DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Nutrient-mediated Manipulation of Host Feeding Behavior by a Parasitoid

本项目研究动物的营养摄入如何影响其与寄生虫的相互作用。 辛格博士和贝尔纳多女士将使用一个实验上易于处理的毛毛虫及其寄生蜂的模型系统，进行旨在揭示寄生蜂如何通过操纵其宿主毛毛虫高度调节的营养摄入量来获益的实验。 这项研究的基本科学价值来自于整合动物营养学，免疫学和行为生态学的观点，同时也有助于农业和林业害虫控制的科学知识。公共宣传的影响将通过米德尔塞克斯县，CT小学发生，和贝尔纳多女士的康涅狄格州昆虫学会副主席的位置。 学校计划将突出昆虫的自然历史保存在实验室，而CT昆虫学会计划将组织外展活动，为所有年龄段的康涅狄格州居民，并为其他学生提供机会，分享他们的研究与社区在年度学生研讨会。寄生虫必须战斗主机防御和改变其主机的行为和生理对自己有利。 寄生虫操纵宿主营养摄入可能是这种相互作用的一个基本组成部分，但它已收到有限的研究在更广泛的领域的主机-寄生虫相互作用。这项研究将测试替代功能假说，可以解释操纵毛虫寄主取食行为的寄生蜂。 初步证据表明，这种主机寄生蜂的相互作用表明，主机毛毛虫表现出改变营养摄入量时，寄生蜂寄生，这种变化在主机喂养的行为有利于寄生蜂。 假设，改变寄主的食物营养可以对寄生蜂的生长性能和寄主免疫功能产生很大的影响。 因此，寄生蜂可以操纵寄主的营养摄入，以最大限度地提高营养供应寄主组织的寄生蜂吃，或限制营养所需的最大主机的免疫功能。 研究人员建议操纵宿主饮食中的常量营养素比例，并使用生态免疫学和昆虫生理学领域的技术来评估这些营养素介导的宿主操纵的假设机制及其可能的相互作用。该项目的数据将存储在卫斯理大学，并在发布时提供访问。

This project investigates how an animal's nutrient intake affects its interaction with its parasites. Using an experimentally tractable model system of a caterpillar and its parasitic wasp, Dr. Singer and Ms. Bernardo will conduct experiments designed to reveal how the parasitic wasp benefits by manipulating its host caterpillar's highly regulated nutrient intake. The basic scientific value of this research stems from integrating the perspectives of animal nutrition, immunology, and behavioral ecology, while also contributing to scientific knowledge used in pest control in agriculture and forestry. Public outreach impacts will happen through Elementary Schools in Middlesex County, CT, and Ms. Bernardo's position as vice-president of the Connecticut Entomological Society. The school program will highlight the natural history of insects kept in the lab, while the CT Entomological Society program will organize outreach activities for Connecticut residents of all ages and provide opportunities for other students to share their research with the community at an annual Student Symposium.Parasitoids must battle host defenses and alter the behavior and physiology of their hosts to their own benefit. Parasitoid manipulation of host nutrient intake might be a fundamental component of such interactions, yet it has received limited study in the broader field of host-parasite interactions. This research will test alternative functional hypotheses that could explain manipulation of caterpillar host feeding behavior by a parasitoid wasp. Preliminary evidence from this host-parasitoid interaction suggests that host caterpillars exhibit altered nutrient intake when parasitized by the parasitoid wasp, and this change in host feeding behavior benefits the parasitoid. Hypothetically, altering dietary nutrients of the host can have large effects on parasitoid growth performance and host immune function. Consequently, parasitoids could manipulate host nutrient intake so as to maximize the nutrient supply to host tissues eaten by the parasitoid, or to limit nutrients required for maximal host immune function. The researchers propose to manipulate macronutrient ratios in host diets and use techniques employed in the field of ecoimmunology and insect physiology to evaluate these hypothetical mechanisms of nutrient-mediated host manipulation, and their possible interaction. Data from this project will be stored at Wesleyan University and made accessible as published.