Michael Manhart
Quantitative Evolutionary Microbiology
Ecology, evolution, systems biology, and biophysics of microbial communities
Assistant Professor, Rutgers University
qevomicrolab.org
- My department (Rutgers Med School Biochem & Mol Bio) is hiring a Tenure-Track Assistant/Associate Professor in Evolutionary Medicine. Topic is interpreted broadly, but candidates should integrate evolutionary theory with molecular mechanisms. Please share! jobs.rutgers.edu/postings/261...
- One more day to apply to our lab's Ph.D. position for fall 2026 bsky.app/profile/mich...
- I am recruiting a Ph.D. student in microbial ecology, evolution, and systems biology for fall 2026. Please share! Details: qevomicrolab.org/Documents/Gr... Apply by October 1 here: forms.gle/38pPS1Ky84HB...
- One more week to apply for a Ph.D. in our lab for fall 2026 bsky.app/profile/mich...
- I am recruiting a Ph.D. student in microbial ecology, evolution, and systems biology for fall 2026. Please share! Details: qevomicrolab.org/Documents/Gr... Apply by October 1 here: forms.gle/38pPS1Ky84HB...
- I am recruiting a Ph.D. student in microbial ecology, evolution, and systems biology for fall 2026. Please share! Details: qevomicrolab.org/Documents/Gr... Apply by October 1 here: forms.gle/38pPS1Ky84HB...
- I've usually followed the principle of trying to establish the set of figures before writing text while working on papers. But I just realized this doesn't seem to work for me when writing proposals: I have to organize the ideas with text first before deciding what figures I need.
- I think the difference is that for a paper, I've already been expressing the ideas in the form of plots for months (or years) by the time I get to writing, so it is natural to structure the ideas in those terms first. But that's not the case in a proposal, where the ideas are fresher.
- Opening for a Ph.D. student in the group of Tobias Bollenbach at U. Cologne studying biological physics and systems biology. Outstanding group and scientific environment in my opinion: jobportal.uni-koeln.de/ausschreibun...
- I really like this essay in the Inquirer on cutting the NIH. It is personal, and it is directed at those who might disagree with the author. I hope some of them read it. www.inquirer.com/opinion/comm...
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- What about sensitivity/susceptibility? (For the inverse)
- Second authorship is the highest variance authorship there is
- Last day to apply to our lab's theoretical biophysics/computational biology postdoc on predicting evolution in microbial communities! Details: qevomicrolab.org/wp-content/u... Apply here: forms.gle/hMNgrh3Ja5dP...
- I am recruiting a postdoc in statistical physics, computational biology, or a related field to study the predictability of evolution in microbial communities. Please share! Details: qevomicrolab.org/wp-content/u... Apply by May 1 here: forms.gle/hMNgrh3Ja5dP...
- One more week to apply for our lab's biophysics/comp bio postdoc position on predicting evolution in microbial communities! A truly interdisciplinary opportunity to collaborate with @meikewortel.bsky.social and Daniel Charlebois on an HFSP-funded project. Please share if you can!
- I am recruiting a postdoc in statistical physics, computational biology, or a related field to study the predictability of evolution in microbial communities. Please share! Details: qevomicrolab.org/wp-content/u... Apply by May 1 here: forms.gle/hMNgrh3Ja5dP...
- Has anyone had experience with a preprint being published, along with a bunch of AI text and a fake image, on one of those NFT sites? It grosses me out, not sure of legality??
- You mean with your name on it?
- I am recruiting a postdoc in statistical physics, computational biology, or a related field to study the predictability of evolution in microbial communities. Please share! Details: qevomicrolab.org/wp-content/u... Apply by May 1 here: forms.gle/hMNgrh3Ja5dP...
- Thanks to the Human Frontier Science Program, I'm excited to start a new collaboration with @meikewortel.bsky.social and Daniel Charlebois on the predictability of evolution across scales of microbial communities! I will post more soon about recruiting a new postdoc for this project
- Has anyone used automation instruments from Molecular Devices (mainly robotic arm for plate handling)?
- Having posted about the review @proteocean.bsky.social and I wrote about colimitation in microbes, I also want to share the research preprint on this that we recently wrote as well, along with @krishnaaswin77.bsky.social, Donat Crippa, and Anastasia Dragan. doi.org/10.1101/2023... 1/4
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View full threadWe then demonstrate that colimitation is easily accessible under laboratory conditions, rather than requiring a fine-tuning of environmental parameters. We show that both the growth rate and yield of E. coli can be colimited by glucose and ammonium over a fairly wide range of conditions. 3/4
- Finally, we collect data on growth responses of marine, freshwater, and enteric microbes for several resources, along with estimated concentrations of those resources in nature. We show that this data is consistent with intermediate levels of colimitation, especially for the marine species. 4/4
- We introduce a theoretical framework for thinking about colimitation in microbes. We show that colimitation should be thought of as a quantitative property of microbes -- resources aren't just colimiting or not, but they can be colimiting to various degrees. 2/4
- Interesting job opportunity to study computational evolutionary biology outside of an academic setting jobs.lever.co/arcadiascien...
