About Me
I am Terrence Sylvester, an evolutionary biologist studying how genomes record and respond to ecological and evolutionary pressures. My research integrates genome assembly, phylogenomics, comparative genomics, and population genetics to investigate chromosome evolution, gene family dynamics, and the influence of repetitive DNA on genome architecture. Although much of my work centers on beetles—one of the most diverse and ecologically significant animal groups—I have also worked on amphibians, other insect lineages, and plants. By linking genome evolution with adaptation, biodiversity, and conservation, my research seeks to clarify how genomic change contributes to resilience in rapidly changing environments.
Research
My research examines the genomic mechanisms that drive lineage diversification and adaptation. I focus on gene family evolution, chromosomal rearrangements, and the role of transposable elements and other repetitive sequences in shaping genome structure and function. Using integrative comparative and phylogenomic approaches, I investigate the genomic basis of adaptation across diverse taxa, with an emphasis on beetles and other ecologically important organisms.
Learn More →Education & Experience
Postdoctoral Fellow: University of Memphis (2022–Present).
Supervisor: Duane McKenna
- Research on genomic evolution in long horn beetles (Cerambycidae).
- Mentoring 2 graduate students in bioinformatics techniques.
PhD in Biology: Texas A&M University (2017–2022)
Supervisor: Heath Blackmon
- Dissertation: Broad-scale structural evolution in invertebrate genomes and the population genomics of jewel scarabs in the southwestern US.
BSc in Molecular Biology: University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka (2011–2015)
Supervisor: Madhava Meegaskumbura
- Thesis: Phylogenetic relationships and species boundaries of a clade of diminutive shrub frogs (Rhacophoridae: Pseudophilautus)
Latest Publications
Genomic architecture of the pole borer, Neandra brunnea (Cerambycidae: Parandrinae), sheds light on the evolution of wood-feeding in longhorn beetles
Neandra brunnea, commonly known as the pole borer, is a species of wood-boring (xylophagous) longhorn beetle (family Cerambycidae) found throughout most of eastern North America. We sequenced, assembled, and annotated the genome of N. brunnea and compared it to publicly available genomes of other Cerambycidae. The 1.23 Gb N. brunnea genome assembly was distributed across 78 contigs, with an N50 of 38.88 Mb and largest contig of 74.28 Mb. Most of the genome was comprised of repetitive sequences, with 81.39% comprising interspersed repeats. Most (99.7%) of the expected orthologous genes (BUSCOs) were present and fully assembled, with only 2.5% duplicated. The genome annotation identified 13 003 genes (15 574 transcripts), including 301 putative horizontally transferred loci from a diversity of both prokaryotic and eukaryotic donors. The assembled mitochondrial genome is relatively large at 17 kb and shows an unusual repeating array of d-loop segments. As the first representative of the longhorn beetle subfamily Parandrinae with a sequenced genome, N. brunnea provides an important new point of reference for the comparative study of beetle genomes and a further resource for studies of the evolution and genomic basis of xylophagy.
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Chromosome-level genome of the shining chafers Kibakoganea tamdaoensis (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Rutelinae)
The beetle subfamily Rutelinae (shining leaf chafers) in the family Scarabaeidae is famous for its colorful body and phytophagous habitat. Among these shining leaf chafers, Kibakoganea tamdaoensis Miyake et Muramoto, 1992 is one with ornamental value because of their enlarged and horn-like mandibles. Here we generated high-quality genome assembly of KTAMD, integrating PacBio HiFi and Hi-C, and annotated with RNA sequence data. The resulting assembly is 605.37 Mb, of which 96.09% is anchored into 10 chromosomes. The scaffold N50 is 54.00 Mb, and BUSCO completeness is 96.6%. Repetitive elements span 49.43% of the genome. Our annotation pipeline identified 984 noncoding RNAs and predicted 12,945 protein-coding genes in the genome (96.40% BUSCO completeness). As the chromosome-scale genome from the subfamily Rutelinae, the KTAMD genome provides important new insights into scarabae genome evolution and provides a new vantage point from which to study the evolution of specialized beetles.
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Insights into longhorn beetle (Cerambycidae) evolution from comparative analyses of the red-headed ash borer (Neoclytus acuminatus acuminatus) genome
Neoclytus acuminatus acuminatus, the red-headed ash borer, is a wood-boring longhorn beetle (Cerambycidae: Cerambycinae) native to North America and introduced in Eurasia and South America. Its larvae develop in dying or recently dead hardwood trees, including ecologically and economically significant species of ash, hickory, and oak. We sequenced, assembled, and annotated the genome of a female N. acuminatus and compared it to the publicly available genomes of other cerambycid species. The 508 Mb N. acuminatus genome assembly spanned 20 contigs (19 nuclear + 1 mitochondrial), with an N50 of 52.59 Mb and largest contig of 61.20 Mb. A moderately high fraction of the genome (62.63%) comprised repetitive sequences, with nearly all (99.4%) expected single-copy orthologous genes (BUSCOs) present and fully assembled. We identified 2 contigs as fragments of the N. acuminatus sex chromosome. Genome annotation identified 12,899 genes, including 109 putative horizontally transferred loci. Synteny analysis identified well-conserved blocks of collinearity between the N. acuminatus genome and other Cerambycidae. The genome contains a similar number of genes encoding putative plant cell wall degrading enzymes as other Cerambycidae. The N. acuminatus genome provides new insights into genome evolution in the family Cerambycidae, known for its rich diversity of xylophagous species, and provides a new viewpoint from which to study the evolution and genomic basis of traits such as wood-feeding and olfaction in beetles and other insects.
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