Prof Sonja Vernes

Professor

Email: scv1@st-andrews.ac.uk

Research areas

Sonja Vernes leads the Neurogenetics of Vocal Communication Research Group that studies the genetics of vocal communication in mammals, as a way to understand the evolution and biological basis of human speech and language.

My research program aims to understand the neuro-genetic mechanisms underlying the evolution and encoding of speech and language by studying key language-related traits such as vocal learning. My research uses diverse, interdisciplinary approaches including;

- clinical genetic analyses investigating the genetic causes of speech and language disorders in human cohorts

- omics approaches to discover novel genes involved in vocal learning in animal models including transcriptomics, network building and de novo genome sequencing (with the Bat1K genome sequencing consortium; www.bat1k.com)

- molecular-genetic studies to examine the function of known language-related and vocal learning-related genes (e.g. those identified in clinical genetic studies)

- neurogenetic approaches to uncover vocal learning relevant circuits in a mammalian brain and create links between genes, neurobiology and vocal learning behaviour

- behavioural paradigms to determine the extent of vocal learning abilities in bat species as a model for mammalian vocal learning

This research program is pioneering the use of bats as the first tractable mammalian model of vocal learning in which it is possible to explore the neuro-genetic underpinnings of this complex behavioural trait. This highly interdisciplinary approach aims to answer fundamental questions about how vocal learning evolved, how it is biologically encoded, and inform our understanding of human spoken language and language disorders.

PhD supervision

Sixue Li
Alexa Clarke
Nikita Groot
Mariya Shtumpf

Selected publications

Open access

Chiropterans are a hotspot for horizontal transfer of DNA transposons in mammalia
Paulat, N. S., Storer, J. M., Moreno-Santillán, D. D., Osmanski, A. B., Sullivan, K. A. M., Grimshaw, J. R., Korstian, J., Halsey, M., Garcia, C. J., Crookshanks, C., Roberts, J., Smit, A. F. A., Hubley, R., Rosen, J., Teeling, E. C., Vernes, S. C., Myers, E., Pippel, M., Brown, T., Hiller, M., & 6 others Consortium, Z., Rojas, D., Dávalos, L. M., Lindblad-Toh, K., Karlsson, E. K. & Ray, D. A., 1 May 2023, In: Molecular Biology and Evolution. 40, 5, 14 p., msad092.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
DNA methylation networks underlying mammalian traits
Haghani, A., Li, C. Z., Robeck, T. R., Zhang, J., Lu, A. T., Ablaeva, J., Acosta-Rodríguez, V. A., Adams, D. M., Alagaili, A. N., Almunia, J., Aloysius, A., Amor, N. M. S., Ardehali, R., Arneson, A., Baker, C. S., Banks, G., Belov, K., Bennett, N. C., Black, P., Blumstein, D. T., & 170 others Bors, E. K., Breeze, C. E., Brooke, R. T., Brown, J. L., Carter, G., Caulton, A., Cavin, J. M., Chakrabarti, L., Chatzistamou, I., Chavez, A. S., Chen, H., Cheng, K., Chiavellini, P., Choi, O-W., Clarke, S., Cook, J. A., Cooper, L. N., Cossette, M-L., Day, J., DeYoung, J., Dirocco, S., Dold, C., Dunnum, J. L., Ehmke, E. E., Emmons, C. K., Emmrich, S., Erbay, E., Erlacher-Reid, C., Faulkes, C. G., Fei, Z., Ferguson, S. H., Finno, C. J., Flower, J. E., Gaillard, J-M., Garde, E., Gerber, L., Gladyshev, V. N., Goya, R. G., Grant, M. J., Green, C. B., Hanson, M. B., Hart, D. W., Haulena, M., Herrick, K., Hogan, A. N., Hogg, C. J., Hore, T. A., Huang, T., Izpisua Belmonte, J. C., Jasinska, A. J., Jones, G., Jourdain, E., Kashpur, O., Katcher, H., Katsumata, E., Kaza, V., Kiaris, H., Kobor, M. S., Kordowitzki, P., Koski, W. R., Krützen, M., Kwon, S. B., Larison, B., Lee, S-G., Lehmann, M., Lemaître, J-F., Levine, A. J., Li, X., Li, C., Lim, A. R., Lin, D. T. S., Lindemann, D. M., Liphardt, S. W., Little, T. J., Macoretta, N., Maddox, D., Matkin, C. O., Mattison, J. A., McClure, M., Mergl, J., Meudt, J. J., Montano, G. A., Mozhui, K., Munshi-South, J., Murphy, W. J., Naderi, A., Nagy, M., Narayan, P., Nathanielsz, P. W., Nguyen, N. B., Niehrs, C., Nyamsuren, B., O'Brien, J. K., Ginn, P. OT., Odom, D. T., Ophir, A. G., Osborn, S., Ostrander, E. A., Parsons, K. M., Paul, K. C., Pedersen, A. B., Pellegrini, M., Peters, K. J., Petersen, J. L., Pietersen, D. W., Pinho, G. M., Plassais, J., Poganik, J. R., Prado, N. A., Reddy, P., Rey, B., Ritz, B. R., Robbins, J., Rodriguez, M., Russell, J., Rydkina, E., Sailer, L. L., Salmon, A. B., Sanghavi, A., Schachtschneider, K. M., Schmitt, D., Schmitt, T., Schomacher, L., Schook, L. B., Sears, K. E., Seifert, A. W., Shafer, A. B. A., Shindyapina, A. V., Simmons, M., Singh, K., Sinha, I., Slone, J., Snell, R. G., Soltanmohammadi, E., Spangler, M. L., Spriggs, M., Staggs, L., Stedman, N., Steinman, K. J., Stewart, D. T., Sugrue, V. J., Szladovits, B., Takahashi, J. S., Takasugi, M., Teeling, E. C., Thompson, M. J., Van Bonn, B., Vernes, S. C., Villar, D., Vinters, H. V., Vu, H., Wallingford, M. C., Wang, N., Wilkinson, G. S., Williams, R. W., Yan, Q., Yao, M., Young, B. G., Zhang, B., Zhang, Z., Zhao, Y., Zhao, P., Zhou, W., Zoller, J. A., Ernst, J., Seluanov, A., Gorbunova, V., Yang, X. W., Raj, K. & Horvath, S., 11 Aug 2023, In: Science. 381, 6658, eabq5693.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open access

