Transitions in development - an interview with Thibaut Brunet

Abstract

Thibaut Brunet is a group leader at the Institut Pasteur in Paris, France, where he works on choanoflagellates (known as 'choanos' for short). These unicellular organisms are close relatives of animals that have the potential to form multicellular assemblies under certain conditions, and Thibaut's lab are leveraging them to gain insights into how animal morphogenesis evolved. We met with Thibaut over Zoom to discuss his career path so far, and learnt how an early interest in dinosaurs contributed to his life-long fascination with evolutionary biology.