Anna Ferraioli

Thanks a lot Eudald!!

Thanks a lot Maria!!!

Thanks a lot Evelyn!!

The cover of the journal Science Advances highlights the article described in this thread. On the cover, a comb jelly is viewed from above on a black background. Above, the mention "Sciences Advances" and "6 March 2026". On the bottom left, the logo of AAAS.

Congratulations to all the authors 👏 A special mention goes to @alexandrejan.bsky.social for a gorgeous cover image!
@leodigel.bsky.social @jeffcolgren.bsky.social @carinelegoff.bsky.social @joanjsoto.bsky.social @maikekittelmann.bsky.social @aaas.org 4/4

Ctenophore research points to earlier origins of brain-like structures New 3D reconstructions of a key sensory organ in ctenophores reveal an unexpected structural and functional complexity. The findings suggest that an elementary brain may have already appeared in our m...

New article from the @pawelburkhardt.bsky.social group highlighted on the cover of Science Advances 🤩👏 The work, led by @annaferraioli.bsky.social, describes in unprecedented details the structure of the comb jelly's aboral organ (AO) 🧵 1/4

Honored to illustrate the work of @annaferraioli.bsky.social and the team of @pawelburkhardt.bsky.social featured in Science Advances. Check it out!

I’m beyond excited to see our work published in Science Advances! 🎉

Deeply grateful to everyone involved — and especially to @pawelburkhardt.bsky.social for the great mentorship ✨

www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Excited to see this story out as a preprint ✨

Thrilled to see our review article "The evolutionary origins of synaptic proteins" highlighted on the cover of Nature Reviews Neuroscience 🤩.

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

@msarscentre.bsky.social 🧠✨🧬🌊🪼🧽

Prolonged starvation deepens quiescence in Vasa2/Piwi1-expressing cells of a sea anemone Animals with lifelong growth modulate cell proliferation in response to nutrient availability, but the underlying mechanisms are not fully understood. This study shows that starvation induces a revers...

💡How does nutrition regulate cell cycle in stem cells? Check out our new paper from @prhsteinmetz.bsky.social lab & @msarscentre.bsky.social, out now in
@plosbiology.org (plos.io/48J2o6P)
#SeaAnemone #Nematostella #StemCell #CellCycle #Quiescence #TORsignalling 1/12

Thrilled to share the preprint from my PhD! 🥳 Where I characterised epithelial cell extrusion in a sea anemone
🔗 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Big thanks to my supervisor @prhsteinmetz.bsky.social and coauthors @noahbruderer.bsky.social @lionlchristiaen.bsky.social at🇳🇴 @msarscentre.bsky.social ⬇️🧵

Sponges, ctenophores and the statistical significance of syntenies Abstract. Shared fusions between ancestral chromosomal linkage groups have previously been used to support phylogenetic groupings, notably sponges with cni

Some more shenanigans on the Ctenophora Porifera debate from @rcply.bsky.social academic.oup.com/mbe/advance-...

Ectopic head regeneration after nervous system ablation in a sea anemone Via genetic ablation of neurons, Mazloumi Gavgani et al. show that the nervous system is essential for defining axial polarity during whole-body regeneration in the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis.

Our paper on the role of neurons in Nematostella head regeneration is now out at @currentbiology.bsky.social Big thank you to all collaborators, it was a pleasure!

Ectopic head regeneration after nervous system ablation in a sea anemone: Current Biology www.cell.com/current-biol...

Separation of the Early gastrula into oral and aboral halves shows that some neural cell tupes derive from aboral ectoderm, and others from i-cells

Drawing together findings from several projects over many years, we make a case that neural cell types in the Clytia larva have two embryological origins: i-cells and ectodermal.
bioRxiv 2025.11.17.688882; doi: doi.org/10.1101/2025...

🚨Our collaboration with @centriolelab.bsky.social & @gautamdey.bsky.social is out today in @cp-cell.bsky.social
We show that #Expansion #Microscopy is a broad-spectrum modality for Euks, enabling 3D phenotypic maps rooted to phylogeny.
#ProtistsOnSky #SciComm #SciSky

www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...

Chromatin profiling identifies putative dual roles for H3K27me3 in regulating cell type-specific genes and transposable elements in choanoflagellates Nature Communications - Here, the authors investigate chromatin-based gene regulation in the closest relative of animal, choanoflagellates. They uncover a putative dual role for the histone...

