Rolf Holderegger: Catalogue data in Autumn Semester 2020 |
| Name | Prof. Dr. Rolf Holderegger |
| Field | Conservation Biology |
| Address | WSL Zürcherstrasse 111 8903 Birmensdorf ZH SWITZERLAND |
| Telephone | 044 739 25 27 |
| rolf.holderegger@usys.ethz.ch | |
| Department | Environmental Systems Science |
| Relationship | Full Professor and Director WSL |
| Number | Title | ECTS | Hours | Lecturers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 551-0361-00L | Biology of Bryophytes and Ferns  Number of participants limited to 16. The enrolment is done by the D-BIOL study administration. General safety regulations for all block courses: -Whenever possible the distance rules have to be respected -All students have to wear masks throughout the course (keep reserve masks ready) -The installation and activation of the Swiss Covid-App is highly encouraged -Any additional rules for individual courses have to be respected -Students showing any COVID-19 symptoms are not allowed to enter ETH buildings and have to inform the course responsible | 6 credits | 7P | R. Holderegger, A. L. Bergamini | |
| Abstract | Bryophytes: basic knowledge on the morphology, ecology, biogeography and endangerment of byrophytes; knowledge of common species; skills in the determination of bryophytes; field trip. Ferns: basic knowledge on the life cycle, evolution and ecology of ferns; identification of Swiss fern species; field trips. | ||||
| Learning objective | Bryophytes: basic knowledge on the morphology, ecology, biogeography and endangerment of byrophytes; knowledge of common species; skills in the determination of bryophytes. Ferns: basic knowledge on the life cycle, evolution and ecology of ferns; identification of Swiss fern species. | ||||
| Content | Bryophytes: Systematics and morphology of hornworts, liverworts and mosses and special themes such as ecology, biogeography, diversity and endangerment of bryophytes; one full-day field trip. Ferns: Life cycle; evolutionary groups of ferns and lycopods; breeding systems, micro- and macroevolution; ecology; full-day and half-day field trips. | ||||
| Lecture notes | Hand-outs will be distributed. | ||||
| Literature | Vanderpoorten A. and Goffinet B. 2009. Introduction to Bryophytes. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge (non- mandatory). | ||||
| Prerequisites / Notice | Students have to present a poster on a special theme. Grade according to poster presentation and contributions during the course. Requirements: first and second year courses in Botany and Evolution. | ||||
| 701-1676-01L | Genomics of Environmental Adaptation Number of participants limited to 14. Prerequisites: good knowledge in population genetics and some experience in using GIS and R is required. | 2 credits | 3G | R. Holderegger, F. Gugerli, C. Rellstab | |
| Abstract | This five-day winter school aims at teaching advanced Master students, PhD students and post-doctoral researchers on aspects of the genomics of environmental adaptation. It provides both theoretical background and hands-on exercises on major topics of contemporary environmental genomics such as signatures of selection, outlier analysis or environmental association analysis. | ||||
| Learning objective | Genomics of environmental adaptation is an evolving scientific field of both basic and applied interest. Researchers make increasing use of diverse methodological approaches built on concepts from ecology, evolutionary biology and population genomics. This winter school introduces students to some major concepts and methods of environmental genomics, i.e., (i) how the environment and adaptive genetic variation relate and (ii) how signatures of local adaptation can be detected in natural populations using genomic data. The winter school focuses on currently used methods and hands-on exercises, emphasizing an understanding of the underlying concepts and a discussion of benefits, limitations and pitfalls of environmental genomics. It is specifically aimed at the needs of advanced Master students, PhD students and post-doctoral researchers. | ||||
| Content | Topics: (1) Genetic structure: how selection, drift, gene flow and isolation interact, affect neutral and adaptive genetic variation and influence the genetic structure of populations. (2) Environmental data: which environmental data are available and used to identify signatures of adaptation; what are their limitations; collinearity; sampling design. (3) Outlier analysis: types of next-generation-sequencing data; concept and methodology of outlier analysis; diverse types of outlier analyses. (4) Environmental association analysis (landscape genomics): concept and methodology of environmental association analysis; diverse types of environmental association analysis. (5) Phenotypes and genomic data; GWAS; mechanistic understanding of the environment–genotype–phenotype interaction; designing an own study. | ||||
| Lecture notes | Hand-outs will be distributed. | ||||
| Literature | The course requires 4 hours of preparatory reading of selected papers on the genomics of environmental adaptation. These papers will be distributed by e-mail. | ||||
| Prerequisites / Notice | Grading will be according to a short written report (6-8 pages) on one of the topics of the course (workload: about 8 hours) and according to student contributions during the course. Prerequisites: students should have good knowledge in population genetics and evolutionary biology and basic skills in R; experience in using GIS is advantageous. | ||||