Kopp Lab
Principal Investigator: Artyom Kopp
Institution: University of California, Davis (Davis, CA)
Primary Subfield: Genetics/Genomics
Recruitment Status: Inquire for rotation/fellowship opportunities
Research Focus
Project summary “Evolutionary innovation” refers to the origin of entirely new traits, as opposed to the modification of existing traits. Although such novelties are relatively rare, all the complexity and diversity of life have ultimately been shaped by evolutionary innovations that occurred in a nested pattern, with every innovation dependent on many earlier novelties. Despite their critical importance for everything from geological nutrient cycles that support all life on Earth to human sentience that distinguishes us from our closest relatives, the molecular mechanisms of evolutionary innovations are understood far less than the evolution of existing traits. This is true at all levels of biological organization, from single molecules to the most complex features of animal form and function. We understand the evolution of existing organs and cell types better than the origin of new ones; quantitative variation in gene expression has been explored in greater detail than the origin of new regulatory pathways; much more is known about the evolution of existing genes than about the origin of new genes, and so on. It is this gap in knowledge that motivates our work. To achieve a comp…
Active NIH Awards
- 5R35GM122592-09: Molecular Genetics of Evolutionary Innovations (2026)
- 5R35GM122592-08: Molecular Genetics of Evolutionary Innovations (2025)
- 3R35GM122592-07S1: Molecular Genetics of Evolutionary Innovations (2024)
- 5R35GM122592-07: Molecular Genetics of Evolutionary Innovations (2024)
Explore 700+ US Biology Labs on FindBioLabs.com