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Publications Ralf Sommer

  • Theska, T., Renahan, T. & R. J. Sommer (2024). Starvation resistance in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus requires a conserved supplementary nuclear hormone recptor. Zoological Letters, in press
  • Kalirad, A. & Sommer, R. J. (2024). Spatial and temporal heterogeneity alters the cost of plasticity in Pristionchus pacificus. PLoS Computational Biology, in press.
  • Theska, T. & R. J. Sommer (2024). Feeding structure morphogenesis in ‘rhabditid’ and diplogastrid nematodes are not controlled by a conserved genetic module. Evolution & Development, accepted.
  • Kalirad, A. & Sommer, R. J. (2024). The role of plasticity and stochasticity in coexistence. Ecology Letters, in press.
  • Dardiry, M., Eberhardt, G., Witte, H., Roedelsperger, C., Lightfoot, J. W. & R. J. Sommer, R.J. (2023):  Divergent combinations of cis-regulatory elements control the evolution of phenotypic plasticity. PLoS Biology, 21, e3002270.
  • Jung, R., Lechler, M. C., Rödelsperger, C., Röseler, W., Sommer, R. J., David, D. C. (2023): Tissue-specific safety mechanism results in opposite protein aggregation patterns during aging. PLoS Biology, 21, e3002284.
  • Werner, M. S., Loschko, T., Franz-Wachtel, M., Theska, T., Macek, B. & R. J. Sommer (2023): Histone 4 lysine 5/12 acetylation enables developmental plasticity of Pristionchus mouth form. Nature Communications, 14: 2095.
  • Dardiry, M., Piskobulu, V., Kalirad, A. & Sommer, R. J. (2023). Experimental and theoretical support for costs of plasticity and phenotype in a nematode cannibalistic trait. Evolution Letters, 7, 48-57.
  • Yoshida, K., Rödelsperger, C., Röseler, W., Riebesell, M., Sun, S., Kikuchi, T. & Sommer, R. J. (2023): Chromosome fusions repatterned recombination rate and facilitated reproductive isolation during nematode speciation. Nature Ecology & Evolution, 7, 424-439.
  • Igreja, C., Loschko, T., Schäfer, A., Sharma, R., Quiobe, S. P., Aloshy, E., Witte, H. & Sommer, R. J. (2022): Application of ALFA-tagging in the nematode model organisms Caenorhabditis elegans and Pristionchus pacificus. Cells, 11, 3875.
  • Wighard, S. S., Athanasouli, M., Witte, H., Rödelsperger, C. & Sommer, R. J. (2022): A new hope: A hermaphrotditic nematode enables analysis of a recent whole genome duplication event. Genome Biology and Evolution, 14, evac169.
  • Lo, W.-S., Roca, M., Dardiry, M., Mackie, M., Eberhardt, G., Witte, H., Hong, R., Sommer, R. J. & J. W. Lightfoot (2022): Evolution and diversity of TGF-β signalling pathways are linked with novel developmental and behavioural traits. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 39, msac252.
  • Sun, S., Witte, H. & Sommer, R. J. (2022): Chitin contributes to the formation of a feeding structure ina predatory nematode. Current Biology, 33, 1-13.
                Featured in: Woodruff, G. C. (2023): Developmental genetics: The structural basis of malleable teeth.
               Current Biology, 33, R106-R108.
  • Renahan, T. & R. J. Sommer (2022): Multidimensional competition of nematodes affects plastic traits in a beetle ecosystem. Front. Cell Dev. Biol., 10, 985831.
  • Röseler, W., Collenberg, M., Yoshida, K., Lanz, C., Sommer, R.J. & Rödelsperger, C. (2022): The improved genome of the nematode Parapristionchus giblindavisi provides insights into lineage-specific gene family evolution. G3, 12, jkac215.
  • Lo, W.-S., Han, Z., Witte, H., Röseler, W. & R. J. Sommer (2022): Synergistic interaction of gut microbiota enhances the growth of nematode through neuroendocrine signaling. Current Biology, 32, 2037-2050.
    Featured in: MacNeil, L.T. (2022): Microbiomes: How a gut bacterium promotes healthier living in a nematode. Current Biology, 32, R428-R430.
  • Igreja, C. & Sommer, R. J. (2022): The role of sulfation in nematode development and phenotypic plasticity. Front. Mol. Bioscience, 9, 838148.
  • Han, Z., Sieriebriennikov, B., Susoy, V., Lo, W.-S., Igreja, C., Dong, C., Berasategui, A., Witte, W. & R. J. Sommer (2021): Horizontally acquired cellulases assist the expansion of dietary range in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 39, msab370.
  • Leaver, M., Moreno, E., Kayhan, M., McGaughran, A., Rödelsperger, C., Sommer, R.J., A. A. Hyman (2021): Adaptation to environmental temperature in divergent clades of the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. Evolution, 76, 1660-1673.
  • Lo, W.-S. & R. J. Sommer (2022): Vitamin B12 and predatory behavior in nematodes. In: Vitamin B12. Vol. 119 of Vitamins and Hormones. (Ed.: G. Litwack). Academic Press, 471-489.
  • Kalirad, A. & Sommer, R. J. (2022): The art of mechanistic modeling in Biology. Nature Computational Science, 2, 72.
  • Sun, S., Theska, T., Witte, H., Roedelsperger, C., Ragsdale, E. J. & R. J. Sommer (2021): The Mucin-type hydrogel forming protein DPY-6 has aconserved role in nematode mouth and cuticle formation. Genetics, 220, iyab233.
  • Lenuzzi, M., Witte, H., Riebesell, M., Rödelsperger, C., Hong, R.L. & Sommer, R. J. (2022): Influence of environmental temperature on mouth-form plasticity in Pristionchus pacificus acts through daf-11-depenednet cGMP signaling. J. Exp. Zool. B, 1-11.
  • Sommer, R. J. & J. W. Lightfoot (2022): The genus Pristionchus: a model for phenotypic plasticity, predatory behavior, self-recognition and other complex traits. In: Nematodes as biological models (Eds.: I. Glazer, D. Shapiro-Ilan & P. W. Sternberg). Cabi Publishing, Wallingford, UK, pp. 1-23.
  • Renahan, T. & R. J. Sommer (2021): Nematode interactions on beetle hosts indicate a role of mouth-form plasticity in resource competition. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 9:752695.
  • Sun, S., Rödelsperger, C. & R. J. Sommer (2021): Single worm transcriptomics isentifies a developmental core network of oscillating genes with deep conservation across nematodes. Genome Research, 31, 1590-1601.
  • Lightfoot, J. W., Dardiry, M., Kalirad, A., Giaimo, S., Eberhardt, G., Witte, H., Wilecki, M., Roedelsperger, C., Traulsen, A., & R. J. Sommer, R.J. (2021):  Sex or cannibalism: polyphenism and kin recognition control social action startegies in nematodes. Science Advances, 7, eabg8042.
  • Renahan, T., Lo, W.-S., Werner, M. S., Herrmann, M., Rochat, J. & R. J. Sommer (2020): Nematode biphasic ‘boom and bust’ dynamics are dependent on host bacterial load while linking dauer and mouth-form polyphenisms. Environmental Microbiology, 23, 5102-5113.
    Featured in: Kanzaki, N. (2021): New insights into the tripartite relationship between microbes, nematodes and insects. Environmental Microbiology
  • Kanzaki, N., Herrmann, M., Weiler, C., Röseler, W., Theska, T., Berger, J., Rödelsperger, C. & Sommer, R.J. (2021): Nine new Pristionchus (Nematoda: Diplogastridae) species from China. Zootaxa, 4943, 1-66.
  • Rödelsperger, C., Ebbing, A., Sharma, D. R., Okumura, M., Sommer, R. J. & H. C. Korswagen (2021): Spatial transcriptomics of nematodes identifies sperm cells as a source of genomic novelty and rapid evolution. Mol. Biol. Evol., 38, 229-243.
  • Han, Z., Lo, W.-S., Lightfoot, J. W., Witte, H., Sun, S. & R. J. Sommer (2020): Improving trangenesis efficiency and CRISPR-associated tools through codon optimization and native intron addition in nematodes. Genetics, 216, 947-956.
  • Athanasouli, M., Witte, H., Weiler, C., Loschko, T., Eberhardt, G., Sommer, R. J. and C. Roedelsperger (2020): Comprataive genomics and community curation further improve gene annotation in te nematode Pristionchus pacificus. BMC Genomics, 21, 708.
  • Theska, T., Sieriebriennikov, B., Wighard, S. S., Werner, M. S. & Sommer, R. J. (2020): Geometric morphometrics of microscopic animals as exemplified in model nematodes. Nature Protocols, 15, 2611-2644.
  • Dong, C., Weadick, C. J., Truffault, V. & Sommer, R. J. (2020): Convergent evolution of small-molecule pheromones in Pristionchus nematodes. eLIFE, 9, e55687. DOI: doi.org/10.7554/eLife.55687.
