معرفی
Tyler Square is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Cell Science at the University of Florida, affiliated with the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS). His research focuses on developmental genetics and the evolution of skeletal structures, particularly tooth formation and regeneration in teleost fish models like threespine sticklebacks and zebrafish. His lab investigates signaling pathways such as Wnt and BMP to understand how genetic mechanisms control tooth specification, maintenance, and collective actions during development.
Research interests include the evolutionary origins of vertebrate skeletal systems, cis-regulatory divergence in adaptation, and the genetic basis of phenotypic plasticity. The lab employs gene expression manipulations and CRISPR/Cas9 mutagenesis in model organisms to study these processes.
Selected recent work highlights discoveries about Bmp6 enhancer roles in spatial gene expression shifts, cis-regulatory changes in sticklebacks, and the evolutionary co-option of endothelin pathways in neural crest diversification. His lab's website (https://www.tylersquare.net/) provides further details on ongoing projects and resources.
Advising includes training students like E.J. Mackey and S. Sundaram in molecular genetics and developmental biology techniques. Collaborations with colleagues such as C.T. Miller and D.M. Medeiros underscore interdisciplinary approaches to evolutionary developmental biology.
Future work aims to uncover genetic networks governing collective organ behaviors and the mechanistic links between gene regulation and morphological evolution in vertebrate dentition.
