Mexpopgen

We are pleased and grateful to announce that Mexpopgen6 will be funded by SMBE and will take place as a SMBE Satellite Meeting.

Thank you for this opportunity, SMBE!

The event will be held on October 12th and 13th 2023 with a hybrid format at UNAM's Center for Genomic Science (CCG) in Cuernavaca, Mexico.

We will have the pleasure of listerning to plenary talks from Genevieve Wojcik, Jeffrey Ross-Ibarra y Ella Vázquez Domínguez as keynotes for the event

Save the date and stay tuned for the registration openning and abstract submission deadlines!

ABOUT MEXPOPGEN

The Mexico Population Genomics Meeting (MexPopGen) was created in 2015 by two young Mexican researchers to have a venue where scientists working in Mexico could exchange ideas and present their latest research in Population Genomics, Evolutionary Biology, and similar topics. Furthermore, MexPopGen provides the scientific community with a relaxed, safe, and respectful environment where they can share their work and establish collaborative networks. Attendees at previous meetings have mainly been undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and professors working with non-model and model species to analyze the vast biodiversity present in Latin America. The community's enthusiasm made it possible to have four editions of MexPopGen in different academic institutions throughout Mexico. he last meeting at the end of 2020 was virtual due to the pandemic. Given the remote modality of the meeting, we had the highest attendance recorded for MexPopGen5 so far, approximately 150 attendees, while also having the opportunity to listen to researchers from the USA, UK, and Sweden.

The achievements from the first three editions of MexPopGen have been summarized in this news release.

(https://revistas.inah.gob.mx/index.php/diariodecampo/article/view/15610/16659).

MexPopGen6 will be carried out in a hybrid format to gather the community working on Population Genomics in Mexico and worldwide. This meeting will be held in person at the Center for Genomic Sciences (CCG) of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) in Cuernavaca, Morelos, and online.

VENUE

The event will take place at UNAM’s Center for Genomic Sciences (CCG), an internationally renowned research institution undertaking genomic projects with focus in microbiology, plants, and humans. CCG is located in the city of Cuernavaca, capital of the state of Morelos. Cuernavaca city is known as the "the city of eternal spring" due to its great weather throughout the entire year. It is located at only 1.5 hours away from Mexico City International Airport (only ~40 min from Mexico City limits), making Cuernavaca very accessible and attractive for both international and national travelers.

SOCIAL ACTIVITIES

Excursion to the Eco-Touristic Center “The Forest Of The Blue Mushrooms”.

This venue is located within the Santa María Ahuacatitlan community, and it belongs to a protected natural area which is part of the Chichinautzin biological corridor in Central Mexico.

This eco-touristic location consists of a beautiful pine and oak cloud forest that grows over volcanic stone soil. During the rainy season one can see more than 100 species of wild mushrooms, of which only approximately 10% are edible.

We will enjoy a ~1 hr tour around the eco-touristic center surroundings, exploring the forest and its mushroom diversity before going back to the afternoon academic session. Mexican food with a focus on regional dishes will be provided as lunch.

Conference get together and drinks

At the end of the first day there will be time to interact socially with food and drinks.

REGISTRATION

250 words or less in Spanish or English.

If you are considering requesting financial support to cover travel and/or accommodation expenses, remember to include your motivation letter with your uploaded PDF. It should be just one PDF including: abstract in addition to the motivation letter below.

ECONOMIC SUPPORT TO ASSIST TO CONFERENCE

Thanks to the funding granted by the SMBE, the sixth edition of MexPopGen has funding to support participants from other states in Mexico, as well as from Central and South America.

The organizing committee of MexPopGen6 aims to promote and guarantee the participation of students and researchers in the early stages of their scientific careers. Therefore, the funding granted will cover travel expenses (National and International) and accommodation during the event.

Priority will be given to applications from members of groups underrepresented in science such as women, LGBTQ+, self-identified indigenous and/or Afro-descendant people, and people with disabilities who carried out research in the field of Population Genetics, Evolutionary Biology, Paleogenomics and similar topics. Particularly if they are presenting their work at MexPopGen6. Additional criteria such as carrying out research with non-model organisms will also be considered, therefore, the list is expository and not limiting, and all applications are welcome.

If you are applying for travel expenses support you will have to include a motivation letter (half a page maximum) in addition to your abstract summary when completing your registration. This motivation letter should cover why it is important for you to assist MexPopGen6 and how assisting the meeting will benefit your training/career.

