Influence of host ecology, social system and phylogeny on the genetic covariation of viruses and hosts, and on virus prevalences, within and between bat species

了解宿主-病毒关系的拮抗性质和进化动力学需要宿主和病毒的遗传共变异和生态相互作用的信息。然而，影响宿主和病毒共变的过程之间的相互作用在很大程度上是未知的。最重要的是，目前还不清楚影响宿主扩散的生态条件和社会障碍以及不同宿主物种之间的关联程度在多大程度上影响宿主物种内和宿主物种之间的病毒传播。了解这些过程将能够在确定的生态条件下对病毒因子传播给人类或家畜的风险进行评估。该项目一方面调查三种蝙蝠及其体外寄生虫（潜在载体）的生态、行为和遗传结构之间的联系，另一方面调查感染蝙蝠的不同病毒的遗传结构和流行率。其目的是了解生态条件和相互作用物种的生活史特征之间的关系，这可能有助于病毒克服物种障碍和殖民新的主机。蝙蝠提供了一个理想的模型系统来研究病毒与给定宿主的共变异和与不同宿主的共物种形成，这是由于：1）蝙蝠社会系统的可变性，2）蝙蝠物种在它们彼此共享栖息地的规律方面不同，3）它们的高水平社会互动（殖民性）和易于移动（飞行）蝙蝠可以非常迅速地传播病毒。

Understanding the antagonistic nature and evolutionary dynamics of host-virus relationships requires information on the genetic covariation and ecological interactions of hosts and viruses. However, the interplay between the processes that influence covariation of hosts and viruses is largely unknown. Above all, it is unclear to what degree ecological conditions and social barriers affecting host dispersal and the degree of association among different host species influence virus transmission within and among host species. Understanding such processes will enable a risk evaluation for the transmission of viral agents to humans or to domestic animals under defined ecological conditions. This project investigates the links between the ecology, behaviour and genetic structure of three bat species and their ectoparasites (potential vectors) on the one hand and the genetic structures and prevalence of different viruses that infest bats, on the other hand. The aim is to understand the relationship between ecological conditions and life history traits of the interacting species that may help viruses to overcome species barriers and colonize novel hosts. Bats provide an ideal model system to study covariation of viruses with a given host and cospeciation with different hosts due to: 1) the variability of bat social systems, 2) bat species differ in how regularly they share roosts with each other and 3) their high level of social interaction (coloniality) and ease of mobility (flight) bats can spread viruses very rapidly.