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dr Daniel Méndez-Sánchez

Scientific interests

My passion and interests lie in unveiling the secrets of the diversity of protists, mainly ciliates. Their incredible diversity reflects a rich evolutionary history marked by adaptation and colonization of various ecosystems, where interactions with other living forms play a pivotal ecological role. As a morphologically and behaviorally complex lineage, ciliates—with their varied lifestyles—are exceptional models for exploring symbioses across ecosystems, including anoxic habitats, through microscopic and molecular lenses; in other words…

“I am driven to uncover the evolutionary and ecological secrets embedded in the diversity of ciliates, whose complexity and interactions make them perfect gems in the obscure and unwritten book of life.”

Project participations

  • Currently – Researcher in the SYMBIOSTART project “Unravelling the establishment of endosymbiosis: quest for intermediate evolutionary stages among microbial eukaryotes,” Principal Investigator Dr hab. Anna Karnkowska
  • 2021 – 2023 Principal investigator in START/SCI/095 (Charles University, Czech Republic) project “Methanogenic Archaea as endosymbionts of unrelated free-living anaerobic protists”
  • 2020 – 2022 Researcher in the Grant Agency of the Czech Republic (GAČR project no. 19-19297S) project “New approaches to the important symbiosis: Diversity and dynamics of the relationship of anaerobic protists and intracellular methanogenic archaea”

Internships

  • Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Okinawa, Japan, supervisor Dr. Filip Husník. September 2022- January 2023
  • Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China, supervisor Dr. Xiaozhong Hu, October 2015

Awards

  • 2024 – Vakovlk Award for significant PhD publication record, Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University

Publications

2026

Daniel, Méndez-Sánchez; Ondrej, Pomahač; Marek, Valt; A., Bourland William; Ivan, Čepička

An extensive morphological and molecular characterization of the neglected class Odontostomatea (Ciliophora) Journal Article

In: Marine Life Science and Technology, 2026.

Links | BibTeX

2025

Bourland, W. A.; Pomahač, O.; Méndez-Sánchez, D.; Beinart, R. A.; Bernhard, J. M.; Čepička, I.; Rotterová, J.

The end of a winding path: The anaerobic ciliate Spirorhynchus is a member of the class Muranotrichea Journal Article

In: Protist, vol. 179, pp. 126129, 2025.

Links | BibTeX

2024

Méndez-Sánchez, D.; Schrecengost, A.; Rotterová, J.; Poláková, K.; Beinart, R. A.; Čepička, I.

Methanogenic symbionts of anaerobic ciliates are host and habitat specific Journal Article

In: The ISME Journal, vol. 18, pp. wrae164, 2024.

Links | BibTeX

Pomahač, O.; Méndez-Sánchez, D.; Čepička, I.

Bit by bit toward the diversity of metopids: Description of the genus Pidimetopus n. gen. (Ciliophora: Armophorea) Journal Article

In: Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology, vol. 71, pp. e13034, 2024.

Links | BibTeX

2023

Feng, X.; Méndez‐Sánchez, D.; Zhuang, W.; Li, R.; Pomahač, O.; Čepička, I.; Rotterová, J.; Hu, X.

Morphology, morphogenesis, and molecular characterization of Castula specialis sp. nov. (Ciliophora, Armophorea, Metopida) Journal Article

In: Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology, vol. 71, pp. e13014, 2023.

Links | BibTeX

Kotyk, M.; Bourland, W. A.; Soviš, M.; Škaloud, D. Méndez-Sánchezand P.; Varadínová, Z. Kotyková; Čepička, I.

Morphology matters: congruence of morphology and phylogeny in the integrative taxonomy of Clevelandellidae (Ciliophora: Armophorea) with description of six new species Journal Article

In: Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, vol. 202, pp. zlad154, 2023.

Links | BibTeX

Pomahač, O.; Méndez-Sánchez, D.; Poláková, K.; Müller, M.; Solito, M. -M.; Bourland, W. A.; Čepička, I.

Rediscovery of remarkably rare anaerobic tentaculiferous ciliate genera Legendrea and Dactylochlamys (Ciliophora: Litostomatea) Journal Article

In: Biology, vol. 12, iss. 5, pp. 707, 2023.

Links | BibTeX

Méndez-Sánchez, D.; Pomahač, O.; Rotterová, J.; Bourland, W. A.; Čepička, I.

Morphology and phylogenetic position of three anaerobic ciliates from the classes Odontostomatea and Muranotrichea (Ciliophora). Journal Article

In: Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology, vol. 70, pp. e12965, 2023.

Links | BibTeX

2022

Méndez-Sánchez, D.; Pomahač, O.; Rotterová, J.; Bourland, A. W.; Čepička, I.

Diversity and phylogenetic position of Bothrostoma Stokes, 1887 (Ciliophora: Metopida), with description of four new species Journal Article

In: Protist, vol. 173, pp. 125887, 2022.

Links | BibTeX

Méndez-Sánchez, D.; Mayén-Estrada, R.; Ramírez-Corona, F.

Evolutionary insights and brief review of Loxodes Ehrenberg, 1830 (Ciliophora, Karyorelictea, Loxodidae) with description of a new species from Mexico. Journal Article

In: European Journal of Protistology, vol. 82, pp. 125856, 2022.

Links | BibTeX

2021

Ramírez-Ballesteros, M.; Durán-Ramírez, C. A.; Méndez-Sánchez, D.; Mayén-Estrada, R.

Conservación y aprovechamiento sustentable de la biodiversidad tropical del sur sureste mexicano. Diversidad de ciliados (Alveolata: Ciliophora) del Parque Nacional Lagunas de Montebello, Chiapas. Book Chapter

In: Chapter 5, pp. 125-156, Universidad de Ciencias y Artes de Chiapas, 2021.

BibTeX

2020

Méndez-Sánchez, D.; Mayén-Estrada, R.; Hu, X.

Euplotes octocarinatus Carter 1972 (Ciliophora, Spirotrichea, Euplotidae): considerations on its morphology, phylogeny, and biogeography. Journal Article

In: European Journal of Protistology, vol. 74, pp. 125667, 2020.

Links | BibTeX

2019

Mayén-Estrada, R.; Ramírez-Ballesteros, M.; Méndez-Sánchez, D.; Aristeo-Hernández, J.; Durán-Ramírez, C. A.

Guía de identificación de géneros comunes de ciliados de ambientes dulceacuícolas de México. Book

Las Prensas de Ciencias. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 2019, ISBN: 978-607-30-1956-9.

BibTeX

2018

Méndez-Sánchez, D.; Mayén-Estrada, R.; Luo, X.; Hu, X.

A new subspecies of Oxytricha granulifera (Hypotrichia: Oxytrichidae) from Mexico, with notes on its morphogenesis and phylogenetic position Journal Article

In: Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology, vol. 65, iss. 3, pp. 357-361, 2018.

Links | BibTeX

Méndez-Sánchez, D.; Sánchez-Nava, P.; Mayén-Estrada, R.

Free-living ciliates from a perturbed marsh in Central Mexico: some notes about taxonomy and ecology. Journal Article

In: Protistology, vol. 12, iss. 4, pp. 173-184, 2018.

BibTeX