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We integrate experimental ecology, high-throughput genomics and bioinformatics to study the genetics of adaptation, speciation and domestication in crop plants and their wild relatives. Much of our work focuses on identifying the genetic changes that underlie the formation of new varieties and species, and more generally, the genotype-phenotype-environment interaction.

We have an open postdoc position

Interested in joining the lab as a postdoc or a student? Great!

Please contact us to discuss potential projects:  

 

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THE TEAM

The Team
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Sariel Hübner

I am the head of the Evolutionary Genomics Lab in MIGAL and the head of the BioData (computational biology) program at Tel-Hai academic College. I received my PhD in Evolutionary Biology from the University of Haifa and did a postdoc training at the University of British Columbia. I study evolution, mainly within plant species.  

Guy Ben Zvi 

I am an undergraduate student in the Department of Biotechnology at Tel-Hai College. I’m interested in transposable elements and their spread along domesticated and wild wheat. 

Dana Sisou

I’m a PhD student at the Faculty of Agriculture in the Hebrew University, Jerusalem. I study the genetic basis of sunflower resistance to the weedy parasite and mainly to broomrape

Tal Amar

I’m an undergraduate student in the biodata (computational biology) program in Tel-Hai College. I like solving technical problems, from fixing machines to image processing and machine learning

 

Evgenii Potapenko

I’m a PhD student at the Department of Evolutionary and Environmental Biology in the University of Haifa. I graduated from the Department of Genetics and Biotechnology and the Institute of Bioinformatics from Saint-Petersburg State University. In my PhD I investigate the impact of recombination and mobile elements activity on adaptation in wild barley. I'm interested in molecular evolution and population genetics.

Roy Friedlander

I hold a B.Sc. in computer science from Tel-Hai College, with a specialization in signal processing and machine learning. I’m interested in the computational aspects of genomics and evolution, and currently I’m establishing a cloud-native computing infrastructure for genomic data analysis. In addition, I’m interested in developing tools for graph-pan-genome analysis.

Yael Lev-Mirom

I am a PhD student at the Department of Evolutionary
and Environmental Biology in the University of Haifa. I study wheat domestication and crop evolution.

Alumni

 

Noam Pintel

Former MSc student.

The genetics of nutritional traits in wild barley.

 

Tal Levi

Former undergraduate student.

The genetics of seed-coat (achenes) characteristics in sunflower.

 

 

 

Shay Kaduri

Former undergraduate student.

The genome wide association mapping of nutritional traits.

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RESEARCH

Research

Speciation: How species evolve is one of the most fundamental questions in evolutionary biology. Studying speciation is largely synonymous with studying reproductive isolation, and exploring what we know about where, when, and how isolating barriers evolve. Studying speciation in plants is often bounded by classical definitions of the concept of species, but modern research tends to stretch those boundaries especially in the light of new genomics data. In the laboratory, we focus on members of the Poaceae and Compositae families, including Hordeum spontaneum, Hordeum bulbosum, Helianthus annuus, and others.

Adaptation: Our research on adaptation and speciation is largely overlapping as much of the work is focused on the causes and regulating factors associated with adaptive differentiation in plants. A general theme is to link variation at the molecular level to variation in phenotypes and fitness in natural populations. In the lab, we integrate eco-geographical information, phenotypic measurements in natural habitats and common garden experiments to study the ecology and genetics associated with adaptation and the contribution of adaptive plasticity to fitness.

Domestication: The Neolithic revolution associated with humans’ transition from a hunting-gathering lifestyle to farming is one of the most striking events in human history. This event had dramatic effects on both genomic and phenotypic variation and has given us an opportunity to track footprints of rapid evolution. We study the evolutionary signature of plants’ domestication on the genome as a major bottleneck but also as a generator of new genetic and phenotypic variation. We strive to understand the universality and uniqueness associated with the genetics of domestication in different species and its subsequent contribution to adaptation to new environments.

