Panagiotis Ioannis ZervakisDoktorand
Om mig
Currently on my way to a PhD on population genetics, under the supervision of Tanja Slotte. Having obtained my master's degree in Evolutionary Biology at Uppsala Universitet, I am interested in demography dynamics, selection signals and data processing from a genomic perspective. Ongoing projects focus on the mating systems of the angiosperm genera Linum and Arabis.
Forskning
From an evolutionary perspective, the plant mating system is diverse and dynamic, in the way that it ranges from exclusively outbreeding, to partial outbreeding, up to complete inbreeding. Moreover, given time and the right enviromental conditions, we might observe a shift between these conditions. Using different organisms, we intend to inspect plant mating system patterns and provide some answers to the long-lasting questions concerning heterostyly.
Project 1
The first project focuses on population structure and demographic events following the differentiation of mating system of the alpine rockress (Arabis alpina). A diverse dataset of inbreeding, partially outbreeding and exclusive outbreeding individuals from arctic regions and alpine refugia will be used. Potential selection events that led to such a shift will also be investigated.
Project 2
On the second project, we aim to sequence genomes within the Linum genus. Some species present heterostyly, a form self-incompatibility, whereas others seem to have shifted to self-compatible homostyly. By performing a comparative analysis, we hope to identify the genomic structure that governs heterostyly, commonly known as ths S-locus supergene, figure the evolutionary events that led to the establishment/loss of heterostyly as mating strategy and investigate its genomic consequences.
The PhD research is funded by Vetenskapsrådet