The 39th International Society for Animal Genetics Conference (2023) was held in Cape Town, South Africa from 2-7 July 2023. The conference was an excellent opportunity bringing together outstanding scientists, policymakers, professionals, and students from interdisciplinary animal genetics fields to share the latest developments, meet old friends and form new partnerships.
I had a remarkable experience and gained valuable exposure by participating in and presenting my manuscript at such an esteemed forum where I interacted with numerous research professionals and Ph.D. students. The title of my presentation was "Introgressive hybridization levels of Tilapiines species in the Lake Victoria basin, Kenya, inferred from microsatellite and mitochondrial DNA genotyping based on next-generation sequencing."
During the event, I received constructive feedback from fellow presenters, particularly regarding the implications of my study on Tilapia species conservation. The motivation behind my manuscript was the realization that the genetic integrity of Tilapiines has been compromised due to factors such as competition, predation, hybridization, and introgression. Therefore, it was crucial to comprehensively understand the levels of hybridization using genetic tools such as microsatellite and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis based on next-generation sequencing.
The results of the study indicated relatively low levels of hybridization from Oreochromis niloticus into other Oreochromis species. These findings underscore the importance of implementing conservation measures for these fish species.
Gerald Kwikiriza has been a Ph.D. candidate at the Institute for Integrative Nature Conservation Research, Department of Integrative Biology and Biodiversity Research (DIB) at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU) since 2022. Prior he worked as a research assistant at the Department of Zoology, Entomology & Fisheries Sciences, Makerere University, Uganda. Gerald holds an International Joint Degree in Masters of Limnology and Wetland Management, which he obtained from the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (Austria), Egerton University (Kenya), and IHE Institute for Water Education, Delft (The Netherlands).