About the Project
Human activities are changing our planet at an unprecedented rate. Rapid adaptation can potentially help species to overcome these changes, but we don’t yet understand why some populations adapt rapidly while others do not. Inheritance is an integral part of the evolutionary process. We all know that offspring inherit genes from their parents. But it is now known that parents don’t just pass on genes to their offspring, but also ’non-genetic’ factors that interact with genes to shape offspring development. Theory and lab studies suggest that non-genetic inheritance (NGI) can contribute to variation in phenotype and fitness. But no one yet knows the impact NGI has on real populations in nature. This project will address this knowledge gap by comparing patterns of NGI, and their fitness consequences, in natural and experimental populations adapted to different environments.
We will study the water flea, Daphnia pulex, which is clonal and has a short generation time, making it ideal for understanding how genetic and non-genetic factors influence phenotypic variation. In this project you will:
(1) Identify, and sample clones from D. pulex populations with very different habitat characteristics and different evolutionary trajectories.
(2) Conduct developmental and life-history assays in a common garden environment to compare patterns of NGI within and between populations.
(3) Use field-based experimental evolution trials to test the hypothesis that patterns of NGI are locally adapted.
The multifaceted nature of this project will give the successful candidate a broad training in modern biology techniques including field skills, microscopy, image analysis, omics, experimental design and high-level statistical analysis. The candidate will join a well-funded lab (2 post-doc, 2 technicians) investigating mechanisms underpinning rapid adaptation, and be part of a vibrant ecology and evolution group in Liverpool’s Institute of Integrative Biology where unparalleled facilities for conducting this research are available
Funding Notes
Competitive funding of tuition fee, research costs and stipend (£14,553 tax-free, 2017-18) from the NERC Doctoral Training Partnership “Adapting to the Challenges of a Changing Environment” (ACCE, http://acce.group.shef.ac.uk/ ). ACCE – a collaboration between the Universities of Sheffield, Liverpool, and York – is the only dedicated ecology/evolution/conservation Doctoral Training Partnership in the UK.
Applications (CV, letter of application, 2 referees) by email to [Email Address Removed], deadline: January 9th 2018. Interviews: 14th-16th February 2018. Shortlisted applicants will be interviewed for only one project from the ACCE partnership.
This project is also available to self-funded students. A fees bursary may be available.
References
Harney, E., Paterson, S. and Plaistow, S. J. (2017), Offspring development and life-history variation in a water flea depends upon clone-specific integration of genetic, non-genetic and environmental cues. Functional Ecology. doi:10.1111/1365-2435.12887
Van Dooren, T.J.M., Hoyle, R.B., & Plaistow, S.J.(2016) Maternal Effects. In: Kliman, R.M. (ed.), The Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Biology. vol. 2, pp. 446-452. Oxford: Academic Press.
Plaistow, S.J., Shirley, C., Collin, H. Cornell, Harney, E.D. 2015 Offspring provisioning explains clone specific maternal age effects on life history andlifespan in the water flea, Daphnia pulex. The American Naturalist, 186 (3), 376-389
Harney E.H., Van Dooren, T.J.M., Paterson, S & Plaistow, S.J. 2013. How to measure maturation: a comparison of probabilistic methods used to test for genotypic variation and plasticity in the decision to mature. Evolution, 67(2), pp. 525-538
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