DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Experimental tests of avian behavior and immunological defenses against a malaria vector

寄生虫病对牲畜、野生动物和人类健康都是非常令人关注的问题。许多寄生虫在吸血蜱或苍蝇进食时在宿主之间传播;这些节肢动物通常被称为“媒介”。 随着全球气候变化，预计病媒传播的寄生虫会增加。 有许多种类的疟疾寄生虫感染爬行动物，鸟类和哺乳动物非常相似。 该项目旨在研究鸽子-苍蝇-疟疾系统模型，以了解宿主防御疟疾寄生虫载体的作用。 宿主对病媒的防御可以直接通过阻止病媒进食或杀死病媒来发挥作用，也可以间接通过免疫系统发挥作用（类似于疫苗的工作方式）。 猪至少有两种潜在的宿主防御，一种是行为防御（梳理），一种是免疫防御（针对载体的抗体反应）。 将测试每种孤立防御对苍蝇的影响，以及宿主防御是否协同相互作用。 这些防御措施对苍蝇传播疟疾的影响也将得到测试。如果免疫系统能有效地防御载体及其携带的寄生虫，这项工作可能会进一步发展抗载体疫苗。这项研究的更广泛影响包括培训一名病媒生态学和疾病动力学领域的研究生。本科生和高中生将受益于培训，介绍他们的工作，有些人将在这项工作的出版物的作者。 到目前为止，已经对6名大学生（2名女性，2名国际学生）和1名高中生进行了与这项工作有关的技术指导和培训，预计还会有更多的学生参与。 针对病媒的新的控制战略特别令人兴奋，因为病媒通常传播多种寄生虫物种;因此，保护宿主免受一种病媒的侵害可以防止多种寄生虫病。

Parasitic diseases are of great concern for livestock, wildlife, and human health. Many parasites are transmitted between hosts when a blood-feeding tick or fly takes a meal; these arthropods are often called "vectors". With global climate change, vector-transmitted parasites are predicted to increase. There are many species of malaria parasites that infect reptiles, birds, and mammals very similarly. This project aims to study a model pigeon-fly-malaria system to understand the role of host defenses against a vector of malaria parasites. Host defenses against vectors may act directly by preventing vector feeding or by killing vectors, or indirectly through the immune system (similarly to the way vaccines work). Pigeons have at least two potential host defenses, one behavioral (preening) and one immunological (antibody response against the vector). The effect of each isolated defense against the fly, and whether the host defenses interact synergistically will be tested. The impact of these defenses on the transmission of malaria by the flies will also be tested. This work may further development of anti-vector vaccines if the immune system presents itself as an effective defense against vectors and the parasites they carry. Broader impacts of this research include training a graduate student in the fields of vector ecology and disease dynamics. Undergraduate and high school students will benefit from training, presenting their work, and some will be authors on publications of this work. Thus far six undergraduates (2 female, 2 international) and one high school student have been mentored and trained in techniques related to this work, with further student involvement anticipated. New control strategies against vectors are particularly exciting because vectors often transmit multiple parasite species; thus protecting hosts from one vector could protect against multiple parasitic diseases.