# Drivers and consequences of introgression in evolution

> **NIH NIH R35** · UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL · 2024 · $561,044

## Abstract

Background: The importance of introgression, the evolutionary process by which alleles migrate between
species via hybrids, was debated for decades. Genome sequencing revealed introgression to be pervasive in
eukaryotes. Given its prevalence, we must determine the environmental and genomic factors that regulate its
occurrence.
Broad, long-term objective: Understanding how species form and persist in nature is a premier goal of
evolutionary genetics. Since speciation involves the reduction of introgression between lineages, this question
necessitates an understanding of the factors that regulate gene exchange that occurs when species have the
chance to interbreed. Our research program on Drosophila hybrid zones has the potential of revealing how
species form and what is the importance of introgression in evolution.
Questions and approach: As a field, we are aware that introgression is common in nature. The time is ripe to
understand what are the factors that determine whether an allele can cross species boundaries and thus serve
as raw material for adaptation. The research we are proposing falls into three different categories. First, we will
investigate the dynamics of introgressed alleles along space and time in multiple species. We have geolocated
and timestamped collections from a hybrid zone which will offer the first evidence of its kind to determine how
introgression varies over short periods of time (within 10 years). Second, we will assess whether experimental
hybrid populations can inform the composition of naturally occurring hybrid populations. Finally, we will use
genetic chimeras to study the phenotypic outcomes of introgressed alleles. My group has expertise in method
development to analyze genomic data, genetic analysis of evolutionary processes, and experimental evolution
which makes us well-suited to study what factors determine which alleles can cross species boundaries.
Relevance to human health: Understanding the source of genetic variation is key to understand how new
phenotypes arise. Work from the parent grant demonstrated that introgression is an important source of
variation in many organisms, including human pathogens. This renewal proposes comparative approaches to
identify introgressed loci in multiple taxa, some of which harbor pathogens or are vector species.
Understanding how environmental and human factors influence the exchange of genes for pathogenicity or
vector behavior has relevance to human health in a changing climate.
Impact: The results from this proposal will generate methods and datasets that will be broadly useful, in
addition to helping understand the process of introgression at multiple evolutionary scales. Importantly, the
proposed research moves the field from piecemeal assessments of introgression across particular species
pairs to a synthetic approach that tries to understand how the process interacts with the environment and
whether there are commonalities to across eukaryotes.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10781911
- **Project number:** 5R35GM148244-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL
- **Principal Investigator:** Daniel Matute
- **Activity code:** R35 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $561,044
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-02-07 → 2028-01-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10781911

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10781911, Drivers and consequences of introgression in evolution (5R35GM148244-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-12 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10781911. Licensed CC0.

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