Gene Regulation & Evolution

Evolution is driven by natural selection acting on phenotypic variation. The phenotype of an organism is in turn determined by underlying differences in the DNA sequence and how its genes are epigenetically regulated. We know that gene regulatory systems vary greatly across phyla (e.g. mammals, zebrafish, insects, and nematodes) and that variation in gene regulation can influence or even drive evolution. We work to understand how gene regulation evolves by studying how genetic and epigenetic variation gives rise to phenotypic variation over ecological and evolutionary time scales. This includes studying ancient human genomes, human cell cultures, C. elegans and new model systems such as social insects (ants).

Key techniques used: Next-generation sequencing (DNA and RNA-seq, ATAC-seq), ancient DNA analysis, RNA interference, chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP), bioinformatics, proteomics, genome editing (CRISPR-CAS9).

Keywords: regulatory element, transcription factor, non-coding RNA, transposon, DNA methylation, histone modification, evolutionary conservation, human evolution, adaptation.

IPP Groups in Gene Regulation & Evolution:

GroupDescriptionInstitute
Claudia Keller Valsecchi

Biology of gene dosage alterations

IMB 
Eva Wolf

Circadian clocks as gene regulatory systems

JGU 
Hans Zischler

Primate piRNA/PIWI: functional aspects and adaptive phenotypes

JGU 
Helen May-Simera

Primary Cilia Regulation of Signalling in Development and Disease

JGU 
Julian König

RNA modifications & regulation

IMB 
Marion Silies

Gene regulatory mechanisms underlying neuronal function

JGU 
Meret Huber

Exploring and exploiting plant defence

JGU 
Peter Baumann

Telomere biology and chromosomal inheritance

IMB  JGU 
Petra Beli

Chromatin Biology & Proteomics

IMB 
Philipp Wild

Systems Medicine approaches to Age-related Diseases in Humans

UMC 
Sandra Schick

CHROMATIN REGULATION in health and disease

IMB 
Shuqing Xu

Molecular mechanisms and evolution of adaptive traits

JGU 
Sina Wittmann

The Role of Protein Disorder in Transcriptional Regulation

IMB 
Susanne Foitzik

(Epi-)Genetics of social evolution

JGU 
Thomas Hankeln

Globins in the nucleus

JGU