Functional divergence, the means by which duplicated genes obtain related or novel functions, is a significant driving force of evolution. Because modern salmonid fishes (e.g. trout, salmon) possess an abundance of duplicated genes, our understanding of the process of functional divergence and its physiological implications can be strengthened by studying gene families in these fish. This project focuses on the myostatin gene family in rainbow trout and the central hypothesis is that differences in gene and protein structure contribute mechanistically to functional divergence with notable physiological consequences. This hypothesis is based on our research in the PI's laboratory in which four related, but distinctly different, salmonid myostatin genes have been identified. Unlike mammals, where myostatin's growth inhibitory actions are limited to skeletal muscle, it is hypothesized that the function of fish myostatins has diverged considerably and may influence many different physiological systems. To test this hypothesis, studies will determine how each myostatin influences trout and mouse muscle cell growth, identify non-muscle target tissues for each myostatin, and determine how the different myostatin proteins interact with negative regulators of myostatin. The students who perform these studies will be recruited, in part, from underrepresented groups and research results will be incorporated into lectures given by students in a course taught by the PI. Results of this research will be disseminated through publications, presentations at national scientific meetings, and outreach to the general public.
