Molecular Genetic Studies of Bdelloid Rotifers

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This project will investigate genome structure and its evolution in rotifers of the Class Bdelloidea, an extraordinary group of invertebrate animals that appears to have evolved for tens of millions of years without sexual reproduction. In particular, the project will: (i) initiate the basic characterization of bdelloid genomes; (ii) examine specific genes for the occurrence of genetic recombination within a bdelloid genome; (iii) determine the genomic consequences of long-term ameiotic evolution; and (iv) possibly discover novel features of bdelloid genomes that might provide insight into what has allowed bdelloid rotifers to evolve successfully without genetic exchange, and, correspondingly, what causes most other populations of animals and plants that become asexual to suffer early extinction - a long-standing fundamental problem in biology.