Dr megan power
Project
I am currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in UCD on the ERC project MolStressH2O working with Dr. Katharina Wollenberg Valero to assess the role and consequences of mutations in heat stress. With increasingly stressful climate conditions, avoiding extinction depends on the rate at which organisms can mitigate stressful conditions via evolutionary adaptation or phenotypic plasticity. However, environmental change rates may outpace adaptive evolution, as natural selection on variants already present is likely slow with a dependence on the presence of existing beneficial variants. While changes in the environment will generally have negative consequences on populations, there are several different possible mechanisms for increased mutation rates in response to stress. Therefore, there is a chance for climate change to provide innovations for adaptability and evolution that promote the survival of subsequent generations (i.e. “evolvability”). Using three distinct aquatic ectotherm species (marine harbour ragworm (Hediste diversicolor), zebrafish (Danio rerio) and Madagascan reed frog (Heterixalus alboguttatus)), we will be testing if thermal stress induces higher mutation rates, using a variety of molecular techniques.
I am currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in UCD on the ERC project MolStressH2O working with Dr. Katharina Wollenberg Valero to assess the role and consequences of mutations in heat stress. With increasingly stressful climate conditions, avoiding extinction depends on the rate at which organisms can mitigate stressful conditions via evolutionary adaptation or phenotypic plasticity. However, environmental change rates may outpace adaptive evolution, as natural selection on variants already present is likely slow with a dependence on the presence of existing beneficial variants. While changes in the environment will generally have negative consequences on populations, there are several different possible mechanisms for increased mutation rates in response to stress. Therefore, there is a chance for climate change to provide innovations for adaptability and evolution that promote the survival of subsequent generations (i.e. “evolvability”). Using three distinct aquatic ectotherm species (marine harbour ragworm (Hediste diversicolor), zebrafish (Danio rerio) and Madagascan reed frog (Heterixalus alboguttatus)), we will be testing if thermal stress induces higher mutation rates, using a variety of molecular techniques.
Biography
I received my BSc in Zoology in 2014 from University College Dublin (UCD), where I investigated the phylogeography and population structure of greater mouse-eared bats (Myotis myotis) in Brittany, France using phylogenetic and molecular techniques. I then received my MSc in Biodiversity and Conservation in 2015 from Trinity College Dublin (TCD) during which, I specialised in spatial analysis of artificial light, providing a foundation for ecological light pollution effects assessment in Ireland. I completed my PhD in the evolutionary ecology of telomere variation in a long-lived mammal, the greater horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum) in the Laboratory of Molecular Evolution and Mammalian Phylogenetics in UCD. I have a strong standing in a variety of molecular techniques, practical fieldwork, evolutionary theory and data analysis, with a particular focus on Bayesian statistics and climate modelling.
Research and Teaching Interests
My primary research interests focuses on evolutionary ecology, how the environment interacts with and influences organisms and the subsequent effects on fitness (i.e. survival, reproductive success, lifespan) particularly with a changing climate. My research interests lie in the integration of different eco-physiological markers to further understand variation in life-history strategies with a focus on differing reproduction and hibernation strategies, in particular in species who differ in thermal biology. I am also interested in between/within-individual level life-history trade-offs and how environmental stresses modulate these trade-offs. In addition, I believe science should be accessible to everyone and consider teaching as an opportunity to promote an enthusiasm and love of science to students. My primary aim is to encourage and engage with students through peer assisted learning and to assist students in developing their skills to become autonomous lifelong learners. Over the past six years, I have tutored a number of different evolutionary biology, zoology, anatomy and statistical modelling modules to undergraduates and MSc students. I have aided in the supervision of 4th year undergraduate research projects and junior PhD students. Recently, I have gained experience in lecturing, preparing lectures and new materials for 1st year undergraduate Biology and Medicine students with a focus on evolutionary biology and animal genomics and genetics.
I received my BSc in Zoology in 2014 from University College Dublin (UCD), where I investigated the phylogeography and population structure of greater mouse-eared bats (Myotis myotis) in Brittany, France using phylogenetic and molecular techniques. I then received my MSc in Biodiversity and Conservation in 2015 from Trinity College Dublin (TCD) during which, I specialised in spatial analysis of artificial light, providing a foundation for ecological light pollution effects assessment in Ireland. I completed my PhD in the evolutionary ecology of telomere variation in a long-lived mammal, the greater horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum) in the Laboratory of Molecular Evolution and Mammalian Phylogenetics in UCD. I have a strong standing in a variety of molecular techniques, practical fieldwork, evolutionary theory and data analysis, with a particular focus on Bayesian statistics and climate modelling.
Research and Teaching Interests
My primary research interests focuses on evolutionary ecology, how the environment interacts with and influences organisms and the subsequent effects on fitness (i.e. survival, reproductive success, lifespan) particularly with a changing climate. My research interests lie in the integration of different eco-physiological markers to further understand variation in life-history strategies with a focus on differing reproduction and hibernation strategies, in particular in species who differ in thermal biology. I am also interested in between/within-individual level life-history trade-offs and how environmental stresses modulate these trade-offs. In addition, I believe science should be accessible to everyone and consider teaching as an opportunity to promote an enthusiasm and love of science to students. My primary aim is to encourage and engage with students through peer assisted learning and to assist students in developing their skills to become autonomous lifelong learners. Over the past six years, I have tutored a number of different evolutionary biology, zoology, anatomy and statistical modelling modules to undergraduates and MSc students. I have aided in the supervision of 4th year undergraduate research projects and junior PhD students. Recently, I have gained experience in lecturing, preparing lectures and new materials for 1st year undergraduate Biology and Medicine students with a focus on evolutionary biology and animal genomics and genetics.