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Rishi presents at the USPA postdoc symposium at UCSC

Rishi presents at the USPA postdoc symposium at UCSC

On June 6th, the UC Santa Cruz Postdocs Association (USPA) held their annual symposium at the Seymour Marine Discovery Center. The event showcased the breadth of work being carried out by postdocs and graduate students across the university spanning physics, chemistry, and biology. In addition to a number of talks from UCSC postdocs, three invited speakers presented at this year’s symposium, covering a number of different fields including entrepreneurship, cosmology, and evolution. Rishi gave a short presentation titled “Evolutionary dynamics…

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The lab publishes a unique transcriptomic dataset for hibernating bears.

The lab publishes a unique transcriptomic dataset for hibernating bears.

The lab recently published a one-of-a-kind dataset of gene expression from multiple tissues of two hibernating brown bears at BMC Genomic Data. Congrats to all coauthors! Abstract Objectives. Complex physiological adaptations often involve the coordination of molecular responses across multiple tissues. Establishing transcriptomic resources for non-traditional model organisms with phenotypes of interest can provide a foundation for understanding the genomic basis of these phenotypes, and the degree to which these resemble, or contrast, those of traditional model organisms. Here, we…

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Image of a Prairie Rattlesnake
Blair co-authors paper on prairie rattlesnake venom variation.

Blair co-authors paper on prairie rattlesnake venom variation.

Blair is a co-author on a recent study of venom compositional variation in the Prairie Rattlesnake (Crotalus viridis) at BMC Biology. Abstract Background. Snake venoms are trophic adaptations that represent an ideal model to examine the evolutionary factors that shape polymorphic traits under strong natural selection. Venom compositional variation is substantial within and among venomous snake species. However, the forces shaping this phenotypic complexity, as well as the potential integrated roles of biotic and abiotic factors, have received little attention….

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Tait publishes research on snow crabs and ocean acidification

Tait publishes research on snow crabs and ocean acidification

Tait recently published a manuscript at Marine Biology that examines exoskeletal integrity of Alaskan snow crabs in response to ocean acidification. Tait conducted this work as an undergraduate at The College of New Jersey. Congratulations Tait! Abstract Structural and mechanical properties of the decapod exoskeleton affect foraging, defense, and locomotion. Ocean acidification (OA) poses a threat to marine biomes and their inhabitants, particularly calcifying organisms. Vulnerability of the snow crab, Chionecetes opilio, a commercially important, high-latitude species, to OA has…

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Joanna attends Fulbright Crossing the Strait Seminar in Morocco

Joanna attends Fulbright Crossing the Strait Seminar in Morocco

Joanna recently attended the Fulbright Crossing the Strait Seminar in Tangier, Morocco! Honored to be included in the Fulbright Crossing the Strait Seminar in Tangier, Morocco. It was an incredible experience #fulbright @FulbrightSpain @FulbrightPrgrm https://t.co/YkFFG3w8GS — Joanna Kelley (@joannalkelley) May 2, 2023

Kara and Tait present research at EVO-WIBO 2023, Kara wins Best Poster!

Kara and Tait present research at EVO-WIBO 2023, Kara wins Best Poster!

This weekend, Kara and Tait represented the Kelley Lab at the EVO-WIBO 2023 meeting for evolutionary biologists of the Pacific Northwest. They each presented excellent posters on their current research – Kara discussed selection and convergent evolution in extremophile fish, while Tait presented work on gene expression in Chinook salmon. Nice job Kara and Tait! And an extra special congratulations to Kara for winning Best Poster at the conference!

Abby receives WSU scholarship for undergraduate research!

Abby receives WSU scholarship for undergraduate research!

Abby was awarded the Ellen Hauge Ableson Endowed Scholarship in Sciences from the WSU College of Arts and Sciences! This scholarship will support Abby’s undergraduate research project in which she is studying sex-specific patterns of gene expression in hibernating bears. Congratulations Abby! Image courtesy of the WSU Bear Center.

Grace receives award for excellent undergraduate research at WSU SURCA!

Grace receives award for excellent undergraduate research at WSU SURCA!

Grace presented her research on sex-biased dispersal and gene flow of North American brown bears at WSU’s annual Showcase for Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (SURCA). Grace put together an amazing great poster and was awarded the Gray Award in the Organismal, Population, Ecological, and Evolutionary Biology category! Congratulations Grace!

Brown bear wins Best GBE Cover of 2022!

Brown bear wins Best GBE Cover of 2022!

The cover photo that accompanied our article “A beary good genome: Haplotype-resolved, chromosome-level assembly of the brown bear (Ursus arctos)” in Genome Biology and Evolution was voted the best cover of 2022! Thank you again to Dave Shumway for allowing us to use this incredible photo! Check out more of Dave’s work at shumwayphotography.com.

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