Doctoral Dissertation Research: Socio-genomic Evolution of Primates

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In this doctoral dissertation project, the investigator will use whole genome sequencing to examine how genetic networks encompassing hundreds of genes involved in regulating social behavior have evolved across sifakas, a behaviorally and ecologically diverse group of lemurs. This research will provide new insights about the genomic contributions to social behavioral evolution, and advance knowledge about the complex interplay of genetics, ecology, and the social environment in shaping primate behavior. The project may inform public health research, as some genetic pathways investigated in this project have also been implicated in the development and expression of various psychiatric illnesses. The project will also support primate conservation efforts, research and training opportunities, and research infrastructure at the study locations. The investigator will make all of their data publicly available, thereby providing additional research opportunities beyond the scope of this project. Many previous studies into the influences of genetics on social behavior have focused on examining single or few candidate genes and often only protein-coding portions of those genes. Here the researchers will take a whole genome sequencing approach to holistically examine the evolution of genomic regions involved in the development and expression of social behavior (i.e. "sociogenomic" regions) in sifakas. The researchers will generate a whole genome sequence for each of the eight sifaka species without a current reference genome. They will also sequence a woolly lemur individual to be able to identify genetic sequences that are unique to sifakas. Subsequently, they will subset the whole genome sequences to sociogenomic regions and examine their evolution. The researchers will specifically examine: (1) Whether sociogenomic regions have been significantly conserved across sifakas, indicative of evolutionary constraint (2) Evidence of selection acting on protein-coding portions of sociogenomic regions relative to differences in sifaka social and ecological environments and (3) The presence of accelerated evolution occurring in regions potentially involved in regulating the expression of sociogenomic genes.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.