Jon F. Wilkins

Jon F. Wilkins
Research Scholar
Evolution
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Alas, poor Lucy!

Jon F. Wilkins is a theoretical evolutionary biologist and poet. His current interests span several different topics, including genomic imprinting, coalescent theory, statistical inference, and the origins of robustness and epistasis.

Genomic imprinting is the phenomenon where the pattern of expression of an allele depends on its parental origin. Imprinted gene expression is thought to be the result of an intragenomic evolutionary conflict between matrilineal and patrilineal expression strategies. Jon is particularly interested in understanding the origin of such conflicts in the context of cognition and behavior, and in understanding the consequences of intragenomic conflict for phenotypic evolution at the level of the individual organism.

Jon also works on coalescent theory, particularly the population genetics of geographically structured populations. He is also working to develop more general and powerful statistical methods for using genetic data to make inferences about demographic history and population structure.

Jon's third major area of research is on the evolution of robustness, and how patterns of robustness and epistasis are shaped by natural selection.

You can find out more, read about evolution, download papers, and learn more about Jon's other endeavors (poetry, webcomic, etc.) at http://jonfwilkins.com.

Contact Jon at jon.f.wilkins@ronininstitute.org