The lab in April 2024
The lab in September 2023
Isabel Almudí
Group leader
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I am a Beatriz Galindo researcher at the Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics Department at the University of Barcelona. My research interests focus on the developmental processes that control animal morphology and how they evolved to give rise to the huge diversity of animals and their sensory and ecological adaptations.
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Joan Pallarés
Bioinformatician
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I have long been fascinated by how information is stored, regulated and modified in genomes. My interests range from human health to insects, and along the way I have used both experimental and computational tools. Currently, I am devoted to help unveil the complexities of the mayfly C. dipterum genome through bioinformatics.
Maria Rosselló
Margarita Salas Postdoctoral researcher
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I am fascinated by how different gene programs can define features in a single organism and between species. During my PhD I studied the role of the hippo pathway in cell cycle, cell differentiation, apoptosis and the formation of overgrowths in planarians. Currently, I am applying my experience in developmental biology and Bioinformatics to unveil the genetic basis of morphological novelties in mayflies.
Rafath Chowdhury
Postdoctoral researcher
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I am passionate about the field of EvoDevo. During my thesis I studied the establishment of epidermal sensory neurons in invertebrate chordates. During this postdoc, I will study how morphological novelties arise in mayflies using my knowledge of molecular and developmental biology.
Sophie Tandonnet
Postdoctoral researcher
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I am an evolutionary biologist captivated by the processes underlying the evolution of complex traits. My research journey has taken me from unraveling the mysteries of sex determination in a unique nematode (PhD) to exploring the evolution of parasitism in blowflies (post-doc). Currently, I'm delving into the fascinating world of mayflies, exploring how the genome of Cloeon dipterum (and its expression) orchestrates the emergence of remarkable features such as wings and the sexually dimorphic visual system.
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Alba Almazán
Postdoctoral researcher
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I am thrilled by how development drives the vast diversity of life and how these mechanisms evolved. During my PhD, I studied regeneration in the crustacean Parhyale hawaiensis, focusing on cell diversity and the fidelity of this process. For my postdoc, I aim to delve into the origin of wings as a morphological innovation in the mayfly Cloeon dipterum.​
Tòt Senar
PhD student
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I always wondered how animals perceive their external environment and how visual capabilities evolved in the different animal lineages. In the mayflyecoevodevo lab, I am investigating these questions using the mayfly C. dipterum and its extraordinary visual systems.
María Morán
PhD student
I am interested in understanding how GRNs evolved to give rise to different colourations.
Alumni
Can be contacted for references
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Nancy Parra (undergraduate student, 09/2024-01/2025). Nancy performed her Bachelor project (TFG) under Sophie and Isabel supervision. She unveiled how Dsx determines sex in mayflies
Antoni Ruiz (lab technician, 2023-2025). Antoni took care of the mayfly culture, managed the lab and assisted the team experimentally.
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Carlos A. Martín-Blanco (PhD student, 2019-2024)​
Carlos did his PhD investigating regenerative capabilities of the mayfly C. dipterum. He is now a postdoctoral reseacher at Nikos Konstantinides lab, in Paris
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Linus H. Ris (Masters student, 04/2024-09/2024)
In the context of his studies in Biodiversity, Linus investigated phenotypic plasticity and sex determination in insects using the mayfly C. dipterum
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Iva Verbanac (Erasmus+, 04/2024-07/2024)
Iva did a research internship as part of her master's studies in developmental and stem cell biology.. Her work focused on studying gene expression and genomic programs to understand how wings evolved in insects.
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Laia Ortega-Flores (Master student, 02/2023-09/2023)
Laia performed her Master Thesis under Maria and Isabel supervision. She unveiled how the genome is regulated during embryogenesis
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Giulio Masiero (Master student, 01/2019-09/2019)
Giulio joined the mayfly team in 2019 to perform his Master Thesis from the University of Trieste, in Italy
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Ana Alcaina (Master student, 04/2017-09/2018)
Ana worked on her Master thesis “Comparative and genetic study to test the hypothesis of the pleural gill origin of the insect wing” with us. Currently, she is a PhD student at the López-Ríos laboratory at the CABD
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Javier Figueras (Master student, 04/2017-09/2018)
He did his Master Project on “Mechanisms of organ size variation: differential gene expression analysis during the development of two fly eyes of very different sizes”. Afterwards he moved to the laboratory of Prof Alistair P. McGregor in Oxford Brookes University to pursue his PhD
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Adrián López-Catalina (Undergraduate student, 09/2016-06/2017)
He joined the laboratory to perform his Final Degree Project investigating wing development in mayflies. He is currently a PhD student at the IRTA-CSIC
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Isabel M. García-Fernández (Undergraduate student, 09/2016-06/2017)
She performed her Research Project investigating eye development in mayflies.
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