SPOTLIGHT: Evolutionary Biology Unit

Pubblicato il: 23.10.2019 19:32

The study of evolution - its processes, its models, the micro and the macro dimensions - is perhaps one of the most multifaceted and fast-moving scientific enterprises within the life sciences. Far from being a study of the past only, evolutionary research spans from investigating sex and mating strategies in living organisms, disentangling ancestry and demographic processes in extant and extinct human populations, to the social behaviour in fish and birds and wildlife management and conservation. The Evolutionary Biology Unit of the Department of Biology UniPd, coordinated by Prof. Mariella Rasotto, aims at exploring all these aspects through an integrated approach, addressing evolutionary questions at various scales, that include the theory of evolution, conservation, animal behaviour and molecular biology. 

Theory of evolution: We address relevant philosophical aspects arising from recent human evolutionary debates (conceptual clarity, inferential reasoning and model update in light of new available evidence), the evolution of evolutionary theory itself as a research program (in its historical and epistemological aspects), the evolutionary and cognitive constraints at the base of Homo sapiens’ current role as a major selective force, strategies for effective science communication on evolutionary topics.

Conservation: We investigate how natural processes and human activities act upon coastal and marine populations and communities, affecting their viability and influencing their composition in terms, for example, of life history and functional traits, and how this connects to nature conservation, marine management, and sustainability.

Animal Behaviour: We are interested in the behaviour of animals as individuals, mates, and social companions. Our studies span from social to sexual interactions, from migratory behaviour to mate choice (both before and after the mating). Most of our research focuses on sexual selection, to shed light on how male and female traits evolve under sexual selection and what are the consequences for reproductive processes and population viability and persistence. 

Evolutionary Molecular Biology:  Our research interests span from the gene expression and transcriptomic analyses of gametes, male-female and pest-host interactions, to the genetic analyses of animal species and of human populations from a molecular anthropology and population genetics perspective, based both on modern and ancient data to disentangle recent and past demographic and adaptive events. 

The Evolutionary Biology Unit currently includes:
Staff members: Alberto Barausse, Clelia Gasparini, Alessandro Grapputo, Matteo Griggio, Lisa Locatello, Carlotta Mazzoldi, Luca Pagani, Telmo Pievani, Andrea Pilastro, Mariella Rasotto

Postdoc and PhD students: Matteo Barbato, Silvia Cattelan, Elena Desiderá, Alexandra Glavaschi, Andra Meneganzin, Federica Poli, Beniamino Tuliozzi