Graduate studentship: University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, USA

[Pibitller]

PhD position in evolutionary development of gastropod shells

A graduate student position is available for study of the mechanisms of mollusc shell development. Molluscs are one of the most diverse and successful animal groups, in terms of body plans, species, and their ubiquity across ecosystems and niches. Their success is likely due in part to a key molluscan character-- the shell, a strong and durable exoskeleton of calcium crystals.

Mollusc shells are a very powerful model system for morphological evolution. They are extremely diverse and disparate, and different morphologies can often be directly related to functional differences.
They have an exquisitely detailed fossil record, which allows morphological change to be tracked through evolutionary time. Shells grow progressively, at the outer edge, so they record ontogenetic change like no other animal structure. Despite the diversity of mollusc shell morphology, the geometry of shell growth is relatively simple-- even dramatic differences in shell form can be explained by differences in basic parameters of shell growth. This has made them a prominent system for modeling morphological change. Indeed, work on mollusc shells inspired the concept of morphospace-- the theoretical representation of all the possible forms or structures of an organism.
In addition, shell biomineralization has been extensively studied and is a model for materials science (Marin et al., 2012). Despite the many strengths of mollusc shells for studies of morphological evolution, they have not been tractable for mechanistic studies of the evolution of development, because the developmental mechanisms that control shell growth are not known.

The successful candidate will extend recent discoveries in the Lambert lab at the University of Rochester. Studies will focus on the cellular behaviors in the mantle epithelium that control shell shape, and on the genes that regulate these processes. Methods will include cell proliferation assays, RNA-seq, in situ hybridization and gene knockdown studies. Further comparative and modeling projects are also anticipated.

To apply, please send a CV and a short statement describing your background and interests, to David Lambert at email address dlam...@mail.rochester.edu.

__._

__,_._,___