  • Gallotta I., Sandhu A., Peters M., Haslbeck M., Jung R., Agilkaya S., Blersch J., Rödelsperger C., Röseler W., Huang C., Sommer R. J., David D. C. (2020): Extracellular proteostasis prevents aggregation during pathogenic attack. Nature, 584, 410-414.
    Featured in: Webster, B.M., Gildea, H.K. & Dillin, A. (2020): Protein homeostasis from the outside in. Nature Cell Biology, doi.org/10.1038/s4556-020-0534-8.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2020): Phenotypic Plasticity: from theory and genetics to current and future challenges. Genetics, 215, 1-13
  • Sieriebriennikov, B., Sun, S., Lightfoot, J.W., Witte, H., Moreno, E., Rödelsperger, C., & Sommer, R.J. (2020): Conserved hormone-recptors controlling a novel plastic trait target fast-evolving genes expressed in a single cell. PLoS Genetics, 16, e1008687.
  • Renahan, T., & Sommer, R. J. (2020): Mechanisms of murderous mushrooms paves path for parasitic helminth halt. Proc. Natl. Aca. Sci., U. S. A., 117, 6974-6975.
  • Akduman, N., Roedelsperger, C., Lightfoot, J. W., Roeseler, W., Witte, H., Lo, W.-S. & Sommer, R. J. (2020): Bacterial diet-derived vitamin B12 enhances nematode predation and surplus-killing. The ISME Journal, doi.org/10.1038/s41396-020-0626-2
  • Moreno, E., Lightfoot, L. J., Lenuzzi M., & Sommer, R. J. (2019): Cilia drive developmental plasticity and are essential for efficient prey detection in predatory nematodes, Proc. Roy. Soc. B, 286, 1343.
  • Rödelsperger, C., Prabh, N. & Sommer, R. J. (2019): Young gene origin and deep taxon phylogenomics – opportunities and challenges. Trends in Genetics, 35, 914-922.
  • Loer, C., Witte, H., Sommer, R. J. & Hobert, O. (2019): An antibody staining protocol variation for nematodes that adds heat-induced antigen retrieval (HIAR). microPublication Biology, doi: 10.17912/micropub.biology.000135.
  • Hong, R. L., Riebesell, M., Bumbarger, D., Cook, S. J., Sarpolaki, T., Carstensen, H. R., Cochella, L., Castrejon, J., Moreno, E., Siebriebriennikov, B., Hobert, O. & Sommer, R. J. (2019): Evolution of neuronal anatomy and circuitry in highly divergent nematode species. eLIFE, 8, e47155.
    Featured in: Neff, E. P. (2019): A tail of two worm brains. Lab Animal, 48, 331.
  • Lightfoot, J. W., Wilecki, M., Roedelsperger, C., Moreno, E., Susoy, V., Witte, H., Sommer, R. J. (2019): Small peptide mediated self-recognition prevents cannibalism in predatory nematodes. Science, 364, 86-89.
  • Campos-Herrera, R., Blanco-Pérez, R., Bueno-Pallero, F. A., Duarte, A., Nolasco, G., Sommer, R. J. & Martín, J. A. R. (2019): Vegetation drives assemblages of entomopathogenic nematodes and other soil oranisms: evidence from Algarve, Portugal. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 128, 150-163.
  • Herrmann, M., Kanzaki, N., Weiler, C., Yoshia, K., Rödelsperger, C. & Sommer, R. J. (2019): Two new Species of Pristionchus (Nematoda: Diplogastridae) include the Gonochoristic Sister Species of P. fissidentatus. J. of Nematology, 51, 1-14.
  • Werner, M. S., Claassen, M. H., Renahan, T., Dardiry, M. & Sommer, R. J. (2018): Adult Influence on Juvenile Phenotypes by Stage-Specific Pheromone Production. iScience, 10, 123-134.
  • Moreno, E., Lenuzzi, M., Rödelsperger, C., Prabh, N., Witte, H., Roeseler, W., Riebesell, M. & Sommer, R. J. (2018): DAF-19/RFX controls ciliogenesis and influences oxygen-induced social behaviours in Pristionchus pacificus. Evol & Devel., 20, 233-243.
  • Werner, M. S., Sieriebriennikov, B., Prabh, N., Loschko, T., Lanz, C. & Sommer, R. J. (2018): Young genes have distinct gene structure, epigenetic profiles, and transcriptional regulation. Genome Research28, 1675-1687.
  • Prabh, N., Roeseler, W., Witte, H., Eberhardt, G., Sommer, R. J. & Rödelsperger, C. (2018): Deep taxon sampling reveals the evolutionary dynamics of novel gene families in Pristionchus nematodes. Genome Research, 28, 1664-1674.
  • Sieriebriennikov, B. & Sommer, R. J. (2018): Developmental plasticity and robustness of a nematode mouth-form polyphenism. Frontiers in Genetics, 9, 382.
  • Rödelsperger, C., Röseler, W., Prabh, N., Yoshida, K., Weiler, C., Herrmann, M. & Sommer, R. J. (2018): Phylotransciptomics of Pristionchus nematodes reveals parallel gene loss in six hermaphroditic lineages. Current Biology, 28, 3123-3127.
  • Kanzaki, N., Herrmann, M., Yoshida, K., Weiler, C., Rödelsperger, C. & Sommer, R.J. (2018): Samplings of Millipedes in Japan and Scarab Beetles in Hongkong result in five new Species of Pristionchus (Nematoda: Diplogastridae). J. of Nematology, 50, 587-610.
  • Yoshida, K., Herrmann, M., Kanzaki, N., Weiler, C., Rödelsperger, C. & Sommer, R. J. (2018): Two new species of Pristionchus (Nematoda: Diplogastridae) from Taiwan and the definition of the pacificus species-complex sensu stricto. J. of Nematology, 50, 355-368.
  • Namdeo, S., Moreno, E., Rödelsperger, C., Baskaran, P., Witte, H. & Ralf J. Sommer, R. J. (2018): Two independent sulfation processes regulate mouth-form plasticity in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. Development, 145: dev166272.
  • Akduman, N., Rödelsperger, C., & Sommer, R. J. (2018): Culture-based analysis of Pristionchus-associated microbiota from beetles and figs for studying nematode-bacterial interactions. PLoS ONE, 13: e0198018.
  • Sieriebriennikov, B., Prabh, N., Dardiry, M., Witte, H., Rödelsperger, C., Röseler, W., Kieninger, M. R. & Sommer, R. J. (2018): A developmental switch generating phenotypic plasticity is part of a conserved multi-gene locus. Cell Reports, 23, 2835-2843.
  • Falcke, J. M., Bose, N., Artyukhin, A. B., Rödelsperger, C., Markov, G. V., Yim, J. J., Grimm, D., Claassen, M., Panda, O., Baccile, J. A., Le, H. H., Jolic, D., Schroeder, F. C. & Sommer, R. J. (2018): Linking genomic and metabolomic natural variation uncovers nematode pheromone biosynthesis. Cell Chemical Biology, 25, 787-796.e12.
  • Moreno, E. & Sommer, R. J. (2018): A cilia-mediated environmental input induces solitary behaviour in Caenorhabditis elegans and Pristionchus pacificus nematodes. Nematology, 20, 201-209.
  • Moreno, E., Sieriebriennikov, B., Witte, H., Rödelsperger, C., Lightfoot, J. W. & Sommer, R. J. (2017): Regulation of hyperoxia-inducted social behaviour in Pristionchus pacificus nematodes requires a novel cilia-mediated environmental input. Scientific Reports, 7: 17550.
  • Rödelsperger, C., Meyer, J. M., Prabh, N., Lanz, C., Bemm, F. & Sommer, R. J. (2017): Single-molecule sequencing reveals the chromosome-scale genomic architecture of the nematode model organism Pristionchus pacificus. Cell Reports, 21, 834-844.
  • Okumura, M., Wilecki, M. & Sommer, R. J. (2017): Serotonin drives predatory feeding behavior via synchronous feeding rhytms in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. G37, 3745-3755.
  • Riebesell, M. & Sommer, R. J. (2017): Three-dimensional reconstruction of the pharyngeal gland cells in the predatory nematode Pristionchus pacificus. J. Morphology, 278, 1656-1666.
  • Werner, M., Sieriebriennikov, B., Loschko, T., Namdeo, S., Lenuzzi, M., Renahan, T., Dardiry, M., Raj, D. & Sommer, R. J. (2017): Environmental influence on Pristionchus pacificus mouth-form through different culture methods. Scientific Reports, 7: 7207.
  • Herrmann, M., Kanzaki, N., Ragsdale, E. J. & Sommer, R. J. (2017): Redescription of four species of the genus Pristionchus (Nematoda: Diplogastridae) from the United States of America. Dumerilia, 7, 97-103.
