C. Brandon Ogbunu, PhD
Associate Professor TenureCards
About
Research
Publications
2026
When evolvability meets constraint: reflections on empirical fitness landscapes after Weinreich et al. (2006)
Ogbunugafor C. When evolvability meets constraint: reflections on empirical fitness landscapes after Weinreich et al. (2006). Genetics 2026, iyag140. PMID: 42334028, DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyag140.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchEnergetic constraints shape the diversity of feasible ecological networks
Long C, Angulo M, Ogbunugafor C, Solé R, Saavedra S. Energetic constraints shape the diversity of feasible ecological networks. PLOS Computational Biology 2026, 22: e1014330. PMID: 42160376, PMCID: PMC13211307, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1014330.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchMaynard Smith’s analogy, realized: Common ancestry constrains evolutionary percolation through protein space
Manivannan S, Ogbunugafor C. Maynard Smith’s analogy, realized: Common ancestry constrains evolutionary percolation through protein space. Proceedings Of The National Academy Of Sciences Of The United States Of America 2026, 123: e2610113123. PMID: 42150083, PMCID: PMC13214018, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2610113123.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchOur cosmos, ourselves
Ogbunugafor C. Our cosmos, ourselves. Science 2026, 392: 261-261. DOI: 10.1126/science.aef5342.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchDawkins’s paradox: dissecting the body’s battle to keep selfish genes in check
Ogbunugafor C. Dawkins’s paradox: dissecting the body’s battle to keep selfish genes in check. Nature 2026, 652: 30-31. DOI: 10.1038/d41586-026-00970-6.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchOn the Manifest Naivete of Techno‐Optimists: A Review of More Everything Forever by Adam Becker
Ogbunugafor C. On the Manifest Naivete of Techno‐Optimists: A Review of More Everything Forever by Adam Becker. American Journal Of Biological Anthropology 2026, 189 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.70214.Peer-Reviewed Original Research
2025
Environment-by-Environment Interactions Differ Across Genetic Backgrounds
Schmidlin K, Ogbunugafor B, Sastokas A, Geiler-Samerotte K. Environment-by-Environment Interactions Differ Across Genetic Backgrounds. Molecular Biology And Evolution 2025, 42: msaf287. PMID: 41206453, PMCID: PMC12631786, DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msaf287.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsComplex behavior of living systemsMaintenance of genetic diversityGene-by-gene interactionsSources of phenotypic varianceMutant yeast strainsSingle nucleotide changesGene-by-environment interactionsGenetic diversityYeast strainsPopulation geneticsNucleotide changesAntifungal drugsShape phenotypesEvolutionary outcomesPhenotypic variancePathogenic microbesGenetic backgroundDrug-resistant mutantsMutantsBehavior of living systemsPhenotypeGenotypesLiving systemsMicrobesMutationsAssociations between racial bias and political identity in American cities often diverge from common narratives
Stier A, Ogbunugafor C. Associations between racial bias and political identity in American cities often diverge from common narratives. Npj Complexity 2025, 2: 20. DOI: 10.1038/s44260-025-00040-4.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchWild Florida mottled ducks demonstrate strong heterogeneity in their humoral innate immune response.
Ayala A, Cheng M, Hellinger T, McBride K, Webb J, Fanning A, Snyder P, Ferragamo M, Garcia S, Sterner N, Bischoff K, Almagro-Moreno S, Ogbunugafor C. Wild Florida mottled ducks demonstrate strong heterogeneity in their humoral innate immune response. PLOS ONE 2025, 20: e0312653. PMID: 40096078, PMCID: PMC11913296, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0312653.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsFlorida mottled ducksAmerican Type Culture CollectionMottled ducksHumoral innate immune responseType Culture CollectionInnate immune responseVibrio sppEndemic subspeciesHabitat conversionInnate immune systemEco-immunologyCulture CollectionE. coliAnas platyrhynchosSubspeciesPeninsular FloridaConservation needsEffects of climate changeEcological covariatesHumoral innate immune systemBactericidal assayDucksResponse to agingWaterborne pathogensPathogensProtein Quality Control is a Master Modulator of Molecular Evolution in Bacteria
Arenas C, Alvarez M, Wilson R, Shakhnovich E, Ogbunugafor C. Protein Quality Control is a Master Modulator of Molecular Evolution in Bacteria. Genome Biology And Evolution 2025, 17: evaf010. PMID: 39837347, PMCID: PMC11789785, DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evaf010.Peer-Reviewed Reviews, Practice Guidelines, Standards, and Consensus StatementsConceptsProtein quality controlMolecular evolutionProtein translation machineryProteome homeostasisTranslation machineryHost-parasite interactionsProtein spaceOrganismal developmentProtein foldingBacterial systemsCellular processesPromote proteostasisEvolutionary biologyMechanistic basesProteostasisProteinQuality controlEpistasisChaperoneProteomicsGenesBacteriaProteaseMachineryPhenotype