2012

Karlin D & Belshaw R. Detecting remote sequence homology in disordered proteins: discovery of conserved motifs in the N-termini of Mononegavirales phosphoproteins. PLoS ONE In press

2011

Belshaw R, Sanjuan R, & Pybus OG. Viral mutation and substitution: units and levels. Current Opinion in Virology 1:430-435

2010

Sanjuán R, Nebot MR, Chirico N, Mansky LM, & Belshaw R. Viral mutation rates. Journal of Virology 84:9733-48 PubMed Dataset

Chirico N, Vianelli A & Belshaw R. Why genes overlap in viruses. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London  B. 277:3809-17 PubMed

Belshaw R. What is special about RNA viruses? Trends in Ecology and Evolution 25: 264-265 [Review of Eddie Holmes's The Evolution and Emergence of RNA Viruses] pdf

2009

Belshaw R, de Oliviera T, Markowitz S & Rambaut A. The RNA Virus Database. Nucleic Acids Research 37:D431-D435 PubMed

2008

Belshaw R, Gardner A, Rambaut A & Pybus OG. Pacing a small cage: mutation and RNA viruses. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 23:188-193 PubMed

Armitage AE, Katzourakis A, de Oliveira T, Welch JJ, Belshaw R, Bishop KN, Kramer B, McMichael AJ, Rambaut A, Iversen AKN Conserved footprints of APOBEC3G on hypermutated HIV-1 and HERV-K(HML2) sequences. Journal of Virology 82: 8743-8761 PubMed

2007

Belshaw R, Pybus OG & Rambaut A. The evolution of genome compression and genomic novelty in RNA viruses. Genome Research 17:1496-1504 PubMed

Belshaw R, Watson J, Katzourakis A, Howe A, Woolven-Allen J, Burt A & Tristem M. Rate of recombinational deletion among human endogenous retroviruses. Journal of Virology 81:9437-9442 PubMed

Pybus OG, Rambaut A, Belshaw R, Freckleton RP, Drummond AJ & Holmes EC. Phylogenetic evidence for deleterious mutation load in RNA viruses and its contribution to viral evolution. Molecular Biology & Evolution 24:845-852 PubMed

2006

Belshaw R & Bensasson D. The rise and falls of introns. Heredity 96, 208-213 PubMed

2005

Belshaw R, Dawson A, Woolven-Allen J, Redding J, Burt A & Tristem M. Genomewide screening reveals high levels of insertional polymorphism in the human endogenous retrovirus family HERV-K(HML2): implications for present day activity. Journal of Virology 79:12507-12514 PubMed

Belshaw R, Katzourakis A, Paces J, Burt A & Tristem M. High copy number in human endogenous retrovirus families is associated with copying mechanisms in addition to reinfection. Molecular Biology & Evolution 22:814-817 PubMed

Belshaw R & Katzourakis A. BlastAlign: a program that uses blast to align problematic nucleotide sequences. Bioinformatics 21:122-123 PubMed

2004

Belshaw R, Pereira V, Katzourakis A, Talbot G, Paces J, Burt A & Tristem M. Long-term reinfection of the human genome by endogenous retroviruses. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA 101:4894-4899 PubMed

Veen, F.J.F. van, Belshaw, R. & Godfray, H.C.J. (2003) The value of the ITS2 region for the identification of species boundaries between Alloxysta hyperparasitoids (Hymenoptera: Charipidae) of aphids. European Journal of Entomology. 100: 449-453.

Belshaw, R., Grafen, A. & Quicke D.L.J. (2003) Inferring life history from ovipositor morphology in parasitoid wasps using phylogenetic regression and discriminant analysis. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 139: 213-228.

Belshaw, R. & Quicke D.L.J. (2003) The cytogenetics of thelytoky in a predominantly asexual parasitoid wasp with covert sex. Genome 46: 170-173. PubMed

Manzari, S., Polaszek, A., Belshaw, R. & Quicke, D.L.J. (2002) Morphometric and molecular analysis of the Encarsia inaron species-group (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae), parasitoids of whiteflies (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae). Bulletin of Entomological Research 92: 165-175. PubMed

Dowton, M., Belshaw, R., Austin, A.D.  & Quicke, D.L.J. (2002) Simultaneous molecular and morphological analysis of braconid relationships (Insecta: Hymenoptera: Braconidae) indicates independent mt-tRNA gene inversions within a single wasp family. Journal of Molecular Evolution 54: 210-226. PubMed

Belshaw, R. & Quicke, D.L.J. (2002) Robustness of ancestral state estimates: evolution of life history strategy in ichneumonoid parasitoids. Systematic Biology 51: 450-477. PubMed

Belshaw, R., Lopez-Vaamonde, C., Degerli, N. & Quicke, D.L.J. (2001) Paraphyletic taxa and taxonomic chaining: evaluating the classification of braconine wasps (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) using 28S D2-3 rDNA sequences and morphological characters. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 73: 411-424.

Sanchis, A., Michelena, J.M., Latorre, A., Quicke, D.L.J., Gärdenfors, U. & Belshaw, R. (2001) The phylogenetic analysis of variable length sequence data: elongation factor – 1 introns in European populations of the parasitoid wasp Pauesia (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Aphidiinae). Molecular Biology and Evolution 18: 1117-1131. PubMed

Belshaw, R., Dowton. M., Quicke, D.L.J. & Austin, A.D. (2000) Estimating ancestral geographic distributions: a Gondwanan origin for aphid parasitoids? Proceedings of the Royal Society (Series B) 267: 491-496. PubMed

Basibüyük, H., Bardakci, F., Belshaw, R. & Quicke, D.L.J. (2000) Phylogenetic Systematics: a Guide to Theory and Practice. Cumhuriyet University Press, Sivas, Turkey. 134pp.

