Doctoral Dissertation Research: Using natural hybridization to investigate patterns of primate gene regulation

基因调控影响基因在生物体中表达的时间、地点和数量。这个博士论文项目将研究DNA甲基化(DNA上影响基因表达水平的化学标记)在不同物种中的变化，以更好地了解DNA甲基化的变化如何影响基因表达，DNA甲基化在不同物种之间的差异，以及自然选择在这一过程中的作用。特定基因表达方式的差异被认为是解释灵长类物种之间许多差异的重要原因，包括一些人类谱系独有的特征。因此，关于基因调控和表达的新数据可以帮助推进对我们自己物种发展的了解。该项目将支持学生在K-12、本科生和研究生水平的培训和指导，以及使用基因组方法开发和传播跨学科方法，这些方法可以应用于其他一些研究领域。该项目将通过利用来自肯尼亚野生狒狒种群的150只成年狒狒的遗传混合来调查遗传祖先对DNA甲基化的影响。混合个体(祖先来自两个不同但密切相关的分类群的狒狒)提供了测试不同祖先的基因变异在共同环境中如何影响DNA甲基化的机会。此外，由于研究人群受到了最近和历史上的混合事件的影响，它可以用来检验关于古人与现代人混合的遗产的假设。最后，这个项目将询问物种间DNA甲基化的差异是否转化为基因表达的变化，测试将DNA甲基化与性状变异联系起来的模型的一个重要假设。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Gene regulation affects when, where, and how much a gene is expressed in an organism. This doctoral dissertation project will study changes in DNA methylation (a chemical mark on DNA that influences gene expression levels) in different baboon species, to better understand how changes in DNA methylation affect gene expression, how DNA methylation has diverged between species, and the role of natural selection in this process. Differences in how particular genes are expressed are thought to be important in explaining many differences among primate species, including some traits that are unique to the human lineage. Novel data on gene regulation and expression can therefore help to advance knowledge about the development of our own species. The project will support student training and mentoring at the K-12, undergraduate, and graduate levels, and the development and dissemination of interdisciplinary approaches using genomic methods that can be applied to a number of other fields of study.This project will investigate the effects of genetic ancestry on DNA methylation by leveraging genetic admixture in 150 adult baboons from a wild baboon population in Kenya. Admixed individuals (baboons with ancestry from two distinct but closely related taxa) provide the opportunity to test how genetic variation from different ancestries influences DNA methylation when placed in a common environment. Furthermore, because the study population has been affected by both recent and historical admixture events, it can be used to test hypotheses about the legacy of archaic hominin admixture with modern humans. Finally, this project will ask whether between-species differences in DNA methylation translate to changes in gene expression, testing an important assumption of models that link DNA methylation to trait variation.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.