Dissertation Research: The effect of intra-specific host variation on the structure of parasite populations

西部黑腿蜱（Ixodes pacificus）是西部野生动物和人类之间疾病的重要媒介，可传播莱姆病和无形体病。 这些蜱虫的生态非常复杂，人们对其知之甚少，许多动物宿主可能充当疾病传播的媒介。 利用来自蜱虫和收集蜱虫的动物宿主的下一代 DNA 序列数据，以及尖端的空间遗传统计方法，研究人员调查了（1）从不同宿主物种收集的蜱虫在遗传上的差异是否比预期的地理分离程度更大，以及（2）同一物种的宿主个体之间的相关性是否可以预测感染它们的蜱虫的相关性。很难观察自然界中媒介和病原体的传播，但可以掌握控制疾病分布的动态。其载体可能具有至关重要的流行病学或经济重要性。 在这项研究中，研究人员将利用遗传数据来揭示有关人类疾病重要媒介的自然史和生态学的关键线索，以及对疾病本身生态学的宝贵见解。

The western blacklegged tick, Ixodes pacificus, is an important vector of diseases between wildlife and humans in the West, transmitting both Lyme disease and anaplasmosis. The ecology of these ticks is complicated and poorly understood, with many animal hosts that may serve as intermediaries in the spread of the diseases. Using next generation DNA sequence data from both ticks and the animal hosts from which they were collected, as well as cutting-edge spatial genetic statistical methods, the researchers investigate (1) whether ticks collected from different host species are more genetically differentiated than would be expected given their geographic separation, and (2) whether the relatedness between host individuals of the same species predicts the relatedness of the ticks that infest them.It is difficult to observe the spread of vectors and pathogens in nature, but a grasp of the dynamics that govern the distribution of a disease and its vectors can be of crucial epidemiological or economic importance. In this study, researchers will use genetic data to uncover critical clues about the natural history and ecology of an important vector of human diseases, as well as valuable insights into the ecology of the diseases themselves.