Stephen Joseph Sabatino

Biography

Currently I am studying the genomics of ecological adaptation and life history evolution in Eurasian shad (Alosa). Alosa are usually anadromous, but some individuals spend their entire lives in freshwater lakes (i.e., they are “landlocked”). Phenotypic convergence among landlocked populations of Alosa has likely occurred in response to similar, repeated environmental and ecological factors (i.e., “parallel adaptation”). In addition, life history traits including parity, age at maturity, migration distance and size vary considerably within and among anadromous Alosa species and may have evolved in response to environmental factors including temperature, salinity and levels of upwelling. Such life history variation within Alosa make it an interesting group of species in which to study the molecular basis of ecological and life history adaptation. Moreover, patterns of life history evolution in Alosa are similar to those seen in other anadromous fish families including salmon, sturgeon and stickleback. Fish in these families have different genome sizes and architectures. By comparing the genomes of fish from these different families I hope to better understand the role of genetic architecture in adaptation and determine the phylogenetic scale at which convergence at adaptive loci associated with anadromous life history adaptations can be observed.

Research Interest

Genomics of ecological adaptation and life history evolution in Eurasian shad