Mechanistic Constraints on the Evolution of Gene Regulatory Networks
1:00pm - 2:00pm /
Monday 18th March 2019
/ Venue: Lecture Theatre 1 Life Sciences Building
- Jonathan Bollback
- Suitable for: Staff and students with an interest in Genomes, Systems and Therapeutic Targeting
- Admission: Free
Add this event to my calendar
Click on "Create a calendar file" and your browser will download a .ics file for this event.
Microsoft Outlook: Download the file, double-click it to open it in Outlook, then click on "Save & Close" to save it to your calendar. If that doesn't work go into Outlook, click on the File tab, then on Open & Export, then Open Calendar. Select your .ics file then click on "Save & Close".
Google Calendar: download the file, then go into your calendar. On the left where it says "Other calendars" click on the arrow icon and then click on Import calendar. Click on Browse and select the .ics file, then click on Import.
Apple Calendar: The file may open automatically with an option to save it to your calendar. If not, download the file, then you can either drag it to Calendar or import the file by going to File >Import > Import and choosing the .ics file.
Speaker: Mato Lagator (Manchester University)
Existing molecular mechanisms in cells constrain the evolutionary trajectories accessible to a population under selection. One way in which molecular mechanisms constrain evolutionary pathways is by shaping the patterns of epistasis (interactions between mutations). Epistatic interactions determine the shape of the adaptive landscape, and in doing so impact how rapidly and effectively a population evolves by defining the accessible evolutionary trajectories. In this talk, I will show how the mechanisms of protein-DNA binding shape the patterns of epistasis between mutations in prokaryotic promoters. I will also discuss how these mechanisms determine the propensity of gene regulatory networks to evolve through regulatory rewiring – making and breaking of network connections. Put together, these results demonstrate how understanding the constraints imposed by molecular mechanisms allows predictions of complex phenomena (such as epistasis) from first principles.
Existing molecular mechanisms in cells constrain the evolutionary trajectories accessible to a population under selection. One way in which molecular mechanisms constrain evolutionary pathways is by shaping the patterns of epistasis (interactions between mutations). Epistatic interactions determine the shape of the adaptive landscape, and in doing so impact how rapidly and effectively a population evolves by defining the accessible evolutionary trajectories. In this talk, I will show how the mechanisms of protein-DNA binding shape the patterns of epistasis between mutations in prokaryotic promoters. I will also discuss how these mechanisms determine the propensity of gene regulatory networks to evolve through regulatory rewiring – making and breaking of network connections. Put together, these results demonstrate how understanding the constraints imposed by molecular mechanisms allows predictions of complex phenomena (such as epistasis) from first principles.