How do living things evolve? What is the myriad of processes by which generic variations in a population affect organisms' survival and allow reproduction in an ever-changing environment? Why do these processes often crawl over millennia and yet, sometimes, rapid and substantial evolutionary changes occur?
Utah State University evolutionary biologist Zachariah Gompert explores chromosomal arrangements, where large chunks of chromosomes are inverted, moved, deleted or duplicated as a possible source of large-scale macromutations.
Adaptive evolution is driven by natural selection, which generates populations better adapted for survival and reproduction. A current focus of debate is whether adaptive evolution relies on many mutations with small and roughly equal effects or if it is driven by one or a few mutations that cause major changes in traits and Darwinian fitness."
Zachariah Gompert, associate department head and professor in USU's Department of Biology and the USU Ecology Center
To pursue this question, Gompert was awarded a five-year, $1.85 million Maximizing Investigators' Research Award (MIRA) from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health.
Gompert, who has long studied fundamental questions in evolutionary genetics, including pursuing case studies of the genetic basis of adaption in stick insects (Timematidae) and butterflies (Lycaenidae), will continue study of these organisms, along with seed beetles (Chrysomelidae).
He says the NIH funding will create multiple opportunities for undergraduates and graduate students to receive thorough education in basic research experimentation while exploring genomics research, and developing skills and experience in such areas as molecular biology and whole genome sequencing.
"We'll generate whole genomes and identify chromosomal variations that tie into evolution and trait variation," Gompert says. "Through this research, participants will gain skills that are transferrable across diverse scientific disciplines. This expertise has application to biomedical research on the role of genomics in health sciences, as well as application to applied research in agricultural genetics - both of which are rapidly growing fields."
In addition, he says, student researchers will develop knowledge of computational data analysis, ranging from traditional computational approaches to innovative methods in machine learning.
"As an affiliated faculty member in USU's new Data Science and Artificial Intelligence Center, I anticipate collaborations with scholars beyond the Department of Biology who wish to pursue varied data science projects data generated from our efforts," Gompert says. "The NIH award opens great opportunities for our research here at Utah State and for our students and community partners."
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