A5042641403- Plant and animal studies
- Lepidoptera: Biology and Taxonomy
- Animal Behavior and Reproduction
- Genetic diversity and population structure
- Epigenetics and DNA Methylation
- Insect and Arachnid Ecology and Behavior
- RNA modifications and cancer
- Spider Taxonomy and Behavior Studies
- Neurobiology and Insect Physiology Research
- Cancer-related gene regulation
- Genomics and Chromatin Dynamics
- Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
- Species Distribution and Climate Change
- Genomics and Phylogenetic Studies
- Genomics and Rare Diseases
- Cytokine Signaling Pathways and Interactions
- Insect Pheromone Research and Control
- Cancer Genomics and Diagnostics
- interferon and immune responses
- Scarabaeidae Beetle Taxonomy and Biogeography
- Genetic factors in colorectal cancer
- Insect symbiosis and bacterial influences
- Identification and Quantification in Food
- Coleoptera Taxonomy and Distribution
- BRCA gene mutations in cancer
Universidad del Rosario
2015-2024
Invitae (United States)
2017-2022
University of Florida
2009-2021
University of Cambridge
2010-2016
Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute
2010-2016
Florida College
2009-2015
University of Florida Health
2009-2015
Cancer Genetics (United States)
2009-2013
UF Health Cancer Center
2010-2013
Universidad de Los Andes
2013
Mimicry--whereby warning signals in different species evolve to look similar--has long served as a paradigm of convergent evolution. Little is known, however, about the genes that underlie evolution mimetic phenotypes or what extent same drive such convergence. Here, we characterize one major responsible for wing pattern Heliconius butterflies. Mapping, gene expression, and population genetic work all identify single gene, optix, controls extreme red variation across multiple Heliconius. Our...
It is widely documented that hybridisation occurs between many closely related species, but the importance of introgression in adaptive evolution remains unclear, especially animals. Here, we have examined role introgressive transferring adaptations mimetic Heliconius butterflies, taking advantage recent identification a gene regulating red wing patterns this genus. By sequencing regions both linked and unlinked to colour locus, found region displays an almost perfect genotype by phenotype...
An important goal in evolutionary biology is to understand the genetic changes underlying novel morphological structures. We investigated origins of a complex wing pattern found among Amazonian Heliconius butterflies. Genome sequence data from 142 individuals across 17 species identified narrow regions associated with two distinct red colour elements, dennis and ray. hypothesise that these modules non-coding represent cis-regulatory loci control expression transcription factor optix, which...
The variant curation guidelines published in 2015 by the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics Association for Molecular Pathology (ACMG/AMP) provided genetics community with a framework to assess pathogenicity; however, these rules are not gene specific. Germline pathogenic variants CDH1 cause hereditary diffuse gastric cancer lobular breast cancer, clinically challenging predisposition syndrome that often requires multidisciplinary team experts be properly managed. Given this...
Visual preferences are important drivers of mate choice and sexual selection, but little is known how they evolve at the genetic level. In this study, we took advantage diversity bright warning patterns displayed by Heliconius butterflies, which also used during choice. Combining behavioral, population genomic, expression analyses, show that two species have evolved same for red exchanging material through hybridization. Neural regucalcin1 correlates with visual preference across...
Exact positions of 5-methylcytosine (m(5)C) on a single strand DNA can be determined by bisulfite genomic sequencing (BGS). Treatment with ion preferentially deaminates unmethylated cytosines, which are then converted to uracil upon desulfonation. Amplifying regions interest from deaminated and products cloned amplicons permits determination methylation at single-nucleotide resolution along molecules, is not possible other analysis techniques. This unit describes BGS technique suitable for...
Homoploid hybrid speciation is the formation of a new species without change in chromosome number. So far, there has been lack direct molecular evidence for hybridization generating novel traits directly involved animal speciation. Heliconius butterflies exhibit bright aposematic color patterns that also act as cues assortative mating. heurippa proposed species, and its pattern can be recreated by introgression H. m. melpomene red band into genetic background yellow banded cydno cordula....
Sex-specific pheromones are known to play an important role in butterfly courtship, and may influence both individual reproductive success isolation between species. Extensive ecological, behavioural genetic studies of Heliconius butterflies have made a substantial contribution our understanding speciation. Male pheromones, although long suspected role, received relatively little attention this genus. Here, we combine morphological, chemical analyses male the Neotropical melpomene. First,...
Abstract TRIM29 (ATDC) exhibits a contextual function in cancer, but seems to exert tumor-suppressor role breast cancer. Here, we show that is often silenced primary tumors and cultured tumor cells as result of aberrant gene hypermethylation. RNAi-mediated silencing increased their motility, invasiveness, proliferation manner associated with expression mesenchymal markers (N-cadherin vimentin), decreased epithelial (E-cadherin EpCAM), activity the oncogenic transcription factor TWIST1, an...
