Research

The URPP Evolution started out in 2013 to bring together researchers at the University of Zurich with a common interest of applying these novel genomic technologies to evolutionary questions. Among our members are evolutionary biologists, plant scientists, molecular biologists, medical scientists, bioinformaticians, and linguists, distributed across different departments, faculties, and locations. Our aim has been to integrate this disparate community from various disciplines with their own traditions and ways of thinking.

During Phase I (2013-2016), 14 research projects were ongoing within the larger framework of five interdisciplinary research themes.

During Phase II (2017- 2020), research was performed in 15 collaborative projects centered around six focus topics, and the URPP Evolution hosted four independent research groups:

• Plant Evolutionary Ecology, PI Academic Fellow Dr. Matthew Horton
• Plant Evolutionary Genomics, PI Assistant Professor Prof. Dr. Anne Roulin
• Paleogenetics, PI Assistant Professor Prof. Dr. Verena Schünemann (co-funded by the Institute of Evolutionary Medicine)
• Statistical Genomics, PI Associate Professor Prof. Dr. Mark Robinson (co-funded by the Department of Molecular Life Sciences)

During Phase III (2021-2024), the URPP Evolution continues the activities that have proven successful in creating an integrated research community, and focuses on aspects that will consolidate the achievements beyond its duration. The research profile of the URPP Evolution is sharpened with a focus on diversification and adaptation, specifically the topics of pathogen and host co-evolution, polyploidy and epigenetics, and experimental evolution and modeling, which allow both the follow-up of successful research ideas and the integration of upcoming new topics and approaches.