Partial Selfing and the Genetic Basis of Mating System Variation

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Variation in mating systems is one of the primary determinants of the pattern of genetic variation within plant and animal populations. The cause of these differences, both in terms of proximate genetic changes and ultimate ecological outcomes, is almost completely unknown except in a few specialized cases. This project aims to undercover the genetic basis of mating system variation within the well-studied nematode model system, Caenorhabditis elegans, and to use this information together with predictions from theoretical models to investigate how changing levels of mutational input affect the transition between different forms of sexual reproduction. Mating system genetics will be assessed using high throughput functional genomic approaches, and the predictions will be tested experimentally using direct genetic manipulation of mutation rate and an individual's propensity to produce male offspring.This research should further our understanding of the mechanisms responsible for generating the tremendous variation in mating systems in both plants and animals. The processes studied here are fundamental to describing variation and change in agricultural and natural systems, especially in endangered species of plants and animals. Nematodes themselves are one of the most numerous, yet understudied, groups of organisms on earth and are important animal and plant pathogens.