Contact

Alexa Sadier

Research Scientist
Karen Sears lab - Terasaki 2167
UCLA Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
610 Charles E. Young Drive South
Los Angeles, CA 90095

email: asadier at ucla.edu

 

PUBLICATIONS

*: equal contributions

Preprint/in prep

Sadier Alexa, Anthwal N, Krause A, Dessalles R, Lake M, Bentolila L, Haase R, Nieves N, Santana S, Sears KE. 2022. Bat teeth illuminate the diversification of mammalian tooth classes.. BioRxiv– in review Nature Communications https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.12.05.471324v3 

Gregory L. Mutumi, Ronald P. Hall, Brandon P. Hedrick, Laurel R. Yohe, Alexa Sadier, Kalina T.J. Davies, Liliana M. Dávalos, Stephen J. Rossiter, Karen E. Sears and Elizabeth R. Dumont Disentangling biomechanical and sensory modules in a hyper-diverse radiation in review The Am Naturalist

Neal Anthwal*, Daniel Urban*, Alexa Sadier, Risa Takenaka, Simon Spiro, Nancy Simmons, Karen Sears Control of Morphological Variation and Molecular Initiation of Novel Chiropteran Wing Membranes are Revealed by Embryonic Developmental Processes in review BMC Biology

Published

2022

Yohe LR, Fabbri M, Lee D, Davies KTJ, Yohe TP, Sánchez MKR, Rengifo EM, Hall RP, Mutumi G, Hedrick BP, Sadier A, Simmons NB, Sears KE, Dumont E, Rossiter SJ, Bhullar B-AS, Dávalos LM. n.d. Ecological constraints on highly evolvable olfactory receptor genes and morphology in neotropical bats. Evolution n/a. https://doi.org/10.1111/evo.14591

Santana SE*, Grossnickle DM*, Sadier A (co-first)*, Patterson E, Sears KE. 2022. Bat Dentitions: A Model System for Studies at the Interface of Development, Biomechanics, and Evolution. Integrative and Comparative Biology 62:762–73. https://academic.oup.com/icb/article/62/3/762/6586353?login=false

Sadier A., Sears, K. and Womack, M. Unravelling the heritage of lost traits, J Exp Part B. https://doi.org/10.1002/jez.b.23030

 

2021

Aidan O Howenstine, Alexa Sadier, Neal Anthwal, Clive LF Lau, Karen E Sears, Non-model systems in mammalian forelimb evo-devo, Current Opinion in Genetics & Development, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gde.2021.01.012

Hall, R.P., Mutumi, G.L., Hedrick, B.P., Yohe, L.R., Sadier, A., Davies, K.T.J., Rossiter, S.J., Sears, K., Dávalos, L.M. and Dumont, E.R. (2021), Find the food first: An omnivorous sensory morphotype predates biomechanical specialization for plant based diets in phyllostomid bats. Evolution https://doi.org/10.1111/evo.14270

Nojiri T, Wilson LAB, López-Aguirre C, Tu VT, Kuratani S, Ito K, Higashiyama H, Son NT, Fukui D, Sadier A, Sears KE, Endo H, Kamihori S, Koyabu D. 2021. Embryonic evidence uncovers convergent origins of laryngeal echolocation in bats. Current Biology 31:1353-1365.e3. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2020.12.043

 

2020

Sadier A, Urban DJ, Anthwal N, Howenstine AO, Sinha I, Sears KE, Sadier A, Urban DJ, Anthwal N, Howenstine AO, Sinha I, Sears KE. 2020. Making a bat: The developmental basis of bat evolution. Genetics and Molecular Biology http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/1678-4685-gmb-2019-0146

Sadier A., Santana S., Sears K. The role of core and variable Gene Regulatory Network modules in tooth development and evolution (2020) Integrative and Comparative Biology, icaa116 https://doi.org/10.1093/icb/icaa116

