Dr. Andrew G. Clark, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics at Cornell University
Oct 10 at 4:10 p.m. at Abelson 201
“Starting in the 1960’s, a program of artificial selection for tame behaviors in the silver fox has produced a remarkable transformation in these animals. We quantified genome-wide gene expression levels using RNA-seq in two selected brain tissues, right prefrontal cortex and basal forebrain, from 12 aggressive and 12 tame individuals. Expression analysis revealed 146 differentially expressed genes in the prefrontal cortex between tame and aggressive individuals at a 5% FDR, and 33 hits were found in the basal forebrain. These candidates include genes in key neurological pathways including serotonin and glutamate receptor pathways. In addition, we identified 31,000 high quality exonic SNPs, 295 of which show significant allele frequency differences between tame and aggressive individuals. Changes in expression and allele frequency were also found in genes involved in neural crest cell fate determination. Results will be discussed in light of other studies of the genetics of mammalian domestication.”
