Brian A. Counterman

is now an Assistant Professor at

Mississippi State University

Department of Biological Sciences

Evolutionary genetics of speciation and adaptation

I am interested in exploring a fundamental question of biological research: how does genetic variation in natural populations relate to functional variation at the molecular and ecological level. Ultimately, I want to gain a better understanding of the evolutionary forces and the underlying genetic changes that drive adaptation and speciation in natural populations.

Wing pattern variation is an ideal trait to study speciation and adaptation, since it varies among so many species and is often involved in adaptation to novel environments and creating reproductive barriers between species. My research takes advantage of wing pattern variation in two model systems: Heliconius butterflies and Hawaiian Drosophila. My research plan is to use these two systems to conduct an in-depth study of the genomic architecture underlying wing pattern variation and how that architecture varies among closely and distantly related evolutionary lineages.



PUBLICATIONS

Queck, S-P., Counterman, B. A., Albequerque de Moura, P., Cardoso, M. Z., McMillan, W. O. and M. Kronforst. Tracing the history of parallel radiations in mimetic Heliconius butterflies. Submitted.

Counterman, B. A., Arajuo-Perez, F., Hines, H. M., Baxter, S. W., Morrison, C. M., et al. 2010. Genomic Hotspots for adaptation: populaiton genetics of Mullerian mimicry in Heliconius erato. PLoS Genetics 6 (2): e1000796

Baxter, S. W., Nadeau, N., Maroja, L., Wilkinson, P., Counterman, B. A., et al. 2010. Genomic Hotspots for adaptation: populaiton genetics of Mullerian mimicry in the Heliconius melpomene clade. PLoS Genetics 6 (2): e1000794

Papa, R., Morrison, C. M., Walters, J. R., Counterman, B. A., … and W. O. McMillan. 2008. Highly conserved gene order and numerous novel repetitive elements in genomic regions linked to wing pattern variation in Heliconius butterflies. BMC Genomics, 9:345

Ortíz-Barrientos, D., Counterman B. A., and M. A. F. Noor. 2007. Gene expression divergence and the origin of hybrid dysfunction. Genetica, 129: 71-81

Counterman, B. A., and M. A. F. Noor. 2006. Multilocus test for introgression between the cactophilic species Drosophila mojavensis and D. arizonae. American Naturalist, 168: 682-696

Yang, J. Y., Counterman, B. A., Eckert, C. G. and S. A. Hodges. 2005. Microsatellite markers for evolutionary studies in Aquilegia. Molecular Ecology Notes, 5: 317-320

Ortíz-Barrientos, D., Counterman, B. A., and M. A. F. Noor. 2004. The genetics of Reinforcement in Drosophila. PLoS Biol 2(12): e416

Counterman, B. A.*, Ortíz-Barrientos*, D. and M. A. F. Noor. 2004. Using comparative genomic data to test for fast-X evolution. Evolution, 58: 656-660

Stevison, L. S.*, Counterman*, B. A. and M. A. F. Noor. 2004. Molecular population genetics of X-linked accessory gland proteins in Drosophila pseudoobscura. Journal of Heredity, 95: 114-118

* These authors contributed equally