University of Vienna
Title: The evolution of bilaterian traits - insights from genomics and development of the sea anemone Nematostella
Abstract: The vast majority of all animal phyla belongs to the Bilateria, which have radiated from a common ancestor before the cambrium. Bilateria share several key traits such as bilaterality, three germ layers and a central nervous system. We are trying to trace the evolutionary transition between non-bilaterian (basal) metazoans and Bilateria by investigating a representative of the sister group, the cnidarian Nematostella vectensis with respect to genome structure and composition and gene regulatory networks underlying conserved and diverging developmental processes that have contributed to the evolution of these key bilaterian traits and to the evolution of cellular diversification. To this end, our lab has established the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis as a tractable model organism allowing to address these questions using modern methods.
Host: Oliver Hobert
