We’ve been making significant progress with genome assembly for Silene uniflora thanks to some new Pac Bio data for an inbred line. Our initial analyses to look for genes that under under selection across several independently evolving mines are pointing in some very interesting directions, with a handful of candidates potentially involved in adaptation from standing variation.
Meanwhile our F2 crosses and hydroponic experiments are coming along nicely. We got several families to use for our QTL experiments, which aim to identify the regions of the genome that are driving adaptation using a top down approach starting with our trait of interest (zinc tolerance) rather than looking for the effect of selection on the genome using population genetic methods (as we did to identify the genes above.)
Now that it’s spring, our experimental evolution experiments are about to start and soon we’ll be out and about for field work in Cornwall…