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Professor Claus

12/24/2015

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A classic PhD Comic circa 12/19/2011

title: "The Claus Hypothesis"

Happy Christmas Eve!

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Throwback Third Thursday - December 2015

12/17/2015

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Happy Holidays!

from my parents and their siblings!
(gosh my family is the coolest!!!!)

The Currys
sometime in the 1980's

The Farris' via 1959

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The manuscript I have been working so hard on for most of the year has finally been published!

My first publication, Mitochondrial Haplotype Diversity in Zambian Lions: Bridging a Gap in the Biogeography of an Iconic Species, was made live today, December 16th, 2015! I am now officially a published author!

Table 4. Molecular diversity indices and nucleotide composition.

The paper is about matrelineal gene flow and genetic diversity of lions in Zambia. We found that lions in Zambia have a high level of diversity but can be separated into two sub-populations with little to no matrelineal gene flow between the two. The separation could be historical but it more likely due to an expanse of cities and roads that inhibit modern day dispersal because, when put in context with the entire range of the African lion, Zambia acts as a bridge connecting Southern and Eastern lion populations. This is all based on analysis of mitochondrial genes and the discovery of 5 sets of DNA variations (haplotypes) thus far not seen anywhere else in Africa.

Fig 1. Map of Zambia showing the five main areas sampled: LV (Luangwa Valley); CO (Corridor); ZA (Lower Zambezi); KF (Kafue); and SI (Sioma Ngwezi).
Eastern region consists of LV, CO and ZA. Western region consists of KF and SI. More detailed location information for each sample is available in S1 Table.

Fig 2. Geographic location of lion samples and phylogenetic relationship of 12S-16S.
(A) Range-wide map of lions sampled. Circles indicate geographic locations for populations determined by Antunes et al. [13]. Zambia is denoted by a square. All locations aside from ZAM (Zambia) were established by Antunes et al. 2009: UGA (Uganda); KEN (Kenya); SER (Serengeti National Park, Tanzania); NGC (Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania); KRU (Kruger National Park, South Africa); BOT-I (Southern Botswana and Kalahari, South Africa); BOT-II (Northern Botswana); NAM (Namibia); GIR (Gir Forest, India); ANG (Angola); ZBW (Zimbabwe); and MOR (Morocco). (B) Bayesian analysis with posterior probability values on the nodes. H1-H12 are haplotypes that were described by Antunes et al. 2009 and Z1-Z5 are novel haplotypes so far only found within Zambia.

Here's my official citation:

Curry CJ, White PA, Derr JN (2015) Mitochondrial Haplotype Diversity in Zambian Lions: Bridging a Gap in the Biogeography of an Iconic Species. PLoS ONE 10(12): e0143827. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0143827

I am currently working on a press release for this paper and I have already started writing my next publication, hopefully with two others soon to follow after that. My goal is that by the time I finish my PhD I will have at least 5 publications. Let the fun begin!

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Cheetah Genome Published!

12/10/2015

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Big news on the cheetah front... CCF, in partnership with St. Petersburg State University, Russia and Bejing Genome Institute-Shenzhen in China has published a detailed analysis of the cheetah genome! The paper was published yesterday in Genome Biology.

“Sequencing the cheetah genome illuminates our understanding of this species’ evolutionary past and aids us in efforts to sustain and increase cheetah populations in their present and former range. By understanding the history of the cheetah’s migration, its population bottlenecks and lack of genetic diversity, scientists and conservationists can work together to develop informed strategies to protect the species.”

For the study, the genomes of six cheetahs were sequenced, including that of the lovable Chewbaaka (RIP). Results of the study uncovered information about the species' population bottleneck which resulted in the near identical genomes of present day cheetahs. Inbreeding, some of which occurred as long as 100,000 years ago, resulted in physiological and reproductive impairment in the species that is still evident today. They were also able to look at the migration of the cheetah from it's origin in North America (that's right people, cheetahs used to roam the Great Plains) to their present range throughout Africa and some in Iran.

Me with Chewbaaka, who is now part of the Genome Legacy!

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#IntlCheetahDay

12/4/2015

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Happy International Cheetah Day! This year Cheetah Conservation Fund has created an International Cheetah Day website filled with banners for Facebook, profile pictures and fun activities. Just go to internationalcheetahday.org.

CCF has also offered up 10 suggestions for ways people can to celebrate International Cheetah Day:

Become a wildlife ambassador. Tell your friends and family about the cheetah.
Visit www.internationalcheetahday.org and sign up to host a cheetah event. Check out what other people around the world are doing to mark the occasion.
Swap your online profile photo for a picture of a cheetah cheetah.
Join the conversation on Twitter by using the hashtags, #SaveTheCheetah & #IntlCheetahDay. Use our special made Tweet Sheet to send tweets simply and easily. Just log in to your Twitter account and then open the Tweet Sheet. Click the TWEET button in the right-hand column to instantly post to your Twitter page.
Download our Conservation Passport designed by CCF education specialists in Namibia. Print your very own Certificate of Cheetah Achievement when you complete your passport application.
Watch and share a special International Cheetah Day video message from Jeff Corwin.
Just for kids (or maybe not): download our template to make your own way-cool cheetah mask. It’s fun to impersonate a cheetah! Post a photo of yourself and your cheetah mask to CCF’s Facebook page (mask included in the Cheetah Activity Packet).
Text a $10 donation to CCF by texting the word “Cheetah” to 27722.
Get some stylish cheetah gear from the CCF Store at Café Press so you can spark conversation about the cheetah all year ‘round.
Make a donation to support cheetah conservation in the wild or sponsor a resident cheetah from CCF’s sanctuary.

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Professor Claus

Happy Christmas Eve!

Throwback Third Thursday - December 2015

Happy Holidays!

I'm a Published Author!

Cheetah Genome Published!﻿

#IntlCheetahDay

Cheetah Genome Published!