EAGER: From Zero to Genome in Two Years: Transformative Techniques for Evo-lutionary Genetics

University Of Oregon Eugene, Eugene OR

Investigators

Abstract

A significant challenge for biologists is understanding the genetic basis of variation among organisms. Meeting this challenge will require numerous organisms to become "genomically enabled", that is having a large number of genetic markers spread evenly throughout the genome that can be assembled into a genetic map. This will allow researchers to move very quickly from roughly locating a gene on a chromosome to identifying DNA sequences. In the past, developing these tools was time consuming and very expensive. The goal of this project is to develop a clear set of protocols and computational software to rapidly produce genomic analysis tools for just about any organism. After first testing the protocols on the well-developed model nematode worm, Caenorhabditis elegans, the techniques will be further refined by applying them to a non-model vertebrate organism, the pipefish Syngnathus scovelli. The research on these two organisms will serve as test cases from which an easily followed set of methods will be created and distributed widely, including the wet lab procedures for data generation and the software for the analysis of these data. This research will have broad impacts by increasing the number of researchers who can genomically enable the organisms they study. This will lead to a more general set of answers to classic unanswered questions such as what genes and alleles are contributing to evolutionary change. In addition these tools will help biologists tackle practical problems such as what is the genomic basis of how organisms respond to climate change, a fundamental problem of our time.