Dr Deepa Agashe's Talk

Start
Nov 02, 2022 - 14:30
End
Nov 02, 2022 - 15:30
Venue
Room LC 102 in the lecture hall complex
Event Type
Speaker
Dr Deepa Agashe, Associate professor, National Center for Biological Sciences (NCBS–TIFR), Bengaluru
Title
The enduring mystery of genomic base composition

Abstract:
The relative use of the four bases in DNA – typically measured as GC% – is characteristic of genomes, and varies enormously across species. For example, bacterial GC content can range from as low as 13% to as high as 75%. Although the causes and consequences of this variation have been studied for over 50 years, it is not fully resolved. Thus, it remains a complex and very attractive problem that can be tackled using many different approaches, from bioinformatics to experimental evolution to systems biology. In this talk I will summarize current understanding of the topic, describe my group’s recent findings that shed some light on the mystery, and highlight interesting directions for future work.

Speaker Bio:
Dr Deepa Agashe is an Associate professor at the National Center for Biological Sciences (NCBS–TIFR), Bengaluru, working at the interface of evolutionary biology, ecology, and molecular biology. Using tools such as experimental evolution, genomics, molecular analyses and phylogenetics, she aims to understand how bacteria and insects adapt to new environments. Dr. Agashe received her Bachelor’s degree in Microbiology from Abasaheb Garware College (University of Pune) in 2003, followed by a PhD from the University of Texas at Austin, USA, in 2009. Her thesis work showed that genetic diversity could stabilize animal populations and facilitate adaptation to new niches. During her postdoctoral work at Harvard University, USA, she showed that so-called “silent” mutations could have large effects on bacterial evolution. In 2012, she returned to India to lead a research group, which is dedicated to unravelling the causes and mechanisms of evolution.