Abstract Understanding the genetic basis of phenotypic variation and mechanisms involved in evolution adaptive novelty, especially radiations, is a major goal evolutionary biology. Here, we used whole‐genome sequence data to investigate origin yellow hindwing bar Heliconius cydno radiation. We found modular associated with phenotype two narrow noncoding regions upstream downstream cortex gene, which was recently identified as pigmentation pattern controller multiple species . Genetic at each...
Abstract Colombia is one of the most biodiverse countries in world that has historically and currently experiencing extensive deforestation habitat fragmentation. Here we show how region acting as a natural corridor between Colombian Andes Amazon biogeographical regions, Picachos–Tinigua–Sierra de la Macarena–Chiribiquete megacorridor, being eroded by large‐scale agricultural expansion endangering maintenance connection gene flow biodiversity exchange. Several phylogenetic studies indicate...
The use of subtle features as species diagnostic traits in taxa with high morphological similarity sometimes fails discriminating intraspecific variation from interspecific differences, leading to an incorrect delimitation. A clear assessment boundaries is particularly relevant disease vector organisms order understand epidemiological and evolutionary processes that affect transmission capacity. Here, we assess the validity recently described Rhodnius taquarussuensis (da Rosa et al., 2017)...
Colour pattern is the main trait that drives mate recognition between Heliconius species are phylogenetically close. However, when this cue compromised such as in cases of mimetic, sympatric and closely related species, alternative mating signals must evolve to ensure reproductive isolation integrity. The melpomene malleti H. timareta florencia occur same geographical region, despite being co-mimics, they display strong isolation. In order test which cues differ potentially contribute...
Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. manihotis (Xam) is the causal agent of bacterial blight cassava, which among main components human diet in Africa and South America. Current information about molecular pathogenicity factors involved infection process this organism limited. Previous studies other bacteria genus suggest that advanced draft genome sequences are valuable resources for on their interaction with plants could provide tools diagnostics detection. Here we have generated first manually...
Background Germline pathogenic variants in CDH1 are associated with increased risk of diffuse gastric cancer and lobular breast cancer. Risk reduction strategies include consideration prophylactic surgery, thereby making accurate interpretation germline critical for physicians deciding on these procedures. The Clinical Genome Resource (ClinGen) Variant Curation Expert Panel (VCEP) developed specifications variant curation a goal to resolve uncertain significance (VUS) ClinVar conflicting...
Spontaneous lytic reactivation of Kaposi's sarcoma–associated herpesvirus (KSHV) occurs at a low rate in latently infected cells disease and culture. This suggests imperfect epigenetic maintenance viral transcription programs, perhaps due to variability chromatin structure specific loci across the population KSHV episomal genomes. To characterize this locus-specific structural diversity, we used MAPit single-molecule footprinting, which simultaneously maps endogenous CG methylation...
Heliconius butterflies provide good examples of both homoploid hybrid speciation and ecological speciation. In particular, adaptive introgression have been detected among the subspecies timareta, which acquired red color pattern elements from H. melpomene. We tested whether wing into timareta florencia might also be associated with incipient reproductive isolation (RI) its close relative, subsp. nov., found in eastern Andes. No choice experiments show a 50% reduction mating between females...
Abstract The Andean uplift has played a major role in shaping the current Neotropical biodiversity. However, arthropods other than butterflies, little is known about how this geographic barrier impacted species historical diversification. Here, we examined phylogeography of widespread color polymorphic spider Gasteracantha cancriformis to evaluate effect northern on its divergence and assess whether diversification occurred presence gene flow. We inferred phylogenetic relationships times G....
Bisulfite sequencing is a widely-used technique for examining cytosine DNA methylation at nucleotide resolution along single strands. Probing with methyltransferases followed by bisulfite (MAPit) an effective mapping protein–DNA interactions. Here, MAPit footprinting M.CviPI, GC methyltransferase we previously cloned and characterized, was used to probe h MLH1 chromatin in HCT116 RKO colorectal cancer cells. Because M.CviPI-probed samples contain both CG methylation, developed versatile,...
Aberrant activation of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling axis is a prominent oncogenic mechanism in numerous cancers including cervical cancer. Wnt inhibitory factor-1 (WIF1) secreted protein that binds and antagonizes activity. While WIF1 gene characterized as target for epigenetic silencing some tumor types, expression has not been examined human tissue Here, we show unmethylated its product expressed normal epithelium cultured lines. In contrast, several cancer lines contained dense CpG...
Abstract Parallel evolution of morphological traits is widely reported, providing evidence for the role local conditions in driving adaptive divergence. Comparatively, fewer studies have tested parallelism behavior, and it less clear to what extent heritable behavioral shifts contribute We exploit repeated incipient speciation across altitudinal gradients explore behavior physiology Heliconius butterflies adapted high-elevation. performed common garden experiments with H. chestertonii, a...