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What is the context of this research?

I've studied mammalian genomes for the last 11 years. When I started at Arizona State University my lab was set up next to Dale DeNardo (collaborator) who has studied Gila monsters for much of his career. I quickly realized these creatures are incredible, and I was shocked that we didn't know more about their genetics. Synthetic forms of exendin-4, a peptide from Gila monster saliva which might be a component of their venom, are now being used successfully for treating Type II diabetes. But, in all the excitement about the drug, we don't know the Gila monster genome sequence, how this salivary protein changes across species, or how much genetic diversity Gila monsters have in the wild (and whether we should be more actively conserving them). Thus, our push into Gila monster genomics!

What is the significance of this project?

The next closest related species to the Gila monster with a genome is the anole lizard. With this we can learn about genes shared between Gila monsters and anoles, but not DNA unique to the Gila monster. There is so much variation (between individuals, between sexes, and within the species) in Gila monsters that we know nothing about. By analyzing one individual in depth to make a scaffold reference genome, and several individuals to quantify variation, we will build a body of knowledge about Gila monsters that is currently completely undocumented. With the results of this project we can generate markers for conservation research, investigate Gila monster population history, and investigate what makes its saliva so unique and useful for treating Type-II diabetes.

What are the goals of the project?

We will generate high quality reference genome scaffolds from a single individual that can be aligned with other available reptile genomes. Using this alignment we will investigate the evolution of genes in Gila monster venom. We will also generate DNA sequences from three male and three female Gila monsters that we will use to identify sex-linked regions and characterize genetic variation across Gila monsters. We will write up each of these analyses for publication in open-access journals, making the results and all code used to generate the results publicly available.