For most of the 20^th century, scientists believed that reproductive incompatibility evolved gradually between species as a by-product of adapting to different ecological circumstances. If two species were geographically isolated, they would adapt differences based on their environment.

However, new University research, in collaboration with the University of Nebraska, shows that there are more factors at play—specifically the presence of selfish genes called meiotic drive elements, whose flow among species may dictate whether two species converge or diverge. In a new paper published in the journal eLife, the researchers show that sex chromosomes evolve to be genetically incompatible between species faster than the rest of the genetic chromosomes and reveal the factors at play in this incompatibility.

When two members of a species mate and exchange genetic material, this is known as gene flow. When two members of different species mate, however, gene flow is reduced. “Genes from one species simply can’t talk to genes from the other species,” says Daven Presgraves, a dean’s professor of biology at Rochester.

When Presgraves and members of his lab crossed two different species of fruit flies, one from Madagascar and the other from Mauritius, their female hybrid offspring were fertile, but the hybrid male offspring were completely sterile. “One of the steps on the way to complete reproductive isolation is that the XY sex becomes sterile first in that gradual build-up of incompatibility,” Presgraves says. In fruit flies, as in human beings, the XY sex is male.

When the researchers mapped the factors that cause hybrid males to become sterile, they found that there were many more incompatibility factors on the X allosome (allosomes are sex chromosomes)  compared to the autosomes (body chromosomes). This means that sex chromosomes become functionally different between species much faster than non-sex chromosomes, Presgraves says.

The researchers found that meiotic drive elements are responsible for this. In general, selfish genes are parasites of the genome—they propagate themselves at the expense of other genes.

Meiotic drive elements in particular sabotage the rules of typical inheritance: in normal Mendelian inheritance, a gene is transmitted to half the offspring. Meiotic drive elements, however, manipulate reproduction so they can transmit themselves to more than their fair share of the genome. In hybrid male fruit flies, meiotic drive elements usually kill any sperm that don’t carry them, leaving only (or mostly) sperm that do carry the meiotic drive elements.

“This could be because multiple meiotic drive elements from both parental species are unsuppressed in hybrids, and their combined action causes sterility,” says Colin Meiklejohn, a former postdoctoral student in Presgraves’s lab.

In a twist, however, the researchers also found that if meiotic drive elements are able to experience gene flow, they can also help bring species together. During early speciation, when two different species are just beginning to break away from one another, reproductive incompatibility can be incomplete and “leaky”—some part of the genome may still be compatible and exchangeable.

Read more here.

The complex sugars found in human breastmilk, long believed to be fixed in their composition, may change in women who are taking probiotics, according to new research from the Medical Center.

The finding, published in a research letter in JAMA Pediatrics, upends what scientists thought of human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) — the sugar molecules found exclusively in human breast milk — and could lead to future studies on how the compounds can be potentially influenced by diet and other factors.

Though HMOs are indigestible for a newborn child, they are consumed by certain species in the microbiome and can significantly affect its composition. As a result, scientists have begun focusing on HMOs as a possible reason that infants who consume breastmilk are less likely to get certain viral and bacterial infections, and other severe conditions such as necrotizing enterocolitis, along with chronic diseases like food allergy.

“HMOs were thought to be genetically determined, almost like your blood type,” says lead author Antti Seppo, research associate professor of pediatric allergy/immunology. “But this data shows you can manipulate the HMOs by external factors.”

“We thought the interaction between HMOs and the microbiome was a one-way street, with HMOs shaping microbial communities by acting as prebiotics,” said co-author Lars Bode, associate professor of pediatrics at the University of California San Diego. “Here, we have the first example suggesting that maternal dietary microbes, in the form of probiotics, shape HMO compositions.”

The study analyzed data from 81 pregnant women who were enrolled in a probiotic supplementation study in Finland. The researchers then compared 20 different HMOs in the two groups of women — those taking probiotics and those that were not.

Future studies could potentially look at the effect of specific types of probiotics and food groups on specific HMOs, allowing for customization and clinical application tailored to optimize HMO composition in a disease specific way.

“Because HMOs may be linked to development of food allergies in an infant, manipulating HMO composition favorably could open up a new avenue for prevention of food allergies,” says senior co-author Kirsi Jarvinen-Seppo, chief of the Division of Pediatric Allergy/Immunology.