  • Sieriebriennikov, B., Markov, G. V., Witte, H., & Sommer, R. J. (2017): The role of DAF-21/Hsp90 in mouth-form plasticity in Pristionchus pacificus. Molecular Biology & Evolution, 34, 1644-1653.
  • Serobyan, V. & Sommer, R. J. (2017): Developmental systems of plasticity and trans-generational inheritance in nematodes. Curr. Opin. Genet. & Devel., 45, 51-57.
  • Sommer, R. J., Dardiry, M., Lenuzzi, M., Namdeo, S., Renahan, T., Sieriebriennikov, B. & Werner, M. (2017): The genetics of phenotypic plasticity in nematode feeding structures. Open Biology, 7: 160332.
  • Meyer, J. M., Baskaran, P., Quast, C., Susoy, V., Rödelsperger, C., Glöckner, F. O.  & Sommer, R. J. (2017): Succession and dynamics of Pristionchus nematodes and their microbiome during decomposition of Oryctes borbonicus on La Réunion Island. Environm. Microbiology, 19, 1476-1489.
    Featured in: Giblin-Davis, R. M. (2017): Who has “Dibs!” on a dead rhinoceros beetle? Environm. Microbiology, 19, 2115-2116.
  • Morgan, K., McGaughran, A., Rödelsperger, C. & Sommer, R. J. (2017): Variation in rates of spontaneous male production and recombination within the nematode species P. pacificus supports an adaptive role for males and outcrossing. BMC Evol. Biol., 17, 57.
  • Weadick, C. J. & Sommer, R. J. (2017): Interspecific hybrids and the genetics of lifespan in Pristionchus nematodes. J. Evol. Biol., 30, 650-657.
  • Sanghvi, G. V., Baskaran, P., Röseler, W., Sieriebriennikov, B., Rödelsperger, C., & Sommer, R. J. (2016): Life history responses and gene expression profiles of the nematode Pristionchus pacificus cultured on Cryptococcus yeasts. PLoS ONE, 11: e0164881.
  • Herrmann, M., Weiler, C., Rödelsperger, C., Kanzaki, N. & Sommer R.J. (2016): Two new Pristionchus Species (Nematoda: Diplogastridae) from Taiwan are part of a species-cluster representing the closest known relatives of the Model Organism P. pacificus. Zoological Studies, 55, 48.
  • Weadick, C. J. & Sommer, R. J. (2016a): Unexpected sex-specific post-reproductive lifespan in the free-living nematode Pristionchus exspectatus. Evolution & Development, 18, 297-307.
  • Leaver, M., Kienle, S., Begasse, M. L., Sommer, R. J. & Hyman, T. A. (2016): A locus in Pristionchus pacificus responsible for the ability to give rise to fertile offspring at higher temperature. Biol Open, 5, 1111-1117.
  • Serobyan, V., Xiao, H., Rödelsperger, C., Namdeo, S., Röseler, W., Witte, H. & Sommer, R. J. (2016): Chromatin remodeling and antisense-mediate up-regulation of the developmental switch gene eud-1 control predatory feeding plasticity. Nature Commun.7: 12337.
  • Kieninger, M. R., Ivers, N. A., Rödelsperger, C., Markov, G. V., Sommer, R. J.  & Ragsdale, E. J. (2016): The nuclear hormone receptor NHR-40 acts downstream of the sulfatase EUD-1 as part of a developmental plasticity switch in PristionchusCurrent Biology, 26, 2174-2179.
  • Meyer, J., Markov, G., Baskaran, P., Herrmann, M., Sommer, R. J. & Rödelsperger, C. (2016): Draft genome of the scarab beetle Oryctes borbonicus on La Réunion Island. Gen. Biol. Evol., 8, 2093-2105.
  • McGaughran, A., Rödelsperger, C., Grimm, D. G., Meyer, J. M., Moreno, E., Morgan, K., Leaver, M., Serobyan, V., Rakitsch, B., Borgwardt, K. M.  & Sommer, R. J. (2016): Genome-wide profiles of diversification and genotype-phenotype association in nematodes from La Réunion Island. Mol Biol Evol., 33, 2257-2272.
  • Markov, G. V., Meyer, J. M., Panda, O., Artyukhin, A. B., Claaßen, M., Witte, H., Schroeder, F. C. & Sommer, R. J. (2016): Functional conservation and divergence of daf-22 paralogs in P. pacificus dauer development. Mol Biol Evol., 33, 2506-2514.
  • Lightfoot, J., Wilecki, M., Okumura, M. & Sommer, R. J. (2016): Assaying predatory feeding behavior in Pristionchus and other nematodes. J. Vis. Exp., 115: e54404.
  • Susoy, V. & Sommer, R. J. (2016): Stochastic and Conditional Regulation of Nematode Mouth-Form Dimorphisms. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 4, 23. 
  • Moreno, E., McGaughran, A., Zimmer, M. & Sommer, R. J. (2016): Oxygen-induced social behaviors in Pristionchus pacificus have a distinct evolutionary history and genetic regulation than Caenorhabditis elegans. Proc. Roy. Soc. B, 283(1825):20152263. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2015.2263.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2016): The role of Next-generation-Sequencing for integrative approaches in evo-devo and population genetics. pp. 229-236. In: Next-generation Systematics (Eds: J. Hughes and P. Olson). Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge.
  • Susoy, V., Herrmann, M., Kanzaki, N., Kruger, M., Nguyen, C. N., Rödelsperger, C., Röseler, W., Weiler, C., Giblin-Davis, R. M., Ragsdale, E. J. & Sommer, R. J. (2016): Large-scale diversification without genetic isolation in nematode symbionts of figs. Science Advance2: e1501031.
    Featured in: Phillips, P. C. (2016): Five heads is better than one. Current Biology26: R283-285.
  • Weadick, C. J. & Sommer, R. J. (2016): Mating system transitions drive lifespan evolution in Pristionchus nematodes. American Naturalist, 187, 517-529.  
  • Mayer, M. G. & Sommer, R. J. (2015): Nematode orphan genes are adopted by conserved regulatory networks and find a home in ecology. Worm, 4: e1082029.
  • Sommer, R. J. & Mayer, M. G. (2015): Towards a synthesis of developmental biology with evolutionary theory and ecology. Cell & Developmental Biology, 31, 453-471.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2015): Nematoda. In: Evolutionary developmental biology of Invertebrate Vol. 3 (Ed.: A. Wanninger). Springer, Heidelberg, pp. 15-34.
  • Herrmann, M., Neuner, J., Vötsch, M., Wörner, J., Kanzaki, N. & Sommer, R. J. (2015): Pristionchus scratchpads - an online platform for taxonomy, systematics and phylogeny. Zootaxa, 3949, 597-600.
  • Yim, J., Bose, N., Meyer, J. M., Sommer, R. J. & Schroeder, F. C. (2015): Nematode signaling molecules derived from multimodular assembly of primary metabolic building blocks. Org. Lett., 17, 1648-1651.
  • Mayer, M. G., Rödelsperger, C., Witte H., Riebesell, M. & Sommer, R. J. (2015): An orphan gene regulates intraspecific competition in nematodes by copy number variation. PLoS Genetics, 11: e1005146.
    Featured in: Mahalak, K.K. & Chamberlin, H.M. (2015): Orphan genes find a home: interspecific competition and gene network evolution. PLoS Genetics, 11: e1005254.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2015): Integrative evolutionary biology and mechanistic approaches in comparative biology. In: Pristionchus pacificus - a nematode model for comparative and evolutionary biology (Ed.: R. J. Sommer). Brill, Leiden, pp. 19-41.
  • Wilecki, M., Lightfoot, J., Susoy, V. & Sommer, R. J. (2015): Predatory feeding behavior in Pristionchus nematodes is dependent on a phenotypic plasticity and induced by serotonin. J. Exp. Biol., 218, 1306-1313.
  • Susoy, V., Ragsdale, E. J., Kanzaki, N. & Sommer, R. J. (2015): Rapid diversification associated with a macroevolutionary pulse of developmental plasticity. eLIFE, 4: e05463. Featured in: Nijhout, H.F. (2015): To plasticity and back again. eLIFE, 4: e06995.
  • Witte, H., Moreno, E., Rödelsperger, C., Kim, J., Kim, J.-S., Streit A. & Sommer, R. J. (2015): Gene inactivation using the CRISPR/Cas9 system in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. Dev Genes & Evol., 225, 55-62.
  • Markov, G.,  Baskaran, P. & Sommer, R. J. (2015): The same or not the same: Lineage-specific gene expansions and homology relationship in multigene families in nematodes. J Mol Evol., 80, 18-36.
  • Cinkornpumin, J. K., Wisidagama, D. R., Rapoport, V., Go, J. L., Dieterich, C., Wang, X., Sommer, R. J. & Hong, R. L. (2014): A host beetle pheromone regulates development and behavior in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. eLIFE, 3: e03229. 