Sadier, A., Jackman, W.R., Laudet, V and Gibert, Y. Vertebrate tooth type: is it signaled by a single organizing tooth? (2020) BioEssays 42 (6), 1900229 https://doi.org/10.1002/bies.201900229

C Darrin Hulsey, Karly E Cohen, Zerina Johanson, Nidal Karagic, Axel Meyer, Craig T Miller, Alexa Sadier, Adam P Summers, Gareth J Fraser (2020) Grand Challenges in Comparative Tooth Biology Integrative and Comparative Biology icaa038 https://doi.org/10.1093/icb/icaa038

Hedrick BP, Mutumi GL, Munteanu VD, Sadier A, Davies KTJ, Rossiter SJ, Sears KE, Dávalos LM, Dumont E. 2020. Morphological Diversification under High Integration in a Hyper Diverse Mammal Clade. J Mammal Evol 27:563–575 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10914-019-09472-x

 

2019

Vial, J., Royet, A., Cassier, P., Tortereau, A., Dinvaut, S., Maillet, D., Gratadou-Hupon, L., Creveaux, M., Sadier, A., Tondeur, G., et al. (2019). The Ectodysplasin receptor EDAR acts as a tumor suppressor in melanoma by conditionally inducing cell death. Cell Death Differ 26, 443–454. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41418-018-0128-1

Sadier, A., Twarogowska, M., Steklikova, K., Hayden, L., Lambert, A., Schneider, P., Laudet, V., Hovorakova, M., Calvez, V., and Pantalacci, S. (2019). Modeling Edar expression reveals the hidden dynamics of tooth signaling center patterning. PLoS Biol 17, e3000064 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3000064

 

2018

Sears, K., Maier, J.A., Sadier, A., Sorensen, D., and Urban, D.J. (2018). Timing the developmental origins of mammalian limb diversity. Genesis 56. https://doi.org/10.1002/dvg.23079

Sadier*, A., Davies*, K.T., Yohe, L.R., Yun, K., Donat, P., Hedrick, B.P., Dumont, E.R., Davalos, L.M., Rossiter, S.J., and Sears, K.E. (2018). Multifactorial processes underlie parallel opsin loss in neotropical bats. Elife 7. https://elifesciences.org/articles/37412

Hedrick, B.P., Yohe, L., Vander Linden, A., Davalos, L.M., Sears, K., Sadier, A., Rossiter, S.J., Davies, K.T.J., and Dumont, E. (2018). Assessing Soft-Tissue Shrinkage Estimates in Museum Specimens Imaged With Diffusible Iodine-Based Contrast-Enhanced Computed Tomography (diceCT). Microsc Microanal 24, 284–291. https://doi.org/10.1017/s1431927618000399

 

Before 2018

Urban, D.J., Anthwal, N., Luo, Z.-X., Maier, J.A., Sadier, A., Tucker, A.S., and Sears, K.E. (2017). A new developmental mechanism for the separation of the mammalian middle ear ossicles from the jaw. Proc Biol Sci 284. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2016.2416

Gibert, Y., Samarut, E., Pasco-Viel, E., Bernard, L., Borday-Birraux, V., Sadier, A., Labbe, C., Viriot, L., and Laudet, V. (2015). Altered retinoic acid signalling underpins dentition evolution. Proc Biol Sci 282. https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2014.2764

Sadier, A., Lambert, E., Chevret, P., Decimo, D., Semon, M., Tohme, M., Ruggiero, F., Ohlmann, T., Pantalacci, S., and Laudet, V. (2015). Tinkering signaling pathways by gain and loss of protein isoforms: the case of the EDA pathway regulator EDARADD. BMC Evol Biol 15, 129. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12862-015-0395-0

Sadier, A., Viriot, L., Pantalacci, S., and Laudet, V. (2014). The ectodysplasin pathway: from diseases to adaptations. Trends Genet 30, 24–31. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tig.2013.08.006

Pantalacci, S., Chaumot, A., Benoit, G., Sadier, A., Delsuc, F., Douzery, E.J.P., and Laudet, V. (2008). Conserved features and evolutionary shifts of the EDA signaling pathway involved in vertebrate skin appendage development. Mol Biol Evol 25, 912–928. https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msn038

