1 00:00:12,199 --> 00:00:16,399 One of the priorities of biological research is the study of biological diversity. 2 00:00:16,600 --> 00:00:19,600 "We are not trying to describe the diversity itself, 3 00:00:19,600 --> 00:00:23,879 but rather figure out how it is created." 4 00:00:24,440 --> 00:00:27,440 If we follow a common definition of a species, 5 00:00:27,440 --> 00:00:31,239 based on reproductive isolation from other species, 6 00:00:31,239 --> 00:00:33,600 then we should be looking for the types of barriers that cause this isolation, 7 00:00:33,600 --> 00:00:35,560 and that is exactly what we interested in. 8 00:00:35,560 --> 00:00:38,079 Basically, we have two options: 9 00:00:38,079 --> 00:00:40,079 we can either interbreed two species in laboratory 10 00:00:40,079 --> 00:00:44,079 and then study the nature of the reproductive barrier between them, 11 00:00:44,079 --> 00:00:48,439 or observe the formation of a new species “online”. 12 00:00:48,439 --> 00:00:50,280 Excellent arenas for this kind of research are hybrid zones, 13 00:00:50,280 --> 00:00:53,840 which can be considered as natural laboratories for studying the origin of species. 14 00:00:54,679 --> 00:00:58,280 "To study speciation and hybrid zones, we use the house mouse" 15 00:00:58,280 --> 00:01:01,920 as a model since it is easy to breed and has a known genome, 16 00:01:01,920 --> 00:01:04,560 to mention a few of its wide variety of advantages. 17 00:01:04,560 --> 00:01:07,680 Moreover, two mouse subspecies meet in Europe 18 00:01:07,680 --> 00:01:10,840 and hybridize, creating a narrow hybrid zone 19 00:01:10,840 --> 00:01:13,879 that stretches from Scandinavia to the Black Sea coast, 20 00:01:13,879 --> 00:01:17,480 crossing the westernmost part of the Czech Republic. 21 00:01:17,560 --> 00:01:20,920 On a global scale, we have a unique material at our disposal 22 00:01:20,920 --> 00:01:23,640 - approximately 9,000 samples of house mice 23 00:01:23,640 --> 00:01:25,920 from all over the world, primarily from Europe. 24 00:01:25,920 --> 00:01:28,840 Many of them come with extensive genetic information 25 00:01:28,840 --> 00:01:33,359 that allows us to study the reproductive isolation mechanisms in detail. 26 00:01:33,359 --> 00:01:34,640 We have discovered that a major 27 00:01:34,640 --> 00:01:37,879 – and so far, more or less neglected – 28 00:01:37,879 --> 00:01:42,000 role in the process is played by genetic conflicts within the same genome, 29 00:01:42,000 --> 00:01:45,120 especially between the X and Y chromosomes. 30 00:01:47,760 --> 00:01:50,799 Reproductive barriers can take many forms 31 00:01:50,799 --> 00:01:54,959 – for example, males of one subspecies are much more aggressive 32 00:01:54,959 --> 00:01:57,799 and fearless in exploring new environments. 33 00:01:58,359 --> 00:02:02,879 In contrast, females of the other subspecies prefer their own males 34 00:02:03,359 --> 00:02:07,680 to avoid potentially disadvantageous interspecific mating. 35 00:02:07,879 --> 00:02:11,520 We are then interested how they choose their mates, 36 00:02:11,520 --> 00:02:14,639 how they recognise them, and which proteins are likely to play the role 37 00:02:14,639 --> 00:02:17,560 as species specific recognition signals. 38 00:02:18,120 --> 00:02:21,680 Of course, modern science is based on collaboration between several teams, 39 00:02:21,680 --> 00:02:25,080 typically when it comes to analysing entire genomes. 40 00:02:25,080 --> 00:02:27,800 We collaborate with distinguished research institutions 41 00:02:27,800 --> 00:02:30,199 in our country as well as around the world. 42 00:02:33,080 --> 00:02:36,199 We present our findings at international conferences, 43 00:02:36,199 --> 00:02:40,159 publish them in prestigious scientific journals, give lectures at universities 44 00:02:40,159 --> 00:02:42,240 and share them with the general public through various popularization activities.