Laura Suttenfield
@lcatherines.bsky.social
postdoc with @baym.lol at Harvard Medical School | UIUC, UMass Amherst alum
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Our pQBR plasmid paper is out! A model environmental plasmid collection that contains no known AMR genes and worldwide relatives! @jpjhall.bsky.social @ellieevolves.bsky.social @dwrivett.bsky.social and Rosanna Wright @microbiologysociety.org microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/mgen/10.1099
The pQBR mercury resistance plasmids: a model set of sympatric environmental mobile genetic elements
Plasmids are extrachromosomal mobile genetic elements that can facilitate rapid bacterial adaptation by transferring genes between individuals. Whilst plasmids are known to exist in diverse habitats a...
www.microbiologyresearch.org
July 24, 2026 at 2:16 PM
Our pQBR plasmid paper is out! A model environmental plasmid collection that contains no known AMR genes and worldwide relatives! @jpjhall.bsky.social @ellieevolves.bsky.social @dwrivett.bsky.social and Rosanna Wright @microbiologysociety.org microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/mgen/10.1099
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Excited that this is finally out, led by @jhuisman.bsky.social with Jeff Gore, combining experiments, theory and natural microbiome data! As salinity rises, diversity and individual species growth rates fall, yet community's overall growth stays robust: faster growers take over and keep it going.
Out Now! Predictable shifts in microbial species composition lead to community-wide robustness to environmental stress #MicroSky
Predictable shifts in microbial species composition lead to community-wide robustness to environmental stress
Nature Microbiology, Published online: 17 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41564-026-02422-3Environmental stress shifts microbial composition towards species with high growth rates, providing community-wide protection.
go.nature.com
July 17, 2026 at 9:45 PM
Excited that this is finally out, led by @jhuisman.bsky.social with Jeff Gore, combining experiments, theory and natural microbiome data! As salinity rises, diversity and individual species growth rates fall, yet community's overall growth stays robust: faster growers take over and keep it going.
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Happy to see @lizthayer.bsky.social's magnum opus published in peer-reviewed form in @cp-cellsystems.bsky.social!! Check it out!
www.cell.com/cell-systems...
www.cell.com/cell-systems...
July 17, 2026 at 4:30 PM
Happy to see @lizthayer.bsky.social's magnum opus published in peer-reviewed form in @cp-cellsystems.bsky.social!! Check it out!
www.cell.com/cell-systems...
www.cell.com/cell-systems...
this was such a lovely read
Another Friday slow read. Modularity and what it could mean. As always it is free, so please subscribe. open.substack.com/pub/profmcin...
Modularity
Why is everything not an integrated, undifferentiated system?
open.substack.com
July 17, 2026 at 1:52 PM
this was such a lovely read
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
CRISPR-Cas interference decays rapidly with distance from the leader sequence in a long array https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.07.09.737519v1
July 10, 2026 at 4:19 AM
CRISPR-Cas interference decays rapidly with distance from the leader sequence in a long array https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.07.09.737519v1
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
We are looking for a motivated PhD student in phage genomics! Please find the details attached. Application deadline 24/07. Don't hesitate to spread the word!
July 10, 2026 at 8:53 AM
We are looking for a motivated PhD student in phage genomics! Please find the details attached. Application deadline 24/07. Don't hesitate to spread the word!
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
ASM has submitted formal comments urging the White House Office of Management and Budget to withdraw a proposed rule that would weaken the peer review process, limit scientific collaboration and networking and create new barriers to conducting and disseminating research: asm.org/articles/pol...
ASM Opposes OMB Grants Rule | ASM.org
ASM strongly opposes the Office of Management and Budget's proposed rule on federal financial assistance, citing risks to scientific integrity and innovation.
asm.org
July 10, 2026 at 7:32 PM
ASM has submitted formal comments urging the White House Office of Management and Budget to withdraw a proposed rule that would weaken the peer review process, limit scientific collaboration and networking and create new barriers to conducting and disseminating research: asm.org/articles/pol...
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Host Range Breadth Correlates with Genic Diversity in Honeybee Phages
@genomebiolevol.bsky.social from @chicascientifica.bsky.social
academic.oup.com/gbe/article/...
@genomebiolevol.bsky.social from @chicascientifica.bsky.social
academic.oup.com/gbe/article/...
Host Range Breadth Correlates with Genic Diversity in Honeybee Phages
Abstract. Bacteriophages can evolve rapidly. Mutation and recombination via horizontal gene transfer allow them to counter adaptive responses by microbial
academic.oup.com
July 4, 2026 at 12:22 PM
Host Range Breadth Correlates with Genic Diversity in Honeybee Phages
@genomebiolevol.bsky.social from @chicascientifica.bsky.social
academic.oup.com/gbe/article/...