PUBLICATIONS

For updated list of publications please visit google scholar

Preprints

Sharma R., Shaaf S., Neumann K., Guo Y., Mascher M., David M., Al-Yassin A., Özkan H., Blake T., Hübner S., Castañeda-Álvarez N.P., Grando S., Ceccarelli S., Baum M., Graner A., Coupland G., Pillen K., Weiss E., Mackay I.J., Powell W., Kilian B. On the origin of photoperiod non-responsive Barley. bioRxiv 2020.07.02.185488.


Hasson H., Dudhe M.Y., Mandel T., Warschefsky E., Rieseberg L.H., Hübner S. Image processing and genome-wide association studies in sunflower identify loci associated with seed-coat characteristics. bioRxiv 2021.04.15.439933.


Rybnikov S., Hübner S., Korol A.B. Shift-inducible [transgenerational] increase in recombination rate as an evolving strategy in a periodic environment: a numerical model. bioRxiv 2021.10.28.466217.


Fuerst D., Shermeister B., Mandel T., Hübner S. Decoupling the molecular regulation of perenniality and flowering in bulbous barley (Hordeum bulbosum). bioRxiv2021.11.11.4681.
Ashkenazy N., Feder M., Shir O.M., Hübner S. GWANN: Implementing deep learning in genome wide association studies. bioRxiv 2022.06.01.494275.


Ben-Zeev S., Hellwig T., Demeile M., Barak V., Vorobyova S., Hübner S., Saranga Y. Novel diversity panel facilitates genomic dissection of lodging in tef (Eragrostis tef). bioRxiv 2022.03.17.484745.


Papers
 

Huang K., Jahani M., Gouzy J., Legendre A., Carrere S., Lázaro-Guevara J.M., Gerardo E., Segovia G., Todesco M., Mayjonade B., Rodde N., Cauet S., Dufau I., Staton S.E., Pouilly N., Boniface M.C., Tapy C., Mangin B., Duhnen A., Gautier V., Poncet C., Donnadieu C., Mandel T., Hübner S., Burke J.M., Vautrin S., Bellec A., Owens G.L., Langlade N., Muños S., Rieseberg L.H. The genomics of linkage drag in sunflower. Proceedings National Academy of Science USA, Accepted.


Fadida-Myers A., Fuerst D., Tzuberi A., Yadav S., Nashef K., Roychowdhury R., Paola Sansaloni C., Hübner S., Ben-David R. (2022). Emmer wheat eco-geographic and genomic congruence shapes phenotypic performance under mediterranean climate. Plants. 11:1460.


Hübner S., Sisou D., Tali M., Todesco M., Matzrafi M., Eizenberg H. (2022). Wild sunflower goes viral: citizen science and comparative genomics allow tracking the origin and establishment of invasive sunflower in the Levant. Molecular Ecology. 31:2061-2072.
 

Hübner S. (2022). Are we there yet? Driving the road to evolutionary pan-genomics. Current Opinion in Plant Biology. 66:102195.
Rybnikov S., Weissman D., Hübner S., Korol A.B. (2021). Fitness Dependence as an Evolutionary Rescue for Recombination Across Diverse Mating Systems. Journal of Theoretical Biology. 528:110849.

 

Sisou D., Tadmor Y., Plakhine D., Ziadna H., Hübner S., Eizenberg E. (2021). Biological and Transcriptomic Characterization of Pre-haustorial Resistance to Sunflower Broomrape (Orobanche Cumana W.) in Sunflower (Helianthus annuus). Plants. 10:1810.
 

Rahimi O., Ohana-Levi N., Brauner H., Inbar N., Hübner S.#, and Drori E.#. (2021). Multivariate Analysis of Wild Grapevine Populations Reveal the Factors Constraining the Species Distribution. Ecology and Evolution. 11:6657-6671.
 

Hübner S.# and Kantar M.# (2021). Tapping diversity from the wild: sampling, characterizing and implementing. Frontiers in Plant Science. 12:38.
 

Sivan A, Rahimi O, Salmon-Divon M, Weiss E, Drori E, Hübner S. (2021). Genomic Evidences Support an Independent History of Grapevine Domestication in the Levant. Plants People Planet. 3:414-427.
 

