Dr Anita Malhotra
Reader in Zoology (Molecular Ecology)
Affiliations
Postal address
Contact info
My research interests focus on the role of natural selection in population adaptation and divergence, to which I apply a wide range of methods including multivariate morphometrics, statistical hypothesis-testing, innovative field experiments and genome analysis. I have two main areas of research on disparate organisms in different geographical regions (Anolis lizards in the Caribbean and Asian pit vipers), which are unified by being essentially focussed on the interface between evolution and ecology, and with an emphasis on the integration of genetic and phenetic data. More recently, my research has moved into the field of ecological and evolutionary genomics to evaluate the evolution of genes affecting complex traits directly and relies on the availability of a well-supported and complete organismal phylogeny of Asian pitvipers generated by my students and myself. Drawing on numerous collaborations to bring together disparate strands of organismal biology and ecology, evolutionary theory, comparative genomics, bioinformatics and proteomics, I aim to develop an integrated picture of the evolution of snake venom components.
Another strand to this research on venomous snakes involves snakebite mitigation, and I am currently involved in several projects in India, dubbed the "snakebite capital of the world", where c. 50,000 people die from snakebite every year and many more suffer permanent disability. Together with partners in India, our work ranges from mapping the distribution and genetic and venom variation present in venomous species across the country, to undertaking rescuer training and education and awareness programs. We are particularly focussing on the Himalayan and northeastern region, which belong to biodiversity "hotspots" but are relatively understudied. The venomous species in these regions are diferent to the rest of the country, and are not covered by the currently available polyvalent antivenom.
I am also involved in research on the genetic health of honeybees and other pollinators, together with colleague Dr Paul Cross. We are part of the recently formed research network on British dark bee conservation that includes researchers from Plymouth University, National University of Ireland (Galway), and the University of Edinburgh.
- 2009
- Published
Comments on the systematic status of specimens belonging to the genus Viridovipera (Serpentes: Viperidae: Crotalinae) from Sichuan and Yunnan provinces of southwestern China, with a redescription of V. yunnanensis.
Guo, P., Malhotra, A., Thorpe, R. S., Creer, S. & Pook, C. E., 1 Jul 2009, In: Herpetological Journal. 19, 3, p. 151-162Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Systematics of the Protobothrops jerdonii complex (Serpentes, Viperidae, Crotalinae) inferred from morphometric data and molecular phylogeny.
Guo, P., Malhotra, A., Li, C., Creer, S., Pook, P. E. & Wen, T., 1 Jul 2009, In: Herpetological Journal. 19, 2, p. 85-96Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- 2008
- Published
Mitochondrial DNA analysis reveals a new member of the Asian pitviper genus Viridovipera (Serpentes: Viperidae: Crotalinae).
Dawson, K., Malhotra, A., Thorpe, R. S., Guo, P., Mrinalini, N. V. & Ziegler, T., 1 Oct 2008, In: Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 49, 1, p. 356-361Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Adaptive radiation in Lesser Antillean lizards: molecular phylogenetics and species recognition in the Lesser Antillean dwarf gecko complex, Sphaerodactylus fantasticus.
Thorpe, R. S., Jones, A. G., Malhotra, A. & Surget-Groba, Y., 1 Mar 2008, In: Molecular Ecology. 17, 6, p. 1489-1504Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Weak founder effect signal in a recent introduction of Caribbean Anolis
Eales, J. F., Thorpe, R. & Malhotra, A., 5 Feb 2008, In: Molecular Ecology. 17, 6, p. 1416-1426Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- 2006
- Published
Evidence for a Mullerian mimetic radiation in Asian pitvipers
Sanders, K. L., Malhotra, A. & Thorpe, R., 7 May 2006, In: Proceedings of The Royal Society B - Biological Sciences. 273, 1590, p. 1135-1141Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Combining molecular, morphological and ecological data to infer species boundaries in a cryptic tropical pitviper.
Sanders, K. L., Malhotra, A. & Thorpe, R. S., 1 Mar 2006, In: Biological Journal of the Linnean Society. 87, 3, p. 343-364Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Optimal intron analyses in the Trimeresurus radiation of Asian pitvipers.
Creer, S., Pook, C. E., Malhotra, A. & Thorpe, R. S., 1 Feb 2006, In: Systematic Biology. 55, 1, p. 57-72Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- 2005
- Published
Targeting optimal introns for phylogenetic analyses in non-model taxa: experimental results in Asian pitvipers.
Creer, S., Malhotra, A., Thorpe, R. S. & Pook, C. E., 1 Aug 2005, In: Cladistics. 21, 4, p. 390-395Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
The dynamics of genetic and morphological variation on volcanic islands
Gubitz, T., Thorpe, R. & Malhotra, A., 7 Apr 2005, In: Proceedings of The Royal Society B - Biological Sciences. 272, 1564, p. 751-757Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review