Abstracts ( Alphabetical )

s (Alphabetical) Kyle Adams Mentor: Aaron Schrey, BIOL Does variation in Toll-Like Receptor Genes Predict Invasion Status on House Sparrows The purpose of this study is to determine if variation in toll-like receptor (TLR) genes can predict the invasion status of house sparrows (Passer domesticus). House sparrows are extremely successful introduced species; once introduced they undergo great range expansion, genetic diversity, and differentiation. When a species is introduced to a new environment they are subject to new pathogens and stresses, which they have not been exposed to before. This can make it difficult to proliferate in their new environment. Understanding the change in a TLR gene could shed light onto how the house sparrow is so successful as an introduced species because TLR genes are responsible for quick immune system response and general stress responses. I will perform phylogenetic analysis to compare the samples from locations across the globe that have been classified into three invasion categories: recent invasion, established invasion, and native. Sample locations include: Kenya, Arizona, Tampa, Panama, New Caledonia, British Columbia, Sweden, Turkey, Brazil, Kentucky, France, and South Africa. From this analysis, I will be able to determine whether the house sparrows have simply adapted to their new environment, which causes a change in their genotype, or if they have undergone phenotypic plasticity which causes a change in their phenotype in response to the environment, leaving their genotype unaltered. Kyle Adams, Rachel Brown, Eric Celland, Cory Smalls, Robert Murray, and Christopher Edwards Mentor: Jay Hodgson, BIOL Descent with Modification Over Time in the Grey Wolf (Canis lupus) The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the decent with modification of the grey wolf (Canis lupis). The fossil record shows developmental change in morphology within the family, Canidae, and helps to illustrate and track how over tens of millions of years, ecology, natural selection, and genetic drift led to the evolution of the grey wolf from its extinct ancestors, Leptocyon, Mesocyon, Eucyon davisi, Canis ferox, Canis lepophagus, and others. Once an animal that spanned almost the whole Earth, the grey wolf’s habitat has changed, having been pushed into remote areas by the proliferation and expansion of the human population, which for a time made them an endangered species. The importance of the grey wolf, as a predator in its