"Genomics holds the key to understanding ecological and evolutionary processes
Scientists call for a gap between genomics and invasion biology to be bridged
Scientists at the University of Southampton think that Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) of invasive organisms holds the key to furthering our understanding of ecological and evolutionary processes."
Read more at the University of Southampton website.
Paper Reference:
Rius M, Bourne S, Hornsby HG, Chapman MA. 2015. Applications of next generation sequencing to the study of biological invasions. Current Zoology 61: 488–504
Marine ecology & genomics research
Tuesday, June 23, 2015
Monday, June 8, 2015
Xavier Turon visits Marc Rius at Southampton
by Xavier turon
I have performed a research stay with Marc Rius at the National Oceanography Center of Southampton (NOC), invited by the University of Southampton where Marc is associate professor, from 25th May to 6th June.
We have been working on ongoing research about the validity of commonly used primers for barcoding genes in the group of ascidians, as part of our efforts to develop efficient metabarcoding markers for invertebrates. The results of this stay will be expanded to other groups and published.
We also sampled marinas in the Southampton area looking for Didemnum vexillum, and could get a couple of good populations from the area. It was a pleasure to share these two productive weeks with Marc and his students... and of course with his family as well.
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| Xavier Turon at the entrance hall of NOC with the figurehead of the HMS Challenger. No less! |
We have been working on ongoing research about the validity of commonly used primers for barcoding genes in the group of ascidians, as part of our efforts to develop efficient metabarcoding markers for invertebrates. The results of this stay will be expanded to other groups and published.
We also sampled marinas in the Southampton area looking for Didemnum vexillum, and could get a couple of good populations from the area. It was a pleasure to share these two productive weeks with Marc and his students... and of course with his family as well.
Tuesday, May 19, 2015
After Pints and Science
Yesterday, the Cara B was full! Many different people came and some did interesting questions. The afternoon was funny, educative and inspiring.
...And the speakers had a beer for free thanks to the Pint of Science Festival Team!
...And the speakers had a beer for free thanks to the Pint of Science Festival Team!
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Monday, May 4, 2015
ChallenGen at Pint of Science!
| Pint of Science Festival arrives in Barcelona from 18th to 20th May. Xavier Turon and Maria Casso will participate in this edition for the first time speaking about diversity and climate change with a beer in their hand. These are main subjects of the ChallenGen Project and we are pleased to present it and share our knowledge to the general public. Thanks a lot to the Pint of Science Barcelona Organization for inviting us to participate in this event! We will be at Cara B bar on Monday 18th, from 8pm. Everybody will be more than welcomed! |
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Monday, March 23, 2015
In the beginning...
This is the starting point of the blog of ChallenGen Project, a project funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness which aims at shedding light on some hot topics involving the application of genetic and genomic tools to marine ecology. Project ChallenGen is structured into three broad research lines, representing current challenges for marine ecologists:
1. To tackle and mitigate the problem of introduced species.
2. To develop new tools for biodiversity assessment.
3. To predict foreseeable changes in a scenario of increasing temperature.
1. To tackle and mitigate the problem of introduced species.
2. To develop new tools for biodiversity assessment.
3. To predict foreseeable changes in a scenario of increasing temperature.