Dokuz Eylül University · Faculty of Science · Department of Biology
We study Anatolia’s rodents, above all blind mole rats (Nannospalax), from chromosomes to genomes and from the field to the lab. We investigate how species arise and adapt to their environments, and build the scientific basis for protecting endemic and threatened species. With a One Health approach, we also study how the agents rodents carry relate to human and ecosystem health.
Chromosome banding and the role of chromosomal rearrangements in speciation.
Delimiting species and their relationships with morphological, karyological and molecular data.
Genetic structure, gene flow and genomic signatures of adaptation.
Tracing morphological evolution with two- and three-dimensional shape analysis.
Distribution, genetic diversity and conservation priorities of species.
Rodent-borne zoonotic agents in the context of human, animal and environmental health.
Using three-dimensional geometric morphometrics to examine how chromosomal divergence relates to morphological evolution in blind mole rats.
Ömer Faruk ArslanResearch fellowInvestigating the selection pressure acting on cohesin and condensin genes, which organise chromosomes, in chromosomally hyper-diverse blind mole rats.
Başak EsginResearch fellowStudying the genetic diversity of Blastocystis in rodents, humans, water and soil with metagenomics to understand its transmission from a One Health perspective.
Mapping the distribution and genetic diversity of threatened mouse-tailed dormice with ddRADseq to set conservation priorities.
