1. Population Genetics Eye color Hair color Height Nose size Foot size
Brown
Blond
Red
Auburn
Black
Green
Blue
Hazel R S T U V W X Y Z A B C D E

2. Asexual reproduction Time Mutation Driven Changes
No Recombination to mix traits among individuals

3. The Hypersaline Environment

4. Haloarchaea in the 16S rRNA phylogeny
Aerobic
Heterotrophic
Obligate Halophiles

5. Haloarchaea dominate the hypersaline environment
~35% NaCl (Saturation)
Low solubility of gasses
Low diffusion rates
High temperatures
High cell densities
Little/no primary production
Island-like

6. Adaptive Characteristics of Halobacteria
Cytosolic salinity = environmental condition
Proteins consist of acidic amino acids – asp, glu
Utilize light energy
Gas vesicles
High surface to volume ratio

7. Population genetics assessment of homologous recombination
Ground level view
Sampled 3 sites: 2 salinity ponds from a Spanish saltern (Alicante, 36 & 22%) and an Algerian hypersaline lake (22%) ~250km away
Isolated 153 Halorubrum spp. strains, using the same medium
Sequenced 5 loci (~450nt ea.): 16S rRNA, AtpB, EF-2, RadA and Bacteriorhodopsin (Bop)
Google Earth view

8. Halorubrum Concatenated 5-gene Phylogeny

9. eBURST Results: Identifying “Clonal Complexes”
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3

10. eBURST Results: Recombination vs. Mutation

11. Assessing Recombination vs
Assessing Recombination vs. Mutation Using Single Locus Variant Analysis
Number
of nucleotide
changes
Sequence
Type
16S
rRNA
Unique
Allele?
atpB
bop
Ef-2
radA

12. Nucleotides Recombined
Recombination vs. Mutation
Nucleotides Recombined
Nucleotides Mutated
Alleles Recombined
Group 1 79 1 25
Group 2 34 12
Group 3 5

13. High Gene Flow Model: A Force for Homogenization and Diversification