ERC Consolidator Grant TETHYS

The evolution and regulation of major transitions in sexual systems: new insights from the brown algae

Brown algae are remarkably interesting. Having evolved independently of animals and plants for more than a billion years, their exceptionally rich sexual features make them ideal samples for the study of sex chromosome evolution.

The EU-funded TETHYS project will investigate them in order to gain novel insights into the functional bases and ultimate forces associated with transitions between sexual systems and their impact on the evolution of this important group of eukaryotes. Specifically, it will exploit the amenability of model brown algae to genetic and genomic approaches to uncover the mechanisms and evolutionary forces driving switches between sexual systems across this group.

The findings will help answer some of the evolutionary questions about the diversity and turnover of sex determining systems in eukaryotes.

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EU Project data base: https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/864038

 

This project has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement No 864038).