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MELANIA CRISTESCU

	Assistant Professor Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research University of Windsor 401 Sunset Avenue Windsor, Ontario, Canada N9B 3P4 Ph.D. University of Guelph, Ontario B.S. Ovidius University, Romania
Email: mcris@uwindsor.ca Office phone: (519) 253-3000 ext. 3763 Lab phone: (519) 253-3000 ext. 4737 Fax: (519) 971-3616 Current Research
Current Research Evolutionary Genetics of Aquatic Invasions Many invasive aquatic species are undergoing rapid range expansions accompanied by dramatic habitat transitions (e.g. marine to freshwater, ephemeral ponds to permanent lakes). These invasive taxa present outstanding opportunities to study the genetic mechanisms underlying the adaptive responses of organisms to novel environments and stresses. My study organisms involve several species of Ponto-Caspian crustaceans (endemic to the Black and Caspian Seas) that have recently colonized the Great Lakes, as well as the waterflea Daphnia - an emerging model system for ecological genomics. I employ phylogenetic approaches to contrast historical and contemporary patterns of invasion among Ponto-Caspian crustaceans and use genomic tools for Daphnia pulex to study the genetic mechanisms underlying traits involved in adaptation to new environments. Ponto-Caspian Region Personal Site s