RAPID: Preserving Primate Data to Investigate the Relationship Between Skeletal Shape and Hybridization

杂交是一种植物或动物的两个不同物种或变种的后代。最近的遗传学证据表明，我们的原始人祖先与其他原始人物种进行了杂交，这在我们自己的进化历史中突显了杂交。如果在杂交骨骼形状中存在可预测的模式，那么就有可能在人类化石记录中识别出杂交的证据，因为对于这些证据，遗传数据并不总是可以恢复的。确定这种模式是否存在的一个好方法是研究与人类关系密切的物种的杂交骨骼形状。该项目将保存杂交猕猴(猴子)的骨骼和相关的成像、遗传和生活史数据，这些数据将提供关于杂交的极好的比较数据，但这些数据有立即丢失的风险。这些猴子是一个杂交猕猴群体(中国猕猴和印度猕猴)的一部分，这个群体不再扩大，因此随着单个动物的死亡，其大小也在减少。如果猴子的骨骼数据在死后没有得到保存，通常情况下也不会，这种了解杂交的宝贵资源将会丢失。这项研究将使科学界受益，因为它收集了混合骨骼遗骸和相关数据的精心策划的研究资料。它还将支持国际合作以及学生指导和培训。最近有证据表明，古人类谱系之间的基因流动已经将混血带到了人类学和公共利益的前沿。这项研究将利用一种与人类关系密切的模式生物，制定检测混合物骨骼证据的原则性标准。具体地说，这项快速奖励将允许对加州国家灵长类研究中心(CNPRC)的大约80只猕猴杂交种进行死后保存和扫描，立即开始，这样它们的骨骼和相关数据就可以成为用于杂交和其他研究课题的宝贵收藏的一部分。杂交猕猴群体的自然流失率很高，如果从现在开始不保存单个动物，就可能无法获得该群体的代表性样本(就杂交状态而言)。研究人员计划使用最终的骨骼收集(估计n=200)来量化和模拟杂交表型变异，评估区分杂交种和非杂交种的判别函数，并开发基于骨骼表型检测人和其他分类群中的杂交的模型。已知谱系的大的、分型的灵长类动物样本非常罕见。骨骼样本和相关数据将在加州大学戴维斯分校进行整理，并提供给其他研究人员。这些收集和相关的研究问题可能会引起灵长类动物学、生物学、动物学和数量遗传学等学科的兴趣。

Hybrids are the offspring of two different species or varieties of a plant or animal. Recent genetic evidence suggesting that our hominin ancestors interbred with other hominin species has highlighted hybridization in our own evolutionary past. If there are predictable patterns in hybrid skeletal shape, it might be possible to identify evidence of hybrids in the hominin fossil record, for which genetic data are not always recoverable. A good way to determine whether such patterns exist is to study hybrid skeletal shape in species that are closely related to humans. This project will preserve hybrid macaque (monkey) skeletons and related imaging, genetic, and life history data that would provide excellent comparative data on hybridization, but that are at immediate risk of being lost. The monkeys are part of a hybrid macaque colony (Chinese and Indian Macaca mulatta) that is no longer being expanded and is therefore declining in size as individual animals die. If the monkeys' skeletal data are not preserved after death, and normally they are not, this valuable resource to understand hybridization will be lost. This study will benefit the scientific community by producing a curated research collection of hybrid skeletal remains and associated data. It will also support international collaborations and student mentorship and training. Recent evidence of gene flow among archaic human lineages has brought admixture to the forefront of anthropological and public interest. This study will develop principled criteria for detecting skeletal evidence of admixture, using a model organism that is closely related to humans. Specifically, the RAPID award will allow for postmortem preservation and scanning of approximately 80 macaque hybrids from the California National Primate Research Center (CNPRC), starting immediately, so that their skeletons and related data can become part of a valuable collection used to address hybridization and other research topics. Attrition in the hybrid macaque colony is high, and a representative sample of the colony (in terms of hybrid status) may not be possible to acquire if individual animals are not preserved starting now. The investigators plan to use the resulting skeletal collection (estimated n=200) to quantify and model hybrid phenotypic variation, evaluate discriminant functions to distinguish hybrids from non-hybrids, and develop models for detecting hybridization in hominins and other taxa on the basis of skeletal phenotype. Large, genotyped primate samples of known pedigree are very rare. The skeletal sample and associated data will be curated at UC Davis and made available to other researchers. The collection and related research questions are likely to be of interest in disciplines including primatology, biology, zoology, and quantitative genetics.