DaveLunt.net - Dr Dave Lunt
The research site of Dr Dave Lunt
The Lunt Lab
I am an evolutionary geneticist at the University of Hull, UK. My lab uses phylogenetic and bioinformatic approaches to better understand genomes, evolutionary processes, and biodiversity.
Comparative Genomics
A main interest of my lab is in the processes that determine genome content, structure and change. To what extent do the primary forces of evolution (recombination, effective population size, mutation and natural selection) cause differences in genome content between different taxa and lineages of life. I explore these topics by comparative phylogenetic analysis of [...]
DNA sequence analysis
Most of my research projects involve evolutionary analysis of DNA sequence data, from phylogenetics to comparative genomics. Although phylogenetic approaches are widespread in many areas of biology they are largely underused for very large-scale sequence datasets and the analysis of genome-scale data.
The Evolutionary Genomics of Sexual Reproduction
How do recombination and reproductive mode determine genome content and architecture? We are carrying a large NERC-funded comparative genomics project to sequence nematode genomes with multiple independent losses of meiosis.
Phylogenetics and Phylogenomics
Much of my research takes a phylogenetic approach to biological questions. I am especially interested in very large scale analyses and tools to automate the path from sequences to annotated trees in a reproducible way. The image is Darwin’s first evolutionary tree from his 1837 notebook.
Parasitoids, DNA barcoding, and food webs
We are applying sensitive DNA barcoding approaches to understand host parasitoid interactions in agricultural systems. We are now able to screen the host species of parasitoid wasps (e.g. aphids) for the presence of parasitoid DNA using rapid PCR techniques. These studies allow a different way to understand both food webs and natural control of agricultural [...]
Evolutionary comparative genomics
The enormous quantities of genomic data now available permit us to powerfully test hypothese of molecular evolution. Perhaps because of the amount of data available comparative analysis of whole genomes is also challenging.We have developed a range of bioinformatic pipelines to facilitate our studies and are taking comparative phylogenetic approach to understanding genome content [...]
Genomics and asexual reproduction in nematodes
Root Knot Nematodes of the genus Meloidogyne are some of the world’s most important crop pathogens. The genus contains a wide range of reproductive modes, with repeated transitions between them. This raises interesting possibilities to investigate the genomic consequences of the loss of meiotic recombination. I recently showed using DNA sequencing that several mitotic parthenogen [...]
Gene copy number variation in adaptive radiations
We are studying gene copy number variation (CNV) in adaptive radiations of cichlids. A fundamental question in biology is what type of genomic changes underlie local adaptation and species radiations. Cichlid fish radiations in the African Great Lakes show extraordinary levels of speciation and ecological diversification compared to their close riverine relatives. Despite a [...]
Publications
- Comparative analysis of teleost genome sequences reveals an ancient intron size expansion in the zebrafish lineage
- Latitudinal variations in the physiology of marine gammarid amphipods
- Repeated colonization and hybridization in Lake Malawi cichlids
- Low endemism, continued deep-shallow interchanges, and evidence for cosmopolitan distributions in free-living marine nematodes (order Enoplida)
- Moving towards a complete molecular framework of the Nematoda: a focus on the Enoplida and early-branching clades
- Probing marine Gammarus (Amphipoda) taxonomy with DNA barcodes
- Copious copies keep out the cold (Adaptive genomic changes in Antarctic fish)
- Linking functional molecular variation with environmental gradients: Myosin gene diversity in a crustacean broadly distributed across variable thermal environments
- Genetic tests of ancient asexuality in Root Knot Nematodes reveal recent hybrid origins
- Molecular phylogeny supports division of the ‘cosmopolitan’ taxon Celleporella (Bryozoa; Cheilostomata) into four major clades