Boston College is awarded a grant to perform computational sequence analyses to characterize the neutral mutation rate in several large eukaryotic phylogenies, including mammals, flies, and yeasts. The project will measure the neutral mutation pattern in each of these phylogenies along the genome and determine the extent to which this pattern is conserved across species. Specific aims include measurement of the neutral background in diverse phylogenies, determination of conservation of neutral mutation patterns across species, and measurement of the relationship between segmental duplication and mutation. This research will improve the understanding of the rates of non-functional or neutral sequences evolve. There are now over 300 eukaryotic genomes which have been almost completely sequenced. These DNA sequences are a fertile resource for understanding the evolutionary processes that have acted on living things. By computationally identifying and characterizing neutral sequences, it will be possible to clarify the molecular processes that are likely to affect much of eukaryotic DNA.
