Nick Irwin

Research Focus

Horizontal gene transfer (HGT) is the process by which genes are passed between distantly related species. These gene transfers may be rare, but provide a mechanism for rapid cellular innovation, allowing organisms to adapt to their environments and acquire new cellular traits. Although this process is well characterized in bacteria, where HGT plays an important role in adaptation and antibiotic resistance, its impact on eukaryotic cells remains unclear. In particular, the frequencies of these transfers, their mechanisms of integration, and their functional contributions to eukaryotic biology and evolution have yet to be understood.

Our goal is to understand the nature of horizontal gene transfer in eukaryotes by combining large-scale phylogenomics with high-throughput genetics in model organisms including Arabidopsis, Marchantia, and Chlamydomonas. In doing so, we hope to understand the role of HGT in the ancient and recent evolution of plants, the implications of HGT in different cellular contexts (e.g., multicellular and single-celled organisms), and the contributions of HGT to phenotypic evolution – from environmental adaptation to the establishment of symbioses and the emergence of new cellular biology.

News from the Irwin Lab

Selected Publications

Irwin, N. A. T., & Richards, T. A. 2024. Self-assembling viral histones are evolutionary intermediates between archaeal and eukaryotic nucleosomes. Nat Microbiol.

Irwin, N. A. T., Pittis, A. A., Richards, T. A., & Keeling, P. J. 2022. Systematic evaluation of horizontal gene transfer between eukaryotes and viruses. Nat Microbiol 7, 327–336 

Irwin, N. A. T., Pittis, A. A., Mathur, V., Howe, L. J., Keeling P. J., Lynn, D. H., & Bourland, B. A. 2021. The functional diversity and evolution of motile DNA replication systems in ciliates. Curr Biol 31:66-76.

Irwin, N. A. T., Martin, B. J. E., Young, B. P., Browne, M. J. G., Flaus, A., Loewen, C. J. R., Keeling, P. J., & Howe, L. J. 2018. Viral proteins as a potential driver of histone depletion in dinoflagellates. Nat Commun. 9:1535