Laboratory of Evolutionary Ecology

Open Day at the Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences

11/7/2025

On November 6, 2025, the Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences held an Open Day, in which our Laboratory of Evolutionary Ecology also took part. We prepared a program focused on the topic: How plants defend themselves against herbivores.

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PhD Position in Plant Metabolomics and Evolution

11/6/2025

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We are seeking a highly motivated PhD candidate with a background in bioinformatics to join our research team investigating the global drivers of phytochemical diversity. This project aims to uncover how the remarkable diversity of plant metabolites relates to biotic and abiotic stress across the globe. As a model system, we focus on the Salicaceae family, which provides an exceptional opportunity to study phytochemical evolution thanks to its broad geographic distribution, ecological diversity, and well-characterized phylogeny.

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Jing graduated and successfully defended their PhD. thesis, Congratulations!

11/4/2025

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We are delighted to congratulate Jing Vir Leong on the successful defence of their doctoral thesis titled “Herbivore-plant interactions, evolution of defenses and chemical diversity in Salicaceae.”

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New Publications

Marinček P., Leong J.V., Pittet L., Léveillé-Bourret È., Nyma T.,  Tomoshevich M., Banaev E., He L. , Hörandl E., Volf M., Wagner N.D., (2025)  Spatio-temporal evolution of shrub willows (Salix subgenus Vetrix clade) on a global scale, Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 108480, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2025.108480

Renoult S.A. , Leong J.V., Mezzomo P., Sebek P., Koutecký P., Kukla J., Nguyen P., Moos M., Pokorny V., Wagner N.D., Frouz J., van Dam N.M.,  Volf M., (2025) Effects of hybridization on chemical diversity and plant-insect herbivore interactions in *****Salix alba* × *fragilis***, Journal of Experimental Botany, eraf296, https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/eraf296

Mezzomo P., Leong J.V., , Pokorny V., Jorge L..R.,  Volfova T., Kozel P., Vodrazka P.,Seifert C. L.,  Aurová K., Moos M., Engström M.T., Salminen J.P.,  Volf M. (2025) Effects of pronounced seasonal turnover and intraspecific variation in leaf traits on specialization of insect herbivores associated with six Salicaceae hosts**. Oecologia 207 : article number: 34.
DOI: 10.1007/s00442-025-05672-w

Leong J., Matos Maravi P. F., Núñez R., Nunes R., Liang W., Braby M.F., Doleck T., Aduse-Poku K., Inayoshi Y., Hsu Y.-F., Wahlberg N., Peggie D., et al., Kawahara A.Y., Pierce N., Lohman D. (2025) Around the World in 26 Million Years: Diversification and Biogeography of Pantropical Grass-Yellow Eurema Butterflies (Pieridae: Coliadinae). Journal of Biogeography Early View : DOI: 10.1111/jbi.15107

Aubona G., Mezzomo P., Sedio B.E., Staab M.,Volf M. (2024) Neighbourhood effects on herbivory damage and chemical profiles in short-rotation coppice willows and their ybrids,  Phytochemistry, 228, 114249, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.phytochem.2024.114249

Ogutcen E., de Lima Ferreira P., Wagner N.D., Marinček P., Leong J.V., Aubona G., Cavender-Bares J., Michálek J., Schroeder L., Sedio B.E., Vašut R.J.,  Volf M., (2024) Phylogenetic insights into the Salicaceae: The evolution of willows and beyond. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 108161,  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2024.108161
Mezzomo P., Leong J.V., Vodrážka P., Moos M., Jorge L.R., Volfová T., Michálek J., de L. Ferreira P., Kozel P., Brian E. Sedio B.E., Volf M., (2024)  Variation in induced responses in volatile and non-volatile metabolites among six willow species: Do willow species share responses to herbivory? Phytochemistry, 114222, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.phytochem.2024.114222

Marinček P., Léveillé-Bourret É. , Heiduk F., Leong J.V , Bailleul S.M., Volf M., . Wagner N.D. (2024) **Challenge accepted: Evolutionary lineages versus taxonomic classification of North American shrub willows (Salix)**. the American Journal of Botany, https://doi.org/10.1002/ajb2.16361

Leong J.V., Mezzomo P., Kozel P., Volfová T., de Lima Ferreira P., Seifert C.L., Butterill P.T., Freiberga I., Michálek J., Matos-Maraví P., Weinhold A., Engström M.T., Salminen J-P., Segar S.T., Sedio B.E.,  Volf M. (2024) Effects of individual traits vs. trait syndromes on assemblages of various herbivore guilds associated with central European Salix. Oecologia, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.11164786.

Xiao X., Jorge L.R., Volf M., Moos M., Gélin U., Finnie S., Freiberga I., Jancuchova‐Laskova J. , Weiss M., Novotny V., Sam K. (2024) **The effect of drought‐induced leaf traits on Ficus leaf palatability is species specific**. Ecosphere 15 - 5, e483,
https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.4831a

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