  • Iatsenko, I., Yim, J., Schroeder, F. & Sommer, R. J. (2014): Bacillus subtilis GS67 protects C. elegans from Gram-positive pathogens via fengycin-mediated microbial antagonism. Current Biology, 24, 2720-2727.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2014): Evolution – der Schlüssel zum Verständnis der biologischen Vielfalt. In: Evolution. Sammelband der Vorträge der Studium Generale der Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg (Ed. Karlheinz Sonntag), Universitätsverlag Winter Heidelberg, pp. 11-29.
  • McGaughran, A. & Sommer, R. J. (2014): Natural variation in cold tolerance in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus: the role of genotype and environment. Biol. OPEN, 3, 832-838.
  • Serobyan, V., Ragsdale, E. J. & Sommer, R. J. (2014): Adaptive value of a predatory mouth-form in a dimorphic nematode. Proc. Roy. Soc. B, 281: 20141334.
  • Iatsenko, I., Nikolov, A. & Sommer, R. J. (2014): Identification of distinct Bacillus thuringiensis 4A4 nematicidal factors using the model nematodes Pristionchus pacificus and Caenorhabditis elegans. Toxins, 6, 2050-2063.
  • Sinha, A., Langnick, C., Sommer, R. J. & Diederich, C. (2014): Genome-wide analysis of trans-splicing in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus unravels conserved gene functions for germline and dauer development in divergent operons. RNA, 20, 1386-1397.
  • Bose, N., Meyer, J. M., Yim, J. J., Mayer, M. G., Markov G. V., Ogawa, A., Schroeder, F. C., Sommer, R. J. (2014): Natural variation in dauer pheromone production and sensing supports intraspecific competition in nematodes. Current Biology, 24, 1536-1541.
  • Ragsdale, E. J., Kanzaki, N. & Sommer, R. J. (2014): Levipalatum texanum n. gen., n. sp. (Nematoda: Diplogastridae) an androdioecious species from the southeastern United States. Nematology, 16, 695-709.
  • Iatsenko, I., Boichenko, J. & Sommer, R. J. (2014): Bacillus thuringiensis DB27 produces two novel toxins, Cry21Fa1 and Cry21Ha1, which act synergistically against nematodes. Appl. & Envir. Microbiology, 80, 3266-3275. [pdf]
  • Kanzaki, N., Ragsdale, E., Herrmann, M., & Sommer, R. J. (2014): Two new and two recharacterized species resulting from a radiation of Pristionchus (Nematoda: Diplogastridae) in Europe. J. of Nematology, 46, 60-74. [pdf]
  • Iatsenko, I., Corton, C., 

Pickard, D. J., Dougan, G. & Sommer, R. J. (2014): Draft genome sequence of highly nematicidal Bacilllus thuringiensis DB27. Genome Announcements, 2, e00101-14. DOI: 10.1128/genomeA.00101-14. [pdf]
  • Rödelsperger, C., Neher, R. A., Weller, A., Eberhardt, G., Witte, H., Mayer, W., Dieterich, C. & Sommer, R. J. (2014): Characterization of genetic diversity in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus from population-scale resequencing data. Genetics, 196, 1153-1165. [pdf]
  • Weller, A., Rödelsperger, C., Eberhardt, G., Molnar, R. I., & Sommer, R. J. (2014): Opposing forces of A/T-biased mutations and G/C-biased gene conversions shape the genome of the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. Genetics, 196, 1145-1152. [pdf]
  • Schierenberg, E. & Sommer, R. J. (2014): Development and reproduction in nematodes. In: Handbook of Zoology (Ed.: Schmidt-Rhaesa). De Gruyter, pp 61-108.
  • Kanzaki, N., Ragsdale, E., Susoy, V., & Sommer, R. J. (2014): Leptojacobus dorci n. gen., n. sp. (Nematoda: Diplogastridae), an associate of Dorcus stag beetles (Coleoptera: Lucanidae). J. of Nematology, 46, 50-59. [pdf]
  • McGaughran, A., Morgan K. & Sommer, R. J. (2014): Environmental variables explain genetic structure in a beetle-associated nematode. PLOS ONE, 9, e87317. [pdf]
  • Penkov, S., Ogawa, A., Schmidt, U., Tate, D., Zagority, V., Boland, S., Gruner, M., Vorkel, D., Verbavatz, J.-M., Sommer, R. J., Knölker, H.-J. & Kurzchalia, T. V. (2014): An extremely long-chain wax ester of the nematode Pristionchus pacificus dauer larva promotes collective host finding. Nature Chemical Biol., 10, 281-285. [pdf]
  • Morgan, K., McGaughran, A., Ganeshan, S., Herrmann, M., & Sommer, R. J. (2014): Landscape and oceanic barriers shape dispersal and population structure in the  Island nematode Pristionchus pacificus. Biol. Journal Linnean Soc., 112, 1-15. [pdf]
  • Ragsdale, E. J., Müller, M. R., Roedelsperger, C. & Sommer, R. J. (2013): A developmental switch coupled to the evolution of plasticity acts through a sulfatase. Cell, 155, 922-933. PubMed
    Featured in: Hartenstein, V. & Jacobs, D. (2013): Developmental plasticity, straight from the worm´s mouth. Cell, 155, 742-743.
  • McGaughran, A., Morgan K. & Sommer, R. J. (2013): Natural variation in chemosensation: lessons from an island nematode. Ecol. & Evol., 3, 5209-5224. [pdf]
  • Iatsenko, I., Sinha, A., Rödelsperger, C. & Sommer, R. J. (2013): New Role for DCR-1/Dicer in Caenorhabditis elegans Innate Immunity against the Highly Virulent Bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis DB27, Infection and Immunity, 81, 3942-3957. [pdf]
  • Herrmann, M., Ragsdale, E. J., Kanzaki, N., & Sommer, R. J. (2013): Sudhausia aristotokia n. gen., n. sp. and S. crassa n. gen., n. sp. (Nematoda: Diplogastridae): viviparous new species with precocious gonad development. Nematology, 15, 1001-1020. [pdf]
  • Kanzaki, N., Ragsdale, E. J., Herrmann, M., Susoy, V., & Sommer, R. J. (2013): Two androdioecious and one dioecious new species of Pristionchus (Nematoda: Diplogastridae): new reference points for the evolution of reproductive mode. Journal of Nematology, 45, 172-194. [pdf]
  • Sommer, R. J. & Ogawa, A. (2013): The genome of Pristionchus pacificus and the evolution of parasitism. In: Parasitic nematodes: Molecular biology, Biochemistry and Immunology. (Eds. M. Kennedy & W. Harnett), pp. 1-14.
  • Ragsdale, E. J., Kanzaki, N., Roeseler, W., Herrmann, M. & Sommer, R. J. (2013): Three new species of Pristionchus (Nematoda: Diplogastridae) show morphological divergence through evolutionary intermediates of a novel feeding polymorphism. Zool. J. Linn. Soc., 168, 671-698. [pdf]
  • Kienle, S. & Sommer, R. J. (2013): Cryptic variability in vulva development by cis-regulatory evolution of a HAIRY binding site. Nature Comm., 4: 1714. [pdf]
  • Kanzaki, N., Ragsdale, E. J., Herrmann, M., Roeseler, W. & Sommer, R. J. (2013): Two new species of Pristionchus (Nematoda: Diplogastridae) support the biogeographic importance of Japan for the evolution of the genus Pristionchus and the model system P. pacificus. Zool. Sci., 30, 680-692. PubMed
  • Sommer, R. J. & McGaughran, A. (2013): The nematode Pristionchus pacificus as a model system for integrative studies in evolutionary biology. Mol. Ecol., 22, 2380-2393. [pdf]
  • Kanzaki, N., Ragsdale, E. J., Herrmann, M., Roeseler, W. & Sommer, R. J. (2013): Pristionchus bucculentus n. sp. (Rhabditida: Diplogastridae) isolated from a shining mushroom beetle (Coleoptera: Scaphidiidae) in Hokkaido, Japan. J. of Nematology, 45, 78-86. [pdf]
  • McGaughran, A., Morgan K. & Sommer, R. J. (2013): Unravelling the evolutionary history of the nematode Pristionchus pacificus: from lineage diversification to island colonization. Evolution & Ecology, 3, 667-675. [pdf]
  • Serobyan, V., Ragsdale, E. J., Müller, M. R. & Sommer, R. J. (2013): Feeding plasticity in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus is influenced by gender and social context and is linked to developmental speed. Evolution & Development, 15, 161-170. [pdf]
  • Bumbarger, D. J., Riebesell, M., Rödelsperger, C. & Sommer, R. J. (2013): System-wide rewiring underlies behavioral differences in predatory and bacterial-feeding nematodes. Cell, 152, 109-119. PubMed
  • Rödelsperger, C., Streit, A. & Sommer, R. J. (2013): Structure, function and evolution of the nematode genome. In: eLS. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd: Chichester. doi: 10.1002/9780470015902.a0024603. [pdf]
  • Sommer, R. J. (2013): Die Rolle der Entwicklungsbiologie für die Evolution. In: Charles Darwin: Die Entstehung der Arten (Eds.: Prof. Paul und Saskia Wrede), VHC Verlag, Weilheim, pp 445-454.
