Born from Scratch: The Origin and Evolution of De Novo Genes and Proteins
Event Details
- Type
- Monday Lecture Series
- Speaker(s)
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Li Zhao, Ph.D., associate professor and head, Laboratory of Evolutionary Genetics and Genomics, The Rockefeller University
- Speaker bio(s)
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Where do new genes and the proteins they encode come from? Many new genes arise through duplication and divergence of existing genes, but some emerge de novo from DNA that was previously non-genic. These genes offer a rare opportunity to observe biological innovation at its earliest stages, yet how they originate, come under transcriptional and translational control, acquire function, and persist or are lost in populations and across species remains poorly understood. We combine population genetics, comparative genomics, computational protein-structure prediction, machine learning, and functional experiments in Drosophila to investigate the birth and evolution of lineage-specific de novo genes. I will present a multidimensional view of how these genes originate, become integrated into the molecular and cellular systems of the organism, and what they reveal about how genomes generate new molecular functions.
Dr. Li Zhao is an Associate Professor and Head of the Laboratory of Evolutionary Genetics and Genomics at The Rockefeller University, where her lab focuses on understanding the origin of novel genes and the link between genetic and functional innovation. Prior to joining the faculty at Rockefeller, Dr. Zhao was a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, Davis, working with Dr. David Begun. Dr. Zhao is a recipient of the Sloan Research Fellowship (2018) and the Irma T. Hirschl/Monique Weill-Caulier Trust Research Award (2018), and is a Rita Allen Foundation Scholar (2019), a Vallee Foundation Scholar (2020), and an Allen Distinguished Investigator of the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation (2022).
- Open to
- Campus Only