Research Interests
My research focuses on the area of evolutionary ecology and development. I am particularly interested in the role of developmental mechanisms in sexual selection and the evolution of reproductive strategies in insects. My training is in cell and developmental biology and I apply these tools to evolutionary questions. Thus my lab uses a variety of approaches including behavioral observations, cell biology and microscopy, and quantitative genetics to investigate these questions. Much of my past research has focused on two areas, evolution of male reproductive strategies in different social contexts and how early reproductive experiences shape lifetime reproductive success in females in a cockroach, Nauphoeta cinerea.
My current research is working to understand the function of the maintenance methyltransferase, DNMT1 in insects. Our current experiments focus on the milkweed bug, Oncopeltus fasciatus and the silverleaf whitefly, Bemisia tabaci. Work from our lab has demonstrated that Dnmt1 expression is essential for gametogenesis in both male and female Oncopeltus, but that the reduction in methylation has no effect on somatic function. We are currently exploring the use of RNAi to reduce Dnmt1 expression in biocontrol strategies for whiteflies.
Selected Publications
*Amukamara, A. U., *J. T. Washington, *Z. Sanchez, E. C. McKinney, A. J. Moore, R. J. Schmitz, & P. J. Moore. 2020. More than DNA methylations: does pleiotropy drive the complex pattern of evolution of Dnmt1? Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 8.
Bewick, A. J., *Z. Sanchez, E. C. Mckinney, A. J. Moore, P. J. Moore, & R. J. Schmitz. 2019. Dnmt1 is essential for egg production and embryo viability in the large milkweed bug, Oncopeltus fasciatus. Epigenetics & Chromatin 12: 6.
†Green, K. C., P. J. Moore, & A. A. Sial. 2019. Impact of heat stress on development and fertility of Drosophila suzukii Matsumura (Diptera: Drosophilidae). J. Insect Physiology 114: 45-52.
†Benowitz, K. M., *M. E. Sparks, E. C. McKinney, P. J. Moore, and A. J. Moore. 2018. Variation in mandible development and its relationship to dependence on parents across burying beetles. Ecology & Evolution 8: 12832-12840.
Panfilio, K. A., and 80 co-authors including P. J. Moore. 2018. The milkweed bug genome reveals molecular evolutionary trends and feeding ecology diversification in the Hemiptera. Genome Biology 20: 64.
†Duxbury, A., *B. Weathersby, *Z. Sanchez, and P. J. Moore. 2018. A study of the transit amplification divisions during spermatogenesis in Oncopeltus fasciatus to assess plasticity in sperm numbers or sperm viability under different diets. Ecology and Evolution 8: 10460-10469.
Moore, P. J. 2017. Giant Pandas, Hormones, and the Evolution of a Lazy Bear; a flipped classroom case study. National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science, University of Buffalo, State University of New York; peer-reviewed instructional resource.
†A. Attisano, †J. T. Murphy, A. Vickers and P. J. Moore. 2015. A simple flight mill for the study of tethered flight in insects. Journal of Visualized Experiments, JoVE 106: 53377.
†D. Newcombe, P. J. Moore and A. J. Moore. 2015. The role of maternal effects in adaptation to different diets. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 114: 202-211.
†S. L. Jaramillo, *E. Mehlferber and P. J. Moore. 2014. Life history trade-offs under different larval diets in Drosophila suzukii (Diptera: Drosophilidae). Physiological Entomology 40: 2-9.
P. J. Moore. 2014. Reproductive physiology and behaviour. In: The Evolution of Insect Mating Systems (Thornhill and Alcock at 30). D. Shuker and L. Simmons (eds.), Oxford University Press, Oxford.
For complete list, please see Patricia Moore at Google Scholar