  • Hui, F., Scheib, U., Hu, Y, Sommer, R. J., Aroian, R. V. & Ghosh, P. (2012): Structure and glycan binding properties of the nematicidal protein Cry5b. Biochemistry, 51, 9911-9921.
  • Bose, N., Ogawa, A., von Reuss, S. H., Yim, J. J., Ragsdale, E. J., Sommer, R. J. & Schroeder, F. C. (2012): Complex small molecular architectures regulate phenotypic plasticity in a nematode. Angewandte Chemie, 51, 12438-12443. [pdf]
  • Borchert, N., Krug, K., Gnad, F., Sommer, R. J. & Macek, B. (2012): Phosphoproteome of Pristionchus pacificus provides insights into architecture of signaling networks in nematode models. Mol Cell Proteomics, 11, 1631-1639. [pdf]
  • Sinha, A., Rae, R., Iatsenko, I. & Sommer, R. J. (2012): System wide analysis of the evolution of innate immunity in the nematode model species Caenorhabditis elegans and Pristionchus pacificus. PLoS ONE, 7: e44255. [pdf]
  • Rae, R., Sinha, A. & Sommer, R. J. (2012): Genome-wide analysis of germline signaling genes regulating longevity and innate immunity in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. PLoS Pathogens, 8: e1002864. [pdf]
  • Schuster, L. N. & Sommer, R. J. (2012): Expressional and functional variation of horizontally acquired cellulases in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. Gene, 506, 274-282. PubMed
  • Molnar, R. I., Witte, H., Dinkelacker, I., Villate, L. & Sommer, R. J. (2012): Tandem-repeat patterns and mutation rates in microsatellites of the nematode model organism Pristionchus pacificus. G3, 2, 1027-1034. [pdf]
  • Rae, R., Witte, H., Rödelsperger, C. & Sommer, R. J. (2012): The importance of being regular: Caenorhabditis elegans and Pristionchus pacificus defecation mutants are hyper susceptible to bacterial pathogens. Int. J. Parasit., 42, 747-753. PubMed
  • Markov, G. & Sommer, R. J. (2012): The evolution of novelty in conserved gene families. Int. J. Evol. Biol., 2012, 490894. (review article).
  • Sinha, A., Sommer, R. J. & Dieterich, C. (2012): Divergent gene expression in the conserved dauer stage of the nematodes Pristionchus pacificus and Caenorhabditis elegans. BMC Genomics, 13, 254. [pdf]
  • Kanzaki, N., Ragsdale, E. J., Herrmann, M., & Sommer, R. J. (2012): Two new species of Pristionchus (Rhabditida: Diplogastridae) P. fissidentatus n.sp. from Nepal and La Réunion island and P. elegans n.sp. from Japan. J. of Nematology, 44, 80-91. [pdf]
  • Kanzaki, N., Ragsdale, E. J., Herrmann, M., Mayer, W. E., Tanaka, R. & Sommer, R. J. (2012): Parapristionchus giblindavisi n. gen, n. sp. (Rhabditida: Diplogastridae) isolated from stag beetles (Coleoptera: Lucanidae) in Japan. Nematology, 14, 933-947. [pdf]
  • Kanzaki, N., Ragsdale, E. J., Herrmann, M., Mayer, W. E. & Sommer, R. J. (2012): Description of three Pristionchus species (Nematoda: Diplogastridae) from Japan that form a cryptic species complex with the model organism P. pacificus. Zool. Science, 29, 403-417. [pdf]
  • Sommer, R. J. & Bumbarger, D. J. (2012): Nematode model systems in evolution and development. WIREs Dev Biol, 1: 389-400. doi: 10.1002/wdev.33.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2012): Evolution of regulatory networks: nematode vulva induction as an example of developmental systems drift. Adv Exp Med Biol, 751, 79-91.
  • Morgan, K., McGaughran, A., Villate, L., Herrmann, M., Witte, H., Bartelmes, G., Rochat, J. & Sommer, R. J. (2012): Multi locus analysis of Pristionchus pacificus on La Réunion Island reveals an evolutionary history shaped by multiple introductions, constrained dispersal events and rare out-crossing. Mol Ecol., 21 (2), 250-266. [pdf]
  • Rödelsperger, C. & Sommer, R. J. (2011): Computational archeology of the Pristionchus pacificus genome reveals evidence of horizontal gene transfers from insects. BMC Evol. Biol., 11: 239. [pdf]
    Featured in: Danchin, E. G. J. (2011): What Nematode genomes tell us about the importance of horizontal gene transfers in the evolutionary history of animals. Mobile Genetic Elements, 1: 4.
  • D’Anna, I. & Sommer, R. J. (2011): Pristionchus uniformis – should I stay or should I go? Recent host range expansion in an European nematode. Ecology and Evolution, 1, 468-478. [pdf]
  • Sommer, R. J. & Ogawa, A. (2011): Hormone signaling and phenotypic plasticity in nematode development and evolution. Curr. Biol., 21, R758-R766. PubMed
  • Sommer, R. J. & Streit, A. (2011): Comparative genetics and genomics in nematodes: Genome structure, development and life style. Ann. Rev. Genet., 45, 1-20. [pdf]
  • Wang, X. & Sommer, R. J. (2011): Antagonism of LIN-17/Frizzled and LIN-18/Ryk in nematode vulva induction reveals evolutionary alterations in core developmental pathways. PLoS Biology, 9, e1001110. [pdf]
    Featured in: Burgess, D. J. (2011): Evo-devo: Hidden rewiring comes to light. Nature Reviews Genetics, 12, 586-587.
    Featured in: Robinson, R. (2011): Different paths, same structure: "developmental systems drift" at work. PLoS Biology, 9 (7), e1001113.
  • Molnar, R. I., Bartelmes, G., Dinkelacker, I., Witte, H. & Sommer, R. J. (2011): Mutation rates and intra-specific divergence of the mitochondrial genome of Pristionchus pacificus. Mol. Biol. Evol., 28, 2317-2326. [pdf]
  • Rae, R. & Sommer, R. J. (2011): Bugs don´t make worms kill. J of Exp. Biology. 214, 1053.
  • Brown, F. D., D’Anna, I., Sommer, R. J. (2011): Host-finding behaviour in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. Proc. Roy. Soc. B, 278, 3260-3269. [pdf]
  • Mayer, M. G. & Sommer R. J. (2011): Natural variation in Pristionchus pacificus dauer formation reveals cross-preference rather than self-preference of nematode dauer pheromones. Proc. Roy. Soc. B, 278, 2784-2790. [pdf]
  • Ogawa, A., Bento, G., Bartelmes, G., Dieterich, C. & Sommer, R. J. (2011): Pristionchus pacificus daf-16 is essential for dauer formation but dispensable for mouth form dimorphism. Development, 138, 1281-1284.
  • Mayer, W. E., Schuster, L., Bartelmes, G., Dieterich, C & Sommer R. J. (2011): Horizontal gene transfer of microbial cellulases into nematode genomes is associated with functional assimilation, high gene turnover and positive selection. BMC Evolutionary Biology, 11: 13.
    Featured in: Scholl, E. H., Bird D. M. (2011): Computational and phylogenetic validation of nematode horizontal gene transfer. BMC Biology. 9: 9.
  • Herrmann, M. & Sommer, R. J. (2011): The genome of Pristionchus pacificus and implications for survival attributes. In: Molecular and Physiological Basis of Nematode Survival (Eds. R. Perry & D. Wharton). pp. 86-98.
  • Sommer R. J. (2011): Zur wissenschaftlichen Vielfalt der modernen Evolutionsbiologie. In: Charles Darwin und seine Bedeutung für die Wissenschaften (Eds.: Prof. E.-M. Engels, O. Betz, H.-R. Köhler, Th. Potthast). Attempto Verlag , pp 77-88.
  • Sommer R. J. (2011): Zum Wissenschaftsverständnis der modernen Evolutionsbiologie. In: Evolutionstheorie – Akzeptanz und Vermittlung im europäischen Vergleich (Ed.: D. Graf). Springer Verlag, Berlin, pp 91-98.
  • Rae, R., Iatsenko, I., Witte, H. & Sommer, R. J. (2010): A subset of naturally isolated Bacillus strains show extreme virulence to the free-living nematodes Caenorhabditis elegans and Pristionchus pacificus. Environmental Microbiology, 11, 3007-3021. [pdf]
  • Bento, G., Ogawa, A. & Sommer, R. J. (2010): Co-option of the endocrine signaling module Dafachronic Acid-DAF-12 in nematode evolution. Nature, 466, 494-497. [pdf]
    Featured in: Kiontke, K., Fitch, D. H. (2010): Phenotypic plasticity: different teeth for different feasts. Current Biology, 20 (17), R710-712.
