Did cell types exist before animals? What if the first cell types evolved before the first animals? We'll use #ichthyosporeans, tiny microbes with the potential to reshape how we think about animal origins. #ProtistsOnSKy @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @prbb.org @csic.es 🧵

Most people have never heard of #apusomonads. Yet these tiny protists occupy an important position in the eukaryotic tree of life. And we know so little about them! We're looking for a Master's student to help uncover their hidden diversity. #ProtistsOnSky 🧵 @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @prbb.org

1/9 For years, debates about microbial biogeography have sometimes been framed as a choice. Either microorganisms are everywhere. Or geography matters. But what if that is a false choice? @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @icreacommunity.bsky.social @prbb.org @csic.es #protistsOnSKy

1/10 For decades, cellular aggregation was considered an evolutionary dead end. Cells could come together temporarily. But complex multicellular organisms like animals? Our study, led by JP Gerdt, with Ruibao & @jennahed.bsky.social suggests it may be time to rethink that🧵 #ProtistsOnSKy

1/11 When we think about learning, we think about brains. Neurons.
Animals. But what if learning began much earlier? Our paper in PRXLife, led by @maorknak.bsky.social explores whether a unicell relative of animals can use environmental cues to anticipate future stress. 🧵 Link: go.aps.org/4vAU56R

1/8 Inside your body lies something ancient. Our @pnas.org paper uncovers the deep unicellular prehistory of blood cell types. See paper and video. @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @icreacommunity.bsky.social @prbb.org @csic.es @csicdivulga.bsky.social pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

What started as weird, unknown organisms became tools for the field. Establishing new models; creating community. #multicellularity #ichthyosporeans #protistsOnSky @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @prbb.org @icreacommunity.bsky.social @csicdivulga.bsky.social @csic.es

Some organisms can’t be cultured. For most of our “Magnificent 8” 🧬, we don’t even know what they look like. So we go cell by cell, using single-cell genomics to recover their genomes. @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @prbb.org @icreacommunity.bsky.social @csicdivulga.bsky.social @csic.es

We know somewhere lie the closest relatives of animals we still haven’t discovered. Marina & Alicia presenting our search for the unknown #Magnificent8 at #ProtistologyOpen2026! @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @prbb.org @icreacommunity.bsky.social @csic.es #protistsonsky #multicellularity

#Ichthyosporea are not just the 5–6 species we and others have helped establish as models. Our recent synthesis suggests that ~95% of their species-level diversity remains uncultivated. In other words, we still know only a fraction of the map! #protistsonSky @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @prbb.org

link 👉https://pnas.org/doi/epdf/10.1073/pnas.2529738123 @pnas.org We also directly detected plasmalogens in our beloved Chromosphaera perkinsii and Capsaspora. #ichthyosporeans #holozoans #protistsonSky #LGT @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @prbb.org @icreacommunity.bsky.social @csic.es

Many cellular innovations later used by animals were assembled long before animals evolved.We show that aerobic plasmalogen biosynthesis likely entered eukaryotes early from Myxobacteria, highlighting how bacterial genes shaped the cellular landscape from which animals emerged. 🧬✨ #protistsOnSky

Behind our research on animal origins are many brilliant women scientists. Happy International Women’s Day 💜 #protistsOnSky @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @csic.es @csicdivulga.bsky.social @prbb.org @icreacommunity.bsky.social #InternationalWomensDay #WomenInScience

In this review we map the journey to animal multicellularity and define three extinct ancestral stages: 🔹 LUAA: Last Unicellular Animal Ancestor. 🔹 FACA: First Animal Common Ancestor. 🔹 LACA: Last Animal Common Ancestor. Check it out: bit.ly/4azuLVY @embojournal.org

Happy Valentine’s Day 💘 20 years ago we fell for a lineage nobody was studying. Still in love. Still discovering. #ichthyosporeans #LoveIsInTheCell 🧬 #protistsonSky @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @prbb.org @csic.es @icreacommunity.bsky.social

