Topic: Genomic prediction of adaptation: statistical developments and application to the crop pest Drosophila suzukii.
Dates: 1 October 2026 – 31 January 2027
CBGP managers: S. Boitard & M. Gautier
Funding: PEPER AgroStat

Lilou decided to terminate her PhD contract in order to change career. Before devoting herself fully to this new project, she will remain at the CBGP on a fixed-term contract until January 2027 to finalise part of her PhD research, which focuses on the adaptation of D. Suzukii to its host plant.

Indeed, previous research carried out at the CBGP has shown that this species exhibits a pattern of local adaptation to its host plant; in other words, flies originating from a particular fruit have a higher selective value on that fruit than flies from alternative fruits. By investigating associations between the genetic diversity of the flies and their fruit of origin, Lilou’s research aims to determine whether there is a genetic basis for this adaptation, and whether this basis is strong enough to predict a fly’s fruit of origin based on its genetic diversity.