DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Understanding the hidden roles of parasites in ecosystem processes

论文研究：了解寄生虫在生态系统过程中的隐藏作用

• 批准号: 1311467
• 负责人: Pieter Johnson
• 金额: $ 1.64万
• 依托单位: University of Colorado at Boulder
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2013
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2013-07-01 至 2015-05-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1311467&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: DISSERTATION; RESEARCH; Understanding; hidden; roles

Parasites comprise a large fraction of biodiversity within most ecosystems and can exert strong effects on individuals, populations and communities of their hosts. Despite their ubiquity, the roles of parasites in ecosystem processes, such as fluxes of energy and matter, remain largely unknown due to the rarity of integration between ecosystem ecology and disease research. The central aim of this proposal is to examine the influences of parasites on two fundamental ecosystem processes in freshwaters ? nutrient cycling and primary production. The proposed research will first quantify the effects of infection by trematode parasites on two functional traits of snail hosts (grazing and nutrient excretion) and then use a realistic outdoor mesocosm experiment to quantify the direct and indirect mechanisms through which trematodes influence nutrient cycling and primary production. Collectively, this research will help to advance a conceptual understanding of the roles of parasites in ecosystem processes, which is a pressing topic in light of changes in parasite communities driven by ongoing disease emergence, losses of free living biodiversity, and introductions of novel hosts.The Co-PI will build upon a proven track record of community education and outreach by implementing an effective K-12 science curriculum that focuses on freshwater ecology and global change. The curriculum is novel in its use of a classroom mesocosm experiment utilizing 1 L glass jars containing field-collected pond organisms to create miniature freshwater ecosystems that are subsequently impacted by two widespread forms of global change: nutrient pollution from fertilizer and invasive species in the form of non-native snails. The students will closely track the development of their mesocosms while gaining knowledge on both global change issues and science standards at the elementary and middle school levels (e.g., hypothesis testing and critical thinking). In conjunction with outreach, the Co-PI will enhance ongoing efforts to serve underrepresented students by providing research opportunities to four undergraduates during the summer field seasons at the Hopland Research and Extension Center in Mendocino County, California.

寄生虫在大多数生态系统中构成生物多样性的很大一部分，并对其宿主的个人、种群和社区产生强烈影响。尽管它们无处不在，寄生虫在生态系统过程中的作用，如能量和物质的流动，仍然在很大程度上未知，由于生态系统生态学和疾病研究之间的整合的罕见。该提案的中心目的是研究寄生虫对淡水中两个基本生态系统过程的影响？养分循环和初级生产。拟议的研究将首先量化吸虫寄生虫感染对蜗牛宿主的两个功能特性（放牧和营养排泄）的影响，然后使用一个现实的室外围隔实验来量化吸虫影响营养循环和初级生产的直接和间接机制。总的来说，这项研究将有助于推进对寄生虫在生态系统过程中的作用的概念性理解，这是一个紧迫的话题，因为寄生虫群落的变化是由持续的疾病出现，自由生活生物多样性的丧失，和介绍新的主持人。该联合PI将建立在社区教育和推广的良好记录，通过实施有效的K-12科学课程，重点是淡水生态和全球变化。该课程是新颖的，在其使用的教室围隔实验，利用1升的玻璃瓶含有现场收集的池塘生物，以创建微型淡水生态系统，随后受到两种广泛形式的全球变化：营养污染的肥料和入侵物种的形式，非本地蜗牛。学生将密切跟踪他们的中生态系统的发展，同时获得有关全球变化问题和小学和中学水平的科学标准的知识（例如，假设检验和批判性思维）。在与外展合作，PI将加强正在进行的努力，为代表性不足的学生提供研究机会，四个本科生在夏季领域的季节在霍普兰研究和推广中心在门多西诺县，加州。