@genomebiolevol.bsky.social from @chicascientifica.bsky.social
academic.oup.com/gbe/article/...
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Can bacterial genomics bring 70 years of epidemiological surveillance back to life?
We're hiring a postdoc (2–3 years) to explore the historical evolution of Salmonella Typhi using a unique genomic dataset.
More details:
euraxess.ec.europa.eu/jobs/449895
We're hiring a postdoc (2–3 years) to explore the historical evolution of Salmonella Typhi using a unique genomic dataset.
More details:
euraxess.ec.europa.eu/jobs/449895
July 3, 2026 at 7:44 AM
Can bacterial genomics bring 70 years of epidemiological surveillance back to life?
We're hiring a postdoc (2–3 years) to explore the historical evolution of Salmonella Typhi using a unique genomic dataset.
More details:
euraxess.ec.europa.eu/jobs/449895
We're hiring a postdoc (2–3 years) to explore the historical evolution of Salmonella Typhi using a unique genomic dataset.
More details:
euraxess.ec.europa.eu/jobs/449895
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Check out Amy's story of how prophages shape antibiotic resistance evolution!
We're excited to share our work on how prophages influence the evolution of resistance against DNA-damaging antibiotics! This has been a fun project with
@sianowen.bsky.social, @baym.lol, @theshreyaspai.bsky.social, @kepatitis-c.bsky.social, & @fernpizza.bsky.social
biorxiv.org/content/10.6... 1/
@sianowen.bsky.social, @baym.lol, @theshreyaspai.bsky.social, @kepatitis-c.bsky.social, & @fernpizza.bsky.social
biorxiv.org/content/10.6... 1/
SOS-mediated prophage induction constrains resistance evolution to DNA-damaging antibiotics
Most naturally occurring bacteria are lysogens, encoding one or more temperate phages (prophages) integrated into their genome. As prophages are induced by the bacterial SOS response, DNA-damaging ant...
biorxiv.org
June 25, 2026 at 9:03 PM
Check out Amy's story of how prophages shape antibiotic resistance evolution!
I want to sing Amy’s praises! She’s a great scientist & this has taken so much hard work and dedication on her end. It’s so cool to see how different minds & starting points approach a problem I’m also very interested in - how MGEs shift host evolutionary trajectories. Give it a read here ⬇️
We're excited to share our work on how prophages influence the evolution of resistance against DNA-damaging antibiotics! This has been a fun project with
@sianowen.bsky.social, @baym.lol, @theshreyaspai.bsky.social, @kepatitis-c.bsky.social, & @fernpizza.bsky.social
biorxiv.org/content/10.6... 1/
@sianowen.bsky.social, @baym.lol, @theshreyaspai.bsky.social, @kepatitis-c.bsky.social, & @fernpizza.bsky.social
biorxiv.org/content/10.6... 1/
SOS-mediated prophage induction constrains resistance evolution to DNA-damaging antibiotics
Most naturally occurring bacteria are lysogens, encoding one or more temperate phages (prophages) integrated into their genome. As prophages are induced by the bacterial SOS response, DNA-damaging ant...
biorxiv.org
June 26, 2026 at 1:07 AM
I want to sing Amy’s praises! She’s a great scientist & this has taken so much hard work and dedication on her end. It’s so cool to see how different minds & starting points approach a problem I’m also very interested in - how MGEs shift host evolutionary trajectories. Give it a read here ⬇️
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
We're excited to share our work on how prophages influence the evolution of resistance against DNA-damaging antibiotics! This has been a fun project with
@sianowen.bsky.social, @baym.lol, @theshreyaspai.bsky.social, @kepatitis-c.bsky.social, & @fernpizza.bsky.social
biorxiv.org/content/10.6... 1/
@sianowen.bsky.social, @baym.lol, @theshreyaspai.bsky.social, @kepatitis-c.bsky.social, & @fernpizza.bsky.social
biorxiv.org/content/10.6... 1/
SOS-mediated prophage induction constrains resistance evolution to DNA-damaging antibiotics
Most naturally occurring bacteria are lysogens, encoding one or more temperate phages (prophages) integrated into their genome. As prophages are induced by the bacterial SOS response, DNA-damaging ant...
biorxiv.org
June 25, 2026 at 9:00 PM
We're excited to share our work on how prophages influence the evolution of resistance against DNA-damaging antibiotics! This has been a fun project with
@sianowen.bsky.social, @baym.lol, @theshreyaspai.bsky.social, @kepatitis-c.bsky.social, & @fernpizza.bsky.social
biorxiv.org/content/10.6... 1/
@sianowen.bsky.social, @baym.lol, @theshreyaspai.bsky.social, @kepatitis-c.bsky.social, & @fernpizza.bsky.social
biorxiv.org/content/10.6... 1/
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Rather: small N + strong selection = beneficial mutations linked to DNA repair mutants that ⬆️ mutation supply
We tried to be accurate here @catarmbruster.bsky.social www.cell.com/cell-reports...
