Genomics Lite: How do species evolve?
Genomics Lite is a series of public webinars, in this session we explore how different species have evolved.
Have you ever wondered how different species evolve? Why do some species evolve much quicker than others, and how can studying the DNA of these different species provide the answers?
In this Genomics Lite session, Sam and Jack speak to staff from the Wellcome Sanger Institute to unpick these questions!
About our speakers:
Dr. Joana Isabel Meier, Royal Society University Research Fellow and Group Leader, Wellcome Sanger Institute
Joana's research focus is on speciation and evolutionary genomics. Why do some taxa rapidly generate new species, whereas others remain species-poor? Joana is particularly interested in the role of interbreeding and chromosomal rearrangements in rapid speciation and adaptation. Joana studies the genomes of different groups of animals with large variation in the speed of speciation. Joana combines the genomics work with more experimental, behavioural and ecological work to get a full understanding of how and why some lineages adapt and split into many species at a fast pace.
Dr. Patricio A. Salazar-Carrión, Postdoctoral Fellow, Wellcome Sanger Insitute
Patricio is a field biologist and fascinated by trying to understand how and why there are so many forms of organisms on Earth (what we call Biodiversity). Patricio studies the eco-evolutionary processes through which biological diversity originates, focusing on some of the most charismatic organisms to the human eye: tropical butterflies. Originally from Ecuador, South America, but has lived in several different countries besides Patricio's home country (Canada, the UK, the USA, and now back in the UK since 2017). Patricio studied biology at the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, in Quito, and then did postgraduate studies at the University of British Columbia in Canada and the University of Cambridge in the UK. Currently Patricio is a Research Associate at the Department of Zoology, at the University of Cambridge, and a Visiting Scientist in the Tree of Life Program, at the Wellcome Sanger Institute.
