People
RNDr. Petr Nguyen, Ph.D. (PI)
James R. Walters, Ph.D. (visiting Fulbright scholar)
RNDr. Martina Dalíková, Ph.D. (post-doctoral researcher)
Pablo Ruiz Mora (Margarita Salas fellow)
Jana  Štundlová. Ph.D. (post-doctoral researcher)
RNDr. Anna Voleníková (researcher)
M.Sc. Irena Provazníková (née Hladová; Ph.D. student)
M.Sc. Monika Hospodářská (née Kreklová; Ph.D. student)
M.Sc. Jan Provazník (Ph.D. student)

B.Sc. Aneta Pilíková (M.Sc. student)
B.Sc. Monika Hrubá (M.Sc. student)
B.Sc. Adriana Crhonková (M.Sc. student)
B.Sc. Veronika Brožová (M.Sc. student
Kseniya Bobryshava (B.Sc. student & lab manager)
Magdaléna Vališová (B.Sc. student)
Lukáš Martínek (B.Sc. student)
Pavel Hronek (B.Sc. student)
Tomáš Štrobl (B.Sc. student)
Karolína Petřvalská (B.Sc. student)

Research
We combine cytogenetic and genomic approaches to study a role of genome organization and its changes in evolution. Particularly, we have been investigating:

Role of chromosome rearrangements in evolution
Closely related species usually differ in their karyotypes, i.e. their chromosome number and morphology, which suggests that chromosome changes play a role in formation of new species. Indeed, new theoretical models postulate that changes in genome architecture alter recombination rates and thus can contribute to local adaptation and speciation. Yet evidence supporting the theory is still scarce. We focuss mainly (but not only) on moths and butterflies (Lepidoptera) representing a less constrained model system due to their holokinetic chromosomes, which  facilitate chromosome rearrangements by alleviating fitness costs associated with formation of dicentric and acentric chromosomes.

Singh KS, Troczka BJ, Duarte A, Balabanidou V, Trissi N, Carabajal Paladino LZ, Nguyen P, Zimmer CT, Papapostolou KM, Randall E, Lueke B, Marec F, Mazzoni E, Williamson MS, Hayward A, Nauen R, Vontas J, Bass C (accepted) The genetic architecture of a host shift: an adaptive walk protected an aphid and its endosymbiont from plant chemical defences. Science Advances.

Štundlová J, Šmíd J, Nguyen P, Šťáhlavský F (2019) Cryptic diversity and dynamic chromosome evolution in Alpine scorpions (Euscorpiidae: Euscorpius). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 134: 152-163. DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2019.02.002

Nguyen P, Sýkorová M, Šíchová J, Kůta V, Dalíková M, Čapková Frydrychová R, Neven LG, Sahara K, Marec F (2013) Neo-sex chromosomes and adaptive potential in tortricid pests. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 110: 6931-6936. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1220372110

Evolution of lepidopteran (neo-)sex chromosomes
Lepidoptera represent the largest group of organisms with a female heterogametic sex determination system (♀Z0/♂ZZ or ♀WZ/♂ZZ constitution) and an excelent model system for sex chromosome research. First, cytogenetic analyses and detailed comparison of sex-linked genes in early diverging non-ditrysian and ditrysian lineages suggest multiple and non-canonical origin of a W chromosome, which probably evolved via adoption of a B chromosome. Second, unlike in other taxa with female heterogamety sex chromosome-autosome fusions resulting in so-called neo-sex chromosomes are common Lepidoptera. We are interested in evolutionary drivers of the sex chromosome turnover  and a role of neo-sex chromosomes in diversification of moth and butterflies. 

Carabajal Paladino LZ, Provazníková I, Berger M, Bass C, Aratchige NS, López SN, Marec F, Nguyen P (2019) Sex chromosome turnover in moths of the diverse superfamily Gelechioidea. Genome Biology and Evolution 11: 1307–1319. DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evz075

Dalíková M, Zrzavá M, Hladová I, Nguyen P, Šonský I, Flegrová M, Kubíčková S, Voleníková A, Kawahara AY, Peters RS, Marec F (2017) New insights into the evolution of the W chromosome in Lepidoptera. Journal of Heredity 108: 709-719. DOI: 10.1093/jhered/esx063

Mongue AJ, Nguyen P, Voleníková A, Walters JR (2017) A neo-sex chromosome in the Monarch butterfly, Danaus plexippus. G3 (Bethesda) 7: 3281–3294. DOI: 10.1534/g3.117.300187

Nguyen P, Carabajal Paladino LZ (2016) On the neo-sex chromosomes of Lepidoptera. In: Pontarotti P (ed.): Evolutionary Biology: Convergent Evolution, Evolution of Complex Traits, Concepts and Methods. Springer, Heidelberg, ISBN: 978-3-319-41324-2, pp. 171-185. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-41324-2_11

Genetics and genomics of insect pests
Our research on  economically important insect pests is motivated by development of novel and environmentally friendly means of pest control such as sterile insect technique, which could be used as an alternative to chemical insecticides.   We are particularlly interested in genetics and genomics of a codling moth (Cydia pomonella, Tortricidae) which represents a key pest of pomme fruit worldwide.  

Wan F, Yin C, Tang R, Chen M, Wu Q, Huang C, Qian W, Rota-Stabelli O, Yang N, Wang S, Wang G, Zhang G, Guo J, Gu L, Chen L, Xing L, Xi Y, Liu F, Lin K, Guo M, Liu W, He K, Tian R, Jacquin-Joly E, Franck P, Siegwart M, Ometto L, Anfora G, Blaxter M, Meslin C, Nguyen P, Dalíková M, Marec F, Olivares J., Maugin S., Shen J., Liu J., Guo J., Luo J., Liu B., Fan W., Feng L., Zhao X., Peng X., Wang K., Liu L, Zhan H, Liu W, Shi G, Jiang C, Jin J, Xian X, Lu S, Ye M, Li M, Yang M, Xiong R, Walters JR, Li F (2019) A chromosome-level genome assembly of Cydia pomonella provides insights into chemical ecology and insecticide resistance. Nature Communications 10: 4237. DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-12175-9

Meccariello A, Salvemini M, Primo P, Hall B, Koskinioti P, Dalíková M, Gravina A, Gucciardino MA, Forlenza F, Gregoriou ME, Ippolito D, Monti SM, Petrella V, Perrotta MM, Schmeing S, Ruggiero A, Scolari F, Giordano E, Tsoumani KT, Marec F, Windbichler N, Arunkumar KP, Bourtzis K, Mathiopoulos KD, Ragoussis J, Vitagliano L, Tu Z, Papathanos PA, Robinson MD, Saccone G (2019) Maleness-on-the-Y (MoY) orchestrates male sex determination in major agricultural fruit fly pests. Science 365: 1457–1460. DOI: 10.1126/science.aax1318

Sauer AJ, Fritsch E, Undorf-Spahn K, Nguyen P, Marec F, Heckel DG, Jehle JA (2017) Novel resistance to Cydia pomonella granulovirus (CpGV) in codling moth shows autosomal and dominant inheritance and confers cross-resistance to different CpGV genome groups. PLoS ONE 12: e0179157. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0179157