Romain Libbrecht

89 %
Libre accès
36
Documents
Affiliations actuelles
  • Institut de recherche sur la biologie de l'insecte (IRBI)
  • Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)
  • Université de Tours (UT)
Identifiants chercheurs

Présentation

Research interests

  • A key challenge in the life sciences is to understand how organisms adjust their reproduction, physiology and behavior in response to environmental conditions. This ability to produce several phenotypes from a single genotype, called phenotypic plasticity, is central to the functioning and evolution of social insects, such as ants, termites, social bees and wasps. Their societies show a division of labor between queens that monopolize egg production and workers that specialize in performing all the other tasks necessary to maintain the colony. In my work, I study multiple aspects of division of labor and phenotypic specialization in different species of ants. My research combines tools from the fields of evolutionay biology, behavioral ecology, molecular biology and epigenetics to study the factors and mechanisms that control, initiate and maintain division of labor in insect societies.

Research experience

  • 2023-present CNRS researcher (Chargé de Recherche), IRBI UMR7261 CNRS – University of Tours, France
  • 2016-2023 Assistant professor, IOME, University of Mainz, Germany
  • 2015-2016 Marie Curie postdoctoral fellow - return phase, DEE, University of Lausanne, Switzerland
  • 2013-2015 Marie Curie postdoctoral fellow - outgoing phase, The Rockefeller University, New York City, USA
  • 2007-2012 PhD student, DEE, University of Lausanne, Switzerland

Academic diplomas

  • 2025 - HDR (Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches) in life sciences - University of Tours, France
  • 2012 - PhD in life sciences - University of Lausanne, Switzerland
  • 2007 - MSc degree in Ecology, Ethology, Evolution - University of Rennes, France
  • 2007 - Engineering diploma in biology and agronomy - Ecole Nationale Supérieure d’Agronomie de Rennes, France

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Publications

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Integrated co-expression analysis of host–parasite transcriptomes reveals mechanisms of host modulation in an ant–cestode system

Tom Sistermans , Romain Libbrecht , Susanne Foitzik

BMC Genomics, 2026, 27, pp.232. ⟨10.1186/s12864-026-12581-6⟩

Article dans une revue hal-05533434v1
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Worker Survival and Egg Production—But Not Transcriptional Activity—Respond to Queen Number in the Highly Polygynous, Invasive Ant Tapinoma magnum

Anna Lenhart , Megha Majoe , Sibel Selvi , Thomas J Colgan , Romain Libbrecht et al.

Molecular Ecology, 2025, 34 (6), pp.e17679. ⟨10.1111/mec.17679⟩

Article dans une revue hal-05045920v1
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Parasite prevalence in a social host has colony-wide impacts on transcriptional activity and survival

Tom Sistermans , Hugo Darras , Victor Ronget , Sara Beros , Juliane Hartke et al.

Evolution - International Journal of Organic Evolution, 2025, 79 (9), pp.1862-1875. ⟨10.1093/evolut/qpaf118⟩

Article dans une revue hal-05234789v1
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The tropical ant Pheidole megacephala (Fabricius, 1793) in France and discrimination with the local Pheidole pallidula (Nylander, 1849)

Alain Lenoir , Elfie Perdereau , Simon Dupont , Romain Libbrecht , Pierre Picquet et al.

Naturae, 2025, Naturae, 2025 (4), pp.35-43. ⟨10.5852/naturae2025a4⟩

Article dans une revue (data paper) hal-05032862v1
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Transcriptomic signature of spatial navigation in brains of desert ants

Luisa Maria Jaimes‐nino , Adi Bar , Aziz Subach , Marah Stoldt , Romain Libbrecht et al.

Ecology and Evolution, 2024, 14 (10), pp.e70365. ⟨10.1002/ece3.70365⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04730392v1
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Ontogeny of superorganisms: Social control of queen specialization in ants

Vahideh Majidifar , Marina N Psalti , Martin Coulm , Ebru Fetzer , Eva‐maria Teggers et al.

Functional Ecology, 2024, 38 (5), pp.1044 - 1060. ⟨10.1111/1365-2435.14536⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04730386v1
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Task-specific odorant receptor expression in worker antennae indicates that sensory filters regulate division of labor in ants

Marcel A Caminer , Romain Libbrecht , Megha Majoe , David V Ho , Peter Baumann et al.