Genotype-phenotype correlation in contactin-associated protein-like 2 (CNTNAP-2) developmental disorder
D'Onofrio, G., Accogli, A., Severino, M., Caliskan, H., Kokotović, T., Blazekovic, A., Jercic, K. G., Markovic, S., Zigman, T., Goran, K., Barišić, N., Duranovic, V., Ban, A., Borovecki, F., Ramadža, D. P., Barić, I., Fazeli, W., Herkenrath, P., Marini, C., Vittorini, R., & 30 others Gowda, V., Bouman, A., Rocca, C., Alkhawaja, I. A., Murtaza, B. N., Rehman, M. M. U., Al Alam, C., Nader, G., Mancardi, M. M., Giacomini, T., Srivastava, S., Alvi, J. R., Tomoum, H., Matricardi, S., Iacomino, M., Riva, A., Scala, M., Madia, F., Pistorio, A., Salpietro, V., Minetti, C., Rivière, J-B., Srour, M., Efthymiou, S., Maroofian, R., Houlden, H., Vernes, S. C., Zara, F., Striano, P. & Nagy, V., 14 May 2023, In: Human Genetics. 17 p.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open access

Universal DNA methylation age across mammalian tissues
Lu, A. T., Fei, Z., Haghani, A., Robeck, T. R., Zoller, J. A., Li, C. Z., Lowe, R., Yan, Q., Zhang, J., Vu, H., Ablaeva, J., Acosta-Rodriguez, V. A., Adams, D. M., Almunia, J., Aloysius, A., Ardehali, R., Arneson, A., Baker, C. S., Banks, G., Belov, K., & 168 others Bennett, N. C., Black, P., Blumstein, D. T., Bors, E. K., Breeze, C. E., Brooke, R. T., Brown, J. L., Carter, G. G., Caulton, A., Cavin, J. M., Chakrabarti, L., Chatzistamou, I., Chen, H., Cheng, K., Chiavellini, P., Choi, O. W., Clarke, S. M., Cooper, L. N., Cossette, M. L., Day, J., DeYoung, J., DiRocco, S., Dold, C., Ehmke, E. E., Emmons, C. K., Emmrich, S., Erbay, E., Erlacher-Reid, C., Faulkes, C. G., Ferguson, S. H., Finno, C. J., Flower, J. E., Gaillard, J. M., Garde, E., Gerber, L., Gladyshev, V. N., Gorbunova, V., Goya, R. G., Grant, M. J., Green, C. B., Hales, E. N., Hanson, M. B., Hart, D. W., Haulena, M., Herrick, K., Hogan, A. N., Hogg, C. J., Hore, T. A., Huang, T., Izpisua Belmonte, J. C., Jasinska, A. J., Jones, G., Jourdain, E., Kashpur, O., Katcher, H., Katsumata, E., Kaza, V., Kiaris, H., Kobor, M. S., Kordowitzki, P., Koski, W. R., Krützen, M., Kwon, S. B., Larison, B., Lee, S. G., Lehmann, M., Lemaitre, J. F., Levine, A. J., Li, C., Li, X., Lim, A. R., Lin, D. T. S., Lindemann, D. M., Little, T. J., Macoretta, N., Maddox, D., Matkin, C. O., Mattison, J. A., McClure, M., Mergl, J., Meudt, J. J., Montano, G. A., Mozhui, K., Munshi-South, J., Naderi, A., Nagy, M., Narayan, P., Nathanielsz, P. W., Nguyen, N. B., Niehrs, C., O'Brien, J. K., O'Tierney Ginn, P., Odom, D. T., Ophir, A. G., Osborn, S., Ostrander, E. A., Parsons, K. M., Paul, K. C., Pellegrini, M., Peters, K. J., Pedersen, A. B., Petersen, J. L., Pietersen, D. W., Pinho, G. M., Plassais, J., Poganik, J. R., Prado, N. A., Reddy, P., Rey, B., Ritz, B. R., Robbins, J., Rodriguez, M., Russell, J., Rydkina, E., Sailer, L. L., Salmon, A. B., Sanghavi, A., Schachtschneider, K. M., Schmitt, D., Schmitt, T., Schomacher, L., Schook, L. B., Sears, K. E., Seifert, A. W., Seluanov, A., Shafer, A. B. A., Shanmuganayagam, D., Shindyapina, A. V., Simmons, M., Singh, K., Sinha, I., Slone, J., Snell, R. G., Soltanmaohammadi, E., Spangler, M. L., Spriggs, M. C., Staggs, L., Stedman, N., Steinman, K. J., Stewart, D. T., Sugrue, V. J., Szladovits, B., Takahashi, J. S., Takasugi, M., Teeling, E. C., Thompson, M. J., Van Bonn, B., Vernes, S. C., Villar, D., Vinters, H. V., Wallingford, M. C., Wang, N., Wayne, R. K., Wilkinson, G. S., Williams, C. K., Williams, R. W., Yang, X. W., Yao, M., Young, B. G., Zhang, B., Zhang, Z., Zhao, P., Zhao, Y., Zhou, W., Zimmermann, J., Ernst, J., Raj, K. & Horvath, S., 10 Aug 2023, In: Nature Aging.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open access

