Davide Pisani

The paper reconciles molecular and fossil evidence by showing sponges emerged in the early Ediacaran without spicules, which evolved independently multiple times later.

The paper identifies 39 gene families consistently expressed in neurons across eight animal species and finds one unique family linked to nervous systems.

Chromosome-scale inshore hagfish genome places 1R before the cyclostome-gnathostome split and 2R in the gnathostome stem, and reveals two cyclostome-specific duplications (CR1, CR2).

This study reconstructs the evolutionary history of opsin genes in Dipteran species, revealing lineage-specific expansions and duplications, and contrasting evolutionary dynamics between Anopheles and Drosophila.