Research project

The contribution of plasticity to adaptive divergence: domestication as a model

Research groups:

Palaeoceanography and Palaeoclimate

Ecology and Evolution
Lead researchers:

Professor Mark Chapman
Other researchers:

Professor Tom Ezard
Status:

Not active

Project overview

Selection acts on phenotypes, which materialize from both the organism’s genotype and the interaction between genotype and environment (phenotypic plasticity). While genetic changes unequivocally give rise to new traits, populations and species, it remains unclear if selection on plasticity can also assist in the emergence of new taxa.

Our project will use transcriptomics to measure plasticity of thousands of gene expression ‘traits’ in a paired sampling design. Identifying which traits show plasticity and which show divergence across wild and domesticated species pairs, we will provide the first evidence of the genetic basis and role of plasticity in adaptive divergence and the early emergence of new taxa.