Vellichor

Advanced Genetics (BIOL 3595A)

My name is Heather Ward. I am a TA for AdGen, a 3rd year genetics course running at the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario.

Research

I am in the first year of my MSc in Evolutionary Biology at UWO. I completed my undergrad in Biochemistry at the University of Waterloo. My research is looking into the genetic basis of cuticular hydrocarbon (CHC) production in Drosophila, and the implications that differences in CHCs may have on speciation. CHCs help insects resists desiccation, but they have also been shown to be key in recognition of conspecific mates. Frequently the major CHCs have been found to act more as interspecies antiaphrodesiacs than as intraspecies attractants. A recent study has identified several potential candidates as the basal attractant in Drosophila species; these compounds are medium-chain fatty acids (as opposed to the previously identified CHCs, which are all long or very long-chain fatty acids), and are present at far lower levels than the major CHCs. I plan to look at species differences in these compounds, as well as potential sources (food, biosynthesis by the flies themselves, commensal bacteria).

I will also be looking into differences in gut microbiota between sister species of Drosophila; changes in the gut microbiota have been shown to affect CHC levels. I hope to integrate the genetic basis as well as some environmental influence, dictated by the gut microbiota of the insects, into the overall picture of CHC production in Drosophila species.