Author
Laura Ferguson
Other affiliations: Harvard University, University of Nairobi, University of Oxford ...read more
Bio: Laura Ferguson is an academic researcher from University of Southern California. The author has contributed to research in topics: Human rights & Health policy. The author has an hindex of 29, co-authored 85 publications receiving 3964 citations. Previous affiliations of Laura Ferguson include Harvard University & University of Nairobi.
Topics: Human rights, Health policy, Medicine, Reproductive health, Population
Papers published on a yearly basis
Papers
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University College London1, University of Cambridge2, University of California, Irvine3, University of Maryland, College Park4, University of Oxford5, Smithsonian Institution6, University of Greifswald7, Max Planck Society8, Imperial College London9, Harvard University10, University of East Anglia11, Mississippi State University12, University of Texas at Austin13, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation14, University of Paris15, University of Hawaii16, California Academy of Sciences17, Williams College18, Yale University19, University of Puerto Rico20, Johns Hopkins University21, North Carolina State University22, University of Bristol23, University of Edinburgh24, Baylor College of Medicine25, Del Rosario University26, University of Exeter27, Boston University28
TL;DR: It is inferred that closely related Heliconius species exchange protective colour-pattern genes promiscuously, implying that hybridization has an important role in adaptive radiation.
Abstract: Sequencing of the genome of the butterfly Heliconius melpomene shows that closely related Heliconius species exchange protective colour-pattern genes promiscuously.
1,103 citations
TL;DR: The results indicate that allelic combinations at known wing-patterning loci have become locked together in a polymorphic rearrangement at the P locus, forming a supergene that acts as a simple switch between complex adaptive phenotypes found in sympatry.
Abstract: Supergenes are tight clusters of loci that facilitate the co-segregation of adaptive variation, providing integrated control of complex adaptive phenotypes. Polymorphic supergenes, in which specific combinations of traits are maintained within a single population, were first described for 'pin' and 'thrum' floral types in Primula and Fagopyrum, but classic examples are also found in insect mimicry and snail morphology. Understanding the evolutionary mechanisms that generate these co-adapted gene sets, as well as the mode of limiting the production of unfit recombinant forms, remains a substantial challenge. Here we show that individual wing-pattern morphs in the polymorphic mimetic butterfly Heliconius numata are associated with different genomic rearrangements at the supergene locus P. These rearrangements tighten the genetic linkage between at least two colour-pattern loci that are known to recombine in closely related species, with complete suppression of recombination being observed in experimental crosses across a 400-kilobase interval containing at least 18 genes. In natural populations, notable patterns of linkage disequilibrium (LD) are observed across the entire P region. The resulting divergent haplotype clades and inversion breakpoints are found in complete association with wing-pattern morphs. Our results indicate that allelic combinations at known wing-patterning loci have become locked together in a polymorphic rearrangement at the P locus, forming a supergene that acts as a simple switch between complex adaptive phenotypes found in sympatry. These findings highlight how genomic rearrangements can have a central role in the coexistence of adaptive phenotypes involving several genes acting in concert, by locally limiting recombination and gene flow.
523 citations
University of Helsinki1, Helsinki Institute for Information Technology2, University of Turku3, Pennsylvania State University4, University of Cambridge5, University of Oxford6, Peking University7, University of Bristol8, Max Planck Society9, Stanford University10, University of Tampere11, Information Technology University12, Stockholm University13, Human Genome Sequencing Center14, European Bioinformatics Institute15, Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics16, Broad Institute17, Massachusetts Institute of Technology18, Science for Life Laboratory19, University of Rhode Island20
TL;DR: The genome of the Glanville fritillary butterfly, a widely recognized model species in metapopulation biology and eco-evolutionary research, is reported, which shows that fusion chromosomes have retained the ancestral chromosome segments and very few rearrangements have occurred across the fusion sites.
Abstract: Previous studies have reported that chromosome synteny in Lepidoptera has been well conserved, yet the number of haploid chromosomes varies widely from 5 to 223. Here we report the genome (393 Mb) ...
216 citations
Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute1, University of Sheffield2, Del Rosario University3, University of Paris4, John Innes Centre5, Australian National University6, University of Cambridge7, University of California, Berkeley8, Williams College9, University of Oxford10, Pennsylvania State University11, University of Exeter12, University of Montpellier13
TL;DR: A gene is identified through fine-scale mapping using population genomics and gene expression analyses, which regulates pattern switches in multiple species across the mimetic radiation in Heliconius butterflies, suggesting that cortex regulates pigmentation patterning through regulation of scale cell development.
Abstract: The wing patterns of butterflies and moths (Lepidoptera) are diverse and striking examples of evolutionary diversification by natural selection1, 2. Lepidopteran wing colour patterns are a key innovation, consisting of arrays of coloured scales. We still lack a general understanding of how these patterns are controlled and whether this control shows any commonality across the 160,000 moth and 17,000 butterfly species. Here, we use fine-scale mapping with population genomics and gene expression analyses to identify a gene, cortex, that regulates pattern switches in multiple species across the mimetic radiation in Heliconius butterflies. cortex belongs to a fast-evolving subfamily of the otherwise highly conserved fizzy family of cell-cycle regulators3, suggesting that it probably regulates pigmentation patterning by regulating scale cell development. In parallel with findings in the peppered moth (Biston betularia)4, our results suggest that this mechanism is common within Lepidoptera and that cortex has become a major target for natural selection acting on colour and pattern variation in this group of insects.
