How are visual gene pathways lost and restored during reptile evolution? This project aims to investigate how complex traits are lost during evolution, and once lost if they can be regained. The project will use the diverse visual systems of snakes and lizards to shed light on the process of gene loss in degenerative lineages, and discover the mechanisms that compensate for gene losses in taxa with secondarily evolved visual capabilities- providing a case of evolutionary re-innovation in complex ....How are visual gene pathways lost and restored during reptile evolution? This project aims to investigate how complex traits are lost during evolution, and once lost if they can be regained. The project will use the diverse visual systems of snakes and lizards to shed light on the process of gene loss in degenerative lineages, and discover the mechanisms that compensate for gene losses in taxa with secondarily evolved visual capabilities- providing a case of evolutionary re-innovation in complex traits.Read moreRead less
Experimental co-evolution of Yeast and E. coli. This project aims to measure the rates and genetic mechanisms of adaptation for individual species within a microbial community. Expected outcomes of this interdisciplinary project include the first genomic and phenotypic dataset of a model microbial community, and novel tools for the analysis of meta-genomic datasets. This project has the potential to transform understanding of microbial adaptation.
Why does the genetic nearly-null subspace exist? This project aims to determine why nearly-null genetic subspaces exist by simultaneously measuring the input of new mutational variance in these nearly-null subspaces and the selection that acts on these new mutations to result in the observed low levels of standing genetic variance. The ability of organisms to evolve in response to human disturbance, translocation to new environments, or climate variation is governed by the availability of geneti ....Why does the genetic nearly-null subspace exist? This project aims to determine why nearly-null genetic subspaces exist by simultaneously measuring the input of new mutational variance in these nearly-null subspaces and the selection that acts on these new mutations to result in the observed low levels of standing genetic variance. The ability of organisms to evolve in response to human disturbance, translocation to new environments, or climate variation is governed by the availability of genetic variation. Recent advances in multivariate genetic analysis have demonstrated that a substantial proportion of a phenotype described by quantitative traits has very little genetic variance associated with it, and will therefore tend to be subjected to evolutionary limitsRead moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE200101019
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$414,331.00
Summary
Mechanisms determining ecological resilience to climate change. This project aims to improve our understanding of the evolutionary mechanisms by which organisms adapt to climate change, and how this may lead to ecological resilience. It will test how rapid adaptation can occur in response to stressful environments predicted under climate change scenarios. By understanding the genetic mechanisms by which organisms adapt to environmental stresses, we can better forecast the effects of climate cha ....Mechanisms determining ecological resilience to climate change. This project aims to improve our understanding of the evolutionary mechanisms by which organisms adapt to climate change, and how this may lead to ecological resilience. It will test how rapid adaptation can occur in response to stressful environments predicted under climate change scenarios. By understanding the genetic mechanisms by which organisms adapt to environmental stresses, we can better forecast the effects of climate change on natural systems. Expected outcomes include an improved ability to make informed conservation and management decisions, with resulting benefits including the protection of human health, agricultural industries, and our iconic flora and fauna. Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE190100483
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$410,176.00
Summary
The effect of apparent stabilising selection on genetic architecture. This project aims to improve our understanding of the cause of evolutionary limits. It will test the prediction that trait combinations with high genetic variation are highly correlated with other traits, and therefore are more evolutionary limited than they appear. This project will develop and implement novel evolutionary and statistical manipulations and methods to test this prediction, and is expected to provide new method ....The effect of apparent stabilising selection on genetic architecture. This project aims to improve our understanding of the cause of evolutionary limits. It will test the prediction that trait combinations with high genetic variation are highly correlated with other traits, and therefore are more evolutionary limited than they appear. This project will develop and implement novel evolutionary and statistical manipulations and methods to test this prediction, and is expected to provide new methods for the study of selection. A better understanding of evolutionary limits will provide a significant benefit, enabling better predictions of how natural populations will evolve over short and long time-scales, and their risks of extinction.Read moreRead less
