Dissertation Research: Polyploidy and Androgenesis in the Invasive Clam Genus Corbicula

两种亚洲蛤被引入北美。这些蛤有一种不寻常的无性交配系统，所有的后代都是父亲的克隆体。在交配过程中，精子会使卵子排出母体的整个基因组——本质上是寄生在卵子上。物种之间的竞争实验将决定一个物种是否能够通过寄生在另一个物种身上而通过美国河流传播。在所有的亚洲蛤中，有几种是无性繁殖的，而其余的则是有性繁殖的。DNA序列数据分析将揭示亚洲蛤有性和无性物种基因的异同。这些比较将用于确定有性繁殖物种的寄生是否导致这种无性交配系统传播给新物种。一旦在一个地区定居，亚洲蛤就会变得非常丰富，这会堵塞进水管道，给工业带来问题。它们还在南部的河流和小溪中取代了美洲本土淡水双壳类动物，从而导致了它们的减少。这些实验的结果将有助于为控制方法的发展提供信息。此外，这项研究将增加科学家对驱使无性行为取代有性生殖的原因的理解。

Two species of Asian clams have been introduced into North America. These clams have an unusual asexual mating system in which all offspring are clones of the father. During mating, sperm will cause the egg to eject the entire maternal genome-essentially parasitizing the egg. Competition experiments between species will determine whether one species has been able to spread through US rivers by parasitizing the other. Across all Asian clams, several species have this type of asexuality, while the rest reproduce sexually. Analysis of DNA sequence data will reveal similarities and differences between genes of sexual and asexual species of Asian clams. These comparisons will be used to determine whether parasitism of sexually reproducing species caused this asexual mating system to spread to new species.Asian clams can become extremely abundant once established in an area, causing problems for industry by clogging water intake pipes. They also contribute to the decline of native American freshwater bivalves by displacing them in southern rivers and creeks. The outcome of these experiments will help provide information for the development of control methods. In addition, this research will increase scientists' understanding of what drives asexuality to replace sexual reproduction.