John Carlson, PhD
Eugene Higgins Professor of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental BiologyCards
Contact Info
Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology
Dept. MCDB, Yale University, PO Box 208103
New Haven, Ct 06520-8103
United States
About
Titles
Eugene Higgins Professor of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology
Biography
John received an A.B. from Harvard and a Ph.D. from Stanford, both in biochemistry. As a postdoc at Stanford he explored “Antigenetics”. He is an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He is a Guggenheim Fellow and a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He received the Genetics Society of America Medal and the Kornberg-Berg Lifetime Achievement Award in Biomedical Sciences from Stanford University. He was awarded the Yale College Dylan Hixon Prize for Teaching Excellence as well as the Yale College Byrnes/Sewall Teaching Prize. Seventeen of his PhD students have won awards for their dissertations, and he received the Yale Postdoctoral Mentoring Prize.
Upon arrival at Yale as an Assistant Professor, John began working on chemoreception in Drosophila. At the time virtually nothing was known about the molecular or cellular basis of olfaction or taste in this organism. Since then his laboratory has made a number of advances in the field, including the discovery of the first insect odor receptors, the discovery of the first insect taste receptors, and the elucidation of basic principles of the logic of odor and taste coding.
John’s lab currently studies receptors, neurons, and circuits that underlie olfaction, taste, and pheromone recognition in Drosophila and in insects that transmit global disease.
Appointments
Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology
ProfessorPrimary
Other Departments & Organizations
- Biochemistry, Quantitative Biology, Biophysics and Structural Biology (BQBS)
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program
- Kavli Institute for Neuroscience
- Molecular Cell Biology, Genetics and Development
- Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology
- Neuroscience Track
- Plant Molecular Biology
- Wu Tsai Institute
- Yale Combined Program in the Biological and Biomedical Sciences (BBS)
Education & Training
- PhD
- Stanford (1982)
- AB
- Harvard (1977)
Research
Overview
Medical Research Interests
ORCID
0000-0002-0244-5180- View Lab Website
Carlson Lab Homepage
Research at a Glance
Yale Co-Authors
Publications Timeline
Research Interests
Gaëlle J. S. Talross, PhD
Yichen Luo
Hany Dweck
Lisa Baik, PhD
Shimaa Ebrahim
Brian Weiss, PhD
Publications
2025
New dimensions in the molecular genetics of insect chemoreception
Talross G, Carlson J. New dimensions in the molecular genetics of insect chemoreception. Trends In Genetics 2025 PMID: 40340097, DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2025.04.003.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchAltmetricConceptsMolecular geneticsChemosensory systemOdorant receptor genesRNA editingChemoreceptor expressionInsect chemoreceptionEpigenetic mechanismsLong noncoding RNAsOlfactory receptor neuronsNoncoding RNAsMolecular componentsReceptor geneTaste receptorsRNAReceptor neuronsChemoreceptionDrosophilaGenesNew insightsInsectsSpread disease
2024
Function and evolution of Ir52 receptors in mate detection in Drosophila
Luo Y, Talross G, Carlson J. Function and evolution of Ir52 receptors in mate detection in Drosophila. Current Biology 2024, 34: 5395-5408.e6. PMID: 39471807, PMCID: PMC11614688, DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.10.001.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchAltmetricConceptsMating partnersCluster of genesPotential mating partnersSexually dimorphic neuronsCourtship behaviorEvolutionary timeMate detectionExpression systemFly legFruit flyFly speciesSpeciesBiological problemsTaste neuronsMatingPheromone extractsFliesReceptorsDrosophilaCourtshipGenesNeuronsPheromoneCircuit mappingExpressionMosquito taste responses to human and floral cues guide biting and feeding
Baik L, Talross G, Gray S, Pattisam H, Peterson T, Nidetz J, Hol F, Carlson J. Mosquito taste responses to human and floral cues guide biting and feeding. Nature 2024, 635: 639-646. PMID: 39415007, PMCID: PMC11578787, DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-08047-y.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricConceptsResponse to sugarFloral cuesCoding capacityControl mosquito vectorsEgg layingTaste sensillaTranscriptome profilingTaste organsNeuronal repertoireBiting behaviorInsect behaviorBitter compoundsInvasive diseaseTaste receptorsTaste systemTasteTaste responsesMosquito vectorsStop signalTaste stimuliFeedingSite waterLabellumExcitatory responsesNectarSugar detection in 3D: Structure of an insect gustatory receptor
Talross G, Carlson J. Sugar detection in 3D: Structure of an insect gustatory receptor. Cell Reports 2024, 43: 114166. PMID: 38691457, DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.114166.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsExitron splicing of odor receptor genes in Drosophila
Shang X, Talross G, Carlson J. Exitron splicing of odor receptor genes in Drosophila. Proceedings Of The National Academy Of Sciences Of The United States Of America 2024, 121: e2320277121. PMID: 38507450, PMCID: PMC10990081, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2320277121.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsExitron splicingOdorant receptor genesCases of alternative splicingCanonical open reading framesExpression of odorant receptor genesFunction of olfactory systemReceptor geneProtein-coding exonsOpen reading frameAlternative splicing eventsOlfactory receptor neuronsAlternative polyadenylationReading frameExon-intronEncode proteinsSplicing eventsAlternative splicingNon-coding RNAsStable proteinsPheromone receptorsReceptor neuronsOptogenetic activationPheromone stimulationSplicingNeuronal activityBase Recording: A Technique for Analyzing Responses of Taste Neurons in Drosophila.