PRELIMINARY PROGRAM

The event will be held the 12-13th October 2023 at UNAM’s Center for Genomic Sciences (CCG) in Cuernavaca, México, and online as a hybrid event.

DAY 1

9:00 am - 9:10 am MexPopGen6 opening remarks - 10 minutes

9:10 am - 9:40 am Keynote - Genevieve Wojcik (Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, USA). TBA - 30 minutes. Talk in English (remote)

9:40 am - 9:45 am Short break - 5 minutes

9:45 am - 10:45 am Talk session 1 - 60 minutes (6 talks 10 min (7+3 min))

9:45 am - 9:55 am Carmina Barberena-Jonas (LANGEBIO-Cinvestav, Mexico)
“MexVar: an interactive platform to explore biomedical genetic variants across Mexico”. Talk in English
9:55 am - 10:05 am Enrique Soto-Cortés (CCG-UNAM, Mexico)
“Population and conservation genomics of the mountain stream salamander”. Talk in English
10:05 am - 10:15 am Duhyadi Oliva García (IB-UNAM, Mexico) Diversidad y estructura genética espacial dentro de una raza de maíz: Olotillo.
Talk in Spanish
10:15 am - 10:25 am Daniela G. Félix-López (CICESE-FACIMAR-UAS/U. Manchester, Mexico). “Local adaptation of highly migratory shark (Sphyrna zygaena) in the Northern Mexican Pacific”. Talk in English
10:25 am - 10:35 am Arbel Harpak (U Texas, EUA)
“A Litmus Test for Confounding in Polygenic Scores”. Talk in English
10:35 am - 10:45 am Jesús Antonio Rocamontes Morales (ECOSUR-CONAHCYT, Mexico). “Mitogenomas de dos especies de murciélagos filostómidos: Glossophaga morenoi y Glossophaga mutica”. Talk in Spanish

10:45 am - 11:00 am Coffee break - 15 minutes

11:00 am - 12:00 pm Poster session 1

12:00 pm - 12:50 pm Talk session 2 - 50 minutes (5 talks 10 min (7+3 min))

12:00 pm - 12:10 pm Gabriela Castellanos-Morales (ECOSUR-CONAHCYT, Mexico) “Las calabazas silvestres del sureste de México, Cucurbita okeechobeensis subsp. martinezii y C.lundelliana.” Talk in Spanish
12:10 pm - 12:20 pm Omar Ramírez-Flores (UABCS, Mexico)
“Identifying signals of adaptive selection in the populations of fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) in the Eastern Pacific”. Talk in English
12:20 pm - 12:30 pm Marco A. Nava-Aguilar (Amphora Health-Galatea Bio, Inc, México-EUA). “Assessment of polygenic risk score models across continental populations: a study in gout”. Talk in English
12:30 pm - 12:40 pm Eduardo Arrieta Donato (LCG-UNAM, Mexico) “Phylogenetic analysis of mammoths’ mitochondrial genomes from Mexico reveals a complex arrival of the Columbian mammoth to America”. Talk in Spanish
12:40 pm - 12:50 pm Karen Yazmin Ruiz Mondragón (IE-UNAM, Mexico). “Differences in the genomic diversity, structure and inbreeding patterns in wild and managed populations of Agave potatorum used in the production of Tobalá mezcal in Southern México”. Talk in English

12:50 pm - 4:00 pm Actividad social 3h 10 min

Paseo por el bosque de setas azules y almuerzo (Trayecto 1hr - 1 hr comida 1 hr recorrido).

4:00 pm - 4:20 pm Short break - 20 minutes

4:20 pm - 5:00 pm Talk session 3 - 40 minutes (4 talk 10 min (7+3 min))

4:20 pm - 4:30 pm José Francisco Miranda-Vidal (ECOSUR-CONAHCYT, Mexico). “Origen híbrido de la población invasora del pez diablo (Pterygoplichthys spp.) de la región Grijalva-Usumacinta, sureste de México”. Talk in Spanish
4:30 pm - 4:40 pm Zara Paulina Martínez-Sánchez (LCG-UNAM, Mexico) “Studying East Asian genetic ancestries in Peru based on migrations from the late 16th and early 17th centuries”. Talk in English
4:40 pm - 4:50 pm Agustina Murgia (INECOA, Argentina) “Influencia de factores ambientales sobre la diversidad genética de roedores sigmodontinos a lo largo de un gradiente altitudinal en los Andes Centrales”. Talk in Spanish
4:50 pm - 5:00 pm Jonás Andrés Aguirre Liguori (UAY, Mexico) “Resistencia multigénica a Xyllela fastidiosa en uvas silvestres (Vitis sps.) y sus implicaciones en un clima cambiante”. Talk in Spanish

