Bio

The Heil lab studies processes that create and maintain variation in populations using genetics, genomics, and experimental evolution in Saccharomyces yeast. The three main areas we are focused on right now are 1) how recombination rate varies between populations and species, 2) how hybridization can aid populations in adaptation to different environments, and 3) how S. cerevisiae has been selected for/adapted to baking environments.

Publications

• Evidence for Historic and Ongoing Human‐Mediated Dispersal of Yeast , Molecular Ecology (2026)
• Two Metschnikowia nectar yeast species have similar volatile profiles but elicit differential foraging in bee pollinators , Ecological Entomology (2026)
• Impacts of temperature on recombination rate and meiotic success in thermotolerant and cold-tolerant yeast species , Heredity (2025)
• Mixed Outcomes in Recombination Rates After Domestication: Revisiting Theory and Data , Molecular Ecology (2025)
• The recombination landscape of introgression in yeast , PLoS Genetics (2025)
• The role of flour type and feeding schedule on the sourdough microbiome , Microbiology Spectrum (2025)
• Two Metschnikowia nectar yeast species have similar volatile profiles, but elicit differential foraging in bee pollinators , Open MIND (2025)
• Mixed outcomes in recombination rates after domestication: Revisiting theory and data , bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) (2024)
• Temperature affects recombination rate plasticity and meiotic success between thermotolerant and cold tolerant yeast species , bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) (2024)
• The recombination landscape of introgression in yeast , bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) (2024)