In the journals
Albertson RC, KE Powder, Y Hu, KP Coyle, RB Roberts, and KJ Parsons. 2014. Genetic basis of continuous variation in the levels and modular inheritance of pigmentation in cichlid fishes. Molecular Ecology, 23: 5135–5150. doi: 10.1111/mec.12900.
… we crossed two divergent cichlid species to generate an F2 mapping population that exhibited extensive variation in pigmentation levels and patterns. Our experimental design is robust in that it combines traditional quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis with population genomics, which has allowed us to move efficiently from QTL interval to candidate gene. In total, we detected 41 QTL and 13 epistatic interactions that underlie melanocyte- and xanthophore-based coloration across the fins and flanks of these fishes.
Yang MA, K Harris and M Slatkin. 2014. The projection of a test genome onto a reference population and applications to humans and archaic hominins. Genetics, doi: 10.1534/genetics.112.145359.
We introduce a method for comparing a test genome with numerous genomes from a reference population. … Using analytic theory, numerical analysis, and simulations, we show how the projection depends on the time of population splitting, the history of admixture and changes in past population size.
In the news
“So here’s an idea: what if NSF preproposals were the proposals? After all, one way to encourage reviewers to focus on the big ideas rather than picky methodological details is to not provide them with any methodological details in the first place.”
