Collaborative Research: Phylogeny, Behavior, and Silk Evolution of Web Spinners (Embloptera), a Little-Known Insect Order

合作研究：鲜为人知的结网昆虫（Embloptera）的系统发育、行为和丝进化

• 批准号: 0515868
• 负责人: Cheryl Hayashi
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: University of California-Riverside
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2005
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2005-09-01 至 2010-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0515868&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Phylogeny; Behavior; Silk

Webspinners (order Embioptera) are a curious group of insects foundmainly in tropical forests. Their biology is among the most poorly studiedof any insect group even though webspinners are known to exhibit a range ofunique biological phenomena. They are the only insects that spin silk fromglands in their front legs, and they do so as both immatures and adults.They exhibit maternal care and often live in groups where they use silk toconstruct large and sometimes intricate galleries in which they live andrear their young. The types of galleries and behaviors associated with silkspinning vary considerably throughout the group, and nothing is known aboutthe composition of silk proteins and the genetic basis for silk production.Although there are only about 400 species of webspinners known, estimatessuggest there may be more than 1500 new species already in collections butnot formally described and many more in Nature awaiting discovery.Webspinner classification is in a poor state never having been updated usinga modern, phylogenetic basis. A collaborative research and training projectbetween laboratories at three universities will assemble a group ofresearchers with the expertise to investigate the phylogeny, behavioralecology and classification of the Embioptera. At Brigham Young University,phylogenetic analyses will be conducted using molecular and morphologicaldata and will form the basis of an improved natural classification of thegroup. At Santa Clara University, biological aspects of the insects such ascolony construction, maternal care and habitat requirements will be examinedwithin a phylogenetic context by tracing these features through thephylogeny. Finally, at the University of California, Riverside, the geneticbasis for silk production will be examined by discovering the DNA sequencesthat code for silk in several species, and the variation in these silk geneswill be investigated within the context of webspinner phylogeny. Resultswill be disseminated in scientific journals and through applications ofmodern, digital technology including digital image galleries, digitalreproductions of literature, digital matrix-based identification keys, etc.Museum holdings of webspinners will be enhanced by curation and new materialfrom fieldwork. This collaborative project represents the first comprehensiveinvestigation of the phylogeny and biology of webspinners ever done. Sinceembiids occur in often fragile ecosystems, better knowledge of the groupwill likely have important relevance to conservation of these habitats.Also, this work will foster multidisciplinary collaboration betweenbiologists in disparate fields and facilitate the training of postdoctoralfellows and students in multidisciplinary research. The research willinvolve undergraduates extensively to give them a firm background inscience, including proper research methods and ethics. When the projectobjectives are met, a historically little-known insect group will be moreaccessible to everyone through the published results, and a positivelong-term impact on the scientific community will occur because of the broadcross-disciplinary training of researchers at several academic levels.

结网昆虫（Embioptera）是一群奇怪的昆虫，主要发现于热带森林中。 尽管众所周知，结网昆虫表现出一系列独特的生物现象，但它们的生物学特性是所有昆虫类群中研究最少的。 它们是唯一一种从前腿的腺体吐丝的昆虫，无论是幼虫还是成虫，它们都会吐丝。它们表现出母性关怀，经常成群生活，用吐丝建造大型且有时复杂的画廊，在其中生活和抚养幼崽。 在整个群体中，与丝纺相关的画廊类型和行为差异很大，并且对丝蛋白的组成和丝绸生产的遗传基础一无所知。尽管已知的织网者只有大约 400 种，但估计可能有超过 1500 个新物种已在收藏中但尚未正式描述，还有更多在《自然》中等待发现。织网者的分类状况很差，从未使用过更新 现代的、系统发育的基础。 三所大学实验室之间的一个合作研究和培训项目将聚集一组具有专业知识的研究人员来研究Embioptera的系统发育、行为生态学和分类。 在杨百翰大学，系统发育分析将使用分子和形态学数据进行，并将形成改进的群体自然分类的基础。 在圣克拉拉大学，昆虫的生物学方面，如群体建设、母性护理和栖息地要求，将在系统发育背景下通过系统发育追踪这些特征来进行检查。 最后，在加州大学河滨分校，将通过发现多个物种中编码丝的 DNA 序列来检查丝生产的遗传基础，并将在结网者系统发育的背景下研究这些丝基因的变异。 结果将在科学期刊上传播，并通过现代数字技术的应用，包括数字图像画廊、文献的数字复制品、基于数字矩阵的识别密钥等。网络旋转者的博物馆藏品将通过策展和实地工作的新材料得到增强。这个合作项目代表了有史以来对织网者的系统发育和生物学的首次全面调查。 由于embiids通常出现在脆弱的生态系统中，因此更好地了解该群体可能对保护这些栖息地具有重要意义。此外，这项工作将促进不同领域生物学家之间的多学科合作，并促进博士后研究员和学生进行多学科研究的培训。该研究将广泛涉及本科生，为他们提供坚实的科学背景，包括适当的研究方法和道德规范。当项目目标实现时，历史上鲜为人知的昆虫群体将通过已发表的结果更容易为每个人所了解，并且由于对多个学术层面的研究人员进行广泛的跨学科培训，将对科学界产生积极的长期影响。