DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Elucidating Evolutionary Histories of Multiple Chipmunk Parasites Using Next Generation Sequencing

本研究探讨了北美西部不同时空环境下，寄主花栗鼠对寄主多样性的反应。花栗鼠经常感染外寄生的吸吮虱和内寄生的蛲虫。目前尚不清楚寄生虫谱系是否局限于单个花栗鼠物种，并与宿主谱系一起多样化（共同多样化），或者它们是否适应于花栗鼠之间共享的资源，从而可以感染它们遇到的任何种类的花栗鼠。该项目测试了每种寄生虫和宿主之间的共多样化，并研究了气候在决定寄生虫分布和多样性方面的作用。该研究结合了地理制图和基因测序技术来确定气候、地理和物种关联对进化多样化的影响。宿主和寄生虫进化史的综合观点具有广泛的意义，包括气候变化对病原体和寄生虫的影响。除了目前对生物对气候变化的反应感兴趣之外，研究宿主-寄生虫的关联允许测试基本的共同进化规则和假设。这项研究将为本科生和研究生提供实地、博物馆和分子实验室研究方面的培训。此外，该项目将通过探究驱动的学生项目，将博物馆标本和数据库整合到本科课程中，以提高人们对自然历史收藏价值的认识。通过这项研究，学生将被介绍到生物信息学的前沿分析和协作方法。花栗鼠是人们熟悉的，非常显眼的，并且为学校团体、公众和其他人提供了一个关于保护、进化和寄生虫的对话的门户。

This research investigates the response of parasites to the diversification of their chipmunk hosts across temporally and spatially variable environments in western North America. Chipmunks are frequently infected with externally-parasitic sucking lice and internally-parasitic pinworms. It is unclear if parasite lineages are restricted to individual chipmunk species and diversifying in tandem with the host lineages (codiversification), or if they are adapted to a resource shared among chipmunks and thus can infect any species of chipmunk they encounter. This project tests for codiversification among each parasite and the hosts and investigates the role of climate in determining parasite distribution and diversity. The research uses a combination of geographic mapping and genetic sequencing techniques to determine the influence of climate, geography, and species associations in evolutionary diversification.An integrated view of the evolutionary history of hosts and parasites has wide-ranging implications, including consequences of climate change on pathogens and parasites. Beyond the current interest in biotic responses to climate change, studying host-parasite associations allows for testing of foundational coevolutionary rules and hypotheses. This research will provide training for undergraduate and graduate students in field, museum, and molecular lab research. Additionally, this project will feed into an effort to integrate museum specimens and databases into undergraduate courses through inquiry-driven student projects that raise awareness of the value of natural history collections. Through this research, students will be introduced to cutting-edge analytical and collaborative approaches in bioinformatics. Chipmunks are familiar, highly visible, and provide a gateway to conversations with school groups, the public, and others about conservation, evolution, and parasites.