Yelle Vandenboer

Yelle Vandenboer tackles his challenges digitally. By employing cutting-edge bioinformatic tools in his PhD, Yelle investigates DNA and hopes to unravel the mysterious and extraordinary asexual evolution of Darwinula stevensoni. In doing so, he will address fundamental questions on sex and evolution, and provide crucial insights that enhance our understanding of climate change impacts.

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Function

Currently, Yelle works as a biologist and bioinformatician at the Institute of Natural Sciences. His work focuses on evolutionary processes, tackling fundamental questions through the study of the “ancient asexual scandal” Darwinula stevensoni. Previously, Yelle’s work involved environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding for the study of biodiversity patterns in the Belgian Part of the North Sea, which granted him additional skills in the field and laboratory.

Research team: Ecosystem Modelling (ECOMOD)
Research theme: Science for a sustainable marine management,Biodiversity in a changing world

Current Project(s)

UNTANGLE – UNderstanding the role of TrAnsposons as Novel forces in Genomic LandscapEs (https://www.naturalsciences.be/en/science/research/evolution-and-the-web-of-life/projects/untangle)

Role: Bioinformatics, data analysis, writing, outreach

Area of Expertise

Through his work, Yelle gained expertise in every stage of DNA-focussed research methods. Through his previous work on eDNA, Yelle specialized in on-board sampling, DNA extraction, NGS library preparation, and metabarcoding analyses based in R. Afterwards, he transitioned to freshwater biology, and quickly developed skills in the analyses of whole genomes. These analyses focus on the adaptive role and evolutionary impact of transposons, and additionally helped Yelle develop skills in Bash. Through both his education and professional experience, Yelle has become well versed sharing his results through academic writing, as well as via oral and poster presentations.

Professional Experience

During his education, Yelle has contributed to biological research in various fields - ranging from the assessment of artisanal fishing activities in the Philippines to examining the ecology of the Antarctic snow petrel. Later professional experiences of Yelle are exclusive to the Institute of Natural Sciences. Here, Yelle studied the biodiversity of the Belgian Part of the North Sea through eDNA metabarcoding. At the moment, Yelle is working under Prof. Dr. Isa Schön in the project UNTANGLE and his PhD to better understand the unique asexual evolutionary history of Darwinula stevensoni.

Publication highlights

"Natural populations of the putative ancient asexual Darwinula stevensoni (Crustacea, Ostracoda) differ in their microbiomes"
This paper investigates the microbiomes of Darwinula stevensoni across natural freshwater habitats in the UK, Belgium and Spain. The species depicted high microbiome diversity, with many unique bacterial taxa. As a co-author, Yelle was mainly involved in assisting with statistical analyses. Many upcoming papers are expected to be released soon, both from his previous work in eDNA, as well as from his current work in the UNTANGLE project.