  • Borchert, N., Dieterich, C., Krug, K., Schütz, W., Jung, S., Nordheim, A., Sommer R. J. & Macek, B. (2010): Proteogenomics of Pristionchus pacificus reveals distinct proteome structure of nematode models, Genome Research, 20, 837-846. [pdf]
  • Weller, A., Mayer, W., Rae, R. & Sommer, R. J. (2010): Quantitative assessment of the nematode fauna present on Geotrupes dung beetles reveals species-rich communities with a heterogenous distribution. J. of Parasit., 96 (3), 525-531. PubMed
  • Herrmann, M., Kienle, S., Rochat, J., Mayer, W., & Sommer, R. J. (2010): Haplotype diversity of the nematode Pristionchus pacificus on Réunion in the Indian Ocean suggests multiple independent invasions. Biol. J. Linn. Soc., 100, 170-179. [pdf]
  • Streit, A. & Sommer, R. J. (2010): Random expression goes binary. Nature, 463, 891-892.
  • Ogawa, A. & Sommer R. J. (2009): Strategies to get arrested. Science, 326, 944-945. [pdf]
  • Yi, B., Bumbarger, D. & Sommer, R. J. (2009): Genetic evidence for pax-3 function in myogenesis in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. Evol. & Devel., 11, 669-679. [pdf]
  • Mayer, W., Herrmann, M., Sommer, Ralf J. (2009): Molecular phylogeny of beetle associated diplogastrid nematodes suggests host switching rather than nematode-beetle coevolution. BMC Evolutionary Biology, 9: 212. [pdf]
  • Sommer, R. J. & Riebesell, M. (2009): Die Entstehung der biologischen Formenvielfalt und das Verhältnis zwischen Entwicklungsbiologie und Evolutionsforschung. In: Charles Darwin und seine Wirkung (Ed.: E.-M. Engels). Suhrkamp Verlag, pp 276-302.
  • Dieterich, C. & Sommer, R. J. (2009): How to become a parasite – lessons from the genomes of nematodes. Trends in Genetics, 25, 203-209. [pdf]
  • Sommer, R. J. (2009): The future of evo-devo: model systems and evolutionary theory. Nature Rev. Genetics, 10, 416-422. [pdf]
  • Schlager, B., Wang, X., Braach, G. & Sommer, R. J. (2009): Molecular cloning of a dominant roller mutant and establishment of DNA-mediated transformation in the nematode model Pristionchus pacificus. Genesis, 47, 300-304. [pdf]
    Featured in: Lok,  J. B. (2009): Transgenesis in parasitic nematodes: building a better array. Trends in Parasitology, 25 (8), 345-347.
  • Ogawa, A., Streit, A., Antebi, A. & Sommer R. J. (2009): A conserved endocrine mechanism controls the formation of dauer and infective larvae in nematodes. Current Biology, 19, 67-71. [pdf]
    Featured in: Viney, M. E. (2009): How did parasitic worms evolve? Bioessays, 31 (5), 496-499.
    Featured in: Wong, W. (2009): How to evolve into a parasite. Science Signaling, 2 (54), ec26.
  • Rae, R., Schlager, B. & Sommer, R. J. (2008): Pristionchus pacificus, a genetic model system for evolutionary developmental biology and the evolution of complex life-history traits. In: Emerging model organisms. (Ed.: N. Patel). Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, pp. 275-290.
  • Dieterich, C. & Sommer R. J. (2008): A Caenorhabditis motif compendium for studying transcriptional gene regulation. BMC Genomics, 9: 30.
  • Rudel, D., Tian, H. & Sommer, R. J. (2008): Wnt signaling in Pristionchus pacificus gonadal arm extension and the evolution of organ shape. Proc. Natl. Aca. Sci., 105, 10826-10831. [pdf]
  • Sommer, R. J. (2008): Homology and the hierarchy of biological systems. BioEssays, 30, 653-658. [pdf]
  • Rae, R., Riebesell, M., Dinkelacker, I., Wang, Q., Herrmann, M., Weller, A. M., Dieterich, C. & Sommer, R. J. (2008): Isolation of naturally associated bacteria of necromenic Pristionchus nematodes and fitness consequences. J. Exp. Biology, 211, 1927-1936. [pdf]
  • Dieterich, C., Clifton, S. W., Schuster, L. N., Chinwalla,  A., Delehaunty, K., Dinkelacker, I., Fulton, L., Fulton, R., Godfrey, J., Minx, P., Mitreva, M., Roeseler, W., Tian, H., Witte, H., Yang, S.P., Wilson, R. K., Sommer,  R. J. (2008): The Pristionchus pacificus genome provides a unique perspective on nematode lifestyle and parasitism. Nature Genetics, 40, 1193-1198. [pdf]
    Featured in: Srinivasan, J., Sternberg, P. W. (2008): Pristionchus pacificus: an appropriate fondness for beetles. Nature Genetics, 40 (10), 1146-1147.
  • Hong, R. L., Witte, H. & Sommer, R. J. (2008): Natural variation in Pristionchus pacificus insect pheromone attraction involves the protein kinase EGL-4. Proc. Natl. Aca. Sci., 105, 7779-7784. [pdf]
    Featured in: Sokolowski, M. B., Fitzpatrick, M. J. (2008): Behavioural genetics: worms seek that old beetle smell. Current Biology, 18 (11), R480-482.
  • Tian, H, Schlager, B., Xiao, H. & Sommer, R. J. (2008): Wnt signaling induces vulva development in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. Current Biology, 18, 142-146. [pdf]
  • Sommer, R. J. & Riebesell, M. (2008): Die Entstehung der biologischen Formenvielfalt - Zur Bedeutung der Entwicklungsbiologie für die Evolutionsforschung. In: Die Evolution des Lebendigen (Eds.: H. Köhler & O. Betz). Attempto Verlag, Tübingen, pp. 58-79.
  • Hong, R. L., Svatos, A., Herrmann, M. & Sommer, R. J. (2008): Species-specific recognition of beetle cues by the nematode Pristionchus maupasi. Evol. & Devel., 10, 273-279. [pdf]
  • Zauner, H. and Sommer, R. J. (2008): Evolution and development: Towards a synthesis of macro- and micro-evolution with ecology. In: Evolving pathways: Key themes in evolutionary developmental biology (Eds.: A. Minelli & G. Fusco). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp. 157-171.
  • Kiontke, K., Barrière, A., Kolotuev, I., Podbilewicz, B., Sommer, R. J., Fitch, D. & Félix, M.-A. (2007): Trends, stasis, and drift in the evolution of nematode vulva development. Current Biology, 17, 1925-1937. [pdf]
  • Sommer, R. J. (2007): Population genetics meets development. Book review. Tinkering: The microevolution of development. Novartis Foundation. BioEssays, 29, 1062-1063.
  • Mayer, W. E., Herrmann, M. & Sommer, R. J. (2007): Phylogeny of the nematode genus Pristionchus and implications for biodiversity, biogeography and the evolution of hermaphroditism. BMC Evol Biol, 7:104. [pdf]
  • Yi, B. and Sommer, R. J. (2007): The pax-3 gene is involved in vulva formation in Pristionchus pacificusand is a target of the Hox gene lin-39. Development, 134, 3111-3119. [pdf]
  • Gutierrez, A. and Sommer, R. J. (2007): Functional diversification of the nematode mbd2/3 gene between Pristionchus pacificus and Caenorhabditis elegans. BMC Genetics, 8:57. [pdf]
  • Torday, J. S., Rehan, V. K., Hicks, J. W., Wang, T., Maina, J., Weibel, E. R., Hsia, C. C., Sommer, R. J. & Perry, S. F. (2007): Deconvoluting lung evolution: from phenotypes to gene regulatory networks. Integrative and Comparative Biology, 47, 601-609.
  • Herrmann, M., Mayer, W. E., Hong, R. L., Kienle, S., Minasaki, R. & Sommer, R. J. (2007): The Nematode Pristionchus pacificus (Nematoda: Diplogastridae) is associated with the Oriental Beetle Exomala orientalis (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) in Japan. Zoological Science, 24, 883-889. [pdf]
  • Zauner, H. and Sommer, R. J. (2007): Evolution of robustness in the signaling network of Pristionchus vulva development, Proc. Natl. Acad Sci., 104, 10086-10091. [pdf]
  • Rätsch, G., Sonnenburg, S., Srinivasan, J., Witte, H., Müller, K. R., Sommer, R. J. & Schölkopf, B. (2007): Improving the C. elegans genome annotation using machine learning. PLoS Computational Biology, 3:e20.
