Ecology and Evolution of Genetic Systems

生态学和遗传系统的进化

• 批准号: RGPIN-2015-05892
• 负责人: Husband, Brian
• 金额: $ 2.91万
• 依托单位: University of Guelph
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2016
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2016-01-01 至 2017-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=613807
• 关键词: Ecology; Evolution; Genetic; Systems

My research program explores the ecology and genetics of plant populations; i.e., how interactions in the environment, including human activity, influence genetic changes in populations over time and, conversely, how evolutionary processes and genetic diversity affect population growth and extinction. These processes are the basis for understanding and managing our influence on other species, building sustainable food sources, controlling invasive species, and conserving species at risk. My specific expertise is on the function and evolution of reproductive processes such as mating, hybridization, and polyploidy. These characteristics are highly variable among organisms, and have direct effects on population size, growth and genetic change. In this proposal, I focus on the causes and consequences of variation in ploidy, or the number of genome copies per nucleus. Ploidy variation is found among cells of multicellular organisms (gametes, tumours), and variation among species is widespread and associated with large shifts in their function, ecology and evolution. We will develop a more complete understanding of why polyploidy is so prevalent in some organisms, but not others, by investigating its affects on the formation of new species and adaptation to changing environments. We will examine the primary mechanism by which new polyploids are formed, i.e. through unreduced (2n) gametes. This trait may not be expressed readily in all species and may be induced only in certain environments. We will also examine the interactions between newly formed polyploids and their environments to determine what conditions enable them to establish. Novel to the study of polyploid population biology, we capitalize on newly synthesized polyploids from natural diploids in three different species, which allows us to observe the fate of polyploids in the earliest stages of evolution. We will investigate the broad hypothesis that genome multiplications can influence and possibly accelerate adaptation and species proliferation. Collectively, our proposal will provide a critical ecological &evolutionary context within which to interpret the explosion of genomic, medical and phylogenetic research on ploidy.

我的研究项目是探索植物种群的生态学和遗传学；例如，环境中的相互作用，包括人类活动，如何随着时间的推移影响种群的遗传变化，反过来，进化过程和遗传多样性如何影响种群的增长和灭绝。这些过程是理解和管理我们对其他物种的影响、建立可持续的食物来源、控制入侵物种和保护濒危物种的基础。我的专长是