Grateful that evolutionary biology is being used in microbial pathogenesis, now need more pop-gen
We tried to be accurate here @catarmbruster.bsky.social www.cell.com/cell-reports...
Grateful that evolutionary biology is being used in microbial pathogenesis, now need more pop-gen
Adaptation and genomic erosion in fragmented Pseudomonas aeruginosa populations in the sinuses of people with cystic fibrosis
Armbruster et al. find that infection-site biogeography impacts evolution of the opportunistic
pathogen, Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In the sinuses of adults with cystic fibrosis, P. aeruginosa
residing i...
www.cell.com
June 16, 2026 at 2:20 PM
Rather: small N + strong selection = beneficial mutations linked to DNA repair mutants that ⬆️ mutation supply
We tried to be accurate here @catarmbruster.bsky.social www.cell.com/cell-reports...
Grateful that evolutionary biology is being used in microbial pathogenesis, now need more pop-gen
We tried to be accurate here @catarmbruster.bsky.social www.cell.com/cell-reports...
Grateful that evolutionary biology is being used in microbial pathogenesis, now need more pop-gen
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
My first ASM Microbe with a PhD! I’ve attended a Gordon as a postdoc but Microbe has been consistent for me throughout my grad school years and this feels extra special! Excited to learn about bugs! 🧫
June 4, 2026 at 1:08 PM
My first ASM Microbe with a PhD! I’ve attended a Gordon as a postdoc but Microbe has been consistent for me throughout my grad school years and this feels extra special! Excited to learn about bugs! 🧫
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Preprint of some of my postdoctoral research with @mfrederickson.bsky.social examining the evolution of beneficial microbial symbionts in duckweed www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
www.biorxiv.org
June 3, 2026 at 5:23 PM
Preprint of some of my postdoctoral research with @mfrederickson.bsky.social examining the evolution of beneficial microbial symbionts in duckweed www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Check out our new review with @mfarjo.bsky.social on what we know about the functional and evolutionary consequences of virus-virus interactions within viral populations, out now in @annualreviews.bsky.social:
www.annualreviews.org/content/jour...
Hope you like it!
www.annualreviews.org/content/jour...
Hope you like it!
Heterogeneity and Collective Interactions Within Viral Populations
The existence of viruses as obligate intracellular parasites with high mutation rates sets them apart from other forms of life in fundamental ways. Frequent errors in replication and assembly processe...
www.annualreviews.org
June 1, 2026 at 10:33 PM
Check out our new review with @mfarjo.bsky.social on what we know about the functional and evolutionary consequences of virus-virus interactions within viral populations, out now in @annualreviews.bsky.social:
www.annualreviews.org/content/jour...
Hope you like it!
www.annualreviews.org/content/jour...
Hope you like it!
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Conference season is here, and I'll be at #ASMicrobe! Come check out some of my latest results on the honey bee queen microbiome. I'd also love to chat about other ongoing projects on social bee multi-kingdom microbiomes, potential collaborations, or opportunities to join the Caesar Lab at OU : )
June 2, 2026 at 5:00 AM
Conference season is here, and I'll be at #ASMicrobe! Come check out some of my latest results on the honey bee queen microbiome. I'd also love to chat about other ongoing projects on social bee multi-kingdom microbiomes, potential collaborations, or opportunities to join the Caesar Lab at OU : )
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Can’t resist... checking for potential VOCs in microbiome interactions, just one more experiment before moving to Oklahoma. Next ones will be at the Caesar Lab at OU :)
May 21, 2026 at 2:30 PM
Can’t resist... checking for potential VOCs in microbiome interactions, just one more experiment before moving to Oklahoma. Next ones will be at the Caesar Lab at OU :)
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Last week I had the pleasure of presenting my thesis work on developing bioinformatics tools and databases for viral gene discovery and classification at the Midwest Microbiome Symposium, hosted at my alma mater, UIUC. It was great to see what microbiome scientists across the Midwest are working on!
