Estimating selection parameters and identifying loci under recent selection based on genome-wide sequence data

• Applicant: Dr. Bettina Harr
• Subject Area: Evolutionary Cell and Developmental Biology (Zoology)
• Term: from 2011 to 2015
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 190399061

Next Generation Sequencing technologies provide the opportunity to detect traces of selection, on a genome-wide scale. We wish to use this technology to obtain a basic understanding on nature and frequency of selection in the genome, using the major mammalian model organism, the house mouse. Almost every aspect of the phenotype is better studied in the mouse than any other mammal, including humans. By contrast very little is known about basic population genetic parameters, including strength and frequency of positive and negative selection across the genome. However, these quantities are of major evolutionary importance, as they, together with genetic drift and recombination, determine patterns of genetic variation that influence quantitative traits, including, for example, common genetic diseases in humans. House mouse populations, in contrast to human populations, have the advantage of large effective population sizes that allow the detection of selection even if its magnitude is relatively small. We propose to sequence whole genomes from 24 house mouse individuals originating from three natural populations using Solid4 technology. These data will allow us to estimate evolutionary parameters for coding as well as non-coding DNA.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Participating Person: Dr. Meike Teschke