DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Local adaptation of stress physiology in Rana Sylvatica

论文研究：林蛙应激生理学的局部适应

• 批准号: 0909703
• 负责人: Earl Werner
• 金额: $ 0.8万
• 依托单位: Regents of the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2009
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2009-06-01 至 2011-11-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0909703&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: DISSERTATION; RESEARCH; Local; adaptation; stress

Environmentally-induced stress is common in the life histories of organisms, and, to a large extent, the organism's response to those stressors determines successful survival and reproduction. Therefore, in order to understand feedbacks between environment and organism performance, it must be determined whether and how organisms adapt their phenotypic responses to commonly encountered stressors such as predators. These responses to stressors may come at both current and future costs to the organisms performance. This project aims to determine whether and how local adaptation of the stress response occurs in populations of wood frogs (Rana sylvatica) that live along a gradient of larval predation risk. Using a common-garden approach coupled with stress hormone manipulation, the project will test for adaptation in two potential mechanisms that would reduce the costs of stress in high-predator ponds: reduction of stress hormone production to predators, and reduction of physiological responsiveness to circulating stress hormones. If the cost of chronically responding to the constant presence of predators is greater than the benefit, then investigators expect that tadpoles from populations in high-predator ponds will exhibit either reduction of their production of stress hormones or reduction in their response to experimentally-elevated stress hormones. The results from this project will contribute to our general understanding of the effects of environmental stress on organisms as well as provide insights into how amphibians in particular are able (or unable) to cope with chronic environmental challenges. In addition, this project will provide opportunities for involving undergraduates in primary research, as well as incorporating public outreach and education to local landowners regarding the amphibians and other organisms their ponds and wetlands support.

环境引起的应激在生物体的生命史中很常见，并且在很大程度上，生物体对这些应激源的反应决定了成功的生存和繁殖。 因此，为了了解环境和生物体表现之间的反馈，必须确定生物体是否以及如何调整其表型反应以适应常见的压力源（例如捕食者）。 这些对压力源的反应可能会损害生物体当前和未来的表现。 该项目旨在确定生活在幼虫捕食风险梯度上的林蛙（Rana sylvatica）种群是否以及如何发生应激反应的局部适应。 该项目将采用普通花园方法与应激激素控制相结合，测试两种潜在机制的适应能力，以减少高捕食者池塘的压力成本：减少捕食者产生的应激激素，以及减少对循环应激激素的生理反应。 如果对捕食者持续存在的长期反应的成本大于收益，那么研究人员预计，来自高捕食者池塘中的蝌蚪种群的蝌蚪将表现出应激激素产生的减少或对实验升高的应激激素的反应减少。 该项目的结果将有助于我们全面了解环境压力对生物体的影响，并深入了解两栖动物如何能够（或无法）应对长期的环境挑战。 此外，该项目还将提供让本科生参与初级研究的机会，以及向当地土地所有者提供有关其池塘和湿地支持的两栖动物和其他生物的公共宣传和教育。