Dissertation Research: Population Genetics of Drosophila Pseudoobscura Segmental Duplications

How natural selection, genetic recombination, and genome structure affect the evolution of recently duplicated genes in Drosophila pseudoobscura will be examined using DNA sequences from natural populations and other species. Rates of evolution between duplicates will be compared; unequal rates would suggest that gene duplicates are under different selective regimes. Multiple individuals will be assayed for the frequency of the duplications to test whether the recent duplications have rapidly increased in frequency due to selection. Statistical tests will be used to detect signatures of natural selection and genetic recombination in the sequences of the duplications. Duplications on different chromosomes (one inverted and one non-inverted) will be studied to determine what role genome rearrangements play in the early evolution of duplicated genes.

Gene duplication is an important evolutionary mechanism that can lead to the evolution of genes with new functions. The availability of genome data from closely related species has exposed numerous gene duplications at various stages in the evolutionary process. This study represents one of the first attempts to gain insights into the early stages of the evolution of duplicated genes. Undergraduate students will be given the opportunity to participate in data collection, and they will learn valuable molecular techniques such as PCR, gel electrophoresis, and DNA sequencing.