... which means that less complex meals get co-consumed by the host and its microbes, who chip in some small molecules that metazoans cannot produce themselves (some amino acids, vitamins, etc.). Some of these heroes are well known, but some are truly unsung ones. Needs more research!
I thank everyone who interacted and discussed our/their work with me, and especially the fellow social transfers (www.socialtransfer.net) speakers: Sanja Hakala, Peter Kwant, and Melissah Rowe; Kudos to @joriskoene.bsky.social, Bart Pollux, Aniko Korosi for organizing the session.
🐦 Interested in avian reproduction, microbiomes, or reproductive microbiomes? I'm looking for outstanding early-career researchers interested in applying for an NWO Veni grant to join my group at NIOO. Pre-proposals are due after the summer. Email me to discuss ideas.
#EarlyCareerResearcher #Postdoc
The NWO Life conference was a blast! Great keynotes, very valuable input on our current research, and the cherry on the top was the focus session on socially transferred materials. There I gave a talk on my post-doc shenanigans regarding microbial up-cycling of social fluids in ant colonies...
This Friday: microbial superheroes in socially transferred materials! Those who know me can easily guess I will be mostly talking about the feeders, but one just has to appreciate _all_ the microbial goods that circulate in STMs.