Evolve & Resequence (E&R) experiments subject laboratory populations to environments controlled by investigators, who then document the phenotypic and genomic changes that take place over many generations. These experiments provide powerful tools for testing of a wide variety of evolutionary questions, especially questions about the nature of adaptive traits. While...
The safety of the chemical glyphosate, the active ingredient in the herbicide RoundUpTM, has been questioned on numerous occasions. Previous studies suggest that glyphosate-containing herbicides have deleterious effects on a variety of organisms; other studies suggest that these effects may be minor, transient, or non-existent altogether. Proper maintenance of microbial...
Experimental evolution is a tool that allows us to measure changes in populations over time in controlled, novel environments. Microbial evolution experiments use cryopreservation – storage at -80°C in glycerol media – to archive experimental populations. Research with Escherichia coli suggests that cryopreservation conditions can affect cell viability and that...
An important goal of evolutionary biology is to identify the genetic mechanisms underlying phenotypes in organisms. Understanding adaptation to osmotic stress has many applications, since this stress affects almost all organisms on Earth. By studying the model organism Saccharomyces cerevisiae using experimental evolution, we can learn about genetic mechanisms driving...
Osmotic stress is a common challenge faced by organisms in environments with variable salinity or aridity. Understanding the evolutionary mechanisms underlying adaptation to osmotic stress may have wide applications, including management of populations experiencing climate change, or engineering industrial organisms involved in processes such as fermentation. While Saccharomyces cerevisiae is...