P. Lopez-Garcia

Nucleomorph phylogenomics suggests a deep and ancient origin of cryptophyte plastids within Rhodophyta

The paper uses nucleomorph genes to reconstruct the phylogeny of cryptophyte plastids, finding they are sister to Cyanidiophytina, suggesting an ancient origin of red complex plastids outside known Rhodophyta subgroups.

Extremely acidic proteomes and metabolic flexibility in bacteria and highly diversified archaea thriving in geothermal chaotropic brines

The paper analyzes metagenomes and proteomes from geothermal brines to show that archaea and bacteria have highly acidic proteomes and metabolic flexibility in extreme salinity conditions.

Parasitic connections: a patescibacterial epibiont, its methylotrophic gammaproteobacterial host and their phages

The paper describes a tripartite interaction between a patescibacterial epibiont, its gammaproteobacterial host, and their phages, revealing host specificity and genetic adaptations.

Exploring the prokaryote-eukaryote interplay in microbial mats from an Andean athalassohaline wetland

The paper examines microbial community assembly in an Andean wetland, finding that both abiotic factors and biotic interactions shape prokaryotic and eukaryotic communities, with strong correlations between photosynthetic eukaryotes and prokaryotes.

Several independent adaptations of archaea to hypersaline environments

This study resolves the phylogeny of extremely halophilic archaea and identifies four independent adaptations to hypersaline environments through phylogenomic analysis and gene transfer mechanisms.

Description of Gloeomargarita ahousahtiae sp. nov., a thermophilic member of the order Gloeomargaritales with intracellular carbonate inclusions

This paper describes a new thermophilic cyanobacterium, Gloeomargarita ahousahtiae, isolated from a hot spring, characterized by intracellular carbonate inclusions and distinct phenotypic features.

Molecular and morphological characterisation of four new ancyromonad genera and proposal for an updated taxonomy of the Ancyromonadida

The paper characterizes four new ancyromonad genera and updates their taxonomy using morphology, behavior, and molecular phylogenetic analyses.

Expanding the molecular and morphological diversity of Apusomonadida, a deep-branching group of gliding bacterivorous protists

The paper describes new apusomonad species and genera, updates their taxonomy, and provides insights into their evolutionary history and morphology.

Coevolution of reproducers and replicators at the origin of life and the conditions for the origin of genomes

This paper models the coevolution of reproducers and replicators to identify conditions for the origin of genomes and symmetrical cell division.

A phylogenetic and proteomic reconstruction of eukaryotic chromatin evolution

This study reconstructs the evolutionary history of eukaryotic chromatin by combining proteomics and phylogenetic analysis, revealing pre-eukaryotic origins of chromatin functions and eukaryotic innovations.

A new gene family diagnostic for intracellular biomineralization of amorphous Ca-carbonates by cyanobacteria

The paper identifies a new gene family associated with intracellular amorphous calcium carbonate biomineralization in cyanobacteria and expands its known phylogenetic and environmental distribution.

Metagenome-derived virus-microbe ratios across ecosystems

The paper estimates virus-to-microbe ratios using metagenomic data across ecosystems, finding viruses outnumber cells by ~13x in freshwater and ~2-4x in marine/saline plankton, but only ~2x in non-aquatic environments.

Phylogenomics of a new fungal phylum reveals multiple waves of reductive evolution across Holomycota

The paper sequences single-cell genomes of two parasitic fungi, identifies a new phylum, and reveals evolutionary patterns in flagellum loss and metabolic reduction across Holomycota.

Reductive evolution and unique infection and feeding mode in the CPR predatory bacterium Vampirococcus lugosii

This study characterizes Vampirococcus lugosii, a CPR bacterium that parasitizes photosynthetic bacteria, revealing its unique predation mode and genomic adaptations.

Environmental drivers of plankton protist communities along latitudinal and vertical gradients in the oldest and deepest freshwater lake

The paper investigates protist community structure in Lake Baikal along latitudinal and vertical gradients, finding depth strongly influences communities while latitude and coastal vs. open water have minor or no effects.

An anti-amyloidogenic treatment to specifically block the consolidation of traumatic events in mouse

This paper develops a transgenic mouse expressing QBP1 to block traumatic memory consolidation, showing impaired aversive memory and reduced amyloid oligomerization.

Hyperdiverse archaea near life limits at the polyextreme geothermal Dallol area

The paper identifies highly diverse ultrasmall archaea in polyextreme geothermal environments and hypothesizes adaptations to extreme conditions.

Structural Determinants of Coiled Coil Mechanics

This study investigates how helix propensity and hydrophobic core packing affect the mechanical stability of coiled coil heterodimers using single-molecule force spectroscopy.

The aphelid-like phagotrophic origins of fungi

This study generates transcriptome data for an aphelid and uses phylogenomic analysis to suggest fungi evolved from a phagotrophic opisthosporidian ancestor.