Michael Fontaine: A phylogenomic portrait of radiation and introgression in the An. gambiae complex

  • Date: Dec 8, 2016
  • Time: 02:00 PM - 03:00 PM (Local Time Germany)
  • Speaker: Michael Fontaine from the Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES) in The Netherlands
  • More information on the speaker can be found here: https://michaelcfontaine.wordpress.com/
  • Location: MPI Plön
  • Room: Lecture hall
  • Host: Julien Dutheil

Abstract:

Introgressive hybridization is now recognized as a widespread phenomenon, but its role in evolution remains contested. Here, we use newly available reference genome assemblies and re-sequencing genome to investigate phylogenetic and population relationships and introgression in a medically important group of Afrotropical mosquito sibling species. We have identified the correct species branching order to resolve a contentious phylogeny and show that lineages leading to the principal vectors of human malaria were among the first to split. Pervasive autosomal introgression between these malaria vectors means that only a small fraction of the genome, mainly on the X chromosome, has not crossed species boundaries. Our results suggest that traits enhancing vectorial capacity may be gained through interspecific gene flow, including between nonsister species.


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