Project description
Evolution and adaptation modelled using ancient DNA of Japanese knotweed
Invasive species can act as models for studying rapid evolution and adaptation, species colonisation and climate change. Many questions remain concerning the eco-evolutionary dynamics of invasive species and the evolutionary processes operating at different stages of species spread and invasion. The EU-funded CloneInvasion project will study the invasive Japanese knotweed species complex to better understand species colonisation and range expansion. By combining ancient DNA from herbarium collections with high-throughput DNA sequencing technologies and bioinformatics, the initiative will investigate key transitions and drivers of plant colonisation, range expansion and invasion abilities across space and time. CloneInvasion will also study the role and implications of hybridisation and ploidy variation in plant colonisation and invasion and identify the presence of genomic regions.
Objective
Invasive species are one of the major threats to the biodiversity on Earth but despite their bad reputation, they are also essential models for studying rapid evolution and adaptation, species colonization and climate change. Although great progress has been made in many areas of invasion ecology, there are still many open questions about the eco-evolutionary dynamics of invasive species and the evolutionary processes operating at different stages of species spread and invasion. I propose to study the invasive Japanese knotweed species complex to understand species colonization and range expansion by combining museomic (ancient DNA) from herbarium collections with high-throughput DNA sequencing technologies and bioinformatics. Specifically, I will compare data from historical and contemporary individuals to study (1) key transitions and drivers of plant colonization, range expansion, and invasion abilities, across space and time, (2) the role and implications of hybridization and ploidy variation in plant colonization and invasion and (3) identify the presence of genomic regions under selection.
Fields of science
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesgeneticsDNA
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesevolutionary biology
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesecologyecosystems
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesecologyinvasive species
- natural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencesatmospheric sciencesclimatologyclimatic changes
Keywords
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)Coordinator
72074 Tuebingen
Germany