Communications Biology, 2023, 6 (1), pp.1004. ⟨10.1038/s42003-023-05273-4⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04730444v1
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The influence of parasite load on transcriptional activity and morphology of a cestode and its ant intermediate host

Tom Sistermans , Juliane Hartke , Marah Stoldt , Romain Libbrecht , Susanne Foitzik

Molecular Ecology, 2023, 32 (15), pp.4412 - 4426. ⟨10.1111/mec.16995⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04730434v1
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Evidence for the effect of brief exposure to food, but not learning interference, on maze solving in desert ants

Tomer Gilad , Arik Dorfman , Aziz Subach , Romain Libbrecht , Susanne Foitzik et al.

Integrative Zoology, 2022, 17 (5), pp.704 - 714. ⟨10.1111/1749-4877.12622⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04730500v1
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Annotation and analysis of 3902 odorant receptor protein sequences from 21 insect species provide insights into the evolution of odorant receptor gene families in solitary and social insects

Pablo Mier , Jean-Fred Fontaine , Marah Stoldt , Romain Libbrecht , Carlotta Martelli et al.

Genes, 2022, 13 (5), pp.919. ⟨10.3390/genes13050919⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04730528v1
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Oxidative stress and senescence in social insects: a significant but inconsistent link?

Boris H Kramer , Volker Nehring , Anja Buttstedt , Jürgen Heinze , Judith Korb et al.

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 2021, 376 (1823), pp.20190732. ⟨10.1098/rstb.2019.0732⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04732184v1
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Fecundity determines the outcome of founding queen associations in ants

Eva-Maria Teggers , Falk Deegener , Romain Libbrecht

Scientific Reports, 2021, 11 (1), pp.2986. ⟨10.1038/s41598-021-82559-9⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04741781v1
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Experimental increase of worker diversity benefits brood production in ants

Marina N Psalti , Dustin Gohlke , Romain Libbrecht

BMC Ecology and Evolution, 2021, 21 (1), pp.163. ⟨10.1186/s12862-021-01890-x⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04730468v1
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Comparative transcriptomic analysis of the mechanisms underpinning ageing and fecundity in social insects

Judith Korb , Karen Meusemann , Denise Aumer , Abel Bernadou , Daniel Elsner et al.

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 2021, 376 (1823), pp.20190728. ⟨10.1098/rstb.2019.0728⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04732168v1
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Social isolation causes downregulation of immune and stress response genes and behavioural changes in a social insect

Inon Scharf , Marah Stoldt , Romain Libbrecht , Anna Lena Höpfner , Evelien Jongepier et al.

Molecular Ecology, 2021, 30 (10), pp.2378-2389. ⟨10.1111/mec.15902⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04730654v1

Queen loss increases worker survival in leaf-cutting ants under paraquat-induced oxidative stress

Megha Majoe , Romain Libbrecht , Susanne Foitzik , Volker Nehring

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 2021, 376 (1823), pp.20190735. ⟨10.1098/rstb.2019.0735⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04741740v1
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Queen and worker phenotypic traits are associated with colony composition and environment in Temnothorax rugatulus (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), an ant with alternative reproductive strategies

Marina Choppin , Stefan Graf , Barbara Feldmeyer , Romain Libbrecht , Florian Menzel et al.

Myrmecological News, 2021, ⟨10.25849/myrmecol.news_031:061⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04741767v1
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Offspring reverse transcriptome responses to maternal deprivation when reared with pathogens in an insect with facultative family life

Maximilian Körner , Fanny Vogelweith , Romain Libbrecht , Susanne Foitzik , Barbara Feldmeyer et al.

Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 2020, 287 (1926), pp.20200440. ⟨10.1098/rspb.2020.0440⟩

Article dans une revue hal-02565970v1
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A role of histone acetylation in the regulation of circadian rhythm in ants

Romain Libbrecht , Dennis Nadrau , Susanne Foitzik

iScience, 2020, 23 (2), pp.100846. ⟨10.1016/j.isci.2020.100846⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04741803v1
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Gene expression is more strongly associated with behavioural specialization than with age or fertility in ant workers

Philip Kohlmeier , Austin R Alleman , Romain Libbrecht , Susanne Foitzik , Barbara Feldmeyer

Molecular Ecology, 2019, 28 (3), pp.658-670. ⟨10.1111/mec.14971⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04759759v1

Back to the roots: the importance of using simple insect societies to understand the molecular basis of complex social life

