Kristen Behrens

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

4840 S. State Rd.
Ann Arbor, MI 48108-9719

[email protected]

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Kristen Behrens is a postdoctoral research fellow working with CIGLR and the Molecular Genetics Lab lead by Amanda Ackiss at the USGS Great Lakes Science Center. Her work focuses on addressing questions regarding speciation and sex determination in fishes using genomics. With CIGLR her main projects are to discover the sex determination system in Great Lakes cisco fishes and characterize species relationships among these fish.
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Education:
    • Ph.D. in Biological Sciences, University of Maryland, 2025
    • M.Sc. in Bioinformatics, Juniata College, 2020
    • B.Sc. in Biology, Juniata College, 2018 
Research Interest/Area of Expertise:
    • Speciation and hybridization
    • Sex chromosome evolution
    • Fisheries genomics
    • Evolutionary genomics

Publications

Behrens K.A., Zao, Z. Kidd, M.R., Maulwa, A., Cnaani, A., Koblmuller, S. Kocher, T.D. (2025) Before the East African radiation: sex chromosome systems in basal haplotilapiine cichlids. Genome Biology and Evolution. evaf191, (DOI:10.1093/gbe/evaf191). 

Behrens, K.A., Jailwala, S. Clark, F.E., Meyer, A.C., Kumar, N.M., Konigs, A.F., Roberts, R.B., Streelman, J.T., McGrath, P.T., Kocher, T.D. (2025). A chromosome inversion creates a supergene for sex and color in Lake Malawi cichlids. Molecular Ecology. 34(20): e17821. (DOI:10.1111/mec.17821). [Altmetric Score]

Behrens, K.A., Danley, A.H., Jailwala, S., Kocher, T.D. (2025). Genome sequencing and identification of candidate variants for a red/black color polymorphism in tilapia (Oreochromis). Aquaculture. 603:74241. (DOI:10.1016/j.aquaculture.2025.742411). [Altmetric Score]

Kocher, T.D., Meisel, R.P., Gamble, T., Behrens, K.A., Gammerdinger, W.J. (2024). Yes, polygenic sex determination is a thing! Trends in Genetics. (DOI:10.1016/j.tig.2024.10.003). [Altmetric Score]

Behrens, K. A., Marbach-Ad, G., & Kocher, T.D. (2024). AI in the genetics classroom: a useful tool but not a replacement for creative writing. Journal for Science Education and Technology. (DOI:10.1007/s10956-024-10160-6). [Altmetric Score]

Behrens, K. A., Koblmüller, S., & Kocher, T. D. (2024). Genome assemblies for Chromidotilapia guntheri (Teleostei: Cichlidae) identify a novel candidate gene for vertebrate sex determination, RIN3. Frontiers in Genetics. 15. (DOI:10.3389/fgene.2024.1447628).

Li, C., Bowers, J.M., Alexander, T.A., Behrens, K.A., Jackson, P., Amini, C.J., Juntti, S.A. (2024). A pheromone receptor in cichlid fish mediates attraction to females but inhibits male parental care. Current Biology. 34(17), P3866-3880. (DOI:10.1016/j.cub.2024.07.029). [Altmetric Score]

Behrens, K. A., Koblmüller, S., & Kocher, T. D. (2024). Diversity of sex chromosomes in vertebrates: six novel sex chromosomes in basal haplochromines (Teleostei: Cichlidae). Genome Biology and Evolution, 16(7), evae152. (DOI:10.1093/gbe/evae152).

Behrens, K.A., Zimmermann, H., Blažek, R., Koblmuller S., Kocher, T.D.. Turnover of sex chromosomes in the Lake Tanganyika cichlid tribe Tropheini (Teleostei: Cichlidae). Sci Rep 14, 2471 (2024). (DOI:10.1038/s41598-024-53021-3). [Altmetric Score]

Nandamuri, S. P., Schulte, J. E., Yourick, M. R., Sandkam, B. A., Behrens, K. A., Schreiner, M. M., Dayanim, M., Sweatt, G., Conte, M. A., Juntti, S. A., & Carleton, K. L. (2022). A second locus contributing to the differential expression of the blue sensitive opsin SWS2A in Lake Malawi cichlids. Hydrobiologia, 1–23. (DOI:10.1007/s10750-022-05027-z). [Altmetric Score]

Behrens, K. A., Koblmüller, S., & Kocher, T. D. (2022). Sex chromosomes in the tribe Cyprichromini (Teleostei: Cichlidae) of Lake Tanganyika. Scientific Reports, 12(1), 17998. (DOI:10.1038/s41598-022-23017-y). [Altmetric Score]

Kocher, T. D., Behrens, K. A., Conte, M. A., Aibara, M., Mrosso, H., Green, E., Kidd, M. R., Nikaido, M., & Koblmüller, S. (2022). New Sex Chromosomes in Lake Victoria Cichlid Fishes (Cichlidae: Haplochromini). Genes, 13(5), 804. (DOI:10.3390/genes13050804). [Altmetric Score]

Behrens, K. A., Girasek, Q. L., Sickler, A., Hyde, J., & Buonaccorsi, V. P. (2021). Regions of genetic divergence in depth-separated Sebastes rockfish species pairs: Depth as a potential driver of speciation. Molecular ecology, 30(17), 4259–4275. (DOI:10.1111/mec.16046). [Altmetric Score]

Presentations

“AI in the genetics classroom: a useful tool but not a replacement for creative writing” (Poster) Innovations in Teaching and Learning, College Park, MD. May 10, 2024

“Turnover of sex chromosomes in the Tropheini Tribe of Lake Tanganyika cichlids” (Talk) Evolution, Albuquerque, NM. June 24, 2023

“Sex chromosomes in the tribe Cyprichromini (Teleostei: Cichlidae) of Lake Tanganyika” (Poster). Evolution, Cleveland, OH. June 25, 2022

“Regions of genetic divergence in depth-separated Sebastes species pairs: Depth as a potential driver of speciation.” (Poster), American Fisheries Society Spring Technical Meeting  (Virtual). Feb. 11, 2021