Clement Kent

York University, Toronto

Department of Biology

Research Interests:

I study complex systems in biology. My primary research is in the area of the genetics of social behaviors. I work with high-throughput sequencing data, gene arrays, mass spectrometry and gas chromatography data to find links between complex whole-organism phenotypes such as behaviors and life-history parameters, and the underlying genetic and biochemical pathways that help produce these phenotypes. I use these top-to-bottom linkages to test theories about the evolution of behaviors, social systems, and life histories.

Publications:

• Kent C, Daskalchuk T, Cook L, Sokolowski MB, and Greenspan RJ (2009) The Drosophila foraging gene mediates adult plasticity and gene-environment interactions in behaviour, metabolites and gene expression in response to food deprivation. PloS Genetics. Vol 5 issue 8: e1000609 journal pdf

• Kent C, Azanchi R, Smith B, Formosa A and Levine JD (2008) Social Context Influences Chemical Communication in D. melanogaster Males. Current Biology. 18: 1384-1389 journal pdf

• Krupp JJ*, Kent C*, Billeter JC, Azanchi R, So AK, Schonfeld JA, Smith BP, Lucas C and Levine JD (2008) Social Experience Modifies Pheromone Expression and Mating Behavior in Male Drosophila melanogaster. Current Biology. 18: 1373-1383  *- joint first authors journal pdf

Note: the two papers above were featured on the cover of Current Biology and have been discussed in the dispatches and news articles below:

• Ritchie, M.G. Behavioural Genetics: The Social Fly. Current Biology 18: R862-R864 (2008).

• Ray, L.B. Social Signaling. Sci. Signal. 1, ec337- (2008).

• Pennisi, E. Fruit Flies Feel Peer Pressure. ScienceNow, 11-Sep-2008

•  Kent C, Azanchi R, Smith B, Chu A and Levine J (2007) A Model-Based Analysis of Chemical and Temporal Patterns of Cuticular Hydrocarbons in Male Drosophila melanogaster. PLoS ONE. 2: e962 journal pdf

•  Dawson-Scully K, Armstrong GA, Kent C, Robertson RM and Sokolowski MB (2007) Natural Variation in the Thermotolerance of Neural Function and Behavior due to a cGMP-Dependent Protein Kinase. PLoS ONE. 2: e773 journal pdf

 Note: from 1984-2004 I worked in computer software – see Other Publications for work during this period.

•  Sokolowski MB, Bauer SJ, Waiping V, Rodriguez L, Wong JL and Kent C (1986) Ecological Genetics and Behavior of Drosophila melanogaster Larvae in Nature. Animal Behaviour. 34: 403-408 pdf

• Wong JL, Sokolowski MB and Kent C (1985) Prepupation behavior in Drosophila: embedding. Behavior Genetics. 15: 155-164 pdf

•  Sokolowski MB, Kent C and Wong J (1984) Drosophila larval foraging behaviour: I Developmental Stages. Animal Behaviour. 32: 645-651 pdf

•  Kent C and Wong J (1982) An index of littoral zone complexity and its measurement. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. 39: 847-853 pdf

Patents: 

• Dawson-Scully K, Armstrong GAB, Kent C, Robertson RM., Sokolowski MB (2005). Thermoprotective compositions of PKG pathway inhibitors and method of use thereof. United States Patent Office. USPTO Patent 20070184044, (awarded 2007)

 Invited Seminars:

•  Kent C. (2009) Genotype by Environment interactions: understanding local adaptation. Departmental Seminar Series, Department of Biology, Lakehead University

• Kent C. (2008) Genotype by Environment interactions of adult Drosophila melanogaster: experimental tests of evolutionary theory. Departmental Seminar Series, Department of Biology, University of Toronto Mississauga

• Kent C, Krupp JJ, Billeter JC, Smith B, Azanchi R, Formosa A and Levine JD (2008) Social context interacts with genes and the physical environment to influence mating in D. melanogaster. Gordon Research Conference Genes and Behavior. Barga, Italy.

•  Kent C, Daskalchuk T, Cook L, Sokolowski MB and Greenspan RJ (2006) Pervasive gene by environment interactions in behaviour, metabolism, and gene transcription due a natural single locus polymorphism in Drosophila melanogaster. Gordon Research Conference Genes and Behavior. Ventura, CA.

Other Publications:

• Kent, C. (2009). "Clement Kent." Current Biology 19(2): R54-R55. – Questions and Answers profile. journal pdf

•  Kent C, Guyot C, Blake I and Murthy VK (2004) Draft proposal for tweakable narrow-block encryption. IEEE Security in Storage Working Group.   Journal pdf

  This proposal defined a means of securely encrypting computer disk storage and was adopted as a draft standard (2004-2006) and implemented in several disk encryption systems (see Wikipedia article).

•   Blake I,Guyot C, Kent C, and Murthy VK (2003) Encryption Of Stored Data In Networks: Analysis of a tweaked block cipher. IEEE Security in Storage Working Group.  Online pdf

•  Kent, C. (1999) Pope Gregory on Mars: on February 31, 2000. Assoc. for Comput. Mach. SIGAPL APL Quote Quad. 29: 16-20  online pdf

•  Kent, C. (1999) Y2K and APL - an overview. Assoc. for Comput. Mach. SIGAPL APL Quote Quad. 29: 7-15 online pdf

•  Kent, C. (1999) The chronology of Y2K problems. Kent, C. Assoc. for Comput. Mach. SIGAPL APL Quote Quad. 29: 6-7 online pdf

 Further popular education publications from 1990-2001 on the environment and horticulture – see www.godel.net/environment/environmental_pages.htm and www.godel.net/garden/articles/index.htm