Beril Yıldız

Profile

I am interested in addressing ecological and evolutionary questions, focusing on exploring underlying mechanisms through (epi)genomics.
My PhD research is about understanding deleterious genetic variation in pinnipeds. Pinnipeds show large differences in their demographic histories, largely influenced by extensive commercial sealing activities. Species like the northern elephant seal were driven to the brink of extinction, while others like the grey seal did not experience a severe impact due to limited human interaction.
This variability in demographic histories provides an ideal opportunity to investigate how such contrasting histories have shaped landscapes of deleterious genetic variation. We expect these differences to be reflected in their mutation load, which represents the burden of deleterious variants within a species. Our goal is to uncover the fitness consequences of these deleterious variants within a comparative framework.

Previous Research and Other Interests

During my MSc, I focused on population genomics of wild boars, exploring the relationship between inbreeding and demographic history. Later, I studied the role of epigenetic mechanisms in population differentiation among great tit populations in the Netherlands.
Following my MSc, I joined the EpiBrain project as a bioinformatician. In this role, I analysed cell type- and brain region-specific gene expression, chromatin accessibility and DNA methylation to investigate their link to variation in cognitive flexibility. After this project, I studied how worker ants switch tasks according to the demands of the colony, particularly exploring the role of epigenetic regulation of reversible task allocation.
When the weather is nice, you can find me outdoors, soaking up the sun. I enjoy being creative, traveling, spending time in nature, and dancing.

Supervisors

Prof. Dr. Joe Hoffman, University of Bielefeld

Curriculum Vitae
  • 2024–Present: PhD student at the Evolutionary Population Genetics Department at Bielefeld University
  • 2023: Researcher at the Evolutionary Population Genetics Department at Bielefeld University
  • 2022–2023: Research Associate at the Behavioural Ecology and Social Evolution group in the Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
  • 2021–2022: Bioinformatician at the Department of Animal Ecology at the Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW)
  • 2020: Research Assistant at the Department of Animal Ecology at the Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW)
  • 2017–2019: MSc Animal Sciences (Wageningen University & Research, Specialisation Genetics & Biodiversity) 
  • 2012–2016: BSc Genetics and Bioengineering (Istanbul Bilgi University)
Publications

Yıldız, B., Megens, H.-J., Hvilsom, C., & Bosse, M. (2022) Genomic consequences of a century of inbreeding and isolation in the Danish wild boar population. Evolutionary Applications, 15, 954-966. doi:10.1111/eva.13385

Contact Details

Department of Evolutionary Population Genetics
Center for Biotechnology (CeBiTec)
Faculty of Biology
Bielefeld University
33615 Bielefeld
Germany

e-mail: beril.yildiz[at]uni-bielefeld.de
LinkedIn: Beril Yıldız