Michael S. Blouin
Professor
E-Mail: blouinm(at)science.oregonstate.edu
Office Phone: (541)737-2362,
Lab Phone: (541) 737-4360
FAX: 541-737-0501,
Address:
Department of Zoology,
Oregon State University,
Corvallis, Oregon 97331-2914.
I have diverse interests in basic and applied evolutionary genetics. I teach General Genetics (Bi311), Population Genetics (Gen 430/530) and Evolution (Bi445/545). My past research focused on phenotypic evolution and landscape genetics in amphibians. The current research foci in my lab are:
(1) Evolutionary genetics of parasites, and host-parasite evolution (see example publications below). Past and recent work focused on what controls effective size, gene flow and genetic structure in helminth parasites (nematodes and trematodes). We now study the molecular evolution of disease resistance loci. We are currently collaborating on an NIH-funded study of loci in snails (Biomphalaria glabrata) that confer resistance to trematodes (Schistosoma mansoni – a serious pathogen of humans). Here we are studying candidate loci in pathways that generate and scavenge reactive oxygen species, and are also using Illumina-based, whole-genome scan approaches to find new loci.
(2) We are studying the selection pressures in hatcheries that make hatchery fish become different from wild fish. This work follows our studies using microsatellite loci to reconstruct a four-generation pedigree of an entire population of steelhead trout, Onchorynchus mykiss for purposes of comparing the fitness of hatchery and wild fish, and for studying what controls the effective sizes of these populations. See recent media coverage of this work (2007 Associated Press,Reuters; 2009 Science News, NPR ). This research was an offshoot of my interests in molecular methods for pedigree reconstruction in natural populations. See example publications below.
Selected Publications: See also (COMPLETE LIST OF REFERENCES)
Evolutionary genetics
of parasites, host-parasite interactions
Blouin, MS, KM Bonner, B Cooper, V Amarasinghe, RP O’Donnell, and CJ. Bayne. 2013 Three genes involved in the oxidative burst are closely linked in the genome of Biomphalaria glabrata . International Journal for Parasitology 43:51-55 PDF
Bonner KM, CJ Bayne, MK Larson, and MS Blouin. 2012. Effects of Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (sod1) genotype and genetic background on growth, reproduction and defense in Biomphalaria glabrata PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases 6:e1701 PDF
Criscione, CD, R. Vias, E. Paniagua and MS Blouin. 2011. More than meets the eye: detecting cryptic microgeographic population structure in a parasite with a complex life cycle Molecular Ecology doi: 10.1111/j.1365-294X.2011.05113.x PDF
Steinauer, M., M.S. Blouin and C. Criscione. Applying evolutionary genetics to schistosome epidemiology. Infection, Genetics and Evolution, 10:433-443.PDF
Theron, A., C. Coustau, A. Rognon, S. Gourbière, and M.S. Blouin. 2008 Effects of laboratory culture on compatibility between snails and schistosomes. Parasitology, 135:1179-1188. PDF
Bender, R.C. C.P. Goodall, M.S. Blouin and
C.J. Bayne. 2007. A regulatory variant of Biomphalaria glabrata SOD1 and its role in susceptibility/resistance to Schistosoma mansoni, Developmental and Comparative
Immunology, 9: 874-878.