- Microbes need many different resources, but do some of these resources simultaneously COLIMIT growth? @proteocean.bsky.social and I provide a new review of this concept, a summary of evidence that colimitation occurs in natural environments, and its causes/consequences. doi.org/10.32942/X2S... 1/6
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View full threadWhy should we care if microbes are colimited? It is clearly important for predicting and controlling microbial growth, but there are also intriguing hypotheses about how it affects cell physiology, ecology, and even the cycling of elements through Earth's ecosystems. 5/6
- We argue the big challenges for the future are 1) to figure out how colimitation works at the molecular/cellular scale, 2) more systematic scans of microbial growth across resource conditions, and 3) models to better predict what colimitation means for ecosystems and biogeochemical cycles. 6/6
- In a meta-analysis of 71 published studies from across microbial habitats, we find that 55% claim evidence of colimitation, and this detection rate has been increasing over time. This suggests that colimitation may be relatively common in nature, especially as we look for it more often. 3/6
- What causes colimitation? In general it requires the alignment of resource consumption with the environment, but there are lots of potential sub-factors including interactions between resources, spatial and temporal heterogeneity, and evolution. 4/6
- The number of papers on colimitation has increased rapidly in recent years, but the literature can be confusing because there are many surrounding concepts and terms, some of which are not well defined. We carefully review the key concepts here, especially biological scale and growth traits. 2/6
- Time for another new lab poll - What ultra pure water system does your lab have and do you like it?
- We also have MilliQ here, same as we had at ETH. Seems fine as far as I can tell but I don't directly use it here (nor do I have to maintain it, since it's a shared resource)
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- Maybe this one? www.nature.com/articles/s41... Or this one on the other side, but it was closer to two years ago: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
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- Yes but don't worry, the British journals do the opposite so it all evens out
- Does anyone know of estimates that compare kingdoms by number of cells on Earth (bacteria vs. archaea vs. plants vs. animals)? I know this for biomass on Earth (doi.org/10.1073/pnas... ) and comparing human vs. microbe cells in the body (doi.org/10.1371/jour... ) but I can't find cells on Earth
- This new paper is closer to what I want! www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
- And for the non-microbiologists: all 3 basic science departments of the Rutgers medical school are also hiring tenure-track positions! Please share. Biochem & Mol Bio jobs.rutgers.edu/postings/213... Neuro and Cell Bio jobs.rutgers.edu/postings/215... Pharmacology jobs.rutgers.edu/postings/215...
- For microbiologists seeking faculty jobs: Rutgers has 4+ faculty searches in microbiology right now! Please share widely and see below for details and links on the individual positions 1/5
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View full threadThe Dept of Biochem and Microbio is also searching for a tenure-track assistant professor in microbial metabolism, part of a new faculty cluster in metabolic health. jobs.rutgers.edu/postings/213... 4/5
- Finally, the Dept of Animal Sciences has a search for Tenure-Track Assistant Professor in Gastrointestinal (GI) Physiology and the Microbiome jobs.rutgers.edu/postings/213... 5/5
- My center (CABM) has two open-rank positions in microbiome science, broadly defined. This can include basic scientists as well as physician-scientists. jobs.rutgers.edu/postings/214... 2/5
- The Dept of Biochem and Microbio is searching for a tenure-track assistant professor in microbial evolution, especially evolution of microbial pathogens and/or antibiotic resistance. This is part of a new evolutionary medicine faculty cluster jobs.rutgers.edu/postings/213... 3/5
- Two more days to apply to the Ph.D. position on microbial ecology and evolution in our lab. Please share with any interested students!
- Our lab is recruiting a Ph.D. student for fall 2024! If you are interested in the ecology, evolution, and systems biology of microbial communities (especially using theory and modeling), please apply by November 1 according to the attached ad and link qevomicrolab.org/wp-content/u...
- Let's start a thread of faculty in evolutionary bio & ecology who are seeking grad students in the run-up to application season. Repost with: who you are, a potential student project, a photo, and a link.
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- I lead the Quantitative Evolutionary Microbiology Lab at Rutgers, and we're looking for a Ph.D. student to work on the ecology, evolution, and systems biology of microbial communities, especially using theory/modeling. See the attachment or link for more! qevomicrolab.org/wp-content/u...
- Our lab is recruiting a Ph.D. student for fall 2024! If you are interested in the ecology, evolution, and systems biology of microbial communities (especially using theory and modeling), please apply by November 1 according to the attached ad and link qevomicrolab.org/wp-content/u...
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- Of course we need both, I think it's the comparison of the two that is most interesting
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- I find those criticisms of experimental evolution to be unreasonably defeatist. Why ever study anything in the lab? Of course some aspects are idiosyncratic, but the whole point is to determine which ones are and which ones are universal (basically, "all models are wrong but...").
