Houston Regional Ecology and Evolution Student Symposium
May 6, 2016
102 HSC, University of Houston
9:00 – 9:45 Registration and Breakfast
Presenters should load slides and hang posters during this time
9:45 – 10:00 OPENING REMARKS
10:00 – 11:00 Oral presentations, session 1, session chair: Michael Miller
10:00 Kedar Karkare, University of Houston
Historical Contingency Influences the Fitness Effects of Mutations in E. coli
10:15 Derek Woller, Texas A&M University
Exploring the sexy frontiers of functional morphology...in 3D!!! (Orthoptera: Acrididae: Melanoplus rotundipennis)
10:30 Jason Tarkington, University of Houston
Tetrahymena thermophila shows increased evolvability following sex
10:45 Shanze Li, University of Houston
Disturbance in Georgia salt marshes: variation across space and time
11:00 – 12:00 Poster session
12:00 – 1:30 LUNCH
1:30 – 2:30 Oral presentations, session 2, session chair: Tess Doumas
1:30 Ryan Mushinski, Texas A&M University
Forest harvest leads to decade-scale alterations in pine forest soil fungal dynamics
1:45 Kristina Duan, University of Houston
Anatomy of a beneficial mutation: a change in regulation allows faster resumption of growth
2:00 Wei-Ting Lin, University of Houston
Temporal shift in insect herbivore interaction: from concurrent competition to delayed facilitation
2:15 Ata Kalirad, University of Houston
The Melting Snowball: A Test of the Snowball Theory Using RNA
2:30 – 3:00 BREAK
3:00 – 4:00 KEYNOTE LECTURE: Vaishali Katju, Texas A&M University
Copy-Number Changes During Experimental Evolution in Caenorhabditis elegans: Rate, Fitness Effects and Context-Dependence
4:00 AWARD PRESENTATION
Adjourn to Calhoun's Rooftop Bar and Grill
POSTERS
1. Sontee Dastidar, University of Houston
Title TBD
2. Anna Hawkins, University of Houston
The effect of water availability on microbe-mediated interactions between plant species
4. Yui Matsumoto, Texas A&M Galveston
The Immortal Jellyfish (Turritopsis dohrnii): Model System for Regeneration, Cellular Plasticity and Aging
5. Sarah Pruski, Texas A&M Galveston
Hydromedusae Biodiversity and Seasonality in Galveston Bay
6. Alexandria Rivard, Texas A&M Galveston
Length Variance Explained by Fishing Method for Six Species in the Gulf of Mexico Longline Reef Fishery
7. Elias Urena, University of Houston
Bistability in genetic circuits refers to the existence of two stable patterns of gene expression. The lambda phage Genetic Architecture of the Lambda Phage Switch.
8. Heather Votaw, University of Houston
Interpopulation Effects on Social Fitness within Groups of the Social Amoeba, Dictostelium discoideum
9. Hao Zhang, University of Houston
The effect of the distribution of preferred codons on translation efficiency
May 6, 2016
102 HSC, University of Houston
9:00 – 9:45 Registration and Breakfast
Presenters should load slides and hang posters during this time
9:45 – 10:00 OPENING REMARKS
10:00 – 11:00 Oral presentations, session 1, session chair: Michael Miller
10:00 Kedar Karkare, University of Houston
Historical Contingency Influences the Fitness Effects of Mutations in E. coli
10:15 Derek Woller, Texas A&M University
Exploring the sexy frontiers of functional morphology...in 3D!!! (Orthoptera: Acrididae: Melanoplus rotundipennis)
10:30 Jason Tarkington, University of Houston
Tetrahymena thermophila shows increased evolvability following sex
10:45 Shanze Li, University of Houston
Disturbance in Georgia salt marshes: variation across space and time
11:00 – 12:00 Poster session
12:00 – 1:30 LUNCH
1:30 – 2:30 Oral presentations, session 2, session chair: Tess Doumas
1:30 Ryan Mushinski, Texas A&M University
Forest harvest leads to decade-scale alterations in pine forest soil fungal dynamics
1:45 Kristina Duan, University of Houston
Anatomy of a beneficial mutation: a change in regulation allows faster resumption of growth
2:00 Wei-Ting Lin, University of Houston
Temporal shift in insect herbivore interaction: from concurrent competition to delayed facilitation
2:15 Ata Kalirad, University of Houston
The Melting Snowball: A Test of the Snowball Theory Using RNA
2:30 – 3:00 BREAK
3:00 – 4:00 KEYNOTE LECTURE: Vaishali Katju, Texas A&M University
Copy-Number Changes During Experimental Evolution in Caenorhabditis elegans: Rate, Fitness Effects and Context-Dependence
4:00 AWARD PRESENTATION
Adjourn to Calhoun's Rooftop Bar and Grill
POSTERS
1. Sontee Dastidar, University of Houston
Title TBD
2. Anna Hawkins, University of Houston
The effect of water availability on microbe-mediated interactions between plant species
4. Yui Matsumoto, Texas A&M Galveston
The Immortal Jellyfish (Turritopsis dohrnii): Model System for Regeneration, Cellular Plasticity and Aging
5. Sarah Pruski, Texas A&M Galveston
Hydromedusae Biodiversity and Seasonality in Galveston Bay
6. Alexandria Rivard, Texas A&M Galveston
Length Variance Explained by Fishing Method for Six Species in the Gulf of Mexico Longline Reef Fishery
7. Elias Urena, University of Houston
Bistability in genetic circuits refers to the existence of two stable patterns of gene expression. The lambda phage Genetic Architecture of the Lambda Phage Switch.
8. Heather Votaw, University of Houston
Interpopulation Effects on Social Fitness within Groups of the Social Amoeba, Dictostelium discoideum
9. Hao Zhang, University of Houston
The effect of the distribution of preferred codons on translation efficiency