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Events

Upcoming events hosted by or involving Genetics Otago will be listed here. Please check back regularly for updates. A calendar of events that may be of interest to our members can be found at the bottom of this page and in the sidebar of other pages on this site, please note that this includes events hosted outside of Genetics Otago.

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VISG Seminar Series


The Virtual Institute of Statistical Genetics (VISG) Hub is a key part of Genetics Otago, providing a platform for researchers to collaborate and exchange knowledge and expertise in statistical genetics. The VISG Hub hosts seminars, workshops, and other events to promote statistical genetics research and foster collaboration between researchers.

We’re excited to announce our monthly genetics research seminars, aimed at connecting researchers in the field. The seminars will commence in May 2023 and will be hosted by GO’s Virtual Institute of Statistical Genetics (VISG) Hub along with the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at the University of Otago. These seminars will be available in person or via Zoom, and all are welcome.

Date: 3rd Thursday of the month
Time: 11:00 am – 12:00 pm

Schedule

  • May: Associate Professor Phil Wilcox, University of Otago
  • June: Professor Mik Black, University of Otago
  • July: Dr Ludovic Dutoit, University of Otago – please note that this seminar will be held on the 27th of July rather than the 20th due to ICG.
  • August: Dr Setegn Alemu, AgResearch
  • September: Ee Cheng Oi, Abacus Bio
  • October: Franziska Weik, Beef + Lamb NZ Genetics – Cancelled
  • November: Dr Jane Symonds and Dr Megan Scholtens, Cawthron – please note that this seminar will be held on the 17th of November rather than the 16th due to the Genetics Otago Annual Symposium.

Zoom Details
If you would like the Zoom details for this event, please contact us.

Next Seminar

The next seminar will be held on Friday the 17th of November, 11 am in Biochemistry Seminar Room G13 and will be given by Dr Jane Symonds and Dr Megan Scholtens, Cawthron Institute.

Title: Environmental resilience in aquatic species

Abstract: The New Zealand aquaculture sector faces growing vulnerability due to climate change, with marine heatwaves already causing elevated summer mortality rates in Greenshell mussels and king (Chinook) salmon. To tackle these challenges, selective breeding and genomic selection offer long-term solutions. Temperature challenge models, implemented in controlled tank environments, have been developed for both species. So far, this approach has been applied successfully to test more than 230 pedigree king salmon families and 21 Greenshell mussel families. Heritabilities for time to death at elevated temperature were high (0.34 to 0.48) suggesting that selection for improved thermotolerance is possible.

Megan Scholtens

Megan is a geneticist within the Aquaculture Group at Cawthron and is involved in a number of research projects across the ‘Shellfish Aquaculture’ and ‘Finfish Climate Change Adaptation’ platforms. Megan specialises in the application of genetic and genomic methodologies to enhance the understanding of how genes affect traits such as growth, development, behaviour, reproduction and immunity to improve the efficiency, resilience and survivability of aquatic species. In addition, Megan contributes to research activities of the Aquaculture team by integrating the experimental biology with commercial production to help provide solutions for clients and deliver tangible outcomes for the aquaculture industry.

Jane Symonds

Jane is a Senior Scientist and Team Leader in the Aquaculture Group at Cawthron. Jane’s focus is the application of research to enhance sustainable commercial production with a specific interest in king salmon farming and selective breeding. She has over 30 years of experience in this field. As a science programme leader she oversees a wide range of multi-disciplinary collaborative projects with internal and external partners, including salmon feed efficiency, genomics, behaviour, health, physiology, microbiomics, climate change adaptation, data science and developing trials to selectively breed resilient and efficient king salmon. Implementation of research for sustainable and profitable aquaculture development is a key driver for Jane. Dr Symonds is also a Senior Adjunct Researcher at the University of Tasmania and helps supervise multiple post-graduate students.

If you have any questions about this seminar series please contact us.

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Calendar of Events

The below is a calendar of events hosted by GO as well as events hosted by others that may be of interest to our members. If you have an event you would like us to include please contact us here.


Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
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Pathology Department Seminar – Prof. Greg Anderson 1:00 pm
Pathology Department Seminar – Prof. Greg Anderson @ D'Ath Lecture Theatre
Feb 4 @ 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
athology Department Seminar Series for 2022 begins this Friday 4th February. Our speaker will be Prof. Greg Anderson from the Centre for Neuroendocrinology & Department of Anatomy (University of Otago) who will present a seminar entitled “A neuronal circuit for[...]
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11
Pathology Department Seminar – Karen Reader 1:00 pm
Pathology Department Seminar – Karen Reader @ D'Ath Lecture Theatre
Feb 11 @ 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Our Pathology Department Seminar Series for 2022 continues as a Research Forum this Friday 11th February. The Forum will be hosted by Dr. Karen Reader- Operations Manager, Otago Micro and Nanoscale Imaging (OMNI). Karen will be presenting on “Tools for your[...]
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14
Biostatistic Centre: Introductory Biostatistics for Health Researchers 9:00 am
Biostatistic Centre: Introductory Biostatistics for Health Researchers @ Room G33, AdamsBuilding
Feb 14 @ 9:00 am – Feb 15 @ 4:30 pm
Biostatistic Centre: Introductory Biostatistics for Health Researchers @ Room G33, AdamsBuilding
This two-day course is a fun introduction to the appropriate application and interpretation of biostatistical concepts for people working in clinical research with no formal statistical training. The focus will not be on carrying out analyses, but rather on understanding[...]
15
16
Biostatistic Centre: Stata Software Workshop 9:00 am
Biostatistic Centre: Stata Software Workshop @ Hercus CAL Lab, Dunedin south campus
Feb 16 @ 9:00 am – 4:30 pm
Biostatistic Centre: Stata Software Workshop @ Hercus CAL Lab, Dunedin south campus
This is a hands-on workshop, based in a computer lab, aimed at researchers and research students who need to use statistical software for their research. The Biostatistics Centre recommends Stata as an ideal software package for many health sciences researchers.[...]
17
Biostatistics Centre: Regression Modelling 9:00 am
Biostatistics Centre: Regression Modelling @ Room G33, Adams Building,
Feb 17 @ 9:00 am – Feb 18 @ 4:30 pm
Biostatistics Centre: Regression Modelling @ Room G33, Adams Building,
This 2-day course provides an introduction to regression modelling approaches. The scope of the course runs from basic principles of regression methods, deciphering the output of statistical analyses, and the practicalities of running these various regression methods. As part of[...]
18
Pathology Department Seminar: Prof. Alex McLellan 1:00 pm
Pathology Department Seminar: Prof. Alex McLellan @ D'Ath Lecture Theatre
Feb 18 @ 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Prof. Alex McLellan from the Department of Microbiology and Immunology (University of Otago) will present a seminar entitled “Genetically engineered lymphocytes for the treatment of solid cancers”  at our Pathology Department Seminar Series on Friday 18th February 2022. The seminar[...]
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21
Biostatistics Centre: Longitudinal Modelling 9:00 am
Biostatistics Centre: Longitudinal Modelling @ Room G33, Adams Building,
Feb 21 @ 9:00 am – Feb 22 @ 4:30 pm
Biostatistics Centre: Longitudinal Modelling @ Room G33, Adams Building,
Longitudinal studies are common in health-related areas. These studies require appropriate statistical analyses that account for the correlated nature of the data. This two-day course provides an introduction to a range of common approaches for modelling longitudinal and correlated data.[...]
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