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

论文研究：种内宿主变异对寄生虫种群结构的影响

• 批准号: 1402725
• 负责人: Graham Coop
• 金额: $ 1.39万
• 依托单位: University of California-Davis
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2014
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2014-06-01 至 2016-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1402725&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Dissertation; Research; effect; intra; specific

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.

西方黑腿蜱，太平洋硬蜱，是西方野生动物和人类之间疾病的重要媒介，传播莱姆病和无形体病。 这些蜱虫的生态学是复杂的，人们对其了解甚少，许多动物宿主可能是疾病传播的媒介。 利用来自蜱虫和收集它们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是否比预期的更具遗传差异考虑到它们的地理分离，（2）同种宿主个体之间的亲缘关系是否预示着侵染它们的蜱的亲缘关系。在自然界中很难观察到媒介和病原体的传播，但是，掌握控制疾病及其媒介分布的动态可能具有至关重要的流行病学或经济意义。 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载体的自然历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。