some beautiful pictures of the @eseb2025.bsky.social street decorations at the “Festes de Gràcia”. Check out some of his pictures and read more about why we were there: thehoffmanlab.com/2025/09/05/e...

The genome and epigenome are not independent, so why analyse them separately? 🤔 Come and discuss our hypotheses on the interplay between deleterious mutations and epigenetic mechanisms today with @rebeccachen.bsky.social at #ESEB2025 poster number 85! 🧪🧬

@annekep.bsky.social shows us a super impressive long term study in Antarctica fur seals to explore interactions between inbreeding and climate change 🦭

Do inbred females suffer disproportionately from climate change induced changes in selection pressure? Come and find out in @annekep.bsky.social's talk today at the @eseb2025.bsky.social conference 12:00 PM - 12:15 PM in meeting room 115 #ESEB2025

Interested in the temporal and spatial dynamics of mutation load? Come find @k-hench.bsky.social who is investigating this in Antarctic fur seals! Poster session 2, S44 355 5-7PM tonight @eseb2025.bsky.social #eseb2025

How do deleterious mutations affect male black grouse fitness? Find out at @rebeccachen.bsky.social's presentation today at @eseb2025.bsky.social 2:00 PM-2:15 PM, meeting room 131 🧬

Interested in the genomic consequences of commercial sealing? Check out Beril's poster (number 266) tonight at #ESEB2025 where she presents her study on differences in genomic inbreeding levels, bottleneck strength, and genetic load in two populations of South American fur seals 🦭🧬🧪

Working on mutation load, inbreeding or bottlenecks and attending ESEB2025 Congress of the European Society for Evolutionary Biology next week? Check out our lab's talks and posters 😁 Looking forward to chat with you!

Our very own Ramona Mattmueller @ramonammm.bsky.social and her colleague Karolin Thomisch from AWI wrote an article for the Circle Stories of the WWF Global Arctic Program.

Check out our new publication on mutation load dynamics in black grouse! Published today in Nature E&E 👇

We are now also on LinkedIN! 👉 www.linkedin.com/showcase/evo...

Do you work on mutation load? 🔬🧬 Check out our new manuscript where we show that early-life viability selection primarily targets exonic mutations, in contrast to sexual selection which acts on mutations in promoters! 🧑‍🔬 Pre-print is available now: dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn... 🧪 #evolution #popgen

A massive congratulations to dr Jonas Tebbe, for successfully defending his PhD on chemical phenotypes in the Antarctic fur seal!! 🥳🎓🦭 We wish all the very best to Jonas!

There is still lots of time to sign up for our 2025 edition of the #EvoBioCC 🥳💚✨ It is a FREE, online course in Evolutionary Biology, made by students and for students! Please share widely and don't forget to register! 💚💚💚 docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

🧪 Lab plastic waste is a huge problem - but what can we do about it? 🥼 In our lab, we tested whether reusing and washing microtitre plates could help reduce waste. In some cases, it works! ♻️ 🌍 Read more here: buff.ly/XOGSX0q #greenlab #sustainability #openscience

Publication alert! ✨ Our recent paper in Ecology & Evolution addresses how to make conferences more inclusive. We collected observational and experimental data during Q&A sessions at the Behaviour 2023 congress hosted by Bielefeld University, and circulated a survey among conference attendees [1/4]

Fresh publication alert 📃! Our paper about skin and gut microbial communities in Antarctic fur seals is now available in Frontiers in Microbiology. In this study, @ecopetridish.bsky.social and colleagues found that skin microbial communities were strongly influenced by the colony membership. 1/3

Last week our lab member @annekep.bsky.social successfully defended her PhD and was rewarded a magna cum laude for her work! Congratulations dr. Anneke! 🥳🎓 Luckily we don't have to say our farewells yet, as Anneke will continue working on her Antarctic fur seal project as a postdoc in the group 🦭

Last week, the Hoffman Lab had its second lab retreat! Two full days of science, inspiring stories about field work, discussions about EDI in the lab and science communication, and a lot of team-bonding while enjoying the peace of the Teutoburg forest🍃

Our preprint is out! We predicted deleterious mutations and reveal the genomic mechanisms underlying fitness variation in black grouse, a classic lekking bird. Check it out doi.org/10.21203/rs.... #genomics #popgen #genetics