By studying the genes in the eyespots on butterfly wings, Yale's Dr. Antonia Monteiro tracks evolutionary change. (Photo: William H. Piel)

The Sciences

Center for Genomics & Proteomics explores questions at the cellular level

The Yale Center for Genomics & Proteomics was founded in 2003 to explore the role of genes and proteins in mediating complex biological processes. An interdisciplinary “center without walls,” the initiative provides cutting-edge technologies and research opportunities to departments across the University. The center strengthens Yale’s capabilities in this critical area and attracts talented faculty and students to our campus.

Using genomics to build a better mosquito trap

John Carlson

Some scientific questions that seem small at first glance actually have enormous consequences. For biologist John Carlson, curiosity about an insect’s sense of smell has led to a breakthrough that could soon benefit millions of people.

Carlson’s lab uses genetics and bioinformatics to understand at the cellular level how the fruit fly detects and differentiates a wide range of odors. Collaborating with colleagues in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Carlson devised a computer program to look for specific odor receptors on the fly’s antennae. “We identified sixty odor receptors that bind with different compounds in the air,” says Carlson. “Then, by manipulating the genes that code for the receptors, we developed a system to quickly test what odors are preferred by each receptor.”

The question of insect olfaction is not trivial. Around the world, insects use their sense of smell to zero in on food sources, like crops, causing major losses to agriculture. And about half of the world’s population is affected by insect-borne diseases like dengue fever, malaria, and encephalitis. Carlson wondered if he could use his system to home in on specific odors that attract mosquitoes to human beings—and perhaps reduce the 500 million cases of malaria contracted each year.

Adapting his technique proved simple. Carlson and his colleagues have identified seventy-nine odor receptor genes in the mosquito, including a receptor in the female that responds to an odor in human sweat. With a Gates Foundation grant and in collaboration with Vanderbilt University, he is working with labs in Denmark, the Netherlands, and Africa to identify other compounds that attract or repel the insects. As highly attractive or repellent compounds are identified in the lab, field tests can determine whether they are practical as mosquito traps or repellent sprays—applications that may save many lives.

Uncovering the genetic basis of evolution

Antonia Monteiro

For Antonia Monteiro, genomics offers a window on evolution. “There are gaps in the fossil record,” she says, “that make it difficult to plot evolutionary change as a gradual process. How do you explain the sudden appearance of novel features, like feathers or hands, if transitional forms are missing?”

The answer may lie in the genome. Monteiro studies genes that code for eye-spots, the concentric circles that have evolved on butterfly wings. She suspects that a network of developmental genes responsible for leg development has been redirected to produce patterns of pigment on the wing. This accidental mutation conferred a survival advantage on the butterfly, so it was passed on through subsequent generations.

“If networks of genes work and change together,” Monteiro explains, “a simple mutation might co-opt the network and enable it to act in a new way. So even if a form lacks a precedent in the fossil record, we might be able to find its origins in the genome.”

To test this theory, Monteiro is using transgenic tools to see if she can turn the eyespot gene network on and off. “Can we develop extra spots, or lose the spots altogether?” she wonders. “I’m hoping to show that complex traits, put together via the action of many genes, can actually arise by way of simple mutations.”

So far, functional genetic tests have been limited to five NIH model organisms. Expanding these techniques to a new species, Monteiro is pushing the limits of genomic science, even as she provides new ways to understand the origin of complex organisms.

In emerging areas like genomics or nanotechnology, strategically placed funding will not only strengthen our research initiatives, but also bring the benefits of progress to society as a whole. Reflecting the breadth of today’s science, Yale Tomorrow also supports major initiatives in human genetics, computational biology, biomedical engineering, sustainable energy production, and climate change. In each of these areas, our faculty stand among the world’s leaders, and their discoveries will have a major impact on the future.