Collaborative Research on the Genetic Basis of Reproductive Isolation in House Mice

University Of Arizona, Tucson AZ

Investigators

Abstract

With over 9 million species estimated to exist on Earth, understanding the factors, both ecological and genetic, that contribute to species formation is a central problem in the biological sciences. While a half-century of research on the genetic basis of speciation has revealed some general insights, only a handful of genes contributing to speciation have been identified; thus, many questions remain. For example, what kinds of genes are involved in speciation? Are there few genes of major effect or many genes of small effect? These questions will be addressed by studying gene flow across a larger number of molecular markers in naturally occurring hybrid populations of two genetically well characterized house mouse species, Mus musculus and Mus domesticus, and through functional analyses of laboratory crosses between them. The goals of the research are to identify the number and characterize the biological function of genes contributing to speciation in house mice. The research will involve the participation of postdoctoral researchers, graduate and undergraduate students and scientists in both the Czech Republic and Japan. House mice are important biomedical models and many of the speciation genes identified in this project are likely to shed light on genes important in reproduction and survival in humans.