Moira Scascitelli
Post-Doctoral Fellow
mscascit(at)interchange.ubc.ca

 

My research began with a study of karyotypic evolution in the house mouse (Mus musculus domesticus). During my PhD (Univ. of Rome Tor Vergata, IT; advisor: M. Rizzoni), I used cytogenetic tools to analyze the meiotic behaviour of ‘underdominant’ chromosome rearrangements (Robertsonian fusions) in house mice. I’m also trying to use molecular techniques to understand the role of chromosome rearrangements in the origin of different mouse karyotypic races in Northern Italy (Univeristy of York, UK; advisor: J.B. Searle).

My interest is also on different aspects of plant evolution. I’m working as a post-doc with Loren Rieseberg. I’m studying the effects of hybridization and the introgression of adaptive traits in annual sunflowers. I’m working with molecular tools on populations of sunflowers from Texas: Helianthus annuus (they reached Texas, though if it was outside the original range of distribution), H. debilis (endemic of Texas) and a third taxon (H. annuus texanus) which arose by hybridization between the first two species.