Integrative Organismal Biology

by Dr. Nathan J. Robinson, associate of IOB author Dr. John Zardos Some Native American cultures propose that the Earth is carried on the back of a giant turtle.

This year IOB partnered with SABER to publish biological education papers along with our usual IOB works. Be sure to check out their latest publications with us and read about some of the SABER associate editors on this collection below. Jeremy Hsu, Associate Professor of Biology and Assistant Director for Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities, Chapman University My Ph.D. involved examining the population genetics of the tuco-tuco, a rodent from South America.

by Laura Sisk-Hackworth, Jennie E. DeVore, Sarah A. Muh, Landon B. Porter, Hans A. Hofmann, Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas at Austin It has often been claimed that the human brain is the most complex system in the universe, yet how this complexity evolved is still a topic of intense discussion today (Pollen et al., 2023; Striedter & Northcutt, 2020).

Andrea Jivanny Hernandez Ramirez, Hamilton College Kahrl Lab group from summer ‘25 at SICB ‘26. Left to right, Professor. Ariel Kahrl, Lula Dulpang, Tenniyah Jennings, and Andrea Jivanny Hernandez Ramirez. Ribbit, ribbit. Plop. The sounds of the pond at night as we scout for frogs to catch can be soothing, frustrating, but always exciting. The Kahrl lab in the biology department at Hamilton College looks at all things amphibian reproduction.

an op/ed piece by Jada Daniels, PhD candidate in Ecology at Louisiana State University & IOB co author of Introducing a Novel Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience Using Duckweed as a Model System I still vividly recall my undergrad days, and if there’s one thing I could change about them, it would be those endless hours in my Intro to Bio Lab.

At IOB we like to spotlight not only the papers we publish but also the scientists behind those papers. Below, lead co- author on , Introducing a Novel Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience Using Duckweed as a Model System , Jada Daniels answered several questions about her scientific journey. Tell us a bit about your early interest in the sciences. Looking back, do you have a first experience or “aha” moment in school where you knew you wanted to pursue being a scientist?

Have you ever switched the taxonomic group you are studying? Maybe you’ve switched to a different family group, or maybe even a different order or class?! I recently transitioned from studying Anolis lizards to starting a lab studying the reproduction and sperm biology of frogs. They were a great system, but I knew nothing about them (other than they are extremely cute and charismatic) and desperately wanted a in-depth guide to help me dive into this group of vertebrates.

S V Robson , A Prokop , C N Baird , J A Ludtke , S T Tucker , J M Theodor Integrative Organismal Biology, Volume 7, Issue 1, 2025, obaf043, https://doi.org/10.1093/iob/obaf043 Dr. Selina-Viktor Robson is a paleontologist who specializes in the evolution of even-toed hoofed mammals (i.e., artiodactyls) including well-known species such as llamas, cows, and pigs.

IOB co-author Paul J. Byrne aims to illuminate the processes that underlie the phenotypic and developmental changes within vertebrates and their resulting influence on physiology with his research. His dissertation was focused on the origin and evolution of the cardiopulmonary system of archosaurs.

L D Rubin, G J Fraser, M K Gabler-Smith, G V Lauder, W V Ribeiro, D F B Vaz, N Wallis-Mauro, E C Sibert Leah is a Ph.D. candidate at The State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Dr. Joshua Drew’s CHAOS lab and a visiting student in Dr. Elizabeth Sibert’s Paleo-FISHES Lab at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. She is currently funded as a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow.