Lecturer in Animal Evolutionary Biology
Biological and Environmental Sciences Stirling
I am an evolutionary biologist with broad interests in the interaction between genome structure and the processes of adaptation, diversification and speciation in non-model eukaryotes. I work with whole-genome sequence data in conjunction with population genomic and comparative phylogenetic methods to provide insights into how these mechanisms contribute to the evolutionary process. I am particularly interested in the interaction between ecology, life-history and genome structure, the impact of extraordinary molecular mechanisms such as horizontal gene transfer, and the insights to be gained from the genomic peculiarities of non-model organisms.
Bio
I have a hat-trick of degrees from the University of Edinburgh, with a BSc (Hons) in Evolutionary Biology (2008), then an MSc in Quantitative Genetics and Genome Analysis (2010) before getting my PhD in 2015. I then completed 2 postdocs with Prof Tim Barraclough and Dr Chris Wilson at Imperial College London (and later Oxford) working on a group of enigmatic and unusual animals called bdelloid rotifers, before moving to Stirling in early 2024. Happily, I am still scratching my head trying to understand bdelloid genomes.
Comparative and Evolutionary Genomics; Horizontal Gene Transfer; Adaptation; Speciation; Phylogenetics
Article
Bdelloid rotifers deploy horizontally acquired biosynthetic genes against a fungal pathogen
Nowell RW, Rodriguez F, Hecox-Lea BJ, Mark Welch DB, Arkhipova IR, Barraclough TG & Wilson CG (2024) Bdelloid rotifers deploy horizontally acquired biosynthetic genes against a fungal pathogen. Nature Communications, 15, Art. No.: 5787. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-49919-1
Article
Recombination in bdelloid rotifer genomes: asexuality, transfer and stress
Wilson CG, Pieszko T, Nowell RW & Barraclough TG (2024) Recombination in bdelloid rotifer genomes: asexuality, transfer and stress. Trends in Genetics. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tig.2024.02.001
Article
Whole-genome analyses converge to support the Hemirotifera hypothesis within Syndermata (Gnathifera)
Vasilikopoulos A, Herlyn H, Fontaneto D, Wilson CG, Nowell RW, Flot J, Barraclough TG & Van Doninck K (2024) Whole-genome analyses converge to support the Hemirotifera hypothesis within Syndermata (Gnathifera). Hydrobiologia. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-023-05451-9
Article
Llewellyn T, Nowell RW, Aptroot A, Temina M, Prescott TAK, Barraclough TG & Gaya E (2023) Metagenomics Shines Light on the Evolution of “Sunscreen” Pigment Metabolism in theTeloschistales(Lichen-Forming Ascomycota). Genome Biology and Evolution, 15 (2). https://doi.org/10.1093/gbe/evad002
Article
Peck LD, Nowell RW, Flood J, Ryan MJ & Barraclough TG (2021) Historical genomics reveals the evolutionary mechanisms behind multiple outbreaks of the host-specific coffee wilt pathogen Fusarium xylarioides. BMC Genomics, 22 (1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-021-07700-4
Article
Evolutionary dynamics of transposable elements in bdelloid rotifers
Nowell RW, Wilson CG, Almeida P, Schiffer PH, Fontaneto D, Becks L, Rodriguez F, Arkhipova IR & Barraclough TG (2021) Evolutionary dynamics of transposable elements in bdelloid rotifers. eLife, 10, Art. No.: e63194. https://doi.org/10.7554/elife.63194
Article
Genomic Features of Parthenogenetic Animals
Jaron KS, Bast J, Nowell RW, Ranallo-Benavidez TR, Robinson-Rechavi M & Schwander T (2021) Genomic Features of Parthenogenetic Animals. Journal of Heredity, 112 (1), pp. 19-33. https://doi.org/10.1093/jhered/esaa031
Article
