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

两种亚洲蛤已被引入北美。 这些蛤蜊有一个不寻常的无性交配系统，其中所有的后代都是父亲的克隆。 在交配过程中，精子会导致卵子排出整个母体基因组--基本上是寄生在卵子上。 物种之间的竞争实验将确定一个物种是否能够通过寄生另一个物种在美国河流中传播。 在所有的亚洲蛤蜊中，有几个物种具有这种类型的无性恋，而其余的则进行有性繁殖。 DNA序列数据的分析将揭示亚洲蛤有性和无性物种基因之间的相似性和差异。 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到新物种。亚洲蛤一旦在一个地区定居，可能会变得非常丰富，堵塞取水管道，给工业带来问题。 它们还通过取代南部河流和小溪中的美洲原住民淡水双壳贝类而导致其数量下降。 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是什么驱使无性生殖取代有性生殖的理解。

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.