NSF East Asia and Pacific Summer Institute (EAPSI) for FY 2013 in Japan

2013 财年 NSF 东亚及太平洋夏季学院 (EAPSI) 在日本举行

• 批准号: 1309694
• 负责人: Justin Havird
• 金额: $ 0.51万
• 依托单位: Havird Justin C
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Fellowship Award
• 财政年份: 2013
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2013-06-01 至 2014-05-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1309694&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: NSF; East; Asia; Pacific; Summer

This action funds Justin Havird of Auburn University to conduct a research project in Biological Sciences during the summer of 2013 at The University of the Ryukyus in Okinawa, Japan. The project title is "Molecular Mechanisms of Salt Balance in Unusual Japanese Shrimps." The host scientists are Drs. Yoshihisa Fujita and Michio Hidaka.The molecular mechanisms of ionic/salt regulation in crustaceans (i.e., osmoregulation) have only been characterized for a narrow range of species, mainly decapod crabs with a marine ancestry. Atyid shrimps from anchialine habitats (coastal ponds and pools) represent an opportunity to address this lack of knowledge since they have a decisively freshwater ancestry but have adapted to live in these "extreme" environments characterized by drastically fluctuating salinities. Previous research found that the Hawaiian endemic atyid Halocaridina rubra has atypical patterns of gene expression following salinity transfer. Specifically, genes typically and dramatically up-regulated (~100 fold) during salinity transfer in other crustaceans do not change significantly in H. rubra. However, no published studies have examined the molecular mechanisms of osmoregulation or functional evolution of anchialine shrimp species. To examine this in an evolutionary context, the molecular mechanisms of osmoregulation from additional anchialine shrimp species from the Ryukyus Islands, Japan are being investigated using high-throughput measures of gene expression (RNA-Seq). These shrimp species represent independent invasions of anchialine habitats (from both freshwater and marine environments) and characterizing their mechanisms of osmoregulation will thus further our limited understanding of the molecular basis of euryhalinity and address convergent evolution in response to similar natural selection pressures. This project illuminates the evolution of osmoregulation, a critical biological process for all living organisms.Broader impacts of an EAPSI fellowship include providing the Fellow a first-hand research experience outside the U.S.; an introduction to the science, science policy, and scientific infrastructure of the respective location; and an orientation to the society, culture and language. These activities meet the NSF goal to educate for international collaborations early in the career of its scientists, engineers, and educators, thus ensuring a globally aware U.S. scientific workforce. Furthermore, undergraduates from underrepresented groups in the sciences are being trained and mentored during this project. Additionally, this project is fostering research collaborations between scientists at Auburn University and Oregon State University in conjunction with a recent NSF Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant (DEB 1311500) to the Fellow. The experiences gained from this EAPSI fellowship will be presented to students at Auburn University in an attempt to raise local awareness about international research collaborations in general and the opportunities associated with an EAPSI fellowship specifically. Lastly, anchialine habitats and organisms are being used to engage K-12 students in a variety of biological concepts, building on a current anchialine module in the outreach program Alabama Science in Motion.

该行动资助奥本大学的贾斯汀·哈维尔 (Justin Havird) 于 2013 年夏季在日本冲绳的琉球大学开展生物科学研究项目。 该项目的标题是“不寻常的日本虾盐平衡的分子机制”。主办科学家是博士。 Yoshihisa Fujita 和 Michio Hidaka。甲壳类动物离子/盐调节（即渗透调节）的分子机制仅针对一小部分物种进行了表征，主要是具有海洋血统的十足类螃蟹。来自anchialine栖息地（沿海池塘和水池）的阿蒂德虾代表了解决这一知识缺乏的机会，因为它们具有明显的淡水血统，但已经适应了生活在这些以盐度剧烈波动为特征的“极端”环境中。先前的研究发现，夏威夷特有的 atyid Halocaridina rubra 在盐度转移后具有非典型的基因表达模式。具体来说，在其他甲壳类动物的盐度转移过程中，基因通常显着上调（约 100 倍），但在 H. rubra 中却没有显着变化。然而，还没有发表的研究探讨安基阿林虾物种的渗透调节或功能进化的分子机制。为了在进化背景下研究这一点，正在使用基因表达的高通量测量（RNA-Seq）研究来自日本琉球群岛的其他安奇阿林虾物种的渗透调节分子机制。这些虾种代表了对近岸栖息地（来自淡水和海洋环境）的独立入侵，表征它们的渗透调节机制将进一步加深我们对广盐性分子基础的有限理解，并解决响应类似自然选择压力的趋同进化问题。该项目阐明了渗透调节的演变，这是所有生物体的一个关键生物过程。EAPSI 奖学金的更广泛影响包括为研究员提供美国以外的第一手研究经验；各自地点的科学、科学政策和科学基础设施的介绍；以及对社会、文化和语言的定位。 这些活动符合 NSF 的目标，即在科学家、工程师和教育工作者职业生涯的早期进行国际合作教育，从而确保美国科学劳动力具有全球意识。 此外，在该项目期间，来自科学领域代表性不足群体的本科生正在接受培训和指导。此外，该项目还结合最近向该研究员提供的 NSF 博士论文改进补助金 (DEB 1311500)，促进奥本大学和俄勒冈州立大学科学家之间的研究合作。从 EAPSI 奖学金获得的经验将呈现给奥本大学的学生，以试图提高当地对国际研究合作的总体认识，以及与 EAPSI 奖学金相关的机会。最后，以阿拉巴马州运动科学外展项目中当前的 anchialine 模块为基础，anchialine 栖息地和生物体被用来让 K-12 学生了解各种生物学概念。