Event Date
Patrick Keeling, Professor, University of British Columbia
Patrick Keeling is a professor at the University of British Columbia whose research focuses on microbial diversity and evolution. His lab studies the tree of eukaryotes, protist diversity, and the evolution of photosynthesis, symbiosis, and parasitism.
How Eating Changed Our Genes: The Impact of Phagocytosis and Endosymbiosis on Nuclear Genomes
It is generally accepted that when eukaryotes evolved the ability to eat other cells (phagocytosis) and sometimes even maintain them in the cytoplasm for long periods of time (endosymbiosis), that this opened the door to a potentially massive influx of horizontal gene transfer (HGT) from these foreign cells to the nuclear genome. However genomic data suggest nuclear genomes do not actually acquire many genes from either food or endosymbionts. Here we will explore how the origin of eukaryotes may have changed the kinds of genes that selection works on most effectively, and how this change impacted both HGT and endosymbiotic organelle evolution.
Location - Hybrid Format:
- In person: Student Community Center - multipurpose room
- Virtual: Zoom information will be provided to registrants
Registration:
- This event is free to attend. Registration is required for Zoom access.
Agenda:
- 4:00pm - doors open
- 4:10pm - introductory remarks
- 4:15pm - “How Eating Changed Our Genes: The Impact of Phagocytosis and Endosymbiosis on Nuclear Genomes”
About the Series:
The Tracy and Ruth Storer Lectureship in the Life Sciences is the most prestigious of the endowed seminars at UC Davis. Established in 1960, the Storer Endowment makes it is possible to invite distinguished biological scientists to campus to present two lectures and meet with faculty members and graduate students in their field of interest. The series is presented by the UC Davis College of Biological Sciences.