May 19, 2026 at 5:09 PM
Last week I had the pleasure of presenting my thesis work on developing bioinformatics tools and databases for viral gene discovery and classification at the Midwest Microbiome Symposium, hosted at my alma mater, UIUC. It was great to see what microbiome scientists across the Midwest are working on!
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
🔬🦠 Comment #Klebsiella parvient-elle à changer de capsule aussi fréquemment pour mieux s’adapter à son environnement ?
Les travaux de @julielebris.bsky.social mis à la une par @cnrsbiologie.bsky.social 👏
-avec @epcrocha.bsky.social
#MicroSky @cbitoulouse.bsky.social
Les travaux de @julielebris.bsky.social mis à la une par @cnrsbiologie.bsky.social 👏
-avec @epcrocha.bsky.social
#MicroSky @cbitoulouse.bsky.social
#ResultatScientifique🔎| Une bactérie capable de changer de « bouclier » pour mieux s’adapter à son environnement : une stratégie étonnante de Klebsiella pneumoniae qui éclaire ses capacités d’évolution et de résistance.
✍️ @olayarendueles.bsky.social @julielebris.bsky.social
▶️ buff.ly/q8AKHo1
✍️ @olayarendueles.bsky.social @julielebris.bsky.social
▶️ buff.ly/q8AKHo1
May 19, 2026 at 5:52 PM
🔬🦠 Comment #Klebsiella parvient-elle à changer de capsule aussi fréquemment pour mieux s’adapter à son environnement ?
Les travaux de @julielebris.bsky.social mis à la une par @cnrsbiologie.bsky.social 👏
-avec @epcrocha.bsky.social
#MicroSky @cbitoulouse.bsky.social
Les travaux de @julielebris.bsky.social mis à la une par @cnrsbiologie.bsky.social 👏
-avec @epcrocha.bsky.social
#MicroSky @cbitoulouse.bsky.social
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Excited to announce that we are moving the lab to Minneapolis to join the University of Minnesota Department of Microbiology & Immunology and Institute on Infectious Diseases this summer!!
We will be hiring so please reach out if interested in viral evolution, viral immunology, etc.!!
We will be hiring so please reach out if interested in viral evolution, viral immunology, etc.!!
May 14, 2026 at 2:32 PM
Excited to announce that we are moving the lab to Minneapolis to join the University of Minnesota Department of Microbiology & Immunology and Institute on Infectious Diseases this summer!!
We will be hiring so please reach out if interested in viral evolution, viral immunology, etc.!!
We will be hiring so please reach out if interested in viral evolution, viral immunology, etc.!!
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
The evolutionary immunologist Tera Levin studies how molecular parts isolated from ancient bacterial immune systems can evolve into new tools. www.quantamagazine.org/the-ancient-...
April 25, 2026 at 3:46 PM
The evolutionary immunologist Tera Levin studies how molecular parts isolated from ancient bacterial immune systems can evolve into new tools. www.quantamagazine.org/the-ancient-...
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Thrilled to have my first PhD paper with @mmdesai.bsky.social out! @science.org
Link: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Thread below:
#mevosky #evosky #evobio #popgen #evolsky #ecoevo #molevol
Link: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Thread below:
#mevosky #evosky #evobio #popgen #evolsky #ecoevo #molevol
April 24, 2026 at 5:52 PM
Thrilled to have my first PhD paper with @mmdesai.bsky.social out! @science.org
Link: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Thread below:
#mevosky #evosky #evobio #popgen #evolsky #ecoevo #molevol
Link: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Thread below:
#mevosky #evosky #evobio #popgen #evolsky #ecoevo #molevol
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Extremely proud of my student Will Hamilton and the work we've done to characterize Wolbachia ankyrin repeat proteins. TLDR: they do interact with specific Drosophila proteins! journals.asm.org/eprint/KXVNI...
Wolbachia uses ankyrin repeats to target specific fly proteins | mBio
Molecular interactions drive co-evolutionary arms races between hosts and pathogens.
These interactions shape the structure and function of both host and parasite proteins,
enabling immunity or virule...
journals.asm.org
April 20, 2026 at 1:53 PM
Extremely proud of my student Will Hamilton and the work we've done to characterize Wolbachia ankyrin repeat proteins. TLDR: they do interact with specific Drosophila proteins! journals.asm.org/eprint/KXVNI...
Reposted by Laura Suttenfield
Interested in joining the lab or collaborating? I’d love to hear from you! You can use my current website as a reference (liliancaesar.com) - Caesar Lab version coming soon 😊
April 20, 2026 at 9:07 PM
Interested in joining the lab or collaborating? I’d love to hear from you! You can use my current website as a reference (liliancaesar.com) - Caesar Lab version coming soon 😊