Dweck H, Carlson J. Base Recording: A Technique for Analyzing Responses of Taste Neurons in Drosophila. Journal Of Visualized Experiments 2024 PMID: 38497660, PMCID: PMC11542164, DOI: 10.3791/66665.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and Concepts
2023
Diverse mechanisms of taste coding in Drosophila
Dweck H, Carlson J. Diverse mechanisms of taste coding in Drosophila. Science Advances 2023, 9: eadj7032. PMID: 37976361, PMCID: PMC10656072, DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adj7032.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH KeywordsThe rich non-coding RNA landscape of the Drosophila antenna
Talross G, Carlson J. The rich non-coding RNA landscape of the Drosophila antenna. Cell Reports 2023, 42: 112482. PMID: 37167060, PMCID: PMC10431215, DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.112482.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsDrosophila antennaPheromone-sensing neuronsLong non-coding RNAsNon-coding RNAsDrosophila olfactory systemRole of lncRNAsMultiple complex behaviorsRNA landscapeOlfactory receptor neuronsNeuronal lncRNAsNeural developmentLncRNAsReceptor neuronsModel systemPheromonal responsesOlfactory systemCritical roleNeuron mapNervous systemRNACombination of lncRNAsSpeciationNeuronsRoleA volatile sex attractant of tsetse flies
Ebrahim S, Dweck H, Weiss B, Carlson J. A volatile sex attractant of tsetse flies. Science 2023, 379: eade1877. PMID: 36795837, PMCID: PMC10204727, DOI: 10.1126/science.ade1877.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetric
2022
Sugar sensation and mechanosensation in the egg-laying preference shift of Drosophila suzukii
Wang W, Dweck H, Talross G, Zaidi A, Gendron J, Carlson J. Sugar sensation and mechanosensation in the egg-laying preference shift of Drosophila suzukii. ELife 2022, 11: e81703. PMID: 36398882, PMCID: PMC9674340, DOI: 10.7554/elife.81703.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsEgg-laying preferenceTaste organsAgricultural pestsDrosophila suzukiiChannel genesStiff substratesDrosophilaTaste sensillaReceptor geneMechanosensory cuesFruit sugarsGenesMechanosensationTaste sensationBitter taste sensationSpeciesEggsSweet taste sensationMajor subsetSuzukiiPestsSugarsElectrophysiological responsesWeak preferenceVariety of changes
Academic Achievements & Community Involvement
Honors
honor Postdoctoral Mentoring Prize, Yale University
06/02/2023Yale University AwardDetailsUnited Stateshonor Byrnes-Sewall Teaching Prize, Yale College
05/03/2023Yale University Awardhonor Kornberg-Berg Lifetime Achievement Award in Biomedical Sciences, Stanford Univ.
10/12/2018National Awardhonor Max Mozell Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Chemical Senses
10/12/2018National AwardDetailsUnited Stateshonor Member, National Academy of Sciences
12/31/2012UnknownDetailsUnited States
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Get In Touch
Contacts
Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology
Dept. MCDB, Yale University, PO Box 208103
New Haven, Ct 06520-8103
United States