Dr. Anthony Metcalf
Associate Professor
e-mail:
ametcalf@csusb.edu
B.A. Simon Frasier University, British Columbia
B.S. University of California, Riverside
Ph. D. University of California, Riverside
Undergraduate Courses:
BIOL 400 Molecular Biology
BIOL 202 Biology of Populations
BIOL 350 Ecology of Ecosystems
Research Interests:
The broad focus of my research is molecular evolution and molecular ecology. I am interested both in the evolution of genes and the evolutionary history and ecology of the organisms that possess them. My current research is the distribution of mitochondrial DNA sequence variation within and among closely related taxa. One such group is the kangaroo rats (Dipodomys). For this research, I estimate the pattern and rates of nucleotide substitutions in the D-loop of the mitochondrial genome, and the geographic partitioning of this variation. I am also interested in regional geographic patterns of genetic variation across taxa. Interior coastal southern California has a high degree of endemism, generated, in part, by Pleistocene geologic activity. I am interested in how a suite of interrelated changes in landscape has effected the distribution of regional fauna, and how such changes are reflected in the patterns of genetic variation. A third area of interest is that of conservation genetics. The restricted distribution of regional fauna has caused several species to be listed as threatened or endangered. Information on the patterns of genetic variation in such species can be directly applied to conservation strategies.
Publications:
Chen P, Roberts PA, Metcalf AE, Hyman BC. 2003. Nucleotide substitution patterning within the Meloidogyne rDNA D3 region and its evolutionary implications. Journal of Nematology 35 (4): 404-410.
Metcalf AE, Nunney L, Hyman BC. 2001. Geographic patterns of genetic differentiation within the restricted range of the endangered Stephens' kangaroo rat Dipodomys stephensi. Evolution 55 (6): 1233-1244.
Zhou ZM, Metcalf AE, Lovatt CJ, Hyman BC. 2000. Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) carbamoylphosphate synthetase gene structure records the deep lineage of plants. Gene 243 (1-2): 105-114.
Demers DM, Metcalf AE, Talbot P, Hyman BC. 1996. Multiple lobster tubulin isoforms are encoded by a simple gene family. Gene 171 (2): 185-191.
