U.S.-Austria Cooperative Research on Population Genetic Models for Symbiont-Induced Speciation and Coevolution

该奖项为华盛顿州立大学的迈克尔·E·穆迪教授前往奥地利维也纳大学的休假访问提供了部分支持，目的是与数学研究所的莱因哈德·比尔格教授和其他数学遗传学专家合作。他们都对研究种群遗传学基本问题的数学方法感兴趣。他们将开发数学模型，以更准确地检查关于一种物种形成机制的定性理论中所隐含的群体遗传学。具体地说，他们建议测试一种理论，即共生体诱导的物种形成可能是沿着环境梯度的栖息地之间不同的共适应造成的。这种梯度可能会导致共同进化相互作用的不同结果。穆迪教授拥有丰富的经验，通过分析地理结构群体中单个基因座的基因流动来模拟群体遗传学问题，如共同进化和群体结构。维也纳大学有几名教员，他们在数学遗传学方面拥有各种互补的专业知识，包括多基因座模型。生物进化最引人注目的方面是物种向地球各个角落观察到的各种形式的辐射。了解物种进化是达尔文原创理论的目标，直到今天，阐明物种形成的机制仍然是进化生物学的中心挑战。几种猜测之一是，物种之间的共同进化可能直接促进物种形成；共生体与它们的宿主之间的相互作用是一种可能的机制。然而，共生菌诱导物种形成的遗传和生态条件还知之甚少。拟议的合作研究应该为共生体诱导的物种形成的遗传后果提供理论见解，从而有助于更好地理解进化分歧。

This award provides partial support for a sabbatical visit by Professor Michael E. Moody of Washington State University to the University of Vienna, Austria, to collaborate with Professor Reinhard Buerger of the Institute of Mathematics and other experts in mathematical genetics. They share an interest in the mathematical approaches to examining fundamental problems in population genetics. They will develop mathematical models to examine more precisely the population genetics implicit in a qualitative theory concerning the mechanism of one type of speciation. Specifically, they propose to test the theory that symbiont-induced speciation could result from differential coadaptation between habitats along an environmental gradient. Such a gradient could give rise to alternative outcomes of the coevolutionary interaction. Professor Moody has considerable experience modeling population genetics problems such as coevolution and population structure through analysis of gene flow at a single locus in geographically structured populations. The University of Vienna has several faculty possessing a variety of complementary expertise in mathematical genetics, including multi-locus models. The most striking aspect of biological evolution is the radiation of species into the vast array of forms observed in every corner of the earth. Understanding species evolution was the goal of Darwin's original theory, and, to this day, elucidating the mechanisms of speciation remains the central challenge of evolutionary biology. One of several conjectures is that coevolution between species may contribute directly to speciation; the interaction between symbionts and their hosts is one likely mechanism. However, the genetic and ecological conditions under which symbiont-induced speciation will occur are poorly understood. The proposed collaborative research should provide theoretical insights into the genetic consequences of symbiont-induced speciation and therefore contribute toward improved understanding of evolutionary divergence.