[Coral-List] Post-doctoral researcher opportunity

Mon Oct 10 12:10:43 UTC 2022

Dear Coral-List

We are pleased to put out this call for a post-doctoral researcher in "Connectivity and genetic diversity patterns of Southwestern Atlantic corals” with a closing date of October 20, 2022.

Genetic diversity is an essential source for biodiversity, providing the raw material for evolution by natural selection. When interconnected, populations tend to preserve greater genetic diversity compared to more isolated populations, which in turn are more susceptible to genetic drift effects. In contrast, more isolated populations at the species' distribution limits have been identified as potential sources of evolutionary innovation, caused by factors such as hybridization and speciation (Budd and Pandolfi, 2010). Such knowledge is essential to define efficient management and conservation strategies. The post-doc candidate will lead a study on the population genetics, connectivity, and genetic diversity from 18 scleractinian corals (15 zooxanthellate and 3 azooxanthellate) and 3 hydrocorals, on the largest genetic effort to study Brazilian coral reefs to date. Sampling will be performed in 12 localities (see supplementary material 1) distributed along the coast and oceanic islands. Once collected, total DNA will be extracted and ezRAD libraries will be prepared for sequencing. The project will use restriction site-associated DNA sequencing (RADSeq), which are popular cost-effective methods that use restriction enzymes and size selection to sequence random portions of the genome. The candidate will use bioinformatics tools to answer ecological and evolutionary questions such as those related to genetic diversity within species/populations/ontogeny (i.e. juvenile and adults) along with the sampled range of distribution, estimate genetic connectivity among broadcast and brooding species within different depths, and verify the effectivity of marine protected areas to conserving the genetic diversity, correlating genetic data to abiotic parameters (e.g. temperature and light). The post-doc activities include performing laboratory procedures and analysis with the assistance of a doctoral student unrelated to this proposal.

Aims: The main goal of the proposed post-doc project is to generate a complete data set from all Brazilian shallow-water corals’ genetic diversity and connectivity. The data generated will produce a detailed scenario on the recent evolutionary history of Brazilian corals, with relevant impacts on the conservation of the highly diverse and fragile ecosystems they sustain. Brazilian corals are distributed along more than 4,000 km along the coast and oceanic islands (Castro and Pires, 2001; Leão et al., 2016), embracing the only biogenic reef formations from the South Atlantic. These reefs are composed of unique coral fauna that have a high tolerance to turbidity/nutrient conditions (Mies et al., 2020). However, to date, only one study addressing population genetic diversity and structure was published (Peluso et al., 2018). By evaluating the genetic diversity off juvenile and adult colonies of all shallow- water corals, including zooxanthellate (N = 15) and azooxanthellate (N = 3) species, and three hydrocorals from shallow and deep (> 30 m) sites along with their Southwestern Atlantic distributions, the project will answer the following questions:

a) Are the Brazilian coral populations structured geographically and bathymetrically?

b)  Can population connectivity be correlated with reproductive strategies (brooding and broadcast), duration of the larvae in plankton (PLD), or trophic strategy? 

c)  By evaluating the genetic diversity within the juveniles and adult colonies independently, is it possible to identify the prevalence of any set of genotypes? 

d)  Marine protected areas are being effective in protecting coral genetic diversity? 

e)  Marginal populations hold higher or lower estimates of genetic diversity when comparing to 
central populations? 

f)  Patterns of population genetic connectivity within Brazilian corals can be linked to 
environmental parameters such as temperature and luminosity? 

g)  Are the reefs in Brazil composed of relic fauna?

We are looking for a researcher with strong molecular biology/bioinformatics and organizational skills, and the ability to work well in collaborative groups. This position will be under my mentorship in the Center for Marine Biology of the University of São Paulo (CEBIMar/USP - http://cebimar.usp.br/pt/ <http://cebimar.usp.br/pt/>). Interested candidates should send an email to kitahara at usp.br <mailto:kitahara at usp.br>, containing (PDF format): a) letter of recommendation; b) resumé; c) previous experiences in the use of molecular techniques (preparation of libraries for sequencing on the Illumina platform); d) previous experiences with pipeline development for large-scale DNA and RNA sequencing data analysis and; e) experience on one or more programming languages (eg. Python, Perl, R, etc).

The selected candidate will receive a Post-Doctoral Fellowship from FAPESP (https://fapesp.br/en <https://fapesp.br/en>) of BRL 8,479.20/month and RT of 10% of the fellowship amount to cover unforeseen expenses related to the research activity.

Sincerely,
Marcelo V. Kitahara
Centro de Biologia Marinha
Universidade de São Paulo
Rod. Manoel Hyppólito do Rego km 131,5
São Sebastião (SP) - Brasil
11612-109