DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Exploring the Form & Function of Intergall Migration in the Social Aphid, Pemphigus obesinymphae

论文研究：探索形式

• 批准号: 9902331
• 负责人: Nancy Moran
• 金额: $ 0.52万
• 依托单位: University of Arizona
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 1999
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 1999-09-01 至 2001-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9902331&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: DISSERTATION; RESEARCH; Exploring; Form; &amp

Moran9902331Aphids are small insects that feed on plants. A few aphid species are 'social': some individuals act as 'soldiers', self-sacrificially defending the colony by attacking predaceous enemies. In some species, soldiers are reproductively sterile; in some, soldiers will even attack and bite humans, much like ants, wasps and bees. It is not yet known why some aphids have these soldiers, whereas others do not. For groups like wasps and bees, researchers have debated the relative roles of familial relatedness versus ecological factors (like predation and parasitism) in favoring sociality and cooperation. Aphids represent an independent and unexplored group within which to examine these issues. In a social aphid species in southern Arizona, individuals move between colonies, reducing the genetic relatedness within each colony. This project will utilize molecular tools to quantify relatedness within colonies and to look at the effects of genetic relatedness for social behavior. The results will contribute to our growing understanding of why a variety of animals have made the transition to cooperative societies. More broadly, the research will help to elucidate the relationship between dispersal, genetic variation, and behavior in social insects. Social insect studies are important model organisms for developing and testing theories of sociality that are relevant to all social animals.

蚜虫是以植物为食的小昆虫。 一些蚜虫物种是“社会性的”：一些个体充当“捕食者”，通过攻击捕食性敌人来自我牺牲地保护殖民地。在一些物种中，士兵是生殖不育的;在一些物种中，士兵甚至会攻击和咬伤人类，就像蚂蚁，黄蜂和蜜蜂一样。目前还不知道为什么有些蚜虫有这些士兵，而另一些没有。 对于像黄蜂和蜜蜂这样的群体，研究人员一直在争论家族关系与生态因素（如捕食和寄生）在促进社会性和合作方面的相对作用。蚜虫代表了一个独立的和未开发的群体，在其中研究这些问题。在亚利桑那州南部的一种社会性蚜虫物种中，个体在殖民地之间移动，减少了每个殖民地内的遗传相关性。该项目将利用分子工具来量化群体内的相关性，并研究遗传相关性对社会行为的影响。这些结果将有助于我们越来越多地了解为什么各种动物已经过渡到合作社会。更广泛地说，这项研究将有助于阐明社会性昆虫的传播、遗传变异和行为之间的关系。 社会性昆虫研究是发展和检验与所有社会性动物相关的社会性理论的重要模式生物。