PhD student (ICM-CSIC)
Gabriel Sonoda is currently doing his PhD at the Institute of Marine Sciences (ICM-CSIC) and the University of Barcelona under supervision of Dr. Blanca Figuerola and Dr. Anna Sanchez-Vidal. The thesis project aims to assess plastics debris as a dispersal vector of marine species through an integrative approach. The main objectives are to investigate ecological succession in different types of plastic polymers, to identify the fouling species and to analyze their demographic structure using populational genetic analyses. His PhD is granted by an INPhINIT Incoming fellowship funded by La Caixa Foundation.
Gabriel holds a Bachelor degree in Biological Sciences and Master’s degree in Sciences, in the field of genetics, from the University of São Paulo in Brazil. His Bachelor and Master’s degree Final projects were focused on venom evolution of Nemertea and snakes from the tribe Hydropsini. Gabriel also contributed to studies concerning local selection on the gastropod Littoraria flava populations. His primary scientific interests are molecular biology, evolution, bioinformatics, genomics and marine biology.
Selected articles:
- Sonoda G.G., Tobaruela E.d.C., Norenburg I., Fabi J.P., Andrade S.C.S. 2023. Venomous noodles: The evolution of toxins in Nemertea through positive selection and gene duplication. Toxins. 2023;15:650. doi: 10.3390/toxins15110650.
- Cortez T, Sonoda GG, Santos CA, Andrade SCS. 2024. Assessing mechanisms of potential local adaptation through a seascape genomic approach in a marine gastropod, Littoraria flava." Genome Biology and Evolution 16.9: evae194. [Joint co-author].
- Santos CA, Sonoda GG, Cortez T, Coutinho LL, Andrade SCS. 2021. Transcriptome expression of biomineralization genes in Littoraria flava gastropod in Brazilian rocky shore reveals evidence of local adaptation." Genome biology and evolution 13.4: evab050.