Genome Diversity of Adaptation and Speciation

Dear Colleagues,

Uncovering the underlying mechanisms of adaptation and speciation is perhaps the most significant quest of evolutionary science ever since the introduction of the concept in the “Origin of Species.” Darwin recognized that for evolution to take place, individuals in populations had to be different from each other, and that these differences become the substrate of the divergence into different species. However, the science of his time was extremely limited in the type of diversity that could be documented. As we entered the genomics era, the situation has changed drastically: every time genome data is released for a new species, or a new sequencing technology or analytic tool is introduced, the scope of opportunities expands for exploring inter- and intra-specific variation. These new opportunities allow us to document and study the process of adaptation and speciation in a whole new way.

The process of speciation is a key aspect of understanding biodiversity. Explaining how species evolve is an essential step to reconstructing past and current biodiversity, and predict its future. The availability of the genome data provides a unique window into speciation mechanisms with virtually infinite amounts of information. At the same time, recent computational developments are supplying an unprecedented power to simulations, analytic and reconstruction algorithms. Given these new opportunities, past evolutionary events that left important clues about the history of species can now be documented, interpreted, and explained. At the same time, these developments are raising new and challenging questions that require improved understanding of the underlying molecular mechanisms, evolutionary concepts, and factors to be addressed.  

Whether at the level of the Tree of Life or within specific clades, the quest that evolutionary biologists now face is how to interpret the information embedded within genomes to explain biodiversity. This quest can be tackled with many different approaches that are rooted in the optimization and development of computational and analytical tools to interpret data. With a new arsenal of genomic data, bioinformatic and analytical tools, we are given an opportunity to answer pressing questions (i) on the predictions of evolutionary theory in the face of the environmental change, (ii) how mechanisms of adaptation and long-term survival are linked to the concepts of species diversity, genetic load, and extinction, and (iii) how evolutionary models can be refined to better represent the complexities of genome changes.  All these questions have strong implications for conservation biology, ecosystem balance, and the genomics changes associated with the birth and death of species.

We invite you to contribute to this Special Issue, which will showcase original contributions to the advancement in the genomic diversity of adaptation and speciation. 

Dr. Taras K Oleksyk
Dr. Aleksey Komissarov
Prof. Dr. Fabia U. Battistuzzi
Guest Editors

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