The Schlötterer lab investigates the genetic mechanisms that drive adaptation and evolutionary change in natural and experimental populations. By combining population genetics, genomics, and experimental evolution, the group seeks to understand how organisms respond to environmental challenges and how adaptive traits emerge over time. A major focus is the identification of genetic variants underlying adaptation, often using Drosophila as a model system.
The group has been at the forefront of developing and applying “Evolve and Resequence” approaches, which integrate experimental evolution with high-throughput genome sequencing to monitor evolutionary dynamics across entire genomes. Research spans topics such as adaptation from standing genetic variation, selective sweeps, polygenic adaptation, linkage disequilibrium, and the predictability of evolutionary responses.
Additional areas of interest include temperature adaptation, phenotypic plasticity, and the genomic architecture of complex traits. Through these studies, the group aims to establish a mechanistic understanding of how evolutionary forces shape genomic variation and enable populations to adapt to changing environments.