Daniel Jc Kronauer , Romain Libbrecht

Current Opinion in Insect Science, 2018, 28, pp.33-39. ⟨10.1016/j.cois.2018.03.009⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04760008v1
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Clonal raider ant brain transcriptomics identifies candidate molecular mechanisms for reproductive division of labor

Romain Libbrecht , Peter R Oxley , Daniel J C Kronauer

BMC Biology, 2018, 16 (1), pp.89. ⟨10.1186/s12915-018-0558-8⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04759994v1

Social regulation of insulin signaling and the evolution of eusociality in ants

Vikram Chandra , Ingrid Fetter-Pruneda , Peter Oxley , Amelia Ritger , Sean Mckenzie et al.

Science, 2018, 361 (6400), pp.398-402. ⟨10.1126/science.aar5723⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04760016v1
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Genetics and evolution of social behavior in insects

Chelsea A Weitekamp , Romain Libbrecht , Laurent Keller

Annual Review of Genetics, 2017, 51 (1), pp.219-239. ⟨10.1146/annurev-genet-120116-024515⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04760031v1

Molecular mechanisms of phenotypic plasticity in social insects

Miguel Corona , Romain Libbrecht , Diana Wheeler

Current Opinion in Insect Science, 2016, 13, pp.55-60. ⟨10.1016/j.cois.2015.12.003⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04760052v1
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Robust DNA methylation in the clonal raider ant brain

Romain Libbrecht , Peter Robert Oxley , Laurent Keller , Daniel JC Kronauer

Current Biology, 2016, 26 (3), pp.391 - 395. ⟨10.1016/j.cub.2015.12.040⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04760042v1

Ant larvae regulate worker foraging behavior and ovarian activity in a dose-dependent manner

Yuko Ulrich , Dominic Burns , Romain Libbrecht , Daniel JC Kronauer

Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 2015, 70 (7), pp.1011-1018. ⟨10.1007/s00265-015-2046-2⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04760059v1
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Supergenes and complex phenotypes

Tanja Schwander , Romain Libbrecht , Laurent Keller

Current Biology, 2014, 24 (7), pp.R288-R294. ⟨10.1016/j.cub.2014.01.056⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04760067v1
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Genetic compatibility affects division of labor in the Argentine ant Linepithema humile

Romain Libbrecht , Laurent Keller

Evolution - International Journal of Organic Evolution, 2013, 67 (2), pp.517-524. ⟨10.1111/j.1558-5646.2012.01792.x⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04760094v1

Ant genomics sheds light on the molecular regulation of social organization

Romain Libbrecht , Peter Oxley , Daniel Jc Kronauer , Laurent Keller

Genome Biology, 2013, 14 (7), pp.212. ⟨10.1186/gb-2013-14-7-212⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04760083v1
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Vitellogenin underwent subfunctionalization to acquire caste and behavioral specific expression in the harvester ant Pogonomyrmex barbatus

Miguel Corona , Romain Libbrecht , Yannick Wurm , Oksana Riba-Grognuz , Romain A Studer et al.

PLoS Genetics, 2013, 9 (8), pp.e1003730. ⟨10.1371/journal.pgen.1003730⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04760075v1

Interplay between insulin signaling, juvenile hormone, and vitellogenin regulates maternal effects on polyphenism in ants

Romain Libbrecht , Miguel Corona , Franziska Wende , Dihego Azevedo , Jose Serrão et al.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2013, 110 (27), pp.11050-11055. ⟨10.1073/pnas.1221781110⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04760080v1
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Genetic components to caste allocation in a multiple-queen ant species

Romain Libbrecht , Tanja Schwander , Laurent Keller

Evolution - International Journal of Organic Evolution, 2011, 65 (10), pp.2907-2915. ⟨10.1111/j.1558-5646.2011.01348.x⟩

Article dans une revue hal-04760100v1

Aphidius ervi preferentially attacks the green morph of the pea aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum

Romain Libbrecht , David M Gwynn , Mark DE Fellowes

Journal of Insect Behavior, 2007, 20 (1), pp.25-32. ⟨10.1007/s10905-006-9055-y⟩

Article dans une revue istex hal-04760108v1

Caste Differentiation

Marina Psalti , Romain Libbrecht

C. Starr. Encyclopedia of Social Insects, Springer International Publishing, pp.1-5, 2020, ⟨10.1007/978-3-319-90306-4_21-1⟩

Chapitre d'ouvrage hal-04741808v1