Marjorie Matocq
University of Nevada-Reno, NV·Ecology & Evolution
How organisms cope with environmental change depends partly on their genes. Genome sequencing has shown that individuals of the same species can carry very different numbers of copies of a gene, known as copy number variation (CNV).
- Fields
Ecology & Evolution
Genetics
Biology
- Topics
copy number variation
gene duplication
structural variation
- Grants
- 1 known grant, through Aug 2028
What they work on
- Identify individual copy number variation (CNV), differences in how many copies each animal carries, in detoxification genes across a woodrat hybrid zone between Neotoma fuscipes and N. macrotis, using genome sequencing.
- Measure how well woodrats with different detoxification-gene copy numbers process toxic plant chemicals, using chemical analyses linked to each animal's genotype.
- Relate detoxification-gene copy number to survival and reproduction of individual woodrats, using intensive field observation of animals tracked in the wild.
- Predict how detoxification-gene variation interacts with drought and high temperatures to determine fitness and population persistence along a natural environmental gradient, using computer modeling.
More about the research
Some individuals have only a few copies, while others have many. Little is known about how this variation persists in the wild, or how it affects survival and reproduction. For plant-eating mammals, a major challenge is the toxic chemicals in the plants they eat. The team has recently found that woodrats (genus Neotoma) carry expanded numbers of detoxification genes, much as some plant-eating insects do.
Why it matters
Directly linking structural genetic variation to diet, detoxification and survival in a wild mammal could show how animal populations persist, or fail, under environmental change such as drought and heat. The team expects this to help researchers and managers identify the mechanisms that support or limit population persistence.
Known grants
From NIH and NSF research grants. Labs often have other funding we can't see.
Closest labs
Adam Reitzel
University of North Carolina at Charlotte, NC·Ecology & Evolution
Measure the extent of copy number variation in key immune genes across Nematostella vectensis populations using comparative genomics and transcriptomics.
Juan Lucas Argueso
Colorado State University-Fort Collins, CO·Genetics
Measure rates of copy number variation (CNV), loss of heterozygosity (LOH), and whole-chromosome gain or loss in dividing and meiotic budding yeast cells, using custom, highly sensitive cell-based assays.
Yoriko Heianza
Tulane University of Louisiana, LA·Public Health & Epidemiology
Test whether AMY1 and AMY2 copy number variations, inherited differences in starch-digesting enzyme genes measured by droplet digital PCR, predict 7–9 year changes in glucose, HbA1c, insulin and diabetes risk in Bogalusa Heart Study adults.
The school
University of Nevada-Reno: 11 labs on PI Pages, $194M a year on research, 186 research doctorates a year.
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