Mechanisms of evolutionary change

The role of genome structure in adaptation

Across eukaryota, we see dizzying amounts of diversity, with different organisms undergoing peculiar mechanisms through the processes of adaptation and diversification. I am particularly interested in how genome structure interacts with these processes in complex non-model organisms. My PhD revealed that horizontally transferred regions repeatedly contributed to the emergence of coffee wilt disease through the transfer of pathogenicity gene- and repeat-rich regions. My postdoc focuses on genetic, specifically transposable elements, and epigenetic, specifically DNA methylation, changes in oaks in response to environmental stress. These changes target drought-responsive genes and traits. Such mechanisms, be it horizontal transfer or (epi)-genetic modifications, can increase genome variability, which can result in the evolution or activation of stress-responsive genes. Such processes can also result in adaptation to new hosts or new environments.

Representative publications on this topic include:

Media highlights on this topic:

Until the mid-1900s, coffee production in Africa was predominantly based on excelsa and arabica coffee. However, the devastating impact of coffee wilt disease, led to the replacement of excelsa by robusta coffee in many regions. The corresponding “robusta” and “arabica” lineages of the fungal coffee wilt pathogen arose through horizontal gene transfer facilitated by so-called “Starships” in independent events. These new pathogen lineages threaten future coffee production in Africa and potentially globally.