Hybrid incompatibilities and speciation:
We use Drosophila to investigate the genetic barriers that evolve between populations and species to cause reproductive isolation. These barriers include preferences of populations to mate among themselves and to avoid mating with other populations, and sterility and lethality phenotypes that evolve in interspecific hybrids. A major open question in these areas is to identify the evolutionary forces within species that drive these reproductive barriers.
Transposable element regulation and evolution:
Using largely computational and population genomic approaches we investigate the co-evolution and inherent conflict between parasitic transposable elements (TEs) and their host genomes. Unregulated TEs can cause deleterious effects on host fitness, such as hybrid dysgenesis seen in Drosophila. Due to this fact host genomes have developed a genomic immune system known as Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) that regulates TEs and restricts their activity. We are interested in finding out how and why TEs escape regulation, and how host genomes evolve to combat them.
Repetitive DNA dynamics and genome evolution:
We use computational and genomics tools to uncover hidden variation in repetitive satellite DNA. Large stretches of the genome are filled with repetitive DNA that are challenging to study due to its innate repetitive structure. These repeat filled regions include telomeric and centromeric heterochromatin, which are integral to the genome, but remain largely unexplored. In order to bypass the challenges involved with studying repeats we have developed k-Seek and ConTExt: powerful new tools that allows us to uncover structural, sequence and copy number variation of repeat DNA. We have used these tools to uncover a wide range of population variation of repetitive sequences within a panel of 85 D. melanogaster and aim to continue exploring the evolution and population structure of repeats.
Segregation distortion and meiotic drive:
We are interested in developing high-throughput genomics and genetics tools to survey meiotic drivers and segregation distorters in populations. Segregation distorters are selfish genetic elements that bias the independent segregation of chromosomes to ensure their own transmission to the next generation without increasing the fitness of the organism. These segregation distorters function in many ways, but one of particular interest to us are meiotic drivers. In Drosophila meiotic drive functions by biasing the female germline such that they are preferentially included in the oocyte rather than the polar bodies when meiosis occurs. We want to develop new tools to discover meiotic drive in populations of Drosophila, and other organisms, as well as functionally dissect any drivers we discover.