Introductory seminar: The role of chromosomal inversions in the seaweed fly Coelopa frigida"

Focus for Nauras PhD-project is the role of chromosomal inversion in evolution, using the seaweed fly Coelopa frigida as a model, see more below.

Main supervisor is Pierre de Wit and examiner is Johan Höjesjö, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences. Co-supervisors are  Luc Bussière, BioEnv and Emma Berdan, Harvard University.

Brief summary

The coasts of temperate seas are often subject to substantial amounts of macroalgae being washed ashore. These so-called wrackbeds are quickly colonized by a myriad of organisms that aid in the rapid decomposition of the algal accumulations. Flies of the family Coelopidae (seaweed or kelp flies) are especially prevalent in wrackbed communities. Besides the ecology of seaweed flies, the genomic properties of the seaweed fly Coelopa frigida have gained scientific attention in particular in the past decades. This species has emerged as a model organism to study the role of chromosomal inversions in evolution. In this seminar, I will introduce my PhD project which builds up on extensive prior knowledge on inversions in C. frigida. Using field sampling data from three continents in combination with cutting-edge next-generation sequencing technology, I will work within an existing collaborative team to unravel the role of inversions in adaptation as well as genome structure and function.