Population Genetics and Phylogeography

Code:

B4052

Acronym:

B4052

Keywords
Classification	Keyword
OFICIAL	Biology

Instance: 2014/2015 - 1S

Active?	Yes
Responsible unit:	Department of Biology
Course/CS Responsible:	Master in Biodiversity, Genetics and Evolution

Cycles of Study/Courses

Acronym	No. of Students	Study Plan	Curricular Years	Credits UCN	Credits ECTS	Contact hours	Total Time
M:BGE	23	Official Study Plan	1	-	6	42	162
M:GF	7	plano de estudos do Mestrado em Genética Forense a partir de 2013_2014	1	-	6	42	162

Teaching language

English

Objectives

It is intended with this curricular unit provide students with a deeper knowledge in the field of population genetics, phylogeography and speciation. 

Learning outcomes and competences

Aquisition of advanced theoretical and practical knowledge in the field of population genetics.

Working method

Presencial

Program

1.Genetic variation. Protein and nucleotide polimorphisms. Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. Genetic diversitty and genetic distance among populations.

2. Genetic drift. The Wright-Fisher model. Random variation of gene frequencies . The population effective size

3.Types of mutation. Effect of mutation on allele frequencies.

4. Models and detection of population structure. Gene flow and population differentiation. Hybridization and admixture.

5. Coalescent theory. Genealogical properties of lineages in the Wright-Fisher model. Population size change; populations structure 

6.Estimates of linkage disequilibrium. Genomic and demographic determinants of linkage disequilibrium. Recombination.

7. Models of selection. Impact of selection in patterns of genetic variation. Neutrality tests and the finding of natural selection.

8. Phylogeography. Definition of lineage and use of phylogenetic methods to analyze in intraspecific patterns of genetic variation. Genealogical concordance. Statistical phylogenography.

Mandatory literature

Hartl Daniel L.; Principles of population genetics. ISBN: 0-87893-302-6
Hedrick Philip W.; Genetics of populations

Complementary Bibliography

Jotun Hein, Mikkel H. Schierup, Carsten Wiuf. ; Gene geneologies, Variation and Evolution., Oxford University Press, 2005
Avise John C.; Molecular markers, natural history, and evolution. ISBN: 978-0-87893-041-8 0-87893-041-8
Hartl Daniel L.; A primer of population genetics. ISBN: 0-87893-301-8
Steven Weiss and Nuno Ferrand; Phylogeography of Southern European Refugia. , Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, Massachusetts, US. , 2007. ISBN: 978-1-4020-4903-3

Teaching methods and learning activities

The course will be divided into a practical and a theoretical component. The theoretical component will consist of the discussion of topics of the main areas of interest in the fields of population genetics and phylogeography. The practical component will focus on familiarizing students with some of the key features of software used in this area.

Evaluation Type

Distributed evaluation without final exam

Assessment Components

designation	Weight (%)
Trabalho escrito	100,00
Total:	100,00

Amount of time allocated to each course unit

designation	Time (hours)
Estudo autónomo	120,00
Frequência das aulas	42,00
Total:	162,00

Eligibility for exams

Attendance to a minimum of 75% of classes.

Calculation formula of final grade

The students will be requested to write an assay based on a common molecular dataset, using key concepts discussed in the practical and theoretical components of the curricular unit.     

Written report (100%).