Defining the Molecular Targets of Evolution

随着下一代测序技术的重大进步，我们现在拥有数百种脊椎动物的基因组，但了解这些基因组中的差异和相似之处如何控制物种多样性在很大程度上是未知的。袋狼和狗在头骨形状上的相似性，加上它们的深厚祖先，在1.6亿多年前最后一次分享共同的祖先，为在DNA水平上研究进化是如何工作的提供了一个前所未有的机会。这项提议将确定发育出相同头骨形状的动物是否也显示出相同的DNA变化。这些发现将定义新的发育基因，并解释选择、适应和进化是如何在DNA水平上发挥作用的。

With significant advances in next-generation sequencing technologies we now have the genomes of hundreds vertebrate species, but understanding how the differences and similarities within these genomes control species diversity is largely unknown. The similarity in skull shape between the thylacine and dogs coupled with their deep ancestry, having last shared a common ancestor over 160 million years ago, provides an unprecedented opportunity to examine how evolution works at the DNA level. This proposal will determine if animals that develop identical skull shapes, also show identical changes in their DNA. The findings will define new developmental genes and explain how selection, adaptation and evolution works at the DNA level.