187 citations
Kansas State University1, Oklahoma State University–Stillwater2, Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research3, University of Rhode Island4, Max Planck Society5, University of Sydney6, Human Genome Sequencing Center7, University of Kansas8, Massachusetts Institute of Technology9, University of Barcelona10, China Agricultural University11, François Rabelais University12, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation13, University of Oxford14, Academy of Athens15, University of Copenhagen16, Columbia University17, Southwest University18, Reed College19, Fraunhofer Society20, Donghua University21, Northwest A&F University22, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center23, University of Southern Maine24, University of California, Irvine25, Anhui Agricultural University26, University of Rochester27, Northeastern University28, Cornell University29, Chinese Academy of Sciences30, Hamilton College31, University of Hamburg32, Ghent University33, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens34, University of Wisconsin-Madison35, North Carolina State University36, University of Siegen37, Oregon Health & Science University38, University of Cambridge39, University of Massachusetts Amherst40, College of Charleston41, University of Giessen42, University of South Carolina43, University of Missouri–Kansas City44, Rothamsted Research45
TL;DR: The sequence and annotation of the M. sexta genome, and a survey of gene expression in various tissues and developmental stages, provide an important new resource from a well-studied model insect species and will facilitate further biochemical and mechanistic experimental studies of many biological systems in insects.
154 citations
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Journal Article•
TL;DR: It is suggested that the natural selection against large insertion/deletion is so weak that a large amount of variation is maintained in a population.
11,521 citations
TL;DR: Both BlastKOALA and GhostKOalA are automatic annotation servers for genome and metagenome sequences, which perform KO (KEGG Orthology) assignments to characterize individual gene functions and reconstruct KEGG pathways, BRITE hierarchies and K EGG modules to infer high-level functions of the organism or the ecosystem.
2,247 citations
TL;DR: A suite of methods for learning about population mixtures are presented, implemented in a software package called ADMIXTOOLS, that support formal tests for whether mixture occurred and make it possible to infer proportions and dates of mixture.
Abstract: Population mixture is an important process in biology. We present a suite of methods for learning about population mixtures, implemented in a software package called ADMIXTOOLS, that support formal tests for whether mixture occurred and make it possible to infer proportions and dates of mixture. We also describe the development of a new single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) array consisting of 629,433 sites with clearly documented ascertainment that was specifically designed for population genetic analyses and that we genotyped in 934 individuals from 53 diverse populations. To illustrate the methods, we give a number of examples that provide new insights about the history of human admixture. The most striking finding is a clear signal of admixture into northern Europe, with one ancestral population related to present-day Basques and Sardinians and the other related to present-day populations of northeast Asia and the Americas. This likely reflects a history of admixture between Neolithic migrants and the indigenous Mesolithic population of Europe, consistent with recent analyses of ancient bones from Sweden and the sequencing of the genome of the Tyrolean "Iceman."
1,877 citations
TL;DR: This survey of sexual practices in the United States has been combed by the media for items of interest to the public: monogamous sex is much more widespread in this country than has been thought.
Abstract: This survey of sexual practices in the United States has been combed by the media for items of interest to the public: monogamous sex is much more widespread in this country than has been thought; infidelity is less frequent than presumed; vaginal intercourse is the defining experience of heterosexual behavior; watching one's partner undress is stimulating to many people; married couples have more sex than single people (unmarried, cohabiting couples have the most sex of all); the majority of couples experience sex twice a week to several times a month; 2.8% of men identify themselves as homosexual and 1.4% of women do so, but a higher percentage of people consider a same-gender experience to have some appeal; 75% of men always experience orgasm compared with 28.6% of women, but more nearly equal numbers of men and women declare themselves satisfied with their sexual experiences. The book is, in fact, a
1,810 citations
University of St Andrews1, University of Oldenburg2, Natural History Museum3, Naturalis4, Centre national de la recherche scientifique5, Michigan State University6, University of Lausanne7, University of Wyoming8, Queen Mary University of London9, University of Sheffield10, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis11, University of Oslo12, University of Vienna13, University of Vermont14, University of East Anglia15, Spanish National Research Council16, University of Cambridge17, University of Konstanz18, University of Zurich19, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh20, Harvard University21, Autonomous University of Madrid22, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology23, Boston University24, Max Planck Society25, University of Neuchâtel26, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill27, Lehigh University28, American Museum of Natural History29, University of Montpellier30, University of Liverpool31, Jagiellonian University32, Uppsala University33, German Primate Center34
TL;DR: A perspective on the context and evolutionary significance of hybridization during speciation is offered, highlighting issues of current interest and debate and suggesting that the Dobzhansky–Muller model of hybrid incompatibilities requires a broader interpretation.
Abstract: Hybridization has many and varied impacts on the process of speciation. Hybridization may slow or reverse differentiation by allowing gene flow and recombination. It may accelerate speciation via adaptive introgression or cause near-instantaneous speciation by allopolyploidization. It may have multiple effects at different stages and in different spatial contexts within a single speciation event. We offer a perspective on the context and evolutionary significance of hybridization during speciation, highlighting issues of current interest and debate. In secondary contact zones, it is uncertain if barriers to gene flow will be strengthened or broken down due to recombination and gene flow. Theory and empirical evidence suggest the latter is more likely, except within and around strongly selected genomic regions. Hybridization may contribute to speciation through the formation of new hybrid taxa, whereas introgression of a few loci may promote adaptive divergence and so facilitate speciation. Gene regulatory networks, epigenetic effects and the evolution of selfish genetic material in the genome suggest that the Dobzhansky-Muller model of hybrid incompatibilities requires a broader interpretation. Finally, although the incidence of reinforcement remains uncertain, this and other interactions in areas of sympatry may have knock-on effects on speciation both within and outside regions of hybridization.
1,715 citations