A fulltime four-year Ph.D. position Molecular control of the development of a morphological evolutionary novelty involved in olfactory communication

Biodiversity Research Centre – Earth and Life Institute Universite
catholique de Louvain (UCL)

1348, Louvain-la-Neuve, BELGIUM

Project Title

Molecular control of the development of a morphological evolutionary
novelty involved in olfactory communication, androconia, of the model
butterfly Bicyclus anynana.

Available position

A fulltime four-year Ph.D. position is available at the Biodiversity
Research Centre, Earth and Life Institute, University of Louvain-la-Neuve
(UCL) in Belgium.

Description of the project

The doctoral project will be undertaken at a leading Belgium University,
in a laboratory interested in the evolution of olfactory communication
and its role in speciation using the model butterfly Bicyclus anyana. Our
group has identified the male sex pheromone involved in mate choice
in B. anynana and has shown that this sex perfume is under sexual
selection. Moreover, it was shown that wide diversification of the
African Bicyclus genus is associated with selection and reproductive
character displacement on the composition of the male sex pheromone
between closely related sympatric Bicyclus species1-4. Importantly,
androconia, formed of hair-like structures located on the wings, are
the major morphological structure responsible for male sex pheromone
production in the Bicyclus genus. Yet, despite the evolutionary recently
acknowledged importance of androconia, these morphological structures
are an evolutionary novelty specific to Lepidoptera and as such, the
molecular mechanisms controlling their development remain unknown.

In this regard, this project aims at unraveling the molecular bases of
androconia development in Bicyclus and identifies whether novel genes,
or rather recycled developmental pathways, have been used to produce
the Lepidoptera-specific androconial structures. A high throughput 454
transcriptome data of B. anynana developing wings is available in the lab
for identifying an unbiased list of candidate genes. Moreover, B. anynana
butterflies can be reared in large numbers in the laboratory, allowing
large-scale experiments. The project will aim at first to identify
a list of candidate genes in the transcriptome, and second, validate
their patterns of temporal and spatial expression with phenotypic data
of androconia development, using RT-qPCR and manipulative gene expression
approaches5. The functional characterization of the candidate genes will
be conducted in collaboration with the laboratory of Dr. P. Beldade
(Gulbenkian Institute of Science, Lisbon, Portugal) 6-8. The research
will lead to deciphering the molecular bases of androconia development
in the first Lepidoptera studied till date.

A second step of this project will aim at investigating whether the same
molecular developmental pathways have been conserved, or not, through
the diversification of the Bicyclus genus. For this we will test the
expression of our B. anynana list of candidate genes in the development
of the androconia of closely related Bicyclus species, which numbers and
positions are the main character allowing to discriminate among closely
related species in the field9.

Requirements

We are looking for a strongly motivated candidate with a Masters degree in
Molecular Biology or Evolutionary Ecology, or related fields. Experience
in molecular biology and written and oral communication skills in English
are desirable, as is the ability to work efficiently, independently as
well as in collaboration. The grant will be delivered upon successful
written application prepared in collaboration with the selected applicant
and an oral interview in Brussels (October-November 2014), which can be
done either in English or French. Adequate training will be provided for
preparing for the interview. The selected applicant will be supervised
throughout the process. The degrees obtained abroad (outside Belgium) or
in the Flemish Community will require an equivalence (necessary to provide
documentation of passed examinations for 300 credits including a research
work of at least six months during master with a scientific report;
more information: http://www.uclouvain.be/356107.html) for which the
deadline is August 11th, 2014. The candidate will be expected to present
his/her research results in national and international conferences.

Work environment

The PhD student will work in a highly active and integrated
academic environment, in the research team of Prof. Caroline
Nieberding and in close collaboration with Dr. Alok Arun, as well
as other postdocs and PhD students, and will interact with members
of other research teams of the Institute. Our University is an Equal
Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer, and is in a French-speaking
region, but the language for meetings and scientific interactions
is English. For background information about our university, see
http://www.uclouvain.be/en-index.html.

Salary

Salary ranges between 21.349 to 23.659 euros brutto per year (approx. 1700
euros netto per month) and includes all social benefits such as
health insurance and retirement benefits in the Belgian system. For
practical information concerning salaries, benefits, insurances and
conditions of eligibility please contact Mrs. N. Wittorski at UCL
(Natacha.Wittorski@uclouvain.be; +32 (0) 10 47 29 22).

Application

Application should be sent as soon as possible and before July 21st, 2014,
to Caroline Nieberding and Alok Arun (caroline.nieberding@uclouvain.be;
alok.arun@uclouvain.be) and include the following: (1) a cover letter
describing your research interests and qualifications, (2) a full CV,
(3) contact information (email, phone number) of minimum 2 referees. Only
complete applications sent preferably in one single digital pdf file
will be considered. You are welcome to include a copy of your graduate
work and/or reprints of published work. Applications will start being
reviewed immediately and until the position is filled. Informal inquiries
are welcome.

References:

1.               Nieberding, C.M., de Vos, H., Schneider, M.V., Lassance,
J.-M., Estramil, N., Andersson, J., Bång, J., Hedenström, E., Löfstedt,
C., Brakefield, P.M. The male sex pheromone of the butterfly Bicyclus
anynana: Towards an evolutionary analysis (2008) PLoS ONE, 3 (7).

2.               Nieberding, C.M., Fischer, K., Saastamoinen, M.,
Allen, C.E., Wallin, E.A., Hedenström, E., Brakefield, P.M. Cracking
the olfactory code of a butterfly: The scent of ageing (2012) Ecology
Letters, 15 (5), pp. 415-424.

3.               van Bergen, E., Brakefield, P.M., Heuskin, S., Zwaan,
B.J., Nieberding, C.M. The scent of inbreeding: A male sex pheromone
betrays inbred males (2013) Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological
Sciences, 280 (1758).

4.               Bacquet* P, Brattström* O, Wang H-L, Löfstedt C,
Brakefield P, Nieberding CM (2014, under review) Selection of male sex
pheromone composition drives butterfly diversification.

5.               Monteiro, A., Chen, B., Ramos, D.M., Oliver, J.C., Tong,
X., Guo, M., Wang, W.-K., Fazzino, L., Kamal, F. Distal-less regulates
eyespot patterns and melanization in Bicyclus butterflies (2013) Journal
of Experimental Zoology Part B: Molecular and Developmental Evolution,
320 (5), pp. 321-331.

6.               ConceiçãoInê, I.C., Long, A.D., Gruber, J.D.,
Beldade, P. Genomic sequence around butterfly wing development genes:
Annotation and comparative analysis (2011) PLoS ONE, 6 (8).

7.               Brakefield, P.M., Beldade, P., Zwaan, B.J. In situ
hybridization of embryos and larval and pupal wings from the African
butterfly Bicyclus anynana (2009) Cold Spring Harbor Protocols, 4 (5).

8.               Beldade, P., Koops, K., Brakefield, P.M. Developmental
constraints versus flexibility in morphological evolution (2002) Nature,
416 (6883), pp. 844-847.

9.               Condamin M (1973) Monographie du genre Bicyclus
(Lepidoptera, Satyridae). Institut

Thank you .

Alok

Alok Arun, PhD
Post doctoral Researcher
Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics Group
BDIV Research Centre
Universite Catholic de Louvain
Louvain-La-Neuve, 1348
BELGIUM

Phone: +32 10 47 34 57 (Office)

Alok Arun