Christopher Chandler

Research

Evolutionary genetics of sex determination mechanisms and sexual differentiation, sexual selection, and understanding how genes and the environment interact to influence organismal phenotypes.

Specialty areas:

• Genetics and genomics
• Evolutionary biology
• Computational biology

Publications

* Indicates undergraduate research student

• Yarbrough, E., and Chandler, C.H. 2024. Patterns of molecular evolution in a parthenogenic terrestrial isopod (Trichoniscus pusillus). PeerJ, 12, e17780.
• Russel, A.*, Borrelli, S.*, Fontana, R.*, Laricchiuta, J.*, Pascar, J.*, Becking, T., Giraud, I., Cordaux, R., Chandler, C.H. (2021) Evolutionary transition to XY sex chromosomes associated with Y-linked duplication of a male hormone gene in a terrestrial isopod. Heredity 127, 266–277.
• Chandler, C.H., Mammel, A., and Dworkin, I. 2020. Sexual selection does not increase the rate of compensatory adaptation to a mutation influencing a secondary sexual trait in Drosophila melanogaster. G3:Genes, Genomes, Genetics, 10, 1541-1551.
• Pascar, J. A.*, and Chandler, C.H. 2018. A bioinformatics approach to detecting Wolbachia infections in arthropods. PeerJ, 6, e5486.
• Chandler, C.H., Chari, S., Kowalski, A., Choi, L., Tack, D., DeNieu, M., Pitchers, W., Sonnenschein, A., Marvin, L., Hummel, K., Marier, C., Victory, A., Porter, C., Mammel, A., Holms, J., Sivaratnam, G., and Dworkin, I. 2017. How well do you know your mutation? Complex effects of genetic background on expressivity, complementation, and ordering of allelic effects. PLOS Genetics, 13, e1007075.
• Peccoud, J., Chebbi, M. A., Cormier, A., Moumen, B., Gilbert, C., Marcadé, I., Chandler, C.H., and Cordaux, R. 2017. Untangling heteroplasmy, structure, and evolution of an atypical mitochondrial genome by PacBio sequencing. Genetics (accepted).
• Becking, T., Giraud, I., Raimond, M., Moumen, B., Chandler, C.H., Cordaux, R., and Gilbert, C. 2017. Diversity and evolution of sex determination systems in terrestrial isopods. Scientific Reports, 7, 1084.
• Chandler, C.H. 2017. When and why does sex chromosome dosage compensation evolve? Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1389, 37-51.
• Wang, Y.W.* and Chandler, C.H. 2016. Candidate pathogenicity islands in the genome of 'Candidatus Rickettsiella isopodorum', an intracellular bacterium infecting terrestrial isopod crustaceans. PeerJ, 4, e2806.
• Chandler, C.H., Badawi, M., Moumen B., Grève P., and Cordaux, R. 2015. Multiple conserved heteroplasmic sites in tRNA genes in the mitochondrial genomes of terrestrial isopods (Oniscidea). G3: Genes, Genomes, Genetics, 5, 1317-1322.
• Chandler, C.H. 2014. Parallel genome-wide fixation of ancestral alleles in partially outcrossing experimental populations of Caenorhabditis elegans. G3: Genes, Genomes, Genetics, 4, 1657-1665.
• Chandler, C.H., Chari, S., Tack, D., and Dworkin, I. 2014. Causes and consequences of genetic background effects illuminated by integrative genomic analysis. Genetics, 196, 1321-1336.
• Sethuraman, A., McGaugh, S.E., Becker, M.L., Chandler, C.H., Christiansen, J.L., Hayden, S., LeClere, A., Monson-Miller J., Myers, E.M., Paitz, R.T., Refsnider, J.M., VanDeWalle, T.J., and Janzen, F.J. 2014. Population genetics of Blanding's turtle (Emys blandingii) in the midwestern United States. Conservation Genetics, 15, 61-73.
• Chandler, C.H., Chari, S., and I. Dworkin. 2013. Does your gene need a background check? How genetic background impacts the analysis of mutations, genes, and evolution. Trends in Genetics, 29, 358-366.
• Chandler, C.H., Ofria, C.O., and I. Dworkin. 2013. Runaway sexual selection leads to good genes. Evolution, 67, 110-119.
• Chandler, C.H., Chadderdon, G.E., Phillips, P.C., Dworkin, I., and F.J. Janzen. 2012. Experimental evolution of the Caenorhabditis elegans sex determination pathway. Evolution, 66, 82-93.
• Chandler, C.H. 2010. Cryptic intraspecific variation in sex determination in Caenorhabditis elegans revealed by mutations.Heredity, 105, 473-482.
• Chandler, C.H., and F.J. Janzen. 2009. The phylogenetic position of the snapping turtles (Chelydridae) based on nucleotide sequence data.Copeia, 2009, 209-213.
• Chandler, C.H., P.C. Phillips, and F.J. Janzen. 2009. The evolution of sex-determining mechanisms: Lessons from temperature-sensitive mutations in sex determination genes in Caenorhabditis elegans.Journal of Evolutionary Biology, 22, 192-200.
• Chandler, C.H., and K.R. Zamudio. 2008. Reproductive success by large, closely related males facilitated by sperm storage in an aggregate breeding amphibian. Molecular Ecology, 17, 1564-1576.
• Myers, E., J. Tucker, and C.H. Chandler. 2007. Experimental analysis of body size and shape during critical life-history events of hatchling slider turtles, Trachemys scripta elegans. Functional Ecology, 21, 1106-1114.

Education

• Ph.D., Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Iowa State University
• BS, Biological Sciences, Cornell University