Graduate WorkI am interested in understanding the biological processes and patterns that underlie the evolution and speciation of cryptic species. Cryptic species have similar outward appearances (morphologies) despite strong genetic divergence (high amount of unique information in their DNA).
My dissertation research focuses on understanding cryptic speciation as it applies to the conservation of some of the most endangered primate species on Earth: the lemurs of Madagascar. Currently, I am interested in the effects of mobile DNA elements on lemur genome evolution and the speciation process. I am researching transposable elements (segments of DNA that are able move around/jump within a genome) in lemurs. Note: I am a second year PhD student, so my interests and dissertation work will undoubtedly shift in the coming years. |
SciREN networking outreach event - Fall 2022
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Post-baccalaureate Work
Phenotypic divergence of antimicrobial peptides in Saccharomyces cerevisiae S. cerevisiae, the model species commonly known as baker’s yeast, is the dominant yeast species in wine and beer fermentations, a process during which it competes with and kills most other microbial species primarily by producing high levels of ethanol. Intriguingly, recent work shows that S. cerevisiae also produces AMPs, antimicrobial peptides, to combat other yeast species during stationary growth phase in mixed culture environments. Studies investigating the genes responsible for these AMPs have revealed a surprising origin: the AMPs are produced from cleaved fragments of the highly conserved GAPDH enzymes of the glycolysis pathway, a metabolic process that converts glucose to usable energy. These enzymes are encoded by the paralogous genes TDH1, TDH2, and TDH3 in S. cerevisiae, and they evolve very slowly. The TDH genes provide an ideal, experimentally tractable system with which to explore how biologically important genes may be co-opted during evolution to produce new functions. This system is being used to investigate when and how these metabolic genes were recruited into fungal warfare. Note: the above proposal was submitted in 2021 for a GRFP application. The project is currently in the process of being carried out with help from my collaborators - Mo Siddiq, Nick Brown, and Trisha Wittkopp. |
Publications.
Byrne, A.Q., Rothstein, A.P., Smith, L.L. et al. Revisiting conservation units for the endangered mountain yellow-legged frog species complex (Rana muscosa, Rana sierrae) using multiple genomic methods. Conserv Genet (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10592-023-01568-5