Philippos Papathanos

@Fredros_Inc Why does this have to develop into a conflict? The PIs raise the funds for student income from external grants and funders, and this depends and requires a record of published research. Papers are important for the development of all authors, and for science in general.

Over time, I’ve come to realize there’s a clear conflict of interest: by requiring postgraduate students, who are often based at external research institutions rather than the registering university, to publish so many papers in international peer-reviewed journals, the university lecturers (who typically become co-authors or even senior authors on those papers) get an easy route to boosting their own publication records. This, in turn, allows them to secure promotions and career advancement on the strength of their students’ work. I suspect that’s one of the main reasons these seemingly unreasonable publication quotas are so fiercely defended. In many places, even Master’s students are now expected to publish at least one paper before graduating. It’s exploitative, and it’s no wonder the system persists.

@Fredros_Inc That sucks. 3 papers is a big ask when calculating costs, especially if its mandated that pub is oa without funding support. Would posting on an archive and not pay for open access be work-around?

Local university in East Africa costs just under $2000/year for a post graduate program in tuition costs. But the university also requires that all PhD students must publish at least 3 papers in international peer reviewed open access journals . Such journals cost approximately $1800, meaning the candidate have to send nearly as much money (sometimes much more) to the publishers abroad as they pay to their local universities for tuition.

Our latest work with @DipteraAI out now on @biorxiv. We built an open, cheap and accessible mosquito membrane feeder 🦟⚙️. 3D-Feedies have been a game changer in our insectaries. Hope you'll give it a try: biorxiv.org/content/10.110…

The OpIE2-DsRed marker disrupts blood-feeding in female #Anopheles gambiae #mosquitoes by bending the proboscis. A tweaked OpIE2-b promoter fixes it. Check it out: biorxiv.org/content/10.110…

@YaelArien & team tried expressing a Cas9 sex ratio distorter during meiosis from the Drosophila Y chr. The Y chromosome said “no.” Meiotic Sex Chromosome Inactivation (MSCI) is very real — and very rude. biorxiv.org/content/10.110… But we’re not giving up Y-drives are coming 🦟

thecrimson.com/article/2025/9… Harvard Funding Cuts Endanger the Massive Fruit Fly Database That Powers Genetic Research

הפקולטה לחקלאות, מזון וסביבה מזמינה חוקרות וחוקרים מצטיינים להגיש מועמדות למשרות אקדמיות פנויות לשנת הלימודים תשפ"ז (2026–2027), בכל הדרגות האקדמיות. tinyurl.com/mr3nc83r

@BillGates talking about #genedrive as one of the tools in the pipeline that could help end #malaria in the next 20 years @transm0 @TargetMalaria

Seeing what bacteria see from a flying UAV 👁️ rdcu.be/ehkQB #synbio #biotech @itai_levin @yonchem

Imperial scientists have genetically modified mosquitoes to stop malaria transmission! 🦟🔬 Just a small release of these mosquitoes could make entire populations malaria-resistant We invited @SkyNews to peek in our @transm0 insectary 🔽 news.sky.com/story/mosquito…

@BiogentsAG Setting aside many many issues and focusing just on the preferential feeding on blood types, their sample size are extremely small. They perform no statistical analysis whatsoever. Drawing conclusions from such weak data is misleading and, in this case, arguably irresponsible.

@BiogentsAG This "study" is deeply flawed and their conclusion about Aedes aegypti preferring blood group O is completely unsubstantiated and misleading. Did this go through any review?

🦟 Study reveals Ae. aegypti #mosquitoes prefer blood type O, increasing the risk of #MosquitoBorne diseases for those with this blood type. No significant effect on fecundity; findings could lead to better #MosquitoTraps to combat #pesticide resistance 👉 hubs.li/Q0318s960

Nicolas Svetec, David Begun, and I wrote a review article about de novo genes. If you are interested in this topic please take a look at this final open-access version @AnnualReviews annualreviews.org/content/journa….

A great #funding #postdoc opportunity, have a look lnkd.in/dT_U6s_Z contact me if interested in #compchem #MolecularDynamics #AI #ML #GPCRs #drugdesign

The coevolution of fungus-ant agriculture science.org/doi/10.1126/sc… Ants learned to farm fungi during a mass extinction - Ars Technica - arstechnica.com/science/2024/1…

Phew! Really glad to see @VectorBase and @veupathdb back online! @ACME_ASTMH @_SOVE_ @MUVE_ESA

Excited to share that the lights are back on.... for now at least.

Critical loss: the effects of @veupathdb defunding on global health - The Lancet Microbe thelancet.com/journals/lanmi… @VectorBase

My commentary on the closure of @VectorBase. Join me in rallying for its sustainable continuation. Comment, repost, and circulate. Let’s ensure this vital resource remains accessible for our global #VectorBiology research community.

@SadieRyan @Vector_Byte What data will you rescue?