EvoLunch Seminar: Marwan Elkrewi (Institute of Science and Technology Austria, AT)
EvoLunch Seminar
A candidate Z-linked gene for Asexual Reproduction in Artemia Brine Shrimp
"A candidate Z-linked gene for Asexual Reproduction in Artemia Brine Shrimp"
Wednesday 7th May 2025
11:00 CET
Mondi 2a, Central Building, ISTA
Hybrid Meeting (for zoom link, email evolunch.seminar@ist.ac.at)
Despite extensive efforts, the regulatory changes that led to the transition from sexual to asexual reproduction remain largely undiscovered in the majority of species studied. With multiple sexual and obligate parthenogenetic species, Artemia has been an attractive model for studying the genetic basis of asexuality and its consequences. The efforts so far have resulted in a model of the modified form meiosis in the species, a likely role for the Z-chromosome in its transmission, and a set of differentially expressed genes between multiple sexual and asexual species. However, no master regulator or genetic changes have been put forward as the root causes for the shift. Using a wide array of newly generated and published genomic and transcriptomic data (tissue and single-nucleus level), we were able to perform an extensive analysis of the genomic variants and transcriptional changes associated with the switch to asexual reproduction in Artemia. The analysis highlighted a promising candidate for asexuality on the Z chromosome, the homologs of which are known to be important for various aspects of oocyte development