About

Dennis Hedgecock

Paxson H. Offield Professor in Fisheries Ecology and Professor of Biological Sciences

Contact Information
E-mail: dhedge@usc.edu
Phone: (213) 821-2091
Office: AHF 130

LINKS
Curriculum Vitae
Personal Website
 

Biographical Sketch
Dennis Hedgecock received a B.S. in Biology from St. Mary's College, California, in 1970, and a Ph.D. in Genetics, from the University of California, Davis, in 1974. Hedgecock joined the USC College as the first Paxson H. Offield Professor of Fisheries Ecology in 2003, following a nearly 30-year career at UC Davis. He is currently the Head of the Marine Environmental Biology Section of the Department of Biological Sciences. Hedgecock has published over 110 scholarly articles on the population, quantitative, evolutionary and conservation genetics of marine fish and shellfish, primarily Pacific oysters, white seabass and Pacific salmon. He was selected as the inaugural recipient of the Ken Chew Endowed Visiting Professorship in Aquaculture at the University of Washington in 2007. Hedgecock was elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1986, and is currently a member of several other scientific societies, including the American Genetics Association, the Genetics Society of America, the National Shellfisheries Association, and the Society for the Study of Evolution. He serves on the editorial boards of Aquaculture and the Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology.
 

Education
B.S. Biology, St. Mary's College, California, 5/1970
Ph.D. Genetics, University of California, Davis, 12/1974
 

Academic Appointment, Affiliation, and Employment History

Tenure Track Appointments
Geneticist, University of California, Davis, Agricultural Experiment Station & Bodega Marine Laboratory, 07/01/1978-06/30/2003  
 

PostDoctoral Appointments
Postdoctoral Fellow, University of California, Davis, Bodega Marine Laboratory, 06/15/1974-06/30/1978  
 

Description of Research

Summary Statement of Research Interests
Dennis Hedgecock combines expertise in genetics with an understanding of the larger issues of marine organisms and ecosystems. His research focuses on the population, quantitative, evolutionary and conservation genetics of marine fish and shellfish, including Pacific oysters, white seabass and Pacific salmon. A leading scientist in the field of oyster aquaculture and genetics, Hedgecock uses genetic mapping and functional genomics to study the genetic basis of hybrid vigor in Pacific oysters, a commercially important species in modern aquaculture. Hedgecock develops and improves crossbreeding techniques for farmed Pacific oysters, and has produced high-yield hybrid oyster varieties. Ultimately, his work may shed light on the basis for hybrid vigor in corn and other crops and on the maintenance of genetic diversity in natural populations. In his work with Pacific Chinook salmon of the Sacramento River and Central Valley, he developed novel genetic markers and tools that enabled scientists to distinguish between the rare endangered "winter-run” salmon and closely related salmon runs, work that proved essential in building an effective captive breeding program and evaluating its impact. Hedgecock investigates how enhancing fish populations through large hatchery programs impacts the genetic diversity of wild populations, and is currently examining the issue in local white seabass. Other research interests include the design of marine reserves, the impact of non-native species on ecosystems and fishery management issues.
 

Affiliations with Research Centers, Labs, and Other Institutions
Hedgecock lab,http://halfshell.usc.edu/index.html
Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies,http://wrigley.usc.edu
 

Publications

Book
 

Journal Article
Hedgecock, D., Davis, J. P. (2007). Heterosis for yield and crossbreeding of the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas. Aquaculture / Elsevier. Vol. 272S (1), pp. S17-S29.
Hedgecock, D., Lin, J., DeCola, S., Haudenschild, C. D., Meyer, E., Manahan, D. T., Bowen, B. (2007). Transcriptomic Analysis of Growth Heterosis in Larval Pacific Oysters (Crassostrea gigas). Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. Vol. 104, pp. 2312-2318.
Hedgecock, D., Launey, S., Pudovkin, A. I., Naciri, Y., Lapegue, S., Bonhomme, F. (2007). Small effective number of parents (N-b) inferred for a naturally spawned cohort of juvenile European flat oysters Ostrea edulis. Marine Biology. Vol. 150, pp. 1173-1182.
Hubert, S., Hedgecock, D. (2004). Linkage maps of microsatellite DNA markers for the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas. Genetics. Vol. 168, pp. 351-362.
Launey, S., Hedgecock, D. (2001). High genetic load in the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas. Genetics. Vol. 159, pp. 255-265.
Hedgecock, D., McGoldrick, D. J., Bayne, B. L. (1995). Hybrid vigor in Pacific oysters: An experimental approach using crosses among inbred lines. Aquaculture. Vol. 137, pp. 285-298.
 

Honors and Awards
Endowed Professorship, Paxson H. Offield Professor in Fisheries Ecology, 2003-2008  
Fellow (or Equivalent) of National Society in Discipline, Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science, 1986  
 

Service to the University

Administrative Appointments
Head, Marine Environmental Biology section of the Department of Biological Sciences, 06/01/2006-  
 

Service to the Profession

Editorships and Editorial Boards
Editorial Board, Journal of Shellfish Research, 2008-  
Editorial Board, Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 1997-  
Editorial Board, Aquaculture, 1996-  
 

Professional Memberships
American Fisheries Society, 1994-  
National Shellfisheries Association, 1990-  
World Aquaculture Society, 1975-  
American Genetics Association, 1974-  
Genetics Society of America, 1974-  
Society for the Study of Evolution, 1974-  
American Association for the Advancement of Science, 1972-  
Sigma Xi, 1972-  
 
 
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