Identifying the genes and population histories that drive rapid adaptive change and speciation. This project will uncover the genetic variation and demographic histories that allow rapid adaptation and speciation in natural populations. It will leverage the powerful framework provided by Indo-Australian sea snakes, and new gene sequencing technologies, to reconstruct the evolutionary histories of genes, populations and species. Using this data, it will address inter-related key questions that ar ....Identifying the genes and population histories that drive rapid adaptive change and speciation. This project will uncover the genetic variation and demographic histories that allow rapid adaptation and speciation in natural populations. It will leverage the powerful framework provided by Indo-Australian sea snakes, and new gene sequencing technologies, to reconstruct the evolutionary histories of genes, populations and species. Using this data, it will address inter-related key questions that are critical to effective biodiversity conservation but have rarely been evaluated in the same taxon. It will address what genetic changes are involved in adaptive shifts and speciation, whether these originate de novo or from pre-existing variation and how gene flow and changes in population size promote or constrain adaptation and speciation.Read moreRead less
Fire, air, water and earth: Using fossils to discover the evolution of Australia’s open vegetation. How Australia came to be dominated by open, tough-leaved vegetation is an old but still highly controversial question, especially with recent developments in molecular biology that challenge paradigms established from the fossil record. The project will test this new molecular paradigm with innovative use of characteristics of fossil leaves to identify the timing and drivers of the evolution of Au ....Fire, air, water and earth: Using fossils to discover the evolution of Australia’s open vegetation. How Australia came to be dominated by open, tough-leaved vegetation is an old but still highly controversial question, especially with recent developments in molecular biology that challenge paradigms established from the fossil record. The project will test this new molecular paradigm with innovative use of characteristics of fossil leaves to identify the timing and drivers of the evolution of Australia’s open vegetation. The integration of new and rigorous evidence derived from living and fossil plants will provide the clearest evidence yet for the origins of Australian environments. This has ramifications for understanding plant responses to past and future climate changes.Read moreRead less
Expanding gene-environment causality in evolutionary genetics. This project aims to investigate how environmental experiences shape phenotypes, engender variance in populations and ultimately contribute to evolution. It targets new discoveries for how environmental effects can multiply throughout ontogeny and/or propagate across generations. Although widely speculated to support new evolutionary paradigms, such knowledge lacks scrutiny according to the formal metric of quantitative genetics. Thi ....Expanding gene-environment causality in evolutionary genetics. This project aims to investigate how environmental experiences shape phenotypes, engender variance in populations and ultimately contribute to evolution. It targets new discoveries for how environmental effects can multiply throughout ontogeny and/or propagate across generations. Although widely speculated to support new evolutionary paradigms, such knowledge lacks scrutiny according to the formal metric of quantitative genetics. This project seeks to expose guppy pedigrees to unique manipulations and reconcile adaptive evolution across captive and wild populations. The outcome is expected to address knowledge gaps in the life and human sciences and potentially inform goals in primary production and conservation.Read moreRead less
Origin and evolution of plant functional traits in relation to fire. This project addresses the fundamental question as to what extent the Australian flora is adapted to fire by tracing the evolutionary history of the iconic family Proteaceae over the last 100 million years. The answer to this question has significant implications for informing Australia’s fire management and nature conservation policies.
Evolution on the edge: a model system for evolution on invasion fronts. This project aims to develop a shared experimental platform, using the well-studied ecological model, Daphnia, to test emergent predictions about evolution on invasion fronts. Evolution happens rapidly on invasion fronts, accelerating the speed and potentially the damage caused by an invasion. By manipulating invasions through an experimental landscape, the project aims to answer currently infeasible questions, including whe ....Evolution on the edge: a model system for evolution on invasion fronts. This project aims to develop a shared experimental platform, using the well-studied ecological model, Daphnia, to test emergent predictions about evolution on invasion fronts. Evolution happens rapidly on invasion fronts, accelerating the speed and potentially the damage caused by an invasion. By manipulating invasions through an experimental landscape, the project aims to answer currently infeasible questions, including whether pathogens become more virulent as they spread, and whether evolutionary trade-offs place limits on spread rate. This work would dramatically improve our understanding of biological invasions and may have implications for the management of phenomena ranging from emergent diseases to invasive pests and malignant growths.Read moreRead less