Tag Archives: population structure

Genomics of domestication in chicken and cattle

Two recent studies attempt to understand the process of adaptive evolution in domestication and artificial selection by characterizing (a) sweeps, and their association with phenotypes in extant hybrid lines (Sheng et al. 2015), and (b) phylogenomic position of an extinct … Continue reading

Posted in adaptation, bioinformatics, domestication, evolution, genomics, natural history, Paleogenomics, phylogeography, population genetics, selection, speciation, STRUCTURE | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Introgression history in sticklebacks and oaks

Speciation theory has many monikers for differential gene flow – migration, introgression, admixture, hybridization, secondary contact. As a homogenizing process, gene flow at large acts to reduce differentiation between populations post-divergence. However, selection and demography affect the rates of gene … Continue reading

Posted in adaptation, evolution, genomics, natural history, phylogenetics, population genetics, selection, speciation, species delimitation | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Sweptaway – Part 3 – Adaptation genomics of White Sands Lizards

Recent colonization events offer juicy insights into the adaptive evolution of species in response to natural selection of novel habitats – however, they are confounded by demographic changes (eg. bottlenecks, differential migration). In a recent study, Laurent et al. (2015) … Continue reading

Posted in adaptation, Coevolution, evolution, genomics, natural history, population genetics, selection | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Sweptaway – Part 2

Numerous methods have been developed over the last few years for the detection of selective sweeps (hard and soft – see my previous post). This week, we look at three new studies that (a) compare existing methods to detect sweeps … Continue reading

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Sweptaway – Part 1

Brace yourselves for a series of new posts on selection, especially with articles from the special Molecular Ecology issue on “Detecting selection in natural populations: making sense of genome scans and towards alternative solutions” starting to roll out! Selective sweeps … Continue reading

Posted in adaptation, evolution, genomics, mutation, population genetics, selection, speciation, theory | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Where's your wine from?

Human-mediated selection of yeast cultures has played a huge role in the development of numerous unique strains of Sacchromyces cerevisiae, often attributed to production of a wide variety of wines the world over. Previous studies have indicated a single domesticated … Continue reading

Posted in domestication, evolution, genomics, horizontal gene transfer, microbiology, Molecular Ecology, the journal, next generation sequencing, phylogenetics, phylogeography, population genetics, STRUCTURE, yeast | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Selection scans, and the genomics of adaptive/maladaptive introgression

Natural selection, and the adaptive evolution of hybrid reproductive incompatibilities post divergence are known to be major drivers of speciation. At the phenotype level, these manifest as fitness differences between introgressing populations. At the genomic level, speciation “genes” or “islands” … Continue reading

Posted in adaptation, Coevolution, evolution, genomics, Molecular Ecology, the journal, mutation, natural history, population genetics, selection, speciation, theory | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Who came first – the Paleo- or Native American?

In yet another infamous Science vs Nature race, two studies published this Tuesday toss more cans of worms at the ongoing debate about the founding of the Americas – with disparate findings. Uh oh. Skoglund et al. Nature (2015) Genetic … Continue reading

Posted in genomics, next generation sequencing, Paleogenomics, population genetics | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Societal constructs, and Genetic diversity

While we grapple with numerous discoveries of variation in genomic diversity in humans, interest has subsequently risen in understanding their causes/results. Two recent papers describe experiments to determine (a) the effects of marital rules (who gets to marry whom) on … Continue reading

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The Kennewick, and the Oase I

Last week was glorious for ancient DNA enthusiasts – here are some quick blurbs on findings from genomic analyses of the Kennewick man, and the Oase I individual. The ancestry and affiliations of Kennewick Man, Rasmussen et al. (2015) Nature DOI: … Continue reading

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