5:00 pm - 5:15 pm Coffee break - 15 minutes

5:15 pm - 6:05 pm Talk session 4 - 50 minutes (5 talks 10 min (7+3 min))

5:15 pm - 5:25 pm Jorge A. Mares-Mayagoitia (CIBNOR, Mexico)
“Genómica de paisaje marino del abulón amarillo (Haliotis corrugata), una especie binacional de la costa noreste del Pacífico.” Talk in Spanish
5:25 pm - 5:35 pm Santiago Medina-Muñoz (LANGEBIO-Cinvestav, México) “Demographic Modeling of Admixed Latin American Populations from Whole Genomes”. Talk in English
5:35 pm - 5:45 pm Andrés Bendesky (Columbia University, USA)
“How to make a fighting champion: The domestication genetics of Siamese fighting fish and gamecocks”. Talk in English
5:45 pm - 5:55 pm Nelly Jázmin Pacheco Cruz (UNAM, Mexico)
“Population genomics of an endemic oak, Quercus macdougallii”. Talk in English
5:55 pm - 6:05 pm J Abraham Avelar Rivas (LANGEBIO-Cinvestav, México)
“Yeasts from open agave fermentation show geographic population structure and a domesticated origin”. Talk in English

6:05 pm - 11:00 pm Social events: food and drinks

DAY 2

9:00 am - 9:10 am Opening remark MexPopGen6 - 10 minutes

9:10 am - 9:40 am Keynote- Ella Vázquez (IE UNAM, Mexico). TBA- 30 minutes. Talk in English (remote)

9:40 am - 9:55 am Presentation of “Red Mexicana de Biología Evolutiva (ReMBE)” - 15 minutes. Talk in Spanish

9:55 am - 10:10 am Coffee break - 15 minutes

10:10 am - 11:10 am Poster session 2 - 60 minutes

11:10 am - 12:20 pm Two parallel events

c) Workshop on writing scientific outreach texts with Agustín Ávila Casanueva. Talk in Spanish
d) Talk session 5 - (7 talks 10 min (7+3 min)) - - 70 minutes
11:10 am - 11:20 am Gabriela Cruz-Lustre (UF de Minas Gerais, Brazil) "Biosistemática de base poblacional del complejo Habenaria parviflora (Orchidaceae), un linaje de pastizales de reciente divergencia en América del Sur." Talk in Spanish
11:20 am - 11:30 am Rodelmar Ocampo Luna (LCG-UNAM, Mexico) “Genetic Structure and natural selection within ethnic groups of Pakistan”. Talk in English
11:30 am - 11:40 am Camila Tamburrini (IDEAus-CONICET, Argentina)
“Ancient mitogenomes from Central Patagonia Argentina: the last marshmallow of the jar in human dispersal history”. Talk in English
11:40 am - 11:50 am Scarlett M. Prieto (UAM, Mexico)
“Estructura genética poblacional y filogeografía de Octopus mimus (Cephalopoda: Octopodidae) en el Pacífico oriental tropical mediante el uso de loci microsatélites.” Talk in Spanish
11:50 am - 12:00 am Alan Izarraras-Gómez (LIIGH-UNAM, Mexico)
“Inferring the impact of natural selection across the genome using the Ancestral Recombination Graph”. Talk in English
12:00 pm - 12:10 pm Valeria Paula Carreira (UBA, Argentina)
“Bases genéticas de la capacidad de vuelo y su relación con la morfología en Drosophila melanogaster”. Talk in Spanish
12:10 pm - 12:20 pm Manuel Ochoa-Sánchez (IE-UNAM, Mexico)
“Body site microbiota of Magellanic and king penguins inhabiting the Strait of Magellan follows species-specific patterns”. Talk in English

12:20 pm - 12:35 pm Coffee break - 15 minutes

12:35 pm - 1:45 pm Talk session 6 - 70 minutes (7 talks 10 min (7+3 min))

