The Meyer Lab
We study several fundamental issues in evolutionary biology. In particular, the evolution of biodiversity, and specifically the genesis of genomic, developmental and morphological diversity as well as their evolutionary interconnections, are of interest to us. To this end we study: morphological differentiation and its developmental basis within a phylogenetic framework, genetic differentiation among populations and species, and the evolution of genes and genomes, and the evolution of novel gene functions. In an effort to better understand the origin and maintenance of diversity we mostly use molecular and bioinformatic approaches, to ask how many and what kind of genetic changes accompany morphological differentiation among populations and species.

News

  • 17.4.2019 - Professor Meyer was elected to The American Academy of Arts and Sciences Link
  • 20.2.2019 - EurekaAlert! about Hulsey et al.'s paper in Proceedings of the Royal Society Series B: "New insights into phenotypic complexity and diversity among cichlids" Link
  • 12.1.2019 - Podcast about Franchini et al.'s paper in Nature Communications: "Researchers create new sex chromosomes. Deutschlandfunk  Link  
  • 12.6.2018 - "The evolution of a new sex chromosome in swordtail fish"  Blog Post about Franchini et al.'s paper in Nature Communications Link

Our latest publications

  • 17.7.2019 - Franchini, P., Xiong, P., Fruciano, C., Schneider, R.F., Woltering, J.M., Hulsey, C.D. and A. Meyer. 2019. MicroRNA gene regulation in the extremely young and parallel adaptive radiations of Nicaraguan crater lake cichlid fish. Molecular Biology and Evolution. (in press).
  • 10.7.2019 - Aguilera, G., Terán, G.E., Mirande, J. M., Alonso, F., Rometsch, S., Meyer, A., and J. Torres-Dowdall. 2019. Molecular and morphological convergence to sulfide-tolerant fishes in a new species of Jenynsia (Cyprinodontiformes: Anablepidae) the first extremophile member of the family. PLoS One. 14: e0218810.
  • 24.5.2019 - Kratochwil C.F., Urban, S., and A. Meyer. 2019. Genome of the Malawi golden cichlid fish (Melanochromis auratus) reveals exon loss of oca2 in an amelanistic morph.​ Pigment Cell and Melanoma Research (in press).
  • ​all Meyer lab publications