Functional Genomics of a Dietary Shift in a Mammalian Herbivore: Creosote Feeding in Neotoma Lepida

主要研究者：M. Denise Dearing，Dr. Kirk Killas项目编号：IOS-0817527标题：食草哺乳动物饮食转变的功能基因组学：Neotoma lepidaCreosote喂养对于食用植物的哺乳动物来说，从一种饮食转变到另一种饮食的最大挑战之一是新型植物毒素的解毒。 我们建议利用沙漠林鼠的摄食行为的种群差异，以提高我们对哺乳动物食草动物所使用的机制的认识。 大约在11,000年前，占据现在的莫哈韦沙漠的沙漠林鼠种群经历了一个重大转变，从以杜松为食转变为以天然入侵者木馏油为食。目前生活在莫哈韦的林鼠种群已经适应了剧毒的杂酚油，这可以从它们与以前没有经验的种群相比能够摄入更大量的杂酚油中得到证明。在这个项目中，研究人员将确定这种处理杂酚油能力差异的潜在机制。 研究人员将使用药理学和分子生态学以及尖端基因组学技术相结合的方法。 研究人员希望找到特定的肝酶，传达消耗杂酚油毒素的能力。 林鼠之间肝酶的差异可能是有价值的，在解释人类种群之间的药物和营养化合物的代谢差异。 这项工作将促进对自然气候变化后哺乳动物如何适应饮食急剧变化的理解。 这些数据可以外推到预测林鼠将如何应对当前和未来的气候变化。 更广泛的影响之一是对科学基础设施的贡献，其形式是非模式生物的转录组，将提供给其他科学家。 研究者致力于科学推广，每年参加一次或多次社区推广活动（例如，科学展览会、公开讲座）。 该项目将为博士后研究员、研究生、本科生、暑期高中生和本科院校的助理教授提供尖端的跨学科培训。该项目的受训人员将来自科学界代表性不足的群体，例如，妇女和少数民族。

Principal Investigators: Dr. M. Denise Dearing, Dr. Kirk ThomasProject Number: IOS-0817527TITLE: Functional Genomics of a Dietary Shift in a Mammalian Herbivore: Creosote Feeding in Neotoma lepidaFor mammals that consume plants, one of the greatest challenges in shifting from one diet to another is the detoxification of novel plant toxins. We propose to advance our knowledge of the mechanisms used by mammalian herbivores by capitalizing on population differences in the feeding behavior of the desert woodrat. Approximately 11,000 before present, populations of desert woodrats occupying what is now the Mojave desert, underwent a major shift from feeding on a diet of juniper to that of a natural invader, creosote. Populations of woodrats that currently live in the Mojave have adapted to highly toxic creosote as evidenced by their ability to ingest greater quantities of creosote compared to populations that have no prior experience. In this project, the investigators will determine the underlying mechanisms for this difference in ability to process creosote. The investigators will use a combination of approaches from pharmacology and molecular ecology as well as cutting edge genomics techniques. The investigators expect to find specific liver enzymes that convey the ability to consume creosote toxins. The differences in liver enzymes between woodrats may be valuable in explaining differences among human populations in the metabolism of pharmaceutical and nutraceutical compounds. This work will promote the understanding of how mammals adapt to radical changes in diet after natural climate change. The data can be extrapolated to predicting how woodrats will respond to current and future climate change. One of the broader impacts is a contribution to scientific infrastructure in the form of a transcriptome of a non-model organism that will be available to other scientists. The investigators are committed to scientific outreach and participate in one or more outreach events annually in the community (e.g., science fairs, public lectures). The project will provide cutting edge, interdisciplinary training for a postdoctoral fellow, graduate students, undergraduates, summer high school students and for an assistant professor from an undergraduate institution. Trainees on this project will come from underrepresented groups in science, e.g., women and ethnic minorities.