<![CDATA[50 Years of Solitude: The Genetic Basis of Adaptation of C. elegans to its Laboratory Environment ]]>

594501 event 1502896932 1502896951 <![CDATA[50 Years of Solitude: The Genetic Basis of Adaptation of C. elegans to its Laboratory Environment ]]> Abstract
Most biological traits have a strong genetic, or heritable, component. Understanding how genetic variation influences these phenotypes will be important for understanding common, heritable diseases like autism. However, the genetic architecture controlling most biological traits is incredibly complex – hundreds of interacting genes and variants combine in unknown ways to create phenotype. The McGrath lab is interested in using fundamental mechanistic studies in C. elegans to identify, predict, and understand how genetic variation impacts phenotypes related to fitness. We are studying two strains strains of C. elegans that have grown in the lab since 1951 to understand how genetic changes affect development, reproduction, and lifespan. I this talk, I will describe our research combining quantitative genetics, CRISPR/Cas9, genomics, and computational approaches to address these questions.