Population genetic and genomic approaches
(Training)

Full title

Population genetic and genomic approaches to mitigate global climate change impacts on forest genetic resources and to breed more resilient trees

Description

Global climate change poses a major challenge for most boreal and temperate forests. Climate influences growth rate, adaptation and survival of forest trees. Global climate change can lead to both extinction of forests in more arid and colder environments and expansion in wetter and warmer ones. The fast changes in climate can also threaten forest genetic resources or make them more vulnerable. The proposed summer school tought how the application of population genetics and genomics can help to tackle this challenge and guide forest protection and conservation programs aimed to mitigate undesirable effects of global climate change. It also demonstrated how modern genomic selection can be used for breeding more resilient trees that will be productive in harsh and variable environments. The course also tought population genetics and genomics tools and methods that can be used to better characterise available forest tree genetic resources.

Topics

• Human and global climate change impacts on forest genetic resources
• Genetic implications of forest management
• Forest population genetics and genomics: an introduction to tools and methods
• Association mapping of environmental and genetic variables
• Spatial analysis in forest population genetics and ecogenomics
• Gene flow, forest regeneration and assisted migration
• Genomic selection for more resilient trees

Teaching methods

Lectures, practical exercises, computer demonstrations, field work and excursions

Instructors

Reiner Finkeldey, Andrew Eckert, Dusan Gömöry, Kostya Krutovsky, Sarah Seifert, Barbara Vornam, Martin Ziehe