Alexandra Lindgren-Gibson, assistant professor of history at the University of Mississippi, and Mareike Winchell, assistant professor of anthropology at the University of Chicago, will be the Humanities Center’s external fellows for 2019-2020, says director Joan Shelley Rubin.

Lindgren-Gibson, who has a PhD in history from Northwestern University (2016), is a historian of Britain and its empire, with a particular interest in “the colonial world, class formation, migration, and the histories of race, gender, and sexuality.”

Her project Working-Class Raj:  Making a British Imperial Nonelite, connects British working-class history to global history by exploring the experiences of soldiers and railway workers as they left communities in Britain and enjoyed race-based privilege in India.  “The class confusion that resulted,” she writes, “shows up in the writings of these men and women and in the records of charitable organizations, the British Army, and the Government of India.”  Lindgren-Gibson’s book will offer “new insight into the decline of empire in a period thought of as the triumphant height of British imperialism.”

“Her work addresses our theme of community by arguing for the existence of ‘working-class communities that span the globe,’ revising existing scholarship that has separated working-class and imperial histories from one another,” Rubin writes in her Weekly Update.  “We especially look forward to connecting Alex to the Departments of History and Anthropology, and to SBAI (Susan B. Anthony Institute), during her time at Rochester.”

Winchell has a PhD in anthropology from the University of California/Berkeley (2015) with a designated emphasis in critical theory.  She describes herself as a sociocultural anthropologist working “at the intersection of critical indigenous studies, ethical traditions of exchange, and emergent bureaucratic cultures, particularly with respect to digital cartographies of environmental governance in Bolivia.”  Her current book project After Servitude:  Cartographies of Indigenous Justice in Bolivia, focuses on land reform proceedings and the resistance they have encountered from rural Quechua-speaking families who rely on older traditions of agrarian exchange.

While at the center, she will turn to a second book project, Just Documents:  Property, Possession, and the Postcolonial Archive.  That work will focus on “the legal claims of illegitimate hacienda children from 1953 onward” to understand “landowner-servant intimacy as a site of ethical negotiation.”

“We can imagine fruitful connections between Mareike and the Departments of History and English along with Anthropology, as well as possibilities in SBAI and VCS (Visual and Cultural Studies),” Rubin writes.

Rochester campus libraries will celebrate Love Data Week with the theme “data in everyday life.” A series of workshops will be held February 11 to 15, with topics such as data visualization, metadata basics, and data management tips.

The workshops are open to faculty, students, and staff who work with data or would like to learn more about working with data.

The University’s Clinical and Translational Science Institute (UR CTSI) Research Methods Forum provides an interactive setting for investigators to present new and developing research ideas to multidisciplinary experts and get their feedback.

Investigators can present their research proposals at an early stage of project development and/or when the research design is more advanced and the collaborative team is more established. The forum can also help with responses to summary statements for re-submissions.

The forum is held the second and fourth Tuesday of each month from 2 to 3 p.m.  Email researchhelp@urmc.rochester.edu for more information and to schedule your forum.

The University’s Clinical and Translational Science Institute (UR CTSI) manages the URHealthResearch website, which allows visitors to learn about research, search for open studies, and become a research volunteer.  The open studies page has been upgraded, and all studies have new web addresses.

If you would like to add your study to this website, follow these instructions.

Matthew Overlan, brain and cognitive sciences and computer science, “Probabilistic Program Induction as a Model of Human Concept Learning.” 10:30 a.m. January 30, 2019. 269 Meliora Hall. Advisors: Robert Jacobs and Daniel Gildea.

Keith Morris-Schaffer, toxicology, “Neurotoxicological Consequences of Developmental Exposure to Hyperoxia and Ultrafine Ambient Particulate Matter: Concurrent Risk Factors of Premature Birth.” 10 a.m., February 4, 2019. Medical Center K-207 (2-6408). Advisor: Deborah Cory-Slechta.

Danielle Raymond, chemistry, “Multicomponent Supramolecular Peptide Biomaterials.” 12:30 p.m. February 5, 2019. 473 Hutchison Hall. Advisor: Bradley Nilsson.

Today: Applications due for funding to support research collaboration activities with counterparts from any institution in the Research Centers in Minority Institutions (RCMI) program. Learn more and access the application from the UR CTSI Stories blog. Questions? Contact Ivelisse Rivera, UR-RCMI exchange coordinator.

Jan. 30: Entry forms due for the America’s Got Regulatory Science Talent student competition. Teams propose a solution to align with the FDA Regulatory Science priority areas. Visit the UR CTSI website to learn more.

