题  目: Evolution and diversification of mimicry and masquerade in butterflies

报告人: 张蔚 教授

北京大学生命科学学院，北大-清华生命科学联合中心

时  间: 5月11日（周一）13:00-14:00

地  点: 吕志和楼B101

主持人: 韩敬东

摘  要:

With over 18,700 species of butterflies, butterfly wings are relatively simple in structure but display complex patterns and functions, serving as a classic system for studying the evolutionary mechanisms of biodiversity. During the past decade, we investigated the evolution and genetic mechanisms of Batesian mimicry and Müllerian mimicry in multiple butterfly species and developed the butterfly genome editing technology and deep learning-based algorithms for genomic analysis, providing a scientific foundation for us to deeply address butterfly diversification and adaptation. We recently established a research system using oakleaf butterflies in the genus Kallima, which have polymorphic wing phenotypes to masquerade as dead leaves. We integrated multi-omic data analyses and functional validation to infer the evolutionary history of Kallima species and investigate the genetic basis of their variable leaf wing patterns, providing macroevolutionary and microevolutionary insights into a model species originating from a mountain ecosystem. Currently, we are further exploring the molecular mechanisms of butterfly adaptation based on our understanding of these mimicry systems, which can provide a research paradigm for exploring solutions to promote human health based on biodiversity and biological evolution.

Keywords: morphological evolution; phenotypic diversity; mimicry; masquerade;

报告人简介：

Wei Zhang is a Boya Distinguished Professor at the School of Life Sciences and the Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Science at Peking University. She received her Ph.D. in Botany from the School of Life Sciences at Peking University in 2011. From 2012 to 2017, she conducted postdoctoral research at the Department of Ecology and Evolution at the University of Chicago. Since 2018, she has been affiliated with the School of Life Sciences at Peking University and the Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, serving successively as Assistant Professor (tenure-track), Associate Professor (tenured), and Full Professor (tenured). The research group integrates experimental and computational biology methods to explore the theoretical foundations and molecular mechanisms of key evolutionary questions, such as studying the evolution of animal diversity and adaptive mechanisms using mimicry butterflies as a model system. The group has received funding from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Outstanding Young Scientist Program), the National Program for Introducing High-Level Talents from Abroad (Youth Program), the Beijing Natural Science Foundation (Outstanding Young Scientist Program), and the Biomedical Peak Fund, among others, and has been awarded the First Prize of the Zhou Yao Award for Insect Taxonomy. Her research findings, published as corresponding author or first author (including co-first authorship), have appeared in journals such as Cell, Nature, Nature Ecology and Evolution, Nature Communications, and Science Advances. Her work has been featured on Faculty1000 and included in two textbooks: An Introduction to Molecular Evolution and Phylogenetics and Genetics: From Genes to Genomes (Hartwell).