US-UK Collab: Transmission and coevolutionary dynamics drive the evolution of generalist and specialist viruses

美英合作：传播和共同进化动力学推动通用病毒和专科病毒的进化

• 批准号: 1115833
• 负责人: Samantha Forde
• 金额: $ 32.99万
• 依托单位: University of California-Santa Cruz
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2011
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2011-09-01 至 2014-11-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1115833&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: US; UK; Collab; Transmission; coevolutionary

Jack-of-all-trades or master of one? Viruses show tremendous diversity in their ability to infect different types of organisms including animals, plants and bacteria. Some viruses are able to infect multiple host species while others can only infect one. A major unresolved problem facing both the scientific community and medical professionals is why do some viruses evolve to be specialists while others are generalists? To answer this question, it is vital to understand the complexities underpinning the interactions between hosts and their viruses. As viruses and their hosts co-evolve, hosts develop resistance, and viruses in turn find ways of overcoming host defenses. Whether the virus can successfully co-evolve with its host also depends on the structure of the environment and how the viruses are transmitted between hosts. This research will embrace the complexity of virus and host interactions - from genes to cells to populations to the community. A laboratory system consisting of a bacteria (Escherichia coli) and its viruses will be used to gain understanding of the evolution of naturally occurring viruses and their hosts. The experiments will be combined with an innovative mathematical modeling framework designed to bridge the gap between laboratory and nature. The results of this work will provide critical insights into what dictates the diversity of viral strategies - a key step towards a comprehensive theory of the ecology and evolution of infectious diseases. This will further a general understanding of the dynamics of disease in natural systems and help to improve public health initiatives. The project will strengthen collaborations between US and UK scientists and train undergraduate and graduate students in research.

全能型还是精通一种？病毒在感染包括动物、植物和细菌在内的不同类型的生物体的能力方面表现出巨大的多样性。一些病毒能够感染多个宿主物种，而另一些病毒只能感染一个宿主物种。科学界和医学专业人士面临的一个重大悬而未决的问题是，为什么一些病毒进化成专家，而另一些病毒则成为多面手？要回答这个问题，至关重要的是要了解支撑宿主和病毒之间相互作用的复杂性。随着病毒和宿主的共同进化，宿主会产生抵抗力，而病毒反过来又会找到克服宿主防御的方法。病毒能否成功地与宿主共同进化，还取决于环境的结构以及病毒在宿主之间的传播方式。这项研究将涵盖病毒和宿主相互作用的复杂性--从基因到细胞，从种群到社区。将使用由细菌(大肠杆菌)及其病毒组成的实验室系统来了解自然发生的病毒及其宿主的进化。这些实验将与一个创新的数学建模框架相结合，旨在弥合实验室与自然之间的差距。这项工作的结果将为决定病毒策略多样性的因素提供关键的见解--这是朝着传染病生态学和进化的全面理论迈出的关键一步。这将进一步加深对自然系统中疾病动态的一般了解，并有助于改进公共卫生倡议。该项目将加强美国和英国科学家之间的合作，并培训本科生和研究生进行研究。