Learn More
BACKGROUND Reproductive isolation is a defining characteristic of populations that represent unique biological species, yet we know very little about the gene expression basis for reproductive isolation. The advent of powerful molecular biology tools provides the ability to identify genes involved in reproductive isolation and focuses attention on the(More)
BACKGROUND Interspecific hybrids of frogs of the genus Xenopus result in sterile hybrid males and fertile hybrid females. Previous work has demonstrated a dramatic asymmetrical pattern of misexpression in hybrid males compared to the two parental species with relatively few genes misexpressed in comparisons of hybrids and the maternal species (X. laevis)(More)
Ecological differentiation of natural populations of Drosophila melanogaster, Drosophila simulans, and another drosophilid, Zaprionus tuberculatus, in "Evolution Canyon," Mount Carmel, Israel, is well established. The fitness complex of D. melanogaster includes oviposition temperature preferences, tolerance to high temperature, drought stress and(More)
Clostridium difficile is an anaerobic bacterium that has re-emerged as a facultative pathogen and can cause nosocomial diarrhea, colitis or even death. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) γ has been implicated in the prevention of inflammation in autoimmune and infectious diseases; however, its role in the immunoregulatory mechanisms(More)
Reproductive isolation between biological species is characterized by Haldane's rule, which states that the heterogametic sex (XY or ZW) suffers the most dysfunctional effects of hybridization. It has been hypothesized that, in addition to X-linked recessive genes, Haldane's rule also reflects the faster evolution of genes related to male reproduction(More)
The wealth of publicly available gene expression and genomic data provides unique opportunities for computational inference to discover groups of genes that function to control specific cellular processes. Such genes are likely to have co-evolved and be expressed in the same tissues and cells. Unfortunately, the expertise and computational resources(More)
Repeat sequences, especially mobile elements, make up large portions of most eukaryotic genomes and provide enormous, albeit commonly underappreciated, evolutionary potential. We analyzed repeatomes of Drosophila melanogaster that have been diverging in response to a microclimate contrast in Evolution Canyon (Mount Carmel, Israel), a natural evolutionary(More)
Alewife Alosa pseudoharengus, a small clupeid fish native to Atlantic Ocean, has recently (∼150 years ago) invaded the North American Great Lakes and despite challenges of freshwater environment its populations exploded and disrupted local food web structures. This range expansion has been accompanied by dramatic changes at all levels of organization.(More)