Gao L., Lee J.S., Hübner S., Qu Y., Rieseberg L.H. (2019) Genome-Wide Association Mapping in Sunflower Identifies Loci Associated with Flooding Resistance That Lack Antagonistic Effects on Performance. New Phytologist, 223:1657-70.
 

Kantar M., Hübner S., Herman A., Bock D., Baute G., Betts K., Ott M., Brandvain Y., Wyse D., Stupar R.M., Rieseberg L.H. (2018) Neo-Domestication of an Interspecific Tetraploid Helianthus annuus × Helianthus tuberosus Population That Segregates for Perennial Habit. Genes. 9:422.
 

Hübner S., Bercovich N., Todesco M., Mandel J.R., Odenheimer J., Ziegler E., Baute G.J., Owens G.L., Grassa C.J., Ebert D.P., Ostevik K.L., Moyers B., Bowers J.E., Calic I., Masalia R.R., Kane N.C., Swanevelder D.Z.H., Kubach T., Muños S., Langlade N.B., Burke J.M., Rieseberg L.H. (2018) The Cultivated Sunflower Pan-Genome Provides Insights on the Contribution of Introgression to the Breeding of Modern Varieties. Nature Plants. 5:54-62.
 

Owens G.L., Baute G.J, Hübner S., Rieseberg L.H. (2018) Genomic Sequence and Copy-Number Evolution During Hybrid Crop Development in Sunflowers. Evolutionary Applications. https://doi.org/10.1111/eva.12603.
 

Badouin H., Gouzy J., Grassa C.J., Murat F., Staton S.E., Cottret L., Lelandais-Brière C., Owens G.L., Carrère S., Mayjonade B., Legrand L., Gill N., Kane N.C., Bowers J.E., Hübner S., Bellec A., Bérard A., Bergès H., Blanchet N., Boniface M.C., Brunel D., Catrice O., Chaidir N., Claudel C., Donnadieu C., Faraut T., Fievet G., Helmstetter N., King M., Knapp S.J., Lai Z., Le Paslier M.C., Lippi Y., Lorenzon L., Mandel J.R., Marage G., Marchand G., Marquand E., Bret-Mestries E., Morien E., Nambeesan S., Nguyen T., Pegot-Espagnet P., Pouilly N., Raftis F., Sallet E., Schiex T., Thomas J., Vandecasteele C., Varès D., Vear F., Vautrin S., Crespi M., Mangin B., Burke J.M., Salse J., Muños S., Vincourt P., Rieseberg L.H., Langlade N.B. (2017) The Sunflower Genome Provides Insights Into Oil Metabolism, Flowering and Asterid Evolution. Nature. 546:148-152.
 

Mascher M., Schuenemann V.J., Davidovich U., Marom N., Himmelbach A., Hübner S., Korol A., David M., Reiter E., Riehl S., Schreiber M., Vohr S.H., Green R.E., Dawson I.K., Russell J., Kilian B., Muehlbauer G.J., Waugh R., Fahima T., Krause J., Weiss E., Stein N. (2016) Genomic Analysis of 6,000-Year-Old Cultivated Grain Illuminates the Domestication History of Barley. Nature Genetics. 48: 1089-1093‬‬‬‬‬‬‬.
 

Todesco M., Pascual M.A. Owens G.L, Ostevik K.L., Moyers B.T., Hübner S., Heredia S.M., Caseyes C., Bock D.G., Rieseberg, L.H. (2016) Hybridization and Extinction. Evolutionary Applications. ‏ doi: 10.1111/eva.12367‬. ‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬
 

Fadeev E., De Pascale F., Vezzi A., Hübner S., Aharonovich D., Sher D. (2016) Why Close a Bacterial Genome? The Plasmid of Alteromonas Macleodii HOT1A3 is a Vector for Inter-Specific Transfer of a Flexible Genomic Island. Frontiers in Microbiology. 7:248.    ‪
 

Zhou H., Tsarfati R., Hübner S., Krugman T., Fahima T., Abbo S., Saranga Y., Korol A.B. (2015) Transcriptomic Changes in Glumes of Tetraploid Wheat Species Across a Domestication Gradient. BMC Genomics, 16:777.
 

