Webinar Information

Please use the following Zoom link and meeting information to log-in to the lecture sessions. The lecture sessions will also be recorded and posted online at a later time following the workshop.

Coral Genetics Workshop / Taller Genética Zoom Link
Meeting ID: 879 0184 9006
Passcode: genetica
(works for all lecture sessions)


Course Location

The in-person course will be hosted at the University of Costa Rica (UCR) Rodrigo Facio campus in San José, Costa Rica. The hands-on laboratory training sessions will be held in the Centro de Investigación en Ciencias del Mar y Limnología (CIMAR) molecular laboratories.


Course Schedule

Date Time Topic Location
7/18/22 9:00 - 10:00 Lecture I. Workshop Introduction UCR Auditiorium
7/18/22 10:00 - 11:00 Lecture II. Costa Rica coral restoration UCR Auditiorium
7/18/22 11:00 - 12:00 Lecture III. Fundamentals of genetics and evolution, introduction to molecular methods in genetics UCR Auditiorium
7/18/22 1:00 - 3:30 Lab 1. DNA extraction training - Qiagen DNeasy kits CIMAR Laboratory
7/18/22 3:30 - 5:00 Lab 2. DNA concentration measurement and quality check training CIMAR Laboratory
7/19/22 9:00 - 10:30 Lecture IV. Introduction to conservation genetics and species delimitation UCR Auditorium
7/19/22 10:30 - 12:00 Lab 3. PCR training - Histone 3 CIMAR Laboratory
7/19/22 1:00 - 4:00 Lab 4. Gel electrophoresis training CIMAR Laboratory
7/20/22 9:00 - 10:00 Lecture V. Coral species diversity in the eastern tropical Pacific - Dr. David Paz-Garcia UCR Auditorium
7/20/22 10:00 - 11:00 Lecture VI. Coral-algae symbiosis in the eastern tropical Pacific - Dr. Ana Palacio-Castro UCR Auditorium
7/20/22 11:00 - 12:00 Lab 5. PCR training - mtORF UCR Auditorium
7/20/22 1:00 - 2:00 Lab 6. PCR training - HSP70A, HSP70B CIMAR Laboratory
7/20/22 2:00 - 5:00 Lab 7. Gel electrophoresis of mtORF and HSP70 amplicons CIMAR Laboratory
7/21/22 9:00 - 10:30 Lecture VIII. Conservation genetics for coral restoration, coral biodiversity research at the Smithsonian - Viviane Ali UCR Auditorium
7/21/22 10:30 - 12:00 Lecture IX. Genomics and high-throughput sequencing in conservation biology, plan for workshop Part II UCR Auditorium
7/21/22 1:00 - 3:00 Lab 8. PCR amplicon clean-up and preparation for sequencing CIMAR Laboratory
7/21/22 3:00 - 5:00 Reflections and group discussion UCR Auditorium

Course Materials

Lecture Sessions

Lecture I. Introduction to the course - Slide Links: ES, EN

  • Instructors
  • Participants
  • Course Goals

Lecture II. Costa Rica coral restoration - Slide Links will be posted before the course: ES, EN

Lecture III. Fundamentals of genetics and evolution - Slide Links: ES, EN

  • DNA structure and chromosomal organization
  • Mendelian inheritance
  • Evolution by natural selection
  • Molecular methods in genetics
    • DNA extraction
    • Polymerase chain reaction
    • Gel electrophoresis
    • Restriction fragment length polymorphism
    • Sequencing

Lecture IV. Introduction to conservation genetics - Slide Links: ES, EN

  • Extinction
  • Genetic diversity
  • Importance of species delimitation and taxonomy
  • Measuring genetic diversity - mtDNA, microsatellites, SNPs, whole genomes

Lecture V. Eastern Pacific coral diversity

Lecture VI. Coral-algae symbiosis in the eastern tropical Pacific - Slide Links: ES

Lecture VII. Coral biodiversity research at the Smithsonian - Slide Links: ES, EN

  • Anthozoan evolution, coral diversity and morphology-based taxonomy
  • Coral extinctions and current trajectories

Lecture VIII. Conservation genetics for coral restoration - Slide Links will be updated: ES, EN

Lecture IX. Genomics in conservation biology - Slide Links will be updated: ES, EN

Laboratory Hands-On Sessions

Laboratory safety and techniques

Lab 1. DNA extraction

  • DNA extraction will be performed with the Qiagen DNeasy PowerSoil Pro Kit
  • Protocol Links: ES, EN

Lab 2. DNA concentration, purity and quality check

  • DNA concentration and purity will be assessed using a NanoDrop 2000c spectrophotometer
  • Protocol Links: ES, EN

Labs 3,5,6. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR)

  • Barcoding PCR will be performed for the Pocillopora mtORF, histone 3, and HSP70 loci
  • Protocol Links: ES, EN

Lab 4. Gel electrophoresis

  • Gel electrophoresis will be completed to visualize the success of DNA extraction and PCR techniques
  • Protocol Links: ES, EN

Lab 7. PCR cleanup and Sanger sequencing preparation

  • Protocol Links: ES, EN

Lab 8. Restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) assays

  • Protocol Links will be posted in the future: ES, EN

Note that some protocols may be updated prior to the workshop laboratory sessions