US-UK Cooperative Research: Evolutionary Biology of Parasite-Host Interactions

该奖项将支持科罗拉多州立大学Janice Moore博士与两位英国科学家（牛津大学动物学系Paul Harvey博士和格拉斯哥大学动物学系D.W.T. Crompton博士）在系统生物学方面的合作研究。该研究的目的是开发和使用系统发育技术来检查宿主进化在寄生虫-宿主相互作用中的作用。寄生虫-宿主相互作用的进化已经从宿主利益（如对寄生虫的抗性）和寄生虫利益（如对宿主行为的操纵）的角度进行了探讨，但尚未从系统发育的角度加以解决。在一系列严格可比的行为实验中，摩尔博士目前正在研究棘头虫Moniliformis对十种相关蟑螂行为的影响。在牛津大学的长期研究访问期间，摩尔博士将把那里开发的分析技术扩展到宿主-寄生虫现象，并将研究宿主系统发育在寄生虫诱导的行为改变中的作用。在格拉斯哥大学的后续研究期间，摩尔博士将量化这些宿主物种对寄生虫的抗性程度，并应用相同的技术来阐明宿主系统发育对寄生虫抗性的贡献（如果有的话）。在本研究年度，摩尔博士将能够与进化生物学，行为学，寄生虫生态学和寄生虫抗性领域的主要人物进行互动，并将为自由生活分类群开发的比较分析技术扩展到宿主-寄生虫相互作用。这将是将这些现象置于可预测的进化框架中的第一步。

This award will support collaborative research in systematic biology between Dr. Janice Moore, Colorado State University and two British scientists: Dr. Paul Harvey, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, and Dr. D.W.T. Crompton, Department of Zoology, University of Glasgow. The objective of the research is to develop and use phylogenetic techniques to examine the role of host evolution in parasite-host interactions. The evolution of parasite-host interactions has been approached from the standpoint of host benefit (e.g. resistance to parasites) and parasite benefit (e.g. manipulation of host behavior), but has not been addressed from a phylogenetic perspective. In a set of strictly comparable behavioral experiments, Dr. Moore is currently examining the effect of the acanthocephalan, Moniliformis, on the behavior of ten species of related cockroaches. During a long term research visit at Oxford University, Dr Moore will extend analytical techniques developed there to host-parasite phenomena and will investigate the role of host phylogeny in parasite- induced behavioral alterations. During a subsequent research stay at the University of Glasgow, Dr. Moore will quantify degrees of resistance to the parasite exhibited by these same host species and apply the same techniques to elucidate the contribution, if any, of host phylogeny to parasite resistance. During this research year, Dr. Moore will be able to interact with major figures in the area of evolutionary biology, ethology, parasite ecology and parasite resistance, and to extend comparative analytical techniques developed for free- living taxa to host-parasite interactions. This will be the first quantitative step towards placing these phenomena in a predictive, evolutionary frame.