Pathak A, Nowell RW, Wilson CG, Ryan MJ & Barraclough TG (2020) Comparative genomics of Alexander Fleming’s original Penicillium isolate (IMI 15378) reveals sequence divergence of penicillin synthesis genes. Scientific Reports, 10, Art. No.: 15705. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-72584-5
Article
Bacterial adaptation is constrained in complex communities
Scheuerl T, Hopkins M, Nowell RW, Rivett DW, Barraclough TG & Bell T (2020) Bacterial adaptation is constrained in complex communities. Nature Communications, 11, Art. No.: 754. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-14570-z
Book Chapter
Horizontal Gene Transfer in Metazoa: Examples and Methods
Yoshida Y, Nowell RW, Arakawa K & Blaxter M (2019) Horizontal Gene Transfer in Metazoa: Examples and Methods. In: Villa TG & Vinas M (eds.) Horizontal Gene Transfer: Breaking Borders Between Living Kingdoms. Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 203-226. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-21862-1_7
Article
Horswill C, Jackson JA, Medeiros R, Nowell RW, Trathan PN & O'Connell TC (2018) Minimising the limitations of using dietary analysis to assess foodweb changes by combining multiple techniques. Ecological Indicators, 94, pp. 218-225. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2018.06.035
Article
Wilson CG, Nowell RW & Barraclough TG (2018) Cross-Contamination Explains “Inter and Intraspecific Horizontal Genetic Transfers” between Asexual Bdelloid Rotifers. Current Biology, 28 (15), pp. 2436-2444.e14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2018.05.070
Article
Supergene Evolution Triggered by the Introgression of a Chromosomal Inversion
Jay P, Whibley A, Frézal L, Rodríguez de Cara M?, Nowell RW, Mallet J, Dasmahapatra KK & Joron M (2018) Supergene Evolution Triggered by the Introgression of a Chromosomal Inversion. Current Biology, 28 (11), pp. 1839-1845.e3. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2018.04.072
Article
Comparative genomics of bdelloid rotifers: Insights from desiccating and nondesiccating species
Nowell RW, Almeida P, Wilson CG, Smith TP, Fontaneto D, Crisp A, Micklem G, Tunnacliffe A, Boschetti C & Barraclough TG (2018) Comparative genomics of bdelloid rotifers: Insights from desiccating and nondesiccating species. PLOS Biology, 16 (4), Art. No.: e2004830. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.2004830
Article
A high-coverage draft genome of the mycalesine butterfly Bicyclus anynana
Nowell RW, Elsworth B, Oostra V, Zwaan BJ, Wheat CW, Saastamoinen M, Saccheri IJ, van’t Hof AE, Wasik BR, Connahs H, Aslam ML, Kumar S, Challis RJ, Monteiro A, Brakefield PM & Blaxter M (2017) A high-coverage draft genome of the mycalesine butterfly Bicyclus anynana. GigaScience, 6 (7), Art. No.: gix035. https://doi.org/10.1093/gigascience/gix035
Article
Nowell RW, Laue BE, Sharp PM & Green S (2016) Comparative genomics reveals genes significantly associated with woody hosts in the plant pathogen Pseudomonas syringae. Molecular Plant Pathology, 17 (9), pp. 1409-1424. https://doi.org/10.1111/mpp.12423
Article
The Extent of Genome Flux and Its Role in the Differentiation of Bacterial Lineages
Nowell RW, Green S, Laue BE & Sharp PM (2014) The Extent of Genome Flux and Its Role in the Differentiation of Bacterial Lineages. Genome Biology and Evolution, 6 (6), pp. 1514-1529. https://doi.org/10.1093/gbe/evu123
Article
Ancestral polymorphisms in Drosophila pseudoobscura and Drosophila miranda
NOWELL RW, CHARLESWORTH B & HADDRILL PR (2011) Ancestral polymorphisms in Drosophila pseudoobscura and Drosophila miranda. Genetics Research, 93 (4), pp. 255-263. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0016672311000206