Lidia Lopez Vazquez

She/her

Education: Majoring in Biology

Mentor: Brad Olson, Ph.D.

McNair Project: Gene Expression during the Development of Plastic Somatic Cells in the Volvocine Green Algae

One of the central questions in the study of cellular evolution has been how new cell types emerge. Genetic changes can lead to the evolution of novel cell types in multicellular species, but it remains unclear whether differentiation can be ancestrally plastic and then be stabilized. We are currently identifying how environmental stimuli can cause changes in a cell’s state and cause it to turn into a different type of cell. To do this, we will use the volvocine green algae as a model system. Specifically, we will work with Eudorina, a species that was previously characterized as undifferentiated but which can develop plastic somatic cells after cold shock. We will be identifying and analyzing the mechanisms underlying this response. We will be subjecting Eudorina sp. NIES 3984 to cold shock and then collecting and sequencing cells at important developmental stages every few hours for the span of two generations. We will be extracting RNA from the collected tissue and then carry out RNA sequencing. To characterize the gene expression changes tied to the development of plastic somatic cells, we will use transcriptomics and investigate the genetic mechanisms. We will also be comparing this to other species within the volvocine green algae family who have somatic cells but different differentiation such as Pleodorina and Volvox. By combining phenotypic, developmental data, and transcriptomics, we aim to understand how gene interactions with the environmental conditions can lead to a new trait’s emergence.