Primary projects
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Are stress tolerance limits consistent with Antarctic midges' distribution ranges?
What are the molecular mechanisms underlying recovery from freezing and what are the energetic costs required to do so?
What are the mechanisms that elicit cross-tolerance to freezing? are they different when cross-tolerance is triggered by distinct stressors?
Study model
Belgica antarctica
Belgica antarctica (Diptera: Chironomidae) can tolerate stress at levels that would be lethal for most insects, which makes them a special species from the physiological standpoint. But more than that, they can tolerate stressors that are inconsistent with the environmental conditions to which they inhabit. For example, they are completely terrestrial, but still survive several days in snow-melted pools in the field. This is interesting because most Chironomidae are aquatic, and so they are likely holding on to some adaptations that are conserved within the family, which makes them a cool species from the ecological and evolutionary points of view too. If you ask me, this species is an evolutionary relict
Field work
2023 - Antarctica, 2 months, 32 islands visited
2023 - Tierra del Fuego, 14 days
2023/2024 - Antarctica, 6 months, 28 islands visited
Secondary projects
How genetic variation changes over large spatial scales?
How genetic variation changes over small spatial scales?
How microclimate conditions affect phenotypic variation over small spatial scales?
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