Institute of Zoology SAS
Topic
From fields and meadows to transgenic techniques: Investigating the adaptive potential of insects using natural variability, experimental evolution, and advanced genetics
PhD. program
Genetics
Year of admission
2025
Name of the supervisor
Mgr. Martina Gáliková, PhD.
Contact:
Receiving school
Univerzita Komenského v Bratislave
Annotation
This interdisciplinary project at the intersection of genetics, ecology, and evolutionary biology will explore how the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster adapts to rapidly changing environment -including climate change, drought, and stress factors such as insecticides. We will draw on the natural variability of wild fruit flies in Slovakia. The core of the project involves analyzing a newly developed panel of recombinant inbred Drosophila lines, which preserves the natural genetic diversity collected from five Slovak locations under controlled laboratory conditions. We are currently creating these lines by crossing the offspring of wild-caught females. These lines will enable us to investigate developmental and evolutionary adaptations, as well as the costs and limits associated with these environmental responses. By sequencing the lines and studying correlations between the observed adaptations and their associated genetic variants, we can then identify the genes/variants responsible for the adaptations. We will functionally test these variants through transgenic manipulations. In the next phase of the project, we will also employ our existing selection lines, in which we have experimentally enhanced resistance to sudden temperature shifts, water scarcity, and pesticides. Comparing results from both approaches will provide a comprehensive picture of the evolutionary potential of adaptations in flies, their constraints, and the energetic costs involved in responding to climate and environmental challenges.