PDF
Tennessen, J.A. and M.S. Blouin. 2008. Balancing selection at a frog antimicrobial peptide locus: fluctuating immune effector molecules? Molecular Biology and Evolution 25:2669–2680. PDF
Tennessen J.A. and M.S. Blouin. 2007. Selection for antimicrobial peptide diversity in frogs leads to gene duplication and low allelic variation. Journal of Molecular Evolution 65:605-615 PDF
Criscione, C.D., B. Cooper and M.S. Blouin. 2006. Parasite genotypes identify source populations of migratory fish more accurately than fish genotypes. Ecology 87:823-828. PDF
Criscione, C.D. and M.S. Blouin. 2006. Minimal selfing, few clones, and no among-host genetic structure in a hermaphroditic parasite with asexual larval propagation. Evolution, 60:553-562. PDF
Criscione, C.D., R. Poulin and M.S. Blouin. 2005. Molecular ecology of parasites: elucidating ecological and microevolutionary processes. Molecular Ecology 14:2247-2257. PDF
Criscione, C.D. and M.S. Blouin. 2005. Effective sizes of macroparasite populations: a conceptual model. Trends in Parasitology 21: 212-217. PDF
Criscione, C.D. and M.S. Blouin. 2004. Life cycles shape parasite evolution: comparative population genetics of salmon trematodes. Evolution 58:198-202. PDF
Blouin,
Blouin, M.S., C.A. Yowell, C.H. Courtney and J.B. Dame (1995) Host movement and the genetic structure of populations of parasitic nematodes. Genetics 141: 1007-1014. PDF
Salmonid fish –
fitness, effects of captive breeding
Christie, M.R., M.L. Marine, R.A. French, R.S. Waples and M.S. Blouin. 2012. Effective size of a wild salmonid population is greatly reduced by hatchery supplementation Heredity, online early PDF
Christie, M.R., M.L. Marine, R.A. French and M.S. Blouin. 2011. Genetic adaptation to captivity can occur in a single generation Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1111073109 PDF
Christie, M.R., M.L. Marine and M.S. Blouin. 2011. Who are the missing parents? Grandparentage analysis identifies multiple sources of gene flow into a wild population. Molecular Ecology, doi: 10.1111/j.1365-294X.2010.04994.x.PDF
Blouin, M.S. V. Thuillier, B. Cooper, V. Amarasinghe, L. Cluzel, H. Araki and C. Grunau. No evidence for large differences in genomic methylation between wild and hatchery steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. 67: 217-224. PDF
Araki, H., B. Cooper and M.S. Blouin. 2009. Carry-over effect of captive breeding reduces reproductive fitness of wild-born descendents n the wild. Biology Letters doi: 10.1098/rsbl.2009.0315 PDF
Araki, H., B. Berejikian, M. Ford, and M.S. Blouin. 2008 Fitness of hatchery-reared salmonids in the wild. Evolutionary Applications 1:342-355. PDF
Araki, H., B. Cooper and M.S. Blouin. 2007. Genetic effects of captive breeding cause a rapid, cumulative fitness decline in the wild. Science, 318: 100-103. PDF
Araki, H., W.R. Ardren, E. Olsen, B.
Cooper and M.S. Blouin. 2007. Reproductive success of captive-bred
steelhead trout in the wild: evaluation of three hatchery programs in the
Araki, H., R.S. Waples, W.R. Ardren, B. Cooper and M.S. Blouin. 2007. Effective population size of steelhead trout: influence of variance in reproductive success, hatchery programs, and genetic compensation between life-history forms. Molecular Ecology 16:953-966 PDF
Pedigree reconstruction
methods
Christie, M.R., M.L. Marine and M.S. Blouin. 2011. Who are the missing parents? Grandparentage analysis identifies multiple sources of gene flow into a wild population. Molecular Ecology, doi: 10.1111/j.1365-294X.2010.04994.x.PDF
Araki, H. and M.S. Blouin. 2005. Unbiased estimation of relative reproductive success of different groups: evaluation and correction of bias caused by parentage assignment errors. Molecular Ecology, 13:4097-4109 PDF
Blouin, M.S. 2003. DNA-based methods for pedigree reconstruction and kinship analysis in natural populations. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 18: 503-511. PDF
Blouin, M.S., M. Parsons, V. Lacaille,
and
Amphibian
evolutionary and landscape genetics
Phillipsen, I., C. Funk, E. Hoffman, K. Monsen and M.S. Blouin. 2011. Comparative analyses of effective population size within and among species: ranid frogs as a case study Evolution, 11:2179-2194 PDF
Blouin, M.S., I.C. Phillipsen and K.J. Monsen. 2010. Population structure and conservation genetics of the Oregon spotted frog, Rana pretiosa. Conservation Genetics, 11:2179-2194 PDF
Phillipsen,
Hoffman, E.A., Schueler, F.W., A.G. Jones and M.S. Blouin. 2006. An analysis of selection on a color polymorphism in the northern leopard frog. Molecular Ecology, 15:2627-2641. PDF
Hoffman, E.A., F.W. Schueler and M. S. Blouin. 2004. Effective population sizes and temporal stability of genetic structure in Rana pipiens, the Northern leopard frog. Evolution 58:2536-2545. PDF
Monsen, K.J. and M.S. Blouin. 2004. Extreme isolation by distance in the Cascades frog, Rana cascadae. Conservation Genetics 5:827-835. PDF.
Blouin, M.S. (1992) Genetic correlations among morphometric traits and rates of growth and differentiation in the green tree frog, Hyla cinerea. Evolution 46: 735-744. PDF
Blouin, M.S., and M.L.G. Loeb (1991) Effects of environmentally-induced development rate variation on head and limb morphology in the green tree frog, Hyla cinerea. American Naturalist 138: 717-728. PDF