Research

One of the most remarkable examples of morphological craniofacial diversification across vertebrates is represented in teleost fishes, often associated with their diverse and highly specialized modes of feeding. I'm leveraging a recently established evolutionary model of Cyprinodon pupfishes endemic to San Salvador Island (SSI), Bahamas, for eco-evo-devo studies. This radiation includes the generalist pupfish (Cyprinodon variegatus) and two trophic specialists, each with distinct craniofacial morphologies: the scale-eater C. desquamator, with longer oral jaws, larger mandibular muscles, and increased oral tooth number, and the molluscivore, C. brontotheroides, with a shorter jaw and a novel maxillary extension. Only a few mutations are found to be fixed between specialists, with almost all of them found in regulatory or intronic regions, suggesting that the genetic changes underlying SSI pupfish craniofacial divergence lie in regions of the genome controlling gene expression. I use genomic, transcriptomics, microscopy, and genetic editing tools to understand how novel craniofacial candidate genes underpins the divergent craniofacial morphological development observed in SSI pupfishes.

Pubs

Palominos M.F., Muhl, V., Richards, E.J., Miller, C.T., Martin, C.H. (2023) Jaw size variation is associated with a novel craniofacial function for galanin receptor 2 in an adaptive radiation of pupfishes. Proc. R. Soc. B 290:20231686

Urquiza-Zurich, S., García-Angulo, V.A., Burdisso, P., Palominos M.F., et al. (2023) The assembly of bacteria living in natural environments shapes neuronal integrity and behavioral outputs in Caenorhabditis elegans. mBio e03402-22

Palominos M.F. et al. (2022) The olfactory organ is a site for resident neutrophils in the brain. Front. Immunol. 13:881702

Whitlock, K.E., Palominos, M.F. (2022) The olfactory tract: Basis for future evolution in response to rapidly changing ecological niches. Front. Neuroanat. 16:831602.

Palominos, M.F., Whitlock, K.E. (2021) The olfactory organ is populated by neutrophils and macrophages during early development. Front. Cell & Dev. Biol. 8:604030.

Manterola, M.*, Palominos, M.F.*, Calixto, A. (2021) The heritability of behaviors associated with the intestinal microbiota. Front. Immunol. 12:1497 (*, shared first authorship)

Gabaldon, C.*, Legüe, M.*, Palominos, M.F.*, Verdugo, L., Gutzwiller, F., Calixto, A. (2020) Intergenerational pathogen-induced diapause in C. elegans is modulated by mir-243. mBio 11:e01950

Palominos, M.F., Calixto, A. (2020) Quantification of Bacteria Residing Caenorhabditis elegans Intestine. Bio-protocol 10(09):e3605.

Palominos, M.F.*, et al. (2017) Transgenerational diapause as an avoidance strategy against bacterial pathogens in Caenorhabditis elegans. mBio 8:e01234-17.

About

I have the fortune of working contemplating the vast beauty of nature. I try to communicate my research by keeping open repositories, participating in outreach activities, and mentoring. In 2018 I was interviewed in the Podcast "Conciencia Azul" (en Español) by the Nat Geo investigator and Latina scientist, Melissa Cristina Márquez. You can escucharme hablando cabezas de pescao aquí . From 2016 to 2021 I participated in Ciencia al Tiro, a Valpo-based organization that seeks to teach mid and high-schoolers 'the joy of science' by doings hands-on science projects and workshops. You can also check my latest 'in-vivo' presentation talking about host-pathogen interactions in worms, the zebrafish's olfactory sensory organ as a novel immune niche, and pupfish craniofacial genetics here

I believe that love is love and that the true value of a person resides within. I believe that through learning and self-reflection we can take conscience of our actions, correct our behaviors, and improve as human beings. I fight each day to stay humble and grateful as I walk this path on the shoulders of the ones who paved my way. I support all forms and efforts against discrimination, possession of firearms, colonialism, and oppression.

Teleost fishes comprise the largest and most diverse group of vertebrates on Earth yet freshwater ecosystems are one of the most highly endangered environments. Generating knowledge about the life history, ecology, and evolutionary adaptations of fish, specially to unique and extreme environments, will benefit possible law policies aiming to protect inland aquatic ecosystems. There's no Planet B!

Contact

Elements

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