  • Zauner, H., Mayer, W. E., Herrmann, M., Weller, A., Erwig, M. & Sommer, R. J. (2007): Distinct patterns of genetic variation in Pristionchus pacificus and Caenorhabditis elegans, two partially selfing nematodes with cosmopolitan distribution. Molecular Ecology, 16, 1267-1280. [pdf]
  • Dieterich, D., Roeseler, W., Sobetzko, P. & Sommer R. J. (2007): Pristionchus.org: A genome-centric database of the nematode satellite species Pristionchus pacificus. Nucleic Acids Res., 35, D498-D502. [pdf]
  • Hong, R. L. & Sommer, R. J. (2006b): Chemoattraction in Pristionchus nematodes and implication for insect recognition. Current Biology, 16, 2359-2365. [pdf]
  • Sommer, R. J. (2006): New inroads to development. Development, 133, 2451-2453.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2006): Pristionchus pacificus. WormBook, 1-8. doi:10.1895/wormbook 1.102.1.
  • Herrmann, M., Mayer, W. E. & Sommer, R. J. (2006): Sex, bugs and Haldane’s rule: the nematode genus Pristionchus in the United States. Frontiers in Zoology, 3:14. [pdf]
  • Schlager, B., Röseler, W., Zheng, M., Gutierrez, A. & Sommer, R. J. (2006): HAIRY-like transcription factors and the evolution of the nematode vulva equivalence group. Current Biology, 16, 1386-1394. [pdf]
    Featured in: Chamberlin, H. M. (2006): Nematode development: new tricks for old genes. Current Biology, 16 (14), R532-533.
  • Hong, R. L. & Sommer, R. J. (2006): Pristionchus pacificus: a well-rounded nematode. BioEssays, 28, 651-659. [pdf]
  • Photos, A., Gutierrez, A. & Sommer, R. J. (2006): sem-4/spalt and egl-17/FGF have a conserved role in sex myoblast specification and migration in P.pacificus and C.elegans. Developmental Biology, 293, 142-153. [pdf]
  • Herrmann, M., Mayer, W. E. & Sommer, R. J. (2006): Nematodes of the genus Pristionchus are closely associated with scarab beetles and the Colorado potato beetle in Western Europe. Zoology, 109, 96-108. [pdf]
  • Srinivasan, J. & Sommer, R. J. (2006): The C. elegans genome: Comparative sequencing. In: Encyclopedic references in genomics and proteomics (Eds. P. Ruiz & H. Lehrach). Springer Verlag, Heidelberg.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2005): Genomic platforms for „evo-devo“. Current Genomics, 6, 569-570.
  • Hong, R. L., Villwock, A. & Sommer, R. J. (2005): Cultivation of the rhabditid Poikilolaimus oxycercus as a laboratory nematode for genetic analyses. J Exp Zool A Comp Exp Biol, 303, 742-760.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2005): Evolution of development in nematodes related to C. elegans. WormBook, 1-17. doi:10.1895/wormbook.1.46.1.
  • Zheng, M., Messerschmidt, D. Jungblut, B. & Sommer, R. J. (2005): Conservation and diversification of Wnt signaling function during the evolution of nematode vulva development. Nature genetics, 37, 300-304. [pdf]
    Featured in: Félix, M. A. (2005): An inversion in the wiring of an intercellular signal: evolution of Wnt signaling in the nematode vulva. Bioessays, 27 (8), 765-769.
  • Rudel, D., Riebesell, M. & Sommer, R. J. (2005): Gonadogenesis in Pristionchus pacificus and organ evolution: development, adult morphology and cell-cell interactions in the hermaphrodite gonad. Developmental Biology, 277, 200-221. [pdf]
  • Gutierrez, A. and Sommer, R. J. (2004): Evolution of dnmt-2 and mbd-2-like genes in the free-living nematodes Pristionchus pacificus, Caenorhabditis elegans and Caenorhabditis briggsae. Nucleic Acids Res., 21, 6388-6396.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2004): Beyond Darwin – towards an inclusive evolutionary synthesis. Book review. Wallace Arthur: Biased embryos and evolution. Development, 131, 5769-5770.
  • Kenning, Ch., Kipping, I. & Sommer, R. J. (2004): Isolation of mutations with dumpy-like phenotypes and of collagen genes in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. Genesis, 40, 176-183.
  • Pires da Silva, A. and Sommer, R. J. (2004): Conservation of the global sex determination gene tra-1 in distantly related nematodes. Genes Dev, 18, 1198-1208.
  • Srinivasan, J., Otto, G. W., Kahlow, U., Geisler, R. & Sommer, R. J. (2004): AppaDB: an AcedB database for the nematode satellite organism Pristionchus pacificus. Nucleic Acids Research, 32 (Database issue), D421-D422.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2004): Evolution of nematode development – how cells and genes change their function. In: Modularity in evolution and development (Eds.: G. Schlosser and G. Wagner). Chicago University Press, Chicago, pp. 414-428.
  • Lee, K. Z. and Sommer, R. J. (2003): Operon structure and trans-splicing in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 20 (12), 2097-2103.
  • Srinivasan, J., Sinz, W., Jesse, T., Wiggers-Perebolte, L., Jansen, K., Buntjer, J., van der Meulen, M. & Sommer, R. J. (2003): An integrated physical and genetic map of the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. Mol. Genet. Genomics, 269, 715-722.
  • Pires da Silva, A. and Sommer, R. J. (2003): Finally, worm polycomb-like genes meet Hox regulation. Development Cell, 4, 770-772.
  • Lee, K. Z., Eizinger, A., Nandakumar, R., Schuster, S. C. & Sommer, R. J. (2003): Limited microsynteny between the genomes of Pristionchus pacificus and Caenorhabditis elegans. Nucleic Acids Research, 31, 2553-2560.
  • Rudel, D. and Sommer, R. J. (2003): The evolution of developmental mechanisms. Developmental Biology, 264, 15-37 (Review).
  • Gutierrez, A., Knoch, L., Witte, H. & Sommer, R. J. (2003): Functional specificity of the nematode Hox gene mab-5. Development, 130, 983-993.
  • Pires da Silva, A. and Sommer, R. J. (2003): The evolution of signalling pathways in animal development. Nature Reviews Genetics, 4, 39-49.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2003): Genetische Analyse der Entwicklung bei Tieren. Beispiel: Caenorhabditis elegans. In: Lehrbuch der Genetik, Kapitel 26, (Ed.: W. Seyffert). Gustav Fischer Verlag, Berlin, pp. 663-668.
  • Sommer, R. J. & Tautz, D. (2003): Evolution von Entwicklungsprozessen. In: Lehrbuch der Genetik, Kapitel 28, (Ed.: W. Seyffert). Gustav Fischer Verlag, Berlin, pp. 723-733.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2003): Caenorhabditis elegans. In: Lehrbuch der Genetik, Kapitel 38, (Ed.: W. Seyffert). Gustav Fischer Verlag, Berlin, pp. 987-993.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2003): Cells and genes as networks in nematode development and evolution. In: Handbook of Graphs and Networks (Eds.: S. Bornholdt, H. G. Schuster). Wiley-VHC, Weinheim, pp. 131-144.
  • Srinivasan, J. and Sommer, R. J. (2002): From evolutionary developmental biology to genomics: towards a genome map of the free-living nematode Pristionchus pacificus. In: Genome sciences - towards a new paradigm? Uehara Memorial Foundation Symposium-2002. (Ed.: H. Yoshikawa, N. Ogasawara, N. Satoh). Elsevier Sciences. International Congress Series 1246, Amsterdam, pp. 101-110.
  • Srinivasan, J., Sinz, W., Lanz, C., Brand, A., Nandakumar, R., Raddatz, G., Witte, H., Keller, H., Kipping, I., Pires da Silva, A., Jesse, T., Millare, J., de Both, M., Schuster, S. C. & Sommer, R. J. (2002): A bacterial artificial chromosome-based genetic linkage map of the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. Genetics, 162, 129-134.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2002): C. elegans. In: Oxford Encyclopedia of Evolution, 127-129.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2001): As good as they get: cells in nematode vulva development and evolution. Current Opinion in Cell Biology, 13, 715-720.
  • Jungblut, B., Pires da Silva, A. & Sommer, R. J. (2001): Formation of the egg-laying system in Pristionchus pacificus requires complex interactions between gonadal, mesodermal and epidermal tissues and does not rely on single cell inductions. Development, 128, 3395-3404.
  • Grandien, K. and Sommer, R. J. (2001): Functional comparison of the nematode Hox gene lin-39 in C.elegans and P.pacificus reveals evolutionary conservation of protein function despite divergence of primary sequences. Genes & Development, 15, 2161-2172.
    Featured in: Chamberlin, H. M. (2001): The adaptable lin-39. Nature Genetics, 29 (2), 106-107.
    Featured in: Casci, T. (2001): Evo-devo: Regulatory affairs. Nature Reviews Genetics, 2, 657.