Very happy to see our paper published online natcomms.nature.com. Thank you to @wellcometrust.bsky.social for funding this work during my time with @robklose.bsky.social and David Booth! Thanks also to collaborators @garcialabms.bsky.social @alexdemendoza.bsky.social and the other authors!

The evolutionary origins of synaptic proteins and their changing roles in different organisms across evolution Nature Reviews Neuroscience - Recent studies have shed further light on the evolutionary origins of chemical synapses, In this Review, Colgren and Burkhardt explore how ancient proteins were...

First neurons didn’t appear overnight. We trace their roots to ancient secretory cells - showing how lifestyle & behavior shaped the evolution of first synapses.🧠🌊 #Evolution #Neuroscience

Our latest in @natrevneuro.nature.com
Link: rdcu.be/eMX3E

@jeffcolgren.bsky.social @msarscentre.bsky.social

Happy Ctenophore Day!
These glowing ocean drifters look like jellyfish but aren’t! They’re comb jellies, shimmering creatures that light up the sea with rows of beating cilia 💙🌈
Which species can you identify? 👀 Most are raised in @pawelburkhardt.bsky.social lab
#CtenophoreDay #CombJelly #Ctenophore

New preprint from the @pawelburkhardt.bsky.social lab 🤩 @annaferraioli.bsky.social & colleagues created a 3D model of the ctenophore apical organ, revealing cell-type diversity and exciting new insights into the evolution of central nervous systems 🧠🧪 Congratulations to the team! 👏

Ctenophores possess a unique aboral organ that acts as a multisensory center, controlling complex behaviors. We’ve now created a ctenophore model integrated with our 3D volume EM data. Puts it into perspective.

Check out our recent work here: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

#ctenophores #volumeEM

Marine biodiversity: Gone with the wind? Our dispatch out now in @currentbiology.bsky.social

New research shows that wind and currents act as invisible barriers, reshaping our view of ocean connectivity. 🌊🪼

authors.elsevier.com/a/1lYLj3QW8S...
@iramaegele.bsky.social @msarscentre.bsky.social

Excited to share our new work on the 3D architecture of the ctenophore aboral organ!

We explored its remarkable cellular diversity and integration with the syncytial nerve net, uncovering connectivity and insights into the evolution of sensory complexes.

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Neural Connectome of the Ctenophore Statocyst 🤩.

@kei-jokura.bsky.social, @jekely.biologists.social.ap.brid.gy team identify a new syncytial nerve net in older animals & differences in innervation patterns. Great collaboration & co-submission to bioRxiv. Exciting times! doi.org/10.1101/2025...

Thanks James!!

So glad to see this work on single cell of squid visual system finally published in @natecoevo.nature.com , a long adventure from Okinawa to London !

Do you want to understand how developmental programs are encoded in animal genomes? Join our lab at the @szndohrn.bsky.social for a PhD project to unravel the developmental dynamics in sea urchins during the metamorphosis from larva to juvenile.
Deadline JUNE 14th!
www.szn.it/index.php/it...

Aboral cell types of Clytia and coral larvae have shared features and link taurine to the regulation of settlement Larvae of jellyfish and corals have specialized sensory cells with shared features potentially linked to settlement regulation.

"Aboral cell types of Clytia and coral larvae have shared features and link taurine to the regulation of settlement" Kudos to Julia Ramon-Mateu and Anna Ferraioli @biodev-vlfr.bsky.social, and thanks to our collaborators for their coral larva expertise www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Sponges, ctenophores and the statistical significance of syntenies Shared fusions between ancestral chromosomal linkage groups have previously been used to support phylogenetic groupings, notably sponges with cnidarians and bilaterians to the exclusion of ctenophores...

New entry into the sponge/ctenophore debate.... Have the chromosome fusions separating ctenophores from all other animals been given too much weight? Beautifully clearly written paper covering complex arguments from @rcply.bsky.social.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Check out our latest work on the evolution of animal genome regulation out today in @nature.com. Nicely summarized below by @ianakim.bsky.social.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

This is a major output from our ERC-StG project Evocellmap @erc.europa.eu at @crg.eu