Lecture 1: Introduction to
Population Genetics
August 20, 2012
Instructors
Steve DiFazio
 5200 Life Sciences Building
 Office Hours: Mon, Wed, Thurs 1 to 2 pm
Hari Chhetri (TA)
 5206 Life Sciences Building
 Office Hours: Tue, Wed, Fri 11:30 to 12:30
Please use office hours, or make
appointment!
Course Structure
Two 50-minute lectures per week
 Do readings before class
 Bring a calculator to class
 Be ready to participate!
 Handouts of lecture slides will usually be
distributed at beginning of class
 Slides posted to website after class (don’t
print old slides)
One 2-hour lab session, 6:30-8:20 each
week
Grading
Exam 1, Sept 26, 120 points
Exam 2, Oct 31, 120 points
Weekly Lab Reports, 12 X 10 pts = 120 points
Final Exam, Monday, Dec 11, 11 am, 3131 LSB,
140 points
Extra credit opportunities
Scale for final grades:
(no curve)
Class Website
http://www.as.wvu.edu/~sdifazio/popgen/
or Google “difazio popgen”
Home page has
information from
syllabus:
Course structure
Grading
Rules and policies
Schedule Page
 Updated
continuously
during course
 Lecture slides
available
following
lecture
 Reading
assignments
 Exam schedule
 Lab schedule
Required Text
Hedrick, P.W. 2011.
Genetics of
Populations. Jones
and Bartlett
 Available from WVU
book store
 Also partially on
Google Books
(searchable)
Supplemental Reading
Three books on reserve in
WVU downtown library:
Mountain Lynx
 Hamilton, M. 2009.
Population Genetics.
 Gillespie, J.H. 2004.
Population Genetics: A
Concise Guide.
 Falconer, D.S., and T.F.C.
Mackay. 1996.
Introduction to
Quantitative Genetics.
Supplemental Reading
Other Resources
Laboratory
TA: Hari Chhetri
Tightly linked to lectures
Intended as “Active Learning” modules
 Enhance understanding of concepts and principles
 Provide hands-on introduction to Population
Genetics software
Every Wednesday evening, 6:30 to 8:20 pm
3306 Life Sciences Building (Biology computer
lab)
Bring a calculator and your lab manual
Required Lab Manual
Slavov, G, E. RodgersMelnick, and S.P. DiFazio.
2012. BIOL 464/GEN 535
Population Genetics
Laboratory Manual. WVU
Press. 107 Pages.
 Available only from WVU
book store (~$20)
 Please purchase by this
Wednesday, August 22
Extra Credit Opportunity
Find a new error in
the Lab Manual or
Text
 Typo/grammatical error:
1 point
 Calculation, derivation or
mathematical error: 5
points
 First come, first served
Laboratory Web Page
 Schedule of
lab topics
 Links to
required
software and
data
 Due dates
for lab
reports
Lab Reports
Lab reports due at beginning of lab period
 12 total, worth 10 points each
 Deduct 0.5 points for each day late
 Last report is optional: up to 10 pts extra credit
Guidelines for lab report are in lab manual
Email and/or paper versions are fine
Most weeks require a write-up with
interpretations for each calculation or simulation
Please be careful to fully answer questions,
including explanations of results from biological
standpoint
Working Together and Academic Honesty
Group work in laboratory is optional but
encouraged
It is fine to discuss lab problems and work on
them together
HOWEVER, your lab report must be your
original work
 See academic honesty policy on class website
Exams are based primarily on the lab
exercises and examples worked in class
Highlights from the Schedule
 Introduction to Probability
 Genetic variation in populations: Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium
 Selection
 Inbreeding
 Genetic drift
 Gene Flow and population structure
 Phylogenetics
 Genetic identity and forensic identification
 Coalescence and neutral theory
 Linkage disequilibrium
 Quantitative genetics
 Tying genotypes to phenotypes
What is Evolution?
Evolutionary Synthesis
Fisher, Wright, and
Haldane were fathers
of population genetics
and modern
evolutionary theory
Working in early
1920’s, worked out
how to apply Mendel’s
laws in a population
context to provide
mechanistic explanation
for evolutionary change
R.A. Fisher
Sewall Wright
http://www.ars.usda.gov
J.B.S. Haldane
http://www.york.ac.uk
http://www.ucc.ie/
Population Genetics
Study of heritable variation in assemblages of
organisms, and how this is affected by
mutation, drift, selection, and gene flow
Mutation
Drift
+
-
Diversity
+/Selection
+
Migration
Population Genetics is Important
 Disease susceptibility, genetic testing, and
personalized medicine
 Statistical interpretation of forensic DNA
evidence
 Human evolution and cultural history
 Crop and animal improvement
 Traditional breeding
 Genetic engineering
 Conservation plans for plant and animal
communities
 Responses of plant and animal communities to
climate change