  • Srinivasan, J., Pires da Silva, A., Gutierrez, A., Zheng, M., Jungblut, B., Witte, H., Schlak, I. & Sommer, R. J. (2001): Microevolutionary analysis of the nematode genus Pristionchussuggests a recent evolution of redundant developmental mechanisms during vulva formation. Evolution and Development, 3, 229-240.
    Featured in: Gibson, G. (2001): Developmental evolution: the unbearable likeness of beings. Current  Biology, 11 (9), R345-R348.
  • Jungblut, B. and Sommer, R. J. (2001): The nematode even-skipped homolog vab-7 regulates gonad and vulva position in Pristionchus pacificus. Development, 128, 253-261.
  • Sommer, R. J., Witte, H. & Schlak, I. (2001): Towards a microevolutionary approach in evolutionary developmental biology: Biogeography of the nematode genus Pristionchus (Diplogastridae). Zoology, 103, 91-98.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2000): Comparative genetics: A third model nematode species. Current Biology, 10, R879-R881.
  • Jungblut, B. and Sommer, R. J. (2000): Novel cell-cell interactions during vulva development in Pristonchus pacificus. Development, 127, 3295-3303.
    Featured in: Chamberlin, H. M. (2000): Nematode development: an evolutionary fugue. Current  Biology, 10 (17), R631-633.
  • Kagoshima, H., Sommer, R. J., Reinhart, B. J., Cassata, G., Ruvkun, G. & Bürglin, T. R. (2000): Graded expression of ceh-14 reporters in the hypodermis is induced by a gonadal signal. Dev. Genes. Evol., 210, 564-569.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2000): Evolution of nematode development. Curr. Opin. Gen. Devel., 10, 443-448.
  • Félix, M. A., De Ley, P., Sommer, R. J., Frisse, L., Nadler, S. A., Thomas, W. K., Vanfleteren, J., Sternberg, P. W. (2000): Evolution of vulva development in the Cephalobina (Nematoda). Developmental Biology, 221, 68-86.
  • Sommer, R. J., Carmi, I., Eizinger, A., Grandien, K., Jungblut, B., Lee, K. Z., Nguyen, H., Pires da Silva, A., Schlak, I., Sigrist, C. B. & Srinivasan, J. (2000): Pristionchus pacificus: a satellite organism in evolutionary developmental biology. Nematology, 2, 81-88.
  • Sommer, R. J. (2000): Caenorhabditis elegans - Ein Wurm für alle Fälle. Bioforum, 23, 126-128.
  • Félix, M. A., Hill, R. J., Schwarz, H., Sternberg, P. W., Sudhaus, W. & Sommer R. J. (1999): Pristionchus pacificus, a nematode with only three juvenile stages, displays major heterochronic changes relative to Caenorhabditis elegans. Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B, 266, 1617-1621.
  • Sommer, R. J. (1999): Convergence and the interplay of evolution and development. Evolution & Development, 1(1), 8-10.
  • Eizinger, A., Jungblut, B. & Sommer, R. J. (1999): Evolutionary change in the functional specificity of genes. Trends Genet., 15, 197-202.
  • Sigrist, C. B. and Sommer, R. J. (1999): Vulva formation in Pristionchus pacificus relies on continuous gonadal induction. Dev. Genes. Evol., 209, 451-459.
  • Sommer, R. J., Sigrist, C. B., Grandien, K., Jungblut, B., Eizinger, A., Adamis, H. & Schlak, I. (1999): A phylogenetic interpretation of nematode vulval variations. Invertebrate Reproduction and Development, 36, 57-65.
  • Jungblut, B. & Sommer, R. J. (1998): The Pristionchus pacificus mab-5 gene is involved in the regulation of ventral epidermal cell fates. Current Biology, 8, 775-778.
  • Sommer, R. J., Eizinger, A., Lee, K.-Z., Jungblut, B., Bubeck, A. & Schlak, I. (1998): The Pristionchus HOX gene Ppa-lin-39 inhibits programmed cell death to specify the vulva equivalence group and is not required during vulva induction. Development, 125, 3865-3873.
  • Sommer, R. J. (1997a): Evolutionary changes of developmental mechanisms in the absence of cell lineage alterations during vulva formation in the Diplogastridae (Nematoda). Development, 124, 243-251.
    Featured in: Emmons, S. W. (1997): Worms as an evolutionary model. Trends in Genetics, 13 (4), 131-134.
    Featured in: Lambie, E. J. (1997): Nematode development: evolutionary detours of a pivotal cell. Current  Biology, 7 (3), R160-163.
  • Sommer, R. J. (1997b): Evolution and development - The nematode vulva as a case study. BioEssays, 19, 225-231.
  • Schlak, I., Eizinger, A. & Sommer, R. J. (1997): High rate of restriction fragment length polymorphisms between two populations of the nematode Pristionchus pacificus (Diplogastridae). J. Zool. Syst. Evol. Research, 35, 137-142.
  • Eizinger, A. & Sommer, R. J. (1997): The homeotic gene lin-39 and the evolution of nematode epidermal cell fates. Science, 278, 452-455.
  • Sommer, R. J. and Sternberg, P. W. (1996): Apoptosis and change of competence limit the size of the vulva equivalence group in Pristionchus pacificus: a genetic analysis. Current Biology, 6, 52-59.
  • Sommer, R. J. and Sternberg, P. W. (1996): Evolution of vulval fate patterning. Dev. Biol. 173, 396-407.
  • Sommer, R. J. & Sternberg, P. W. (1996): Using nematode vulva development to model the evolution of developmental systems. In: Molecular Zoology: Advances, Strategies and Protocols (Ed.: J. D. Ferraris & St. R. Palumbi).  Wiley-Liss Inc., New York, pp. 209-220.
  • Sommer, R. J., Carta, L. K., Kim, S.-Y. & Sternberg, P. W. (1996): Morphological, genetic and molecular description of Pristionchus pacificus sp. n. (Nematoda: Neodiplogastridae). Fundamental and Applied Nematology, 19, 511-521.
  • Tautz, D. & Sommer, R. J. (1995): Evolution of segmentation genes in insects. Trends in Genetics, 11, 23-27.
  • Sommer, R. J. & Sternberg, P. W. (1995): Evolution of cell lineage and pattern formation in the vulva equivalence group of rhabditid nematodes. Dev. Biol. , 167, 61-74.
    Featured in: Lambie, E. J. (1994): Nematode development. Variations on a vulval theme. Current  Biology, 4 (12), 1128-1130.
  • Wolff, C., Sommer, R. J., Schröder, R., Glaser, G. and Tautz, D. (1995): Conserved and divergent expression aspects of the Drosophila segmentation gene hunchback in the short germ band embryo of the flour beetle Tribolium. Development, 121, 4227-4236.
  • Sommer, R. J. & Tautz, D. (1994): Expression patterns of twist and snail in Tribolium (Coleoptera) suggest a homologous formation of mesoderm in long and short germ band insects. Dev. Genet., 15, 32-37.
  • Sommer, R. J. & Sternberg, P. W. (1994): Changes of induction and competence during the evolution of vulva development in nematodes. Science, 265, 114-118.
    Featured in: Lambie, E. J. (1994): Nematode development. Variations on a vulval theme. Current  Biology, 4 (12), 1128-1130.
  • Sommer, R. J., Carta, L. K. & Sternberg, P. W.  (1994): The evolution of cell lineage in nematodes. Development Supplement, 85-95.
  • Sommer, R. J. & Tautz, D. (1993): Involvement of an orthologue of the Drosophila pair-rule gene hairy in segment formation of the short germ band embryo of Tribolium (Coleoptera). Nature, 361, 448-450.
    Featured in: French, V. (1993): Insect development. The long and the short of it. Nature, 361 (6411), 400-401.
  • Tautz, D., Hülskamp, M. & Sommer, R. J. (1992): Whole mount In situ Hybridization in Drosophila. In: In situ Hybridization: A practical approach. (Ed.: D. Wilkinson), pp 61-73.
  • Sommer, R. J., Retzlaff, M., Goerlich, K., Sander, K. & Tautz, D. (1992): Evolutionary conservation pattern of Zinc-finger domains from Drosophila segmentation genes. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci., 89, 10782-10786.
  • Sommer, R. & Tautz, D. (1991): Asynchronous mitotic domains during blastoderm formation in Musca domestica L. (Diptera). Roux´s Arch. Dev. Biol., 199, 373-376.
  • Sommer, R. & Tautz, D. (1991): Non-radioactive in situ hybridization to sectioned tissues. TIG, 7, 110.
  • Sommer, R. & Tautz, D. (1991): Segmentation gene expression in the housefly Musca domestica. Development, 113, 419-430.
  • Sommer, R. & Tautz, D. (1989): Minimal homology requirements for PCR primers. Nucl. Acid. Res., 17, 6749.