 

Book chapters

Sadier, A., Soukup V. Initiation and periodic patterning of vertebrate dentitions In chapter in “Odontodes: The Developmental and Evolutionary Building Blocks of Dentitions”, accepted

Sadier, A. (2019). How Do Gene Networks Promote Morphological Evolution. In Old Questions and Young Approaches to Animal Evolution, J.M. Martín-Durán, and B.C. Vellutini, eds. (Cham: Springer International Publishing), pp. 209–234.

Sadier, A.A. (2016). Regulatory and Coding Changes in Developmental Evolution, Roles of. In Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Biology, R.M. Kliman, ed. (Oxford: Academic Press), pp. 433–440.

 

AWARDS AND GRANTS

2021   Wellcome Trust – Career Development Award – invitation for interview, no awarded

2021     UCLA Chancellor’s award for postdoctoral research 20/21 – awardee

The Chancellor’s Award for Postdoctoral Research recognizes the 10 most important contributions (among the ~1400 postdocs from all disciplines) that         postdoctoral scholars make to UCLA’s research mission – 7500$  https://www.postdoc.ucla.edu/chancellors-award-for-postdoctoral-research/

2020     NSF IOS grant - Leader investigator of the project - Collaborators: PIs Karen Sears (UCLA), Sharlene Santana (UW) and Paul François (Mc Gill)

Starting July 2020 – 600 k$

2020     iBiology Young Scientists Seminar Award – winner

2017     MBI workshop travel grant – 600$

2012     Grant ARC (Research against Cancer Association) Foundation

Awarded a project on the role of EDAR in cancer – One year of full support ~20k €

2009     Teaching fellowship – “monitorat”

Extra salary for teaching activities including: TA, full lectures and full courses teaching and   conception – 80h/year ~ 7.75k €/year

2009     MRT PhD fellowship

Supporting 3 years of salary for research - Ranked 3/50 (15/50 were awarded) ~12.25k €/year

 

INVITED SEMINARS

2021 Bat Eco-Evo-Devo: Developmental constraints shaping phenotypic diversification - UCL, London UK

2021  Bat (teeth) as a new eco-evo-devo system for the evolution of developmental rules ISEM Université de Montpellier, France

2020  Bat teeth at the cusp: Finding new rules for the patterning of post-canine teeth in mammals, McGill University, Montréal, Canada

2019  Deciphering the rules that underlie species diversity: insight from African bats, CBI, Yaoundé, Cameroon

2019  Deciphering the rules that underlie species diversity: insight from Trinidadian bats, University of St Augustine, Trinidad

2016  Deciphering genomic and developmental mechanisms that underlie adaptive evolution in noctilionoid bats - Indiana State University

2013  Evo-devo of the Eda pathway, from the evolution of signaling to the establishment of shape - University of Utah

 

ACADEMIC ACTIVITIES AND SERVICE

Since 2021: Reviewer Board Member, Diversity

Since 2021: Editorial Board Member, BMC Eco Evo https://bmcecolevol.biomedcentral.com/

2021: Topic board editor, Diversity journal diversity https://www.mdpi.com/journal/diversity

Since 2019: The Company of Biologists Prelighter, part of the @preLights community - See my prelights here: https://prelights.biologists.com/profiles/aigverte/

Society member: EuroEvoDevo, PanAmEvoDevo, NASBR societies, SDB and BCI (Bat Conservation International), Bat1k genome project

 

Symposium and conference organizer

2018 Evolution - S-24 Evolution and development in deep time, merging insights from paleontology and developmental biology with Ryan Felice, Montpellier, France

2013 – TMD - Organizing committee

 

Reviewer for academic journals – eLife, BMC Evolutionary Biology, Proceeding of the Royal Society B, Evolution, Plos One, ICB, System Biology, Diversity, Science Advance, BMC Biology