Poster Details
DETECTING THE IMPACT OF PARASITISM AND EGG BANK RECRUITMENT ON HOST GENETIC DIVERSITY IN A DAPHNIA-PARASITE SYSTEM
Daphnia dentifera is a dominant species in lakes, playing a significant role in nutrient cycling and serving as a resource for aquatic predators. Studies indicate diseases can strongly select on host populations, leading to changes in host genetic variation. Studying the impact of virulent fungal parasite Metschnikowia bicuspidata on D.dentifera helps us understand how hosts maintain genetic variation in the face of strong selection. In this system, the reproductive cycle of hosts consists of alternating asexual and sexual phases; the latter results in diapausing eggs that are incorporated into lake sediments. We collected mothers bearing diapausing eggs from two lakes in the fall; one lake had experienced an epidemic and one had not. We also collected individuals hatched from both egg banks the following spring. We are quantifying changes to host diversity in the two lake populations by microsatellite genotyping. We will compare the genetic variation of sexually recombinant daughters to that of the spring hatchling population to detect how recruitment from the egg bank impacts the diversity of D. dentifera. This study will show how sexual reproduction and the egg bank effect maintain diversity in ecologically important host species.
Katherine McLean (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), University of Michigan , kdmclean@umich.edu;
Camden Gowler (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Univesity of Michigan, cgowler@umich.edu ;
Spencer Hall (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Indiana University, sprhall@indiana.edu;
Meghan Duffy (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), University of Michigan , duffymeg@umich.edu;
Haniyeh Zamani (Primary Presenter/Author), University of Michigan , hzamani@umich.edu;