ARHGEF39, a gene implicated in developmental language disorder, activates RHOA and is involved in cell de-adhesion and neural progenitor cell proliferation
Anijs, M., Devanna, P. & Vernes, S. C., 25 Jul 2022, In: Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience. 15, 941494.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open access

Contradictory phylogenetic signals in the laurasiatheria anomaly zone
Doronina, L., Hughes, G. M., Moreno-Santillan, D., Lawless, C., Lonergan, T., Ryan, L., Jebb, D., Kirilenko, B. M., Korstian, J. M., Dávalos, L. M., Vernes, S. C., Myers, E. W., Teeling, E. C., Hiller, M., Jermiin, L. S., Schmitz, J., Springer, M. S. & Ray, D. A., 26 Apr 2022, In: Genes. 13, 5, 17 p., 766.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open access

The era of reference genomes in conservation genomics
Formenti, G., Theissinger, K., Fernandes, C., Bista, I., Bombarely, A., Bleidorn, C., Ciofi, C., Crottini, A., Godoy, J. A., Höglund, J., Malukiewicz, J., Mouton, A., Oomen, R. A., Paez, S., Palsbøll, P. J., Pampoulie, C., Ruiz-López, M. J., Svardal, H., Theofanopoulou, C., de Vries, J., & 7 others Waldvogel, A-M., Zhang, G., Mazzoni, C. J., Jarvis, E. D., Bálint, M., Vernes, S. C. & European Reference Genome Atlas (ERGA) Consortium, Mar 2022, In: Trends in Ecology & Evolution. 37, 3, p. 197-202 6 p.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
Open access

The pale spear-nosed bat: a neuromolecular and transgenic model for vocal learning
Vernes, S., Devanna, P., Hoerpel, S., van Tussenbroek, I. A., Firzlaff, U., Hagoort, P., Hiller, M., Hoeksema, N., Hughes, G. M., Lavrichenko, K., Mengede, J., Morales, A. & Wiesmann, M., Nov 2022, In: Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. 1517, 1, p. 125-142 18 p.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open access

DNA methylation predicts age and provides insight into exceptional longevity of bats
Wilkinson, G. S., Adams, D. M., Haghani, A., Lu, A. T., Zoller, J., Breeze, C. E., Arnold, B. D., Ball, H. C., Carter, G. G., Cooper, L. N., Dechmann, D. K. N., Devanna, P., Fasel, N. J., Galazyuk, A. V., Günther, L., Hurme, E., Jones, G., Knörnschild, M., Lattenkamp, E. Z., Li, C. Z., & 14 others Mayer, F., Reinhardt, J. A., Medellin, R. A., Nagy, M., Pope, B., Power, M. L., Ransome, R. D., Teeling, E. C., Vernes, S. C., Zamora-Mejías, D., Zhang, J., Faure, P. A., Greville, L. J. & Horvath, S., 12 Mar 2021, In: Nature Communications. 12, 13 p., 1615.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open access

Hearing sensitivity and amplitude coding in bats are differentially shaped by echolocation calls and social calls
Lattenkamp, E. Z., Nagy, M., Drexl, M., Vernes, S. C., Wiegrebe, L. & Knörnschild, M., 13 Jan 2021, In: Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 288, 1942, 10 p., 20202600.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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