🎓Gonzalo defended his PhD on #Capsaspora aggregation & animal origins. Privilege to co-supervise with Koryu—watching a former trainee mentor the next generation is so cool! Thanks Núria, Nick & Cristina for the stimulating discussion! @icreacommunity.bsky.social @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social

Elena presenting our work on animal origins at Universidad Católica del Norte, Antofagasta, as part of the #CongresoFuturo #multicellularity #ichthyosporeans @prbb.org @csic.es @csicdivulga.bsky.social @csiccat.bsky.social @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social

📱Is the origin of animals comparable to the origin of the smartphones? Yes! See our new review in @embojournal.org where we show how important it was the new "Operating System" (animalOS)for animals to evolve! with @ricardsole.bsky.social, Nick and Elena @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @csic.es @prbb.org

Indeed! Very nice collaboration with @irenedelrey.bsky.social @sebasn1.bsky.social @konsmitsi.bsky.social @jtrinidad13.bsky.social Montse Elias, Padhu & others to decipher the origin of the #plasmalogen biosynthesis pathway. @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @icreacommunity.bsky.social @csic.es

What you're looking at is a brand new protist species! 🤯🔬 Isn't it beautiful? This image is just a glimpse of what's to come. We can't wait to share our full findings soon, in partnership with Guifré @beaplab.bsky.social @luisjagago.bsky.social. Stay tuned! #NewSpecies #protistsonSky #diversity

More on the ancient foundation of animal development. Coyle & King illustrate how core regulatory modules were present in our pre-animal ancestors. The key was not invention, but recycling & new protein interactions. #CellBiology #multicellularity #protistsOnSky www.nature.com/articles/s41...

We couldn't imagine a better way to send off the incredible @MartonaAlvarez than with black paella and sea views! 🥘 Marta, thanks for everything! We will be cheering you on every step of the way. 🥰🥰🥰 #science #farewell #newbeginnings #teamwork #academialife @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @prbb.org

THANK YOU SO MUCH, @martaalvarez.bsky.social! For your groundbreaking work on #protists, your incredible talent, your passion, and your kindness. We've loved every moment of these last 29 months with you in the lab! 🥰🥰 . #WomenInSTEM @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @prbb.org @csic.es #protistsOnsky

Sometimes life and science give you a 🎁 gift! Thanks, @freejakoba.bsky.social, for the visit! #academialife

That's a wrap on a brilliant #multicellularity symposium at #icop25 organized by Elena, Rubén & Guifré ! 👏 Cool to have so many familiar faces and hearing amazing talks from Núria, @GonzolinBS, Michelle & Tristan, So much great #protists #multicellularity science! 🔬🧬 #protistsOnSky

The quest for the #Magnificent8 continues! This time, in search of Freship1 and Freship2 in Lago de Sanabria. See Marina, Alicia, and Rubén in action! Thanks to Antonio from proyectoagua; Juan and David from Europarques & many others! #ProtistsOnSky @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @prbb.org

Four friends, one table with views & endless conversations. From family to XAN, platyhelminthes, and the good old days at @geneticsub.bsky.social @riutortlab.bsky.social ! nothing was off the menu. Grateful for nights like this. Grateful for friends like these! @martaalvarez.bsky.social JordiPaps

Did changes in cosmic radiation have any effect in the origin of animals? Does a reduction in cosmic radiation affect extant #ichthyosporeans? David & Elena presenting our experimental evolution project to Laboratorio Subterráneo Canfranc #animalorigins #protistsonSky

Great #protistsOnSky day at Águilas, we 📘 presented the book "Hola Plancton" from Kristina Heldmann. 🖼️ presented the exhibition "Plankton City" lead by @annikaguse.bsky.social 🧬 introduced our work on the #Magnificent8, our missing unicellular relatives.

😻 HUGE NEWS! One of the "Magnificent 8" – key missing lineages for understanding animal origins – is ALIVE in our lab! Watch the video! Massive thanks to @luisjagago.bsky.social (isolation wizard!) & @beaplab.bsky.social @ibe-barcelona.bsky.social @prbb.org @csic.es @erc.europa.eu #protistsonSky