Apresentação Pessoal

Personal Introduction

Research Interests

My primary research interest and work focuses on domesticated animals and their evolution before and after domestication. The consequences of agricultural species (animals, plants, and microbes) domestication on the evolution of the human species and societies (environment) is a fascinating topic that scientifically interests me. As domesticated species spread around the world, they were exposed to a variety of new selective pressures (e.g., new environments,climates, diets, parasites, microorganisms), which likely resulted in their genetic adaptation to diverse local environments.Correct knowledge of the amount of genomic variation, its geographical partitioning, and the genomic architecture of a species are the main premises for understanding the genetic basis of phenotypic variance. However, a large number of questions related to the impact of domestication on the genome architecture of livestock species and subsequent artificial selection remain unanswered.

The extent to which the diversity and evolution of microorganisms (commensal and pathogenic) that are part of the environment where humans live have been affected by the proximity between domesticated animals, humans, plants, and their food products is still an understudied area. One of these aspects, more specifically the consumption of milk by humans as a main food source, has been the subject of my interest and on this we published the first example of coevolution between humans and cattle. This example is very illustrative of what is now called Darwinian or evolutionary medicine, which I believe should be part of the curricula of medical courses. Understanding the evolutionary origin of disease is quite fascinating, as it helps to understand how much evolutionary processes have contributed to the adaptation of humans to extreme and very dynamic environments. Only in this way can we understand how humans can be found in the most inhospitable places on the planet.

Scientific Journey (Questions)

• What was the role of evolutionary processes (e.g., mutation, demography, and selection) in the adaptation of domesticated species to a wide range of extreme environments?
• What functional variants have been subjected to different selective pressures in different populations (e.g., local selection)?
• How much of genetic variation is shaped by reproduction, environmental pressure, and/or new emerging diseases?
• How much of the molecular adaptation of local breeds has been influenced by their parasites and microbiome?
• Can we talk about a domesticated microbiome?
• Pathogens co-evolve with their hosts. To what extent does the population structure of a parasitic microorganism mimic the population structure of its host?
• How much of our genome is encrusted with genetic material from microorganisms with which we have contact throughout our lives?

Áreas de Interesse

1. Natural sciences > Biological sciences > Biology > Genetics
2. Natural sciences > Agrarian Sciences > Zootechnics
3. Health sciences > Medical sciences > Veterinary medicine > Zoonesis