RUI: Characterization of coevolution, adaptation, and diversification in a model microbial mutualism

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The claws of a tiger and camouflage of its prey are examples of adaptations that each species acquired in response to challenges imposed by the other in a process called coevolution. While coevolution of such antagonists has been studied extensively, less research has focused on mutually beneficial (mutualist) interactions between species. In this research, the coevolution of a mutualistic interaction from its origin through 2000 generations of evolution in the laboratory will be studied. Coevolution in 22 communities of the microbial species Desulfovibrio vulgaris and Methanococcus maripaludis will be characterized by pairing each mutualist with its past and future evolutionary partners, with partners from independently-evolved mutualisms, and by comparison to non-mutualistic controls. Mutations in coevolved and control populations will be identified by genome sequencing to determine the molecular signatures of coevolution. This project will give undergraduates experience planning, performing, and analyzing original research. It will also establish a culture of undergraduate research in the new school of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics at University of Washington, Bothell. The results will increase understanding and control of methane production, a greenhouse gas and biofuel.