A Modern Iinventory of the Ppolyclad Ffauna of the Caribbean

加勒比地区聚丙烯塑料动物群的现代清查

• 批准号: 0412932
• 负责人: Marianne Litvaitis
• 金额: $ 58.88万
• 依托单位: University of New Hampshire
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2004
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2004-10-01 至 2008-09-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0412932&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Modern; Iinventory; Ppolyclad; Ffauna; Caribbean

AbstractDEB 0412932Marian LitvaitisThe focus of this project is to document the diversity of a group of marine, free-living flatworms throughout the wider Caribbean. Individual flatworm specimens will be hand-collected from several sites, and associated field data and images will be linked to each specimen. Students working with Leslie Newman and accompanying her on sampling trips, will gauge patterns of distribution of flatworms, receive training in underwater photography, and gather specimens for microscopical and molecular studies. She will also train students in curatorial techniques. Working in the laboratory of Marianne Litvaitis at the University of New Hampshire, the students will concentrate on histology, systematics, DNA techniques, graphics, and database construction. Commonly, positive species identification requires sectioning the animals. DNA sequences will be used as molecular barcodes for each species and to address questions of within-group relationships. Detailed taxonomic information, tissue vouchers, DNA sequences, and images of whole, live animals and of histological sections will be collected for each species and included in a web-based, searchable database. Additional products of the proposed study include CD-ROM and hard copy versions of an identification guide that will be available in English and Spanish, and a separate marine flatworms web page specifically designed for K-12 students.The broader significance of the project includes an extensive training component ranging from the undergraduate to the graduate level. Two minority graduate students have been recruited. Additional outreach and educational components include guest lectures, hands-on demonstrations, and marine field trips to stimulate interest in K-12 students for marine invertebrates in general. Although many of these flatworms are prominent members of coral reefs, little is known about their biodiversity. This is surprising considering that some of these worms have been shown to prey on commercially important bivalve species and thus, impact the aquaculture industry. Other species in this group have proven to be toxic to fish. Finally, preliminary studies have shown that some of these flatworms contain biopharmaceuticals and may be used as a vehicle to accumulate anticancer agents. Therefore, a thorough understanding of their biodiversity will provide a basis for many other fields of biology.

摘要DEB 0412932马里安·利特瓦伊斯这个项目的重点是记录整个加勒比海地区一群海洋的、自由生活的扁虫的多样性。个别扁虫标本将从几个地点手工收集，相关的现场数据和图像将链接到每个标本。与莱斯利·纽曼一起工作并陪同她进行采样旅行的学生将测量扁虫的分布模式，接受水下摄影培训，并收集标本进行显微镜和分子研究。她还将培训学生掌握策展技巧。在新汉普郡大学Marianne Litvaitis的实验室工作，学生们将专注于组织学、系统学、DNA技术、图形学和数据库建设。通常，阳性物种鉴定需要对动物进行切片。DNA序列将被用作每个物种的分子条形码，并解决组内关系的问题。将为每个物种收集详细的分类信息、组织凭证、DNA序列以及完整的、活的动物和组织切片的图像，并包括在一个基于网络的可搜索数据库中。拟议研究的其他产品包括将以英语和西班牙语提供的身份识别指南的光盘和硬拷贝版本，以及专门为K-12学生设计的单独的海洋扁虫网页。该项目的更广泛意义包括从本科生到研究生的广泛培训部分。已经招收了两名少数民族研究生。其他外展和教育部分包括客座讲座、动手演示和海洋实地考察，以激发一般海洋无脊椎动物对K-12学生的兴趣。虽然这些扁虫中的许多都是珊瑚礁中的重要成员，但人们对它们的生物多样性知之甚少。考虑到其中一些蠕虫已被证明捕食商业上重要的双壳类物种，从而影响水产养殖业，这令人惊讶。这一组中的其他物种已被证明对鱼类有毒。最后，初步研究表明，其中一些扁虫含有生物药物，可能被用作积累抗癌药物的媒介。因此，深入了解它们的生物多样性将为生物学的许多其他领域提供基础。