Doctoral Dissertation Improvement: Primate Cranial Morphology in a Comparative Context

博士论文改进：比较背景下的灵长类颅骨形态学

• 批准号: 1232439
• 负责人: James Cheverud
• 金额: $ 1.92万
• 依托单位: Washington University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2012
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2012-09-01 至 2017-01-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1232439&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Doctoral; Dissertation; Improvement; Primate; Cranial

This project by doctoral student Jessica Joganic, under the supervision of Dr. James Cheverud at Washington University, St. Louis, brings together the fields of genetics, anatomy, and evolutionary biology in a comparative examination of primate cranial morphology. The research examines the genetic variants contributing to normal variation in primate skulls, as well as the molecular evolution and human population variation of genes responsible for the dramatic changes in the size and shape of the skull in human and primate evolution. The organization of the human skull represents a unique departure from the typical mammalian pattern. It has an enlarged neural vault, a short upright face, and a flexed cranial base. Genes contributing to variation in these traits that may have been modified in the human lineage will be identified using a primate model, the baboon. This will be accomplished by: 1) measuring craniofacial size and shape variation in a population of pedigreed baboons, 2) identifying genetic variants contributing to this variation, and 3) characterizing the molecular evolution of these genetic variants, both across a broad sample of primates, as well as within human populations. To achieve these goals, three-dimensional landmark coordinates will be obtained from the surface and interior of skulls from a large population of pedigreed baboons using a 3D digitizer and CT scans. These traits will be tested against variation in the baboon's genomes to identify regions where molecular variation contributes to craniofacial variation. These regions will be investigated for signatures of selection and evolutionary rate heterogeneity across primates as well as within human populations. As genetic variation is the basis for evolutionary change, identifying the genetic loci underlying trait variation is a necessary step in studying the evolution of complex morphologies like the human cranium. Knowledge of a trait's genetic basis and evolutionary history also informs our ability to manage, treat, and study the origin of skull abnormalities and diseases that have clinical and biomedical relevance.

这个项目由博士生杰西卡Joganic，在博士的监督下，詹姆斯Cheverud在华盛顿大学，圣路易斯，汇集了遗传学，解剖学和进化生物学领域的灵长类动物颅骨形态的比较检查。 该研究考察了导致灵长类头骨正常变异的遗传变异，以及导致人类和灵长类进化中头骨大小和形状发生巨大变化的基因的分子进化和人类种群变异。人类头骨的组织代表了与典型哺乳动物模式的独特偏离。它有一个扩大的神经穹窿，短直立的脸，和一个弯曲的颅底。在人类谱系中可能已经被修改的导致这些性状变异的基因将使用灵长类动物模型狒狒来鉴定。这将通过以下方式实现：1）测量纯种狒狒群体中的颅面大小和形状变化，2）鉴定促成这种变化的遗传变异，以及3）表征这些遗传变异的分子进化，包括在广泛的灵长类动物样本中以及在人类群体中。为了实现这些目标，将使用3D数字化仪和CT扫描从大量纯种狒狒的头骨表面和内部获得三维地标坐标。这些特征将通过狒狒基因组中的变异进行测试，以确定分子变异导致颅面变异的区域。这些区域将被调查的选择和进化率的灵长类动物之间的异质性，以及在人类种群的签名。由于遗传变异是进化变化的基础，因此确定性状变异背后的遗传位点是研究人类颅骨等复杂形态进化的必要步骤。一个特征的遗传基础和进化史的知识也告知我们管理，治疗和研究具有临床和生物医学相关性的颅骨异常和疾病的起源的能力。