Claudio H. Slamovits

Education

• PhD, Universidad de Buenos Aires

Academic Positions

• Department member since 2009
  
• Fellow, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, Program in Integrated Microbial Biodiversity
• Centre for Comparative Genomics and Evolutionary Bioinformatics
  

Research Topics

Molecular biology and evolution of microbial eukaryotes

Research

General interests

Our research interests are generally related with molecular biology and evolution of eukaryotes and their genomes. In particular, we are interested in studying how genomes and their physiology evolve as a result of radical changes in lifestyle such as the acquisition of parasitic and symbiotic relationships. Our research is almost exclusively done on protists (unicellular eukaryotes) as they represent the bulk of the eukaryotic diversity.

Main projects in the lab

Molecular evolution and genomics of alveolates

We are using the dinoflagellate Oxyrrhis marina as a model to study aspects of molecular biology and genome evolution in this fascinating group of protists.

Apicomplexa and parasitism

We are studying Nephromyces, an enigmatic apicomplexan protist that lives in a symbiotic relationship with marine invertebrates with a lifestyle lies at the intersection of parasitism and mutualism.

Genomics of Haplosporidia

A genomic survey of Haplosporidian parasites of oysters is ongoing in the lab. This project will bring about much needed knowledge about these mysterious but important protists that affect seriously fisheries industry in Canada and worldwide.

Origins of mitochondria

We are studying the function and evolution of proteins involved in the internal organization of mitochondria, looking for clues to understand the origin and early evolution of these important eukaryotic organelles.

Collaborations

We are also carrying our projects in collaboration with these friends:

John Archibald (Dalhousie), Alastair Simpson (Dalhousie), Brian Leander (UBC), Patrick Keeling (UBC), Nicolas Corradi (Ottawa), Mary Beth Saffo and Christopher Lane (University of Rhode Island), Rodrigo Najle (IIBR Rosario, Argentina), Santiago Mora-García (IIB, Buenos Aires), Jose Fernandez-Robledo (Bigelow Lab)

Keywords:

DNA sequencing, bioinformatics, cloning, PCR, phylogenetics,

Current Lab Members

Publications

1. Muñoz-Gómez, S.A., Mejía-Franco, F.G., Durnin, K., Colp, M., Grisdale, C.J., Archibald, J.M., and Slamovits, C.H., (2017) The New Red Algal Subphylum Proteorhodophytina Comprises the Largest and Most Divergent Plastid Genomes Known. Curr. Biol. 27(11):1677-1684 [Article]
2. Muñoz-Gómez, S.A., Wideman, J.G., Roger, A.J., and Slamovits, C.H., (2017) The origin of mitochondrial cristae from alphaproteobacteria. Mol. Biol. Evol. 34(4):943-956: [PubMed] [Article]
3. Muñoz-Gómez, S.A., and Slamovits, C. H., (2017) Plastid Genomes in the Myzozoa. Advances in Botanical Research In Press Corrected Proof: [Article]
4. Muñoz-Gómez, S.A., Slamovits, C.H., Dacks, J.B., Baier, K.A., Spencer, K.D. and Wideman, J.G. , (2015) Ancient homology of the mitochondrial contact site and cristae organizing system points to an endosymbiotic origin of mitochondrial cristae. Current Biology 25(11):1489–1495 [PubMed] [Article]
5. Muñoz-Gómez, S.A., Slamovits, C.H., Dacks, J.B., Baier, K.A., Spencer, K.D., and Wideman, J.G., (2015) Ancient Homology of the Mitochondrial Contact Site and Cristae Organizing System Points to an Endosymbiotic Origin of Mitochondrial Cristae. Curr. Biol. 25(11):1489–1495 [PubMed] [Article]
6. Muñoz-Gómez, S.A., Slamovits, C.H., Dacks, J.B., and Wideman, J.G., (2015) The evolution of MICOS: ancestral and derived functions and interactions. Commun. Integr. Biol. 8(6):e1094593 [Article]
7. Lee, R., Lai, H., Malik, S.B., Saldarriaga, J.F., Keeling, P.J. and Slamovits, C.H., (2014) Analysis of EST data of the marine protist Oxyrrhis marina, an emerging model for alveolate biology and evolution BMC Genomics 15:122 [Article]
8. Maselli, G.A., Slamovits, C.H., Bianchi, J.I., Vilarrasa-Blasi, J., Caño-Delgado, A.I. and Mora-García, S., (2014) Revisiting the evolutionary history and roles of protein phosphatases with Kelch-like domains in plants Plant Physiology 164(2): [Article]
9. Gile, G. and Slamovits, C.H., (2014) Transcriptomic Analysis Reveals Evidence for a Cryptic Plastid in the Colpodellid Voromonas pontica, a Close Relative of Chromerids and Apicomplexan Parasites PLOS One 10.1371/journal.pone.0096258: [Article]
10. Curtis, B.A., Tanifuji, G., Burki, F., Gruber, A., Irimia, M., Maruyama, S., Arias, M., Ball, S., Gile, G., Hirakawa, Y., Hopkins, J., [28 authors], Malik, S.-B, [13 authors], Slamovits, C.H., [14 authors], McFadden, G., Lane, C., Keeling, P., Gray, M., Grigoriev, I., Archibald, J., (2012) Algal nuclear genomes reveal evolutionary mosaicism and the fate of nucleomorphs. Nature. 492:59-65 [PubMed]
11. Corradi, N. and Slamovits, C.H., (2011) The intriguing nature of microsporidian genomes Briefings in Functional Genomics In press: [PubMed]
12. Slamovits, C.H., Okamoto, N., Burri, L., James, E. and Keeling, P.J. , (2011) A bacterial proteorhodopsin proton pump in marine eukaryotes. Nature Communications 2:183:
13. Gile, G. and Slamovits, C.H., (2011) Phylogenetic position of Lophomonas striata Bütschli (Parabasalia) from the hindgut of the cockroach Periplaneta americana Protist In press: [PubMed]
14. Halary, S.*, MALIK, S.-B.*, Lildhar, L., Slamovits, C.H., Hijri, M. and Corradi, N. (*equal contibutions), (2011) Conserved meiotic machinery in Glomus spp., a putatively ancient asexual fungal lineage. Genome Biology and Evolution 3:950-958 [PubMed]
15. Lowe, C.D., Keeling, P.J., Martin, L.E., Slamovits, C.H., Watts, P.C. and Montagnes, D.J.S., (2010) Who is Oxyrrhis marina? Morphological and phylogenetic studies on an unusual dinoflagellate. Journal of Plankton Research doi: 10.1093/plankt/fbq110:
16. Saffo, M.B., McCoy, A.M., Rieken, C. and Slamovits, C.H., (2010) Nephromyces, a beneficial apicomplexan symbiont in marine animals Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 107 (37):16190-16195 [PubMed]
17. Slamovits, C.H. and Keeling, P.J., (2010) Contributions of Oxyrrhis marina to molecular biology, genomics and organelle evolution of dinoflagellates Journal of Plankton Research doi: 10.1093/plankt/fbq153: