Another paper to share. Here, I helped with the population genetic side of things in Rebekah Roger’s analysis of a new gene in Drosophila. Before I left the Hartl lab, I worked with Rebekah on a bioinformatic analysis of chimeric genes. These are strange accidents of evolution where two functioning genes are spliced together to create a new gene with bits from both parental genes. We found 14 such genes in Drosophila, one of which is the focus of this current work. This new gene, which we’re calling Quetzalcoatl, appears to be fantastic for the flies that possess it.

From my perspective, it’s good to see the bioinformatic work pay dividends.