Photo of domesticated foxes in Russia by Vincent Musi for National Geographic.

Next Monday, Dr. Anna Kukekova will be in town to discuss “Genetics of complex behaviors in the silver fox model of animal domestication.”  The seminar is at noon in Hutch 473.  Dr. Kukekova investigates the genetics of domestication and disease in canines (citations and links to two recent papers are below).  Dr. Kukekova was also featured in a recent National Geographic article on “Taming the Wild” and is a consultant for a forthcoming NOVA special on “Dogs Decoded.”

Statham et al. (2011) On the origin of a domesticated species: identifying the parent population of Russian silver foxes (Vulpes vulpes). Biological Journal of Linnean Society 103:168-175 [doi link]

Goldstein et al. (2010) Exonic SINE insertion in STK38L causes canine early retinal degeneration (erd). Genomics 96:362-368 [doi link]