Claudia Keller Valsecchi, University of Mainz

Epigenetics of sex differences: Lessons from non-model organisms

Our research focuses on elucidating the fundamental mechanisms and the physiological relevance of gene copy numbers for regulating cellular function in eukaryotes. We study the causes and consequences of gene dosage alterations and their impact on developmental, evolutionary and ageing processes. A major interest lies in the evolution of sex chromosomes and molecular diversity of compensatory mechanisms. Recently, we discovered a novel master regulator responsible for X chromosome dosage compensation in the malaria mosquito Anopheles gambiae.