BIOS 4590 C SP23 | Project Lab:
Description: Migrating butterfly species like the painted lady butterfly Vanessa cardui rely on highly specialized wing shape, wingbeat patterns, and predator avoidance to reach their foraging and mating habitats. Wing morphology traits dictate survival and reproduction for ecological indicator species, such as V. cardui, and can predict their evolutionary fitness. We will modify Vanessa cardui morphology using CRISPR/Cas9 gene knock outs, monitor the morphological change, and quantify and compare the efficacy of different mosaic knockouts of genes of interest to determine how the gene alteration affect traits relevant to survival and reproduction. Each student or pair will work with a focal gene of interest to design and implement a gene knockout and document the phenotypic outcome, confirming their success with sequence analysis. Students in this section will be required to handle live eggs, larvae, and pupae, as well as to manipulate and measure the freeze-dried adult butterflies.