12:35 pm - 12:45 pm Alan Godínez Plascencia (INMEGEN, Mexico)
“Evaluating in silico HLA typing of low-coverage, shotgun sequencing aDNA data”. Talk in English
12:45 pm - 12:55 pm Luis Javier Madrigal Roca (U. Habana, Cuba) “Genética de poblaciones de la concha reina, Aliger gigas (Linnaeus, 1758) (Gastropoda: Strombidae) en la plataforma insular cubana”. Talk in Spanish
12:55 pm - 1:05 pm Marisol Naydu Espitia Fajardo (UdV, Colombia )
“Nuevos Y-SNP de QM3 en comunidades indígenas de Colombia”. Talk in Spanish
1:05 pm - 1:15 pm Yuyini Licona-Vera (IE-UNAM, Mexico)
“Evolución de la nectarivoría en vertebrados, con énfasis en colibríes y murciélagos filostómidos”. Talk in Spanish
1:15 pm - 1:25 pm Maried Ochoa-Zavala (ICML-UNAM, Mexico)
“Divergencia genética en los límites de la especie Coryphaena hippurus en el Pacífico Oriental Tropical”. Talk in Spanish
1:25 pm - 1:35 pm Valeria Añorve-Garibay (Brown U, EUA, LIIGH, Mexico)
“The contribution of Neanderthal and Denisovan introgression to the genetic architecture of complex traits in present-day Mexico”. Talk in English
1:35 pm - 1:45 pm Marcela Sandoval-Velasco (SNMNH, EUA)
“Human-Agave interaction through time: A paleogenomic approach”. Talk in English

1:45 pm - 2:00 pm Break - 15 minutes

2:00 pm - 2:30 pm Keynote- Jeffrey Ross-Ibarra (University of California Davis, USA). TBA - 30 minutes. Talk in English?

2:30 pm - 2:45 pm Closing event remarks - 15 minutes

We will have the pleasure of listening to plenary talks from:

Genevieve Wojcik

Jeffrey Ross-Ibarra

Ella Vázquez Domínguez

CODE OF CONDUCT

The biannual MexPopGen meeting aims to foster the exchange of scientific ideas, providing participants with the opportunity to establish contacts with a national and international Evolutionary Biology community doing research on Population Genomics. MexPopGen is committed to promoting a safe, inclusive and professional environment where it is ensured that all activities are free of discrimination, bias or harassment of any kind. The people attending the meeting must be treated with respect and consideration. Attendance (virtual or in person) at MexPopGen6 is considered an agreement to comply with this Code of Conduct. Harassment or threats of any participants will not be tolerated.

There are a set of comments or attitudes deemed unacceptable at the meeting related to gender or gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, physical appearance, religion, national or ethnic origin and may include, but are not limited to:

Exclusion: Block someone's access to resources, opportunities, or participation.

Belittling: Treating someone in a condescending manner or under the assumption of their incompetence or worthlessness. Contempt can be manifested through derogatory comments, gestures or attitudes that denote an attitude of superiority or contempt towards any group of people.

Discrimination: Make unfair or prejudiced distinctions in the treatment of someone.

Harassment: Using unwanted, abusive, offensive, humiliating or intimidating words or actions towards another person. Persisting on this behavior despite resistance, protest or rejection by the affected person. Bullying can take many forms, including verbal bullying, physical bullying, psychological bullying, sexual bullying, cyber bullying, or any form of repetitive bullying that causes emotional distress or harm.

Intimidate: Threaten or psychologically pressure another person with abusive words, actions or gestures that affect their emotional well-being and their ability to fully participate in a coexistence environment. Retaliation for reporting harassment is also unacceptable, as is reporting an incident in bad faith.

Assault: Refers to any physical or verbal action that causes harm, injury or harm to another person. This can include hitting, shoving, threatening, name calling, slandering, or any form of physical or verbal violence directed at someone.

It is important to note that the use of certain language, gestures or images in oral presentations or on posters may violate the Code of Conduct if such elements represent disrespectful criticism of individuals or groups rather than valid criticism related to their scientific work. It is critical to recognize that the sensitivity of these aspects of communication can vary, and what might be considered acceptable or fun by some people might not be to others.

The organizers of MexPopGen6 reserve the right to enforce this Code of Conduct in any manner deemed appropriate. Anyone who violates the Code of Conduct will be: (a) expelled from the meeting and (b) prohibited from attending future meetings. The establishment of this Code of Conduct aims to maintain the high quality of scientific discourse that any participant expects from our meetings.

Everyone has the option of communicating directly, in person or by email, with any member of the organizing committee to clarify concerns or present inconveniences experienced during the event, in order to find an immediate solution. The complaint can be anonymous, and will be followed up with the relevant authorities and media.