Feb. 1: Initial proposal abstracts due for Department of Public Health Sciences funding for research pilot projects that have a substantial component of or impact on public health sciences, practices, or policies. See submission criteria and other details.

Feb. 4: Applications due for University Research Awards, which provide “seed funding” for promising, high-risk research projects. Completed applications should be directed to Adele Coelho, faculty outreach coordinator in the Office of the Provost and Senior Vice President for Research, at adele.coelho@rochester.edu

Feb. 4: Applications due for AS&E PumpPrimer II awards, which help researchers develop proof of concept and/or pilot data that can then be used to apply for external funding for high-risk proposals. Click here for more information.

Feb. 6: Jesse L. Rosenberger Works-in-Progress seminar. Christopher Haufe, Humanities Center Fellow, presents on the theme of expertise and evidence. Noon to 2 p.m. Humanities Center Conference Room D at Rush Rhees LIbrary. Lunch provided. RSVP by clicking here.

Feb. 15: Applications due for Wilmot Cancer Research postdoctoral fellowship providing mentored research training for physicians with MD or MD/PhD degrees who have completed their residency training and intend to pursue an academic career in clinical, translational, or basic cancer research. View application details. For questions, email Pamela Iadarola or call 585-275-1537.

Feb. 21: Jesse L. Rosenberger Works-in-Progress seminar. Christopher Rovee, Humanities Center Fellow, presents on the theme of expertise and evidence. Noon to 2 p.m. Humanities Center Conference Room D at Rush Rhees LIbrary. Lunch provided. RSVP by clicking here.

Feb. 27: Phelps Colloquium Series: Elizabeth West Marvin, professor of music theory and of brain and cognitive sciences, Experiencing Absolute Pitch: Insights from AP Possessors in the US and Asia, and Gilbert “Rip” Collins, professor of mechanical engineering and of physics and astronomy, Extreme Matters: A Laboratory Exploration of Planets, Stars, and Quantum Materials. 4-5:30 p.m. Max at Eastman. Register here. Questions? Contact Adele Coelho or call 273-2571.

March 6: Jesse L. Rosenberger Works-in-Progress seminar. Anna Rosensweig, assistant professor of French, presents on the theme of expertise and evidence. Noon to 2 p.m. Humanities Center Conference Room D at Rush Rhees LIbrary. Lunch provided. RSVP by clicking here.

March 13: Translational genomics and proteomics un-meeting. Researchers from across UNYTE Translational Research Network member institutions will discuss and develop new, innovative, and effective ideas for genomics and proteomics translational research. 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Helen Wood Hall 1-304. Click here for registration and agenda.

March 21: Jesse L. Rosenberger Works-in-Progress seminar. William Miller, assistant professor of English, presents on the theme of expertise and evidence. Noon to 2 p.m. Humanities Center Conference Room D at Rush Rhees LIbrary. Lunch provided. RSVP by clicking here.

March 27: Phelps Colloquium Series: Huaxia Rui, associate professor, Simon Business School, Open Voice or Private Message? The Hidden Tug-of-War on Social Media Customer Service, and Maria Marconi, assistant professor of clinical nursing, and specialty director of Health Care Organization and Management Master’s Program and of the master’s program in nursing, Leveraging Generational Diversity in Our Classrooms. 4-5:30 p.m. Location TBD. Register here. Questions? Contact Adele Coelho or call 273-2571.

April 3: Jesse L. Rosenberger Works-in-Progress seminar. Jennifer Kyker, associate professor of music, presents on the theme of expertise and evidence. Noon to 2 p.m. Humanities Center Conference Room D at Rush Rhees LIbrary. Lunch provided. RSVP by clicking here.

April 17: Jesse L. Rosenberger Works-in-Progress seminar. Anaar Desai-Stephens, assistant professor of ethnomusicology, presents on the theme of expertise and evidence. Noon to 2 p.m. Humanities Center Conference Room D at Rush Rhees LIbrary. Lunch provided. RSVP by clicking here.

May 2: Jesse L. Rosenberger Works-in-Progress seminar. Tracy Stuber and Anastasia Nikolis, Public Humanities graduate fellows, present on the theme of expertise and evidence. Noon to 2 p.m. Humanities Center Conference Room D at Rush Rhees LIbrary. Lunch provided. RSVP by clicking here.