Dolphin, K, Belshaw, R., Orme, C.D.L. & Quicke, D.L.J. (2000) Noise and incongruence: interpreting results of the Incongruence Length Difference Test. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 17: 401-406. PubMed

Laurenne, N.M., Belshaw, R., Broad, G. & Quicke, D.L.J. (2000) Molecular confirmation of host records for ichneumonoid parasitoids of wood-boring beetle larvae. Journal of Hymenoptera Research 9: 241-245.

Belshaw, R. Quicke, D.L.J. Völkl, W. & Godfray, H.C.J. (1999) Molecular markers indicate rare sex in a predominantly asexual parasitoid wasp. Evolution 53: 1189-1199.

Quicke, D.L.J. & Belshaw, R. (1999) Incongruence between morphological data sets: an example from the evolution of endoparasitism among parasitic wasps (Hymenoptera: Braconidae). Systematic Biology 48: 436-454.

Quicke, D.L.J., Belshaw, R. & Lopez-Vaamonde, C. (1999) Preservation of hymenopteran specimens for subsequent molecular and morphological study. Zoologica Scripta 28: 261-267.

Quicke, D.L.J., Lopez-Vaamonde, C. & Belshaw, R. (1999) The basal Ichneumonidae (Insecta: Hymenoptera): 28S D2 rDNA considerations of the Brachycyrtinae, Labeninae, Paxylommatinae and Xoridinae. Zoologica Scripta 28: 203-210.

Müller, C.B., Adriaanse, I.C.T., Belshaw, R. & Godfray, H.C.J. (1999) The structure of an aphid-parasitoid community. Journal of Animal Ecology 68: 346-370.

Belshaw, R., Fitton, M., Herniou, E., Gimeno, C. & Quicke, D.L.J. (1998) A phylogenetic reconstruction of the Ichneumonoidea (Hymenoptera) based on the D2 variable region of 28S ribosomal RNA. Systematic Entomology 23: 109-123.

Belshaw, R. & Quicke, D.L.J. (1997) A molecular phylogeny of the Aphidiinae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 7: 281-293. PubMed

Gimeno, C., Belshaw, R. & Quicke, D.L.J. (1997) Phylogenetic relationships of the Alysiinae/Opiinae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) and the utility of cytochrome b, 16S and 28S D2 rRNA. Insect Molecular Biology 6: 273-284. PubMed

Belshaw, R. (1994) Life history characteristics of Tachinidae (Diptera) and their effect on polyphagy. In: Parasitoid Community Ecology (B.A. Hawkins & W. Sheehan, eds) pp. 145-162. Oxford University Press.

Belshaw, R. & Bolton, B. (1994) A new myrmecine ant genus from cocoa leaf litter in Ghana (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Journal of Natural History 28: 631-634.

Belshaw, R. & Bolton, B. (1994) A survey of the leaf litter ant fauna in Ghana, West Africa (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Journal of Hymenoptera Research 3: 5-16.

Belshaw, R. (1993) Tachinid flies (Diptera: Tachinidae). Royal Entomological Society of London.

Bolton, B. & Belshaw, R. (1993) Taxonomy and biology of the supposedly lestobiotic ant genus Paedalgus (Hym.: Formicidae). Systematic Entomology 18: 181-189.

Eggleton, P. & Belshaw, R. (1993) Comparisons of dipteran, hymenopteran and coleopteran parasitoids: provisional phylogenetic explanations. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 48: 213-226.

Belshaw, R. (1993) Malaise traps and Tachinidae (Diptera): a study of sampling efficiency. The Entomologist 112: 49-54.

Belshaw, R. & Bolton, B. (1993) The effect of forest disturbance on the leaf litter ant community in Ghana. Biodiversity and Conservation 2: 656-666.

Hollier, J.A. & Belshaw, R. (1993) Stratification and phenology of a woodland Neuroptera assemblage. The Entomologist 112: 169-175.

Belshaw, R. (1992) Tachinid (Diptera) assemblages in habitats of a secondary succession in southern Britain. The Entomologist 111: 151-161.

Eggleton, P. & Belshaw, R. (1992) Insect parasitoids: an evolutionary overview. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London (Series B) 337: 1-20.

Hollier, J.A. & Belshaw, R. (1992) Changes in Neuroptera assemblages in an old field succession in southern Britain. The Entomologist 111: 187-194.

Belshaw, R. (1989). A note on the recovery of Thoracochaeta zosterae (Haliday) (Diptera: Sphaeroceridae) from archaeological deposits. Circaea 6: 39-41.

Room E110

Department of Zoology

University of Oxford

South Parks Road

Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK

Phone: +44 1865 281997

(Email)

I study the evolution of viruses and selfish genetic elements, two groups that come together in endogenous retroviruses or ERVs (retroviruses that have integrated into the germline of their host and are then inherited vertically). Currently I am investigating whether or not the human population harbours active ERVs, and how often – and in what manner – ERVs transfer between their hosts. Other projects include investigating how new viral genes are acquired. My work is computer based and I collaborate with experimental virologists, chiefly here and at Imperial College London. I have also built, with collaborators, the RNA Virus Database to provide aligned genomes for all RNA virus species, and to serve as a hub for more specialised virus web sites.

This includes how to build simple models of disease outbreaks, e.g. determining the critical immunisation threshold in an SIR model. My teaching materials are available here and I would welcome feedback from users.

I also tutor at Brasenose College and am an academic editor for the journal PLoS ONE.