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Abstract Detail



Population Genetics/Genomics

Etterson, Julie [1], Mazer, Susan [2], Franks, Steven [3], Weis, Arthur [4], Shaw, Ruth [5].

Project Baseline: the resurrection is coming.

Although it is widely hypothesized that anthropogenic stressors are driving plant evolution across species’ ranges, it is difficult to observe these changes. One of the most powerful methods for studying contemporary evolution is the "resurrection approach" where ancestral populations are revived (e.g. using old seed) and grown side-by-side with descendant populations for direct comparison of changes that have occurred over time. Although such antecedent-successor comparisons are extremely informative, the ancestral seed necessary to do the experiments is rarely available. To solve this problem, our team of plant ecological and evolutionary geneticists recently established a new research seed bank, Project Baseline, which will provide old seed for resurrection ecology research for the next 50 years. To date, we have collected seeds from 10-20 populations across the geographic ranges of 65 plant species with diverse life history attributes. Information about species and locations are available on our web page, http://baselineseedbank.org/. The seeds are stored by maternal line (100-200 lines per population) at the ARS USDA National Center for Genetic Resources Preservation in Ft. Collins, CO. Environmental data and herbarium specimens are also archieved. With this valuable resource secured, biologists will be able to grow genetically representative samples of past populations contemporaneously with modern samples. To dissect the architecture of evolutionary change that has occured beween these time points, researchers can applyi long-established and recently developed genetic approaches. This living genome bank will vastly expand the opportunity this research approach to learn about plant evolution across time and space. The resurrection is coming. To find out how to use this valuable resource, please stop by this poster.


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1 - University Of Minnesota Duluth, 207 Swenson Science Building, 1110 Kirby Drive, 207 Swenson Science Building, 1035 Kirby Drive, Duluth, MN, 55812, United States
2 - University Of California, Santa Barbara, Department Of Ecology & Marine Biology, 4119 Life Sciences Building, Santa Barbara, CA, 93106, United States
3 - INVASIVE PLANT RESEARCH LAB, 441 E. Fordham Road, 160 Larkin Hall, Bronx, NY, 10458, United States
4 - University of Toronto, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S , Canada
5 - University Of Minnesota, Department Of Ecology, Evolution And Behavior, 1479 Gortner Ave, 140 Gortner, St. Paul, MN, 55108, United States

Keywords:
Resurrection approach
contemporary evolution
population genetics
seed bank.

Presentation Type: Poster
Session: P, Population Genetics/Genomics
Location: Grand Ballroom - Exhibit Hall/Mayo Civic Center
Date: Monday, July 23rd, 2018
Time: 5:30 PM This poster will be presented at 6:15 pm. The Poster Session runs from 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm. Posters with odd poster numbers are presented at 5:30 pm, and posters with even poster numbers are presented at 6:15 pm.
Number: PPG006
Abstract ID:591
Candidate for Awards:None


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