Dr. Ashley Elias | Research Profile

This research uses traditional and molecular tools to sample and categorize the biological entities in the freshwater environments that occur on the Missouri Western State campus. Students that work on this project will gain lab and field experience as well as experience working with large, complicated sets of data.

This project is a collaborative effort between the labs of Dr. Elias, Dr. Ganong, Dr. Grantham, Dr. Jedlicka, Dr. Koy, Dr. Mills, and Dr. Walton.

Successful completion of at least one Biology course.

This research looks at the genetic basis and adaptive significance of complex traits in fish. Current projects are examining environmentally induced variation and associated gene expression (golden shiners), the origins of the vertebrate paired-appendage gene regulatory network in an (paddlefish), and genetic identification of hybridization (sunfish). The aim is to understand the generation and maintenance of variation we can observe in nature through the use of comparative approaches and genomic and bioinformatic tools.

Interest in fish and ecology (such as behavior or development) OR molecular biology (such as genetics lab work or analyzing genomic data)

No previous experience is required, just reliability and a positive attitude.

Past research looked at the genetic basis of complex traits, including behavior, migration, and sex determination, in fishes. Examples included examining behavioral variation and associated gene expression in migratory salmonids (brook trout and rainbow trout) and the evolution of genetic sex determination (African cichlids). With combined approaches (behavioral experiments, comparative methods, and genomic and bioinformatic tools), we are beginning to understand the number, identity, and expression of genes underlying the standing phenotypic variability among and within wild fish populations.

In addition to research on fish, I also have a great interest in applied learning. In collaboration with an interdisciplinary team of faculty members, students participate in a team of research groups studying the biodiversity in campus ponds. Student assessment data from the research team is gathered and analyzed, to examine methods and impacts of these types of experiential learning experiences for students at a primarily undergraduate institution (PUI). This project is ongoing and will continue, supporting the institutional mission of engaging students in applied learning.

• https://doi.org/10.3390/d13080384
• https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1339384.pdf
• https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/thegeographicalbulletin/vol63/iss2/7
• https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10530-019-01992-0#auth-B__E_-Williams-Aff2
• https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jglr.2018.08.006
• https://www.jstor.org/stable/26488526
• https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2009.04.022