Using full-genomic data to assess niche-width in wild fish populations

我的研究解决了在大多数动物和植物种群中发现的不同基因型组合在多大程度上是对个体生活史差异的功能适应。这是一个知之甚少的进化过程的基本组成部分，很大程度上是因为整个基因组的遗传标记的鉴定直到最近才得以实现。我目前的申请利用了最近的三刺棘鱼全基因组测序来评估野生种群的遗传变异，并支持培训4个荣誉，2个硕士，1个博士和1个博士后职位，包括野外协议，形态计量学，饮食分析，稳定同位素技术，基因组学和统计方法。我们将使用来自不列颠哥伦比亚省海达瓜伊的经过充分研究的棘鱼进行两个补充项目。第一项研究通过整合不同的体型、防御装甲、营养特征、性别、饮食和寄生虫，以及物理和化学参数，利用全基因组标记，评估了生态位专业化的程度。第二个项目是对来自我的29个远程研究种群的57条棘鱼的全基因组序列进行分析，这些种群跨越了很短的地理距离，在整个物种中具有很大的形态和生态多样性，并且在很大程度上代表了来自海洋祖先的独立和复制的殖民事件，包括湖溪物种对。将形态计量学、生活史和理化性状与全基因组数据整合在一起，这在以前是没有尝试过的。与表型或生态性状相关的可预测的遗传标记可以提供对这些基因在其他脊椎动物中如何起作用的见解。如果我们的研究结果能够在这些偏远的、未受干扰的栖息地中证明基因型特异性生态位，这将极大地促进我们对基本进化和生态过程以及保护政策的理解。

My research addresses the extent to which the diverse assemblage of genotypes found within most animal and plant populations are functional adaptations to differences in individual life histories. This is a poorly understood yet fundamental component of evolutionary processes largely because the identification of genetic markers across the entire genome has been unavailable until recently. My current application takes advantage of the recent full-genome sequencing of the threespine stickleback to evaluate genetic variability in wild populations and supports the training of 4 Honours, 2 MSc, 1 PhD and 1 Post-doc position in field protocols, morphometrics, dietary analyses, stable isotope techniques, genomics and statistical methods. We will be using the well-studied stickleback from Haida Gwaii, British Columbia, for two complementary projects. The first assesses the extent of niche-specialization by integrating different body shapes, defense armour, trophic traits, sex, diet, and parasites, as well as physical and chemical parameters with genome-wide markers in each of two previously investigated lake populations. The second project is analyses of whole-genome sequences of 57 stickleback from 29 of my remote study populations, which span, over short geographical distances, much of the morphological and ecological diversity in the entire species and which largely represent independent and replicated colonization events from marine ancestors including lake-stream species pairs. Such integration of morphometrics, life histories and physiochemical traits with full genome data has not been attempted before. Genetic markers that differ predictably in relation to phenotype or ecological traits may provide insight into how these genes function in other vertebrates. If our results demonstrate genotype-specific niches within and among these remote and undisturbed habitats, this will substantially advance our understanding of basic evolutionary and ecological processes and conservation policy.