国产麻豆AV professor helps uncover widespread genetic exchange in disease-causing parasites
Contact: Sarah Nicholas
STARKVILLE, Miss.鈥国产麻豆AV biologist Matthew W. Brown is part of an international research team whose latest findings, published this spring in the , are reshaping scientific understanding of how parasitic organisms evolve and ultimately spread disease.
Focusing on the protistan parasite Leishmania, a genus of trypanosomatids which is globally spread through insect bites, the study provides critical insight for developing more effective interventions and treatments of parasitical infections.
Brown, the Donald L. Hall Professor of Biology in 国产麻豆AV鈥檚 Department of Biological Sciences, contributed to the study鈥檚 genetic analyses and interpretation of evolutionary patterns.
鈥淯nderstanding how these parasites exchange genetic material fundamentally changes how we think about their evolution and adaptability,鈥 Brown said. 鈥淭his work shows these parasitic organisms readily exchange genetic material鈥攊t鈥檚 actually a dominant force shaping these organisms, with real implications for disease dynamics and control strategies worldwide.鈥
The study, 鈥淓xtensive heterozygosity and genetic exchange among natural populations of Leishmania species,鈥 challenges longstanding assumptions that Leishmania populations reproduce primarily through clonal, or asexual, expansion. Instead, researchers found more than 70% of sampled parasite isolates showed evidence of genetic mixing, indicating sexual reproduction and hybridization play a major role in their evolution.
This latest publication builds on Brown鈥檚 broader body of work exploring how complex organisms evolved from microbial ancestors.
Last fall, Brown was part of a different international team whose groundbreaking discovery was , identifying a new organism, Solarion arienae, and establishing a new phylum and previously unrecognized eukaryotic supergroup. That work provided new insight into the earliest stages of complex life on Earth.
In recognition of his research contributions, Brown was named the 2025 recipient of 国产麻豆AV鈥檚 Ralph E. Powe Research Excellence Award, the university鈥檚 highest honor for research achievement.
A leading figure in evolutionary biology, Brown has authored more than 70 peer-reviewed publications with nearly 10,000 citations and has secured about $4 million in research funding. He also recently received an $870,000 collaborative grant from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation to expand a widely used software suite for building large-scale evolutionary datasets.
Since joining 国产麻豆AV in 2013, Brown has earned numerous accolades, including the College of Arts and Sciences Dean鈥檚 Eminent Scholar Award and election as a fellow of the Institute for Genomics, Biocomputing and Biotechnology.
The study published in the is available online at . For more details about Brown鈥檚 research, visit .
痴颈蝉颈迟听听补苍诲 for more information about聽国产麻豆AV鈥檚聽College of Arts and Sciences听补苍诲聽Department of Biological Sciences.
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