About
Biologist Joel Levine is currently researching the genetic basis of social interactions in the Drosophila melanogaster fly species.
Most of his efforts in the laboratory are focused on synchrony, through the investigation of how biological clocks within the brain and other tissues regulate social interactions; recognition and how individuals can discriminate members of their group from non-members and how chemosensory transduction guides social behaviours; pheromonal communication and its influence on social interactions; and interactive phenotypes, or how genetic traits, both inherited and mutated, may influence patterns of social interaction.
Awards
- Canada Research Chair: Mechanisms and Features of Social Behaviour, 2015
Relevant Publications
Billeter, J.C. et al. “Specialized cells tag sexual and species identity in Drosophila melanogaster.” Nature 461, no. 7266 (2009): 987–92.