A Genomic Experiment to Determine the Nature of Epistasis in Mimulus Guttatus

生物体最有趣的特征，包括那些对农业和人类健康都最重要的特征，通常是那些不断变化的特征，比如身高或体重。这些性状的变异既受基因影响，也受环境影响。遗传因素是复杂的，涉及许多不同遗传位点的相互作用。基因座相互作用影响性状的方式，即上位性，在很大程度上是未知的。拟议的实验将详细描述模式植物猴花(Mimulus Guttatus)的上位性。这种野花在花形态、发育时间和雄性健康成分方面表现出很大的遗传变异。上位性影响这些特征中的每一个，但尚不清楚相互作用是否涉及影响方向的变化。当与其他基因座上的不同等位基因组合时，在一个遗传背景中增加性状值的等位基因会降低性状值吗？这个问题的答案对一系列领域的基础研究和应用研究都有明显的影响。这些领域包括进化生物学、自然资源保护、医学和农业。这个问题将通过应用最近从NSF综合生物研究前沿(FIBR)拨款中开发的基因组工具来解决。拟议中的研究也有教育成分，特别侧重于为美洲原住民学生准备生物学方面的高级研究。

The most interesting characteristics of organisms, including those most important for both agriculture and human health, are usually ones that vary continuously like height or weight. Variation in such traits is influenced by both genes and environments. The genetic contribution is complex, involving the interaction of many different genetic loci. The ways that loci interact to influence traits, epistasis, is largely unknown. The proposed experiments will provide a detailed description of epistasis in the model plant monkeyflower (Mimulus guttatus). This wildflower exhibits substantial genetic variation in floral morphology, development time, and male fitness components. Epistasis influences each of these traits, but it is unclear whether interactions involve changes in the direction of effects. Does an allele that increases trait values in one genetic background reduce trait values when combined with a different constellation of alleles at other loci? The answer to this question has clear implications for both basic and applied studies in a range of fields. These include evolutionary biology, conservation, medicine, and agriculture. The question will be addressed by applying genomic tools recently developed from an NSF Frontiers in Integrative Biological Research (FIBR) grant. The proposed studies also have an educational component, with a specific focus on preparing Native American students for advanced studies in biology.