Bengt Hansson	Project:
e-mail: bengt.hansson@zooekol.lu.se Telephone: +46-709-916896
Research: Darwin published his influential book 'On the Origin of Species' in 1859, and proposed the idea about natural selection as a process forming the diversity of life. In the last few years, rapid advancements in molecular biology, genetics and bioinformatics allow to build upon Darwin's original ideas by studying the role of genetic variation in an ecological and evolutionary context in a way that was impossible just a few years ago. By using refined analytical methods we can reveal the genetic architecture of traits and dissect the evolutionary relationships between genotypes and phenotypes. Integration of molecular genetics into an ecological framework has the potential to uncover the genetic signature of selection and, ultimately, speciation, which is something that has been a prime challenge in evolutionary ecology for decades. My primary research aim is to deepen our understanding of the importance of genetic variation in ecology and evolution by applying research on a few excellent model species, and by using state of the art molecular genetic tools including microarray gene expression and large-scale DNA sequencing. Main research projects: - Conservation genetics: causes and consequences of inbreeding - The genetics and dynamics of ecological and evolutionary important traits - The genetics of ecological speciation - Evolution of sex chromosomes and sex-biased gene expression
Curriculum vitae: After a post-doctoral session at the Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, I am now Assistant Professor at the Section of Animal Ecology, Department of Biology , Lund University. My research is mainly funded by the Swedish Research Council. I was recently awarded an Associate Lectureship at the Department.
Selected publications: Hansson B, Ljungqvist M, Dawson DA, Mueller JC, Olano-Marin J, Ellegren H, Nilsson JÅ. (2010) Avian genome evolution: insights from a linkage map of the blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus). Heredity, 104, 67-78. Haas F, Pointer MA, Saino N, Brodin A, Mundy NI, Hansson B. (2009) An analysis of population genetic differentiation and genotype-phenotype association across the hybrid zone of carrion and hooded crows using microsatellites and MC1R. Molecular Ecology, 18, 294-305. Hansson B, Hasselquist D, Tarka M, Zehtindjiev P, Bensch S. (2008) Postglacial colonisation patterns and the role of isolation and expansion in driving diversification in a passerine bird. PLoS One 3(7): e2794. Hansson B, Westerberg L. (2008) Heterozygosity-fitness correlations within inbreeding classes: local or genome-wide effects? Conservation Genetics, 9, 73-83. Dawson DA, Åkesson M, Burke T, Pemberton JM, Slate J, Hansson B. (2007) Contrasting recombination rates in homologous chromosome regions of the chicken and a passerine bird. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 24, 1537-1552. ISI Publication List: Follow this link.