Hübner S., Korol A.B., Schmid K.J. (2015) RNA-Seq Analysis Identifies Genes Associated with Differential Reproductive Success Under Drought-Stress in Accessions of Wild Barley Hordeum spontaneum. BMC Plant Biology, 15:134.
 

Shaar L. #, Hübner S. #, Peleg Z. (2015) Identification of Conserved Drought-Adaptive Genes Using a Cross-Species Meta-Analysis Approach. BMC Plant Biology, 15:111.
 

Delmore K.E., Hübner S., Kane N.C., Andrew R.L., Camera F., Irwin D.E. (2015) Patterns of Genomic Divergence in a Migratory Divide. Molecular Ecology, 24:1873–1888.
 

Bock D.G., Caseys C., Cousens R.D., Hahn M., Heredia S.M., Hübner S., Turner K.G., Whitney K.D., Rieseberg L.H. (2014) What We Still Don’t Know About Invasion Genetics. Molecular Ecology, 24:2277-2297.
 

Hübner S., Rashkovetskya E., Kimc Y.B., Ohd J.H., Michalakc K., Weiner D., Korol A.B., Nevo E., Michalack P. (2013) Genome Differentiation of Drosophila melanogaster from a Microclimate Contrast in Evolution Canyon, Israel. Proceedings National Academy of Science USA, 110:21059-21064.
 

Hübner S., Bdolach E., Ein-Gedi S., Schmid K.J., Korol A.B., Fridman E. (2013) Phenotypic Landscapes: Phenological Patterns in Wild and Cultivated Barley. Journal of Evolutionary Biology, 26:163–174.
 

Hübner S., Günther T., Flavell A., Fridman E., Graner A., Korol A.B., Schmid K.J. (2012) Islands and Streams: Clusters and Gene Flow in Wild Barley Populations from the Levant. Molecular Ecology, 21:1115-1129.
 

Malik A., Korol A.B., Hübner S., Hernandez A.G., Thimmapuram J., Ali S., Glaser F., Paz A., Avivi A., Band M. (2011) Transcriptome Sequencing of the Blind Subterranean Mole Rat, Spalax galili: Utility and Potential for the Discovery of Novel Evolutionary Patterns. PLoS ONE, 6: e21227.
 

Hübner S., Höffken M., Oren E., Haseneyer G., Stein N., Graner A., Schmid K.J., Fridman E. (2009) Strong Correlation of Wild Barley Population Structure (Hordeum spontaneum) with Temperature and Precipitation Variation. Molecular Ecology, 18:1523-1536.

 

Books

Bock D.G., Caseys C., Cousens R.D., Hahn M., Heredia S.M., Hübner S., Turner K.G., Whitney K.D., Rieseberg L.H. (2016). What We Still Don’t Know About Invasion Genetics. In Barrett S.C.H., Colautti R.I., Rieseberg L.H., Dlugosch K.M. (Ed) Invasion Genetics: The Baker and Stebbins Legacy. John Wiley & Sons.


Kantar, M., Hübner S., Rieseberg, L. (2015). Broadening the Genetic Basis for Crop Improvement: Interspecific Hybridization Within and Between Ploidy Levels in Helianthus. In Mason, A.S. (Ed) Polyploidy and Interspecific Hybridization for Crop Improvement, CRC Press, Boca Raton, United States of America.


Kilian B., Özkan H., Shaaf S., Hübner S., et al. (2012) Comparing Genetic Diversity Within a Crop and its Wild Progenitor: a Case Study for Barley. In: Dulloo M.E., Ford-Lloyd B.V., Frese L., Iriondo J.M., Maxted N. (Eds.) Agrobiodiversity Conservation: Securing the Diversity of Crop Wild Relatives and Landraces. Pp:186-192. CABI, Wallingford, 365pp.

 

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CONTACT US
 

Sariel Hübner

 

email: sarielh@migal.org.il

phone: +972-4-7700515

address: Tarshish st., Kiryat Shmona, 11016, Israel

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