We've recently discovered connexin-like domains in anthozoans. In collaboration with the Dale Lab at Warwick, we've shown that they look like vertebrate connexins, they work like them, and some even open in response to elevated CO2. Why anthozoans have them and why are they on the N-terminus of NLRs, that's what we want to know too!

Using the sea anemone, Nematostella vectensis, and the other marine invertebrates mentioned above, we're using long-read sequencing approaches to investigate intraspecific genomic structural variation and its role in adaptation and host-microbe interactions. We have a really cool analysis of variation in a multicopy toxin gene locus out now in Nature Communications!

How have taxonomically distinct organisms with different life-history traits adapted to the same environmental gradient? We're currently analyzing whole genome resequencing data for 4 organisms (Pinctada radiata, Platygyra daedalea, Phallusia nigra and Echinometra sp. EZ) along the same environmental gradient to find out!

Analyzing structural variants is challenging, especially in highly heterozygous non-model organisms. We're developing new approaches to identify and characterize structural variation with the aim of providing robust tools to analyze SVs across the tree of life.