COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH: A Novel Phylogenetic Approach to the Analysis of Bat Phylogenetics and Morphological Evolution

即使是今天最广泛的分类群，在遥远的过去也是作为单一物种的多样化而产生的，其后代沿着自己的进化道路前进。 虽然这些古老的多样化永远不会被直接观察到，但可以研究导致今天存在的分类群辐射的模式和过程。 因此，为了真正了解生命之树是如何形成的，必须找到在较低分类水平上分析全基因组数据的方法。该研究将通过将新的高通量测序技术与现代进化分析相结合来实现这一目标。 这种方法的潜力将探讨通过将其应用到一个困难的问题-在新大陆的蝙蝠属鼠耳蝠的代表的形态进化的系统关系和模式的决议。 然而，虽然这项工作的重点是一个单一的蝙蝠属，该方法将广泛适用于任何分类组，其中反转录转座子（自我扩增，基因组中的中性遗传元件）已在感兴趣的辐射过程中活跃。 待开发的方法在提供足够可变以解析快速辐射的标记物方面具有巨大潜力，同时也易于分析。此外，由于这种方法预计相对便宜，预计它将被证明对专注于解决密切相关物种之间关系的小型实验室具有吸引力。生物学多个分支学科的整合经常被讨论，但很少实现。 该项目代表了一个独特的尝试，整合现代计算生物学工具，使用基因组水平的数据和完善的形态分析。 该项目将通过积累组织，皮肤和骨骼材料，填补鼠耳蝠属和非目标类群成员的空白，为科学基础设施做出贡献。这些材料将存放在一个公共存放处（自然历史博物馆，路易斯安那州立大学），并将永久提供给科学界。最后，教育和推广到当地社区将基于一个有魅力的分类群体的调查，并将改善两个传统上欠发达国家的研究和教育。

Even today's broadest taxonomic groups originated in the distant past as diversifications of single species, the progeny of which then proceeded along their own evolutionary paths. While these ancient diversifications will never be observed directly, patterns and processes leading to radiations of taxa that exist today can be studied. Thus, in order to truly understand how the tree of life came to be, ways to analyze genome-wide data at lower taxonomic levels must be found. The research will address this goal by integrating new, high throughput sequencing technologies with modern evolutionary analyses. The potential of this method will be explored by applying it to a difficult problem - the resolution of systematic relationships and patterns of morphological evolution in New World representatives of the bat genus Myotis. However, while the focus of this work is a single bat genus, the method will be broadly applicable to any taxonomic group in which retrotransposons (self-amplifying, neutral genetic elements in the genome) have been active during the radiation of interest. The methods to be developed have great potential in providing markers that are variable enough to resolve rapid radiations, while also being straightforward to analyze. Moreover, because this methodology is expected to be relatively inexpensive, it is anticipated that it will prove appealing to small labs that focus on resolving relationships among closely related species. The integration of multiple subdisciplines of Biology is often discussed but rarely realized. This project represents a unique attempt to integrate modern computational biological tools using genome level data and well established morphometric analyses. This project will contribute to the infrastructure of science by amassing tissue, skin and skeletal material that will fill gaps in terms of members of the genus Myotis and nontarget taxa. These materials will be deposited in a public repository (Museum of Natural History, LSU) and will be available in perpetuity to the scientific community. Finally, education and outreach to the local communities will be based on the investigation of a charismatic taxonomic group and will improve research and education in two traditionally underdeveloped states.