Doctoral Dissertation Improvement: Genetic Variation and Gene Expression in Wild Baboons

Duke University, Durham NC

Investigators

Abstract

Understanding the relationship between genes and organism-level traits (phenotypes) is one of the most important problems in biology today. This relationship is especially important to study in primates, the closest living relatives of humans. The goal of this work is to examine this relationship in one well-studied population of wild primates, the baboons of the Amboseli basin in southern Kenya. Using a set of immune system genes, the researchers will (1) describe genetic variation in the regulatory regions of these genes (the regions that determine when and how much these genes are expressed), (2) determine the exact nature of the subset of genetic variation that affects how much these genes are expressed, and (3) connect this gene expression data to long-term behavioral and ecological data on the study population, to see how gene expression is modified by the environment. This represents ground-breaking work, because it is the first study to examine genetic variation and gene expression in a wild primate population, one for which extensive data already exist on organism-level traits and the environment in which they occur. Intellectual merit. The proposed work has great potential to advance understanding of the relationship between genes, organism-level traits, and the environment. Further, it is one of the first modern molecular population genetic studies to be conducted on wild animals. In addition, it will generate novel data sets on population genetic and gene expression variation in a wild primate. Broader impacts. This research will support the production of samples and datasets of interest to the larger scientific community and will contribute to the ongoing training of three Kenyan field assistants. In addition, it will foster integrative research in the field through using molecular genetic techniques to address anthropological and evolutionary questions. Finally, it will contribute to the training of a graduate student and undergraduates interested in anthropological research.