NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biology FY 2018

这一行动为NSF 2018财年生物学博士后研究奖学金-使用生物收藏进行研究-提供资金。该奖学金支持将以创新方式利用生物收藏的研究员的研究和培训。这项研究探索了形式和功能之间的关系，这是生物学中的一个经典问题。这位研究员将通过研究哺乳动物的腰椎(下背部)来研究这个问题。形式-功能关系的性质随有机体、大小和结构的不同而不同，对于极端或独特的结构尤其难以理解。在食蚁兽、螳螂和几种地鼠的脊椎中进化出了额外的骨骼强化物，但目前还不清楚这些强化物是否具有类似的功能，因为它们极端而不寻常的形状使它们很难进行比较。这位研究员将使用专门的成像技术来分析地鼠、食蚁兽和螳螂脊椎的内部结构。内部骨骼结构表明对施加到骨骼上的力做出反应的适应性，因此该分析将确定这些结构之间可能存在的功能相似之处，而使用外部骨骼结构很难检测到这些相似性。这个项目将促进对自然选择如何作用于形态塑造的理解；此外，它提供了一个令人兴奋的例子来向公众证明，对进化的科学理解不断增长，基于集合的研究对于促进这种增长是至关重要的。该研究员将量化地研究地鼠和地龙的腰椎的骨小梁形态，以检验以下假设：1)地鼠和地龙补充的椎间关节的汇聚进化反映了对相似的体内负荷方案的适应；2)更大程度的外部改造对应于一个更健壮的脊柱，更能承受体内的高负荷；(3)不同的运动类型，而不是大小或系统发育，脊椎功能在不同的地鼠和异种人之间有所不同。该研究员将接受微CT成像技术、3D形态数据的定量分析和系统发育比较方法的培训；在该项目期间收集的3D数据将公开供未来的研究人员使用。这位研究员将通过教育和推广项目，包括菲尔德自然历史博物馆？S YouTube系列节目《大脑独家新闻》，让公众参与到收敛进化和极端形态的研究中。这位研究员将为Brain Scoop合作制作视频，总体上突出这个项目和基于收藏的生物研究，旨在通过鼓励观众参与自然历史来提高科学素养和批判性思维技能。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2018, Research Using Biological Collections. The fellowship supports research and training of the fellow that will utilize biological collections in innovative ways. This research explores the relationship between form and function, a classic problem in biology. The fellow will investigate this problem by studying the mammalian lumbar spine (lower back). The nature of the form-function relationship varies across organisms, sizes, and structures, and is especially difficult to understand for extreme or unique structures. Extra bony reinforcements have evolved in the spine of anteaters, armadillo, and several shrews, but it is unclear if these reinforcements serve similar functions because their extreme and unusual shapes make them difficult to compare. The fellow will use specialized imaging techniques to analyze the internal structure of the vertebrae in shrews, anteaters, and armadillos. Internal bone structure is indicative of adaptation in response to forces applied to a bone, so this analysis will determine possible functional similarities between these structures that is difficult to detect using external bone structure. This project will promote understanding of how natural selection works to shape morphology; further, it provides an exciting example to demonstrate to the public that scientific understanding of evolution is constantly growing, and collections-based research is critical for facilitating that growth.The fellow will quantify trabecular bone morphology of the lumbar spine in shrews and xenarthrans to test the following hypotheses: 1) convergent evolution of supplementary intervertebral articulations in shrews and xenarthrans reflects adaptation to similar in-vivo loading schemes; 2) a greater degree of external modification corresponds to a vertebral column that is more robust to bearing high in-vivo loads; and 3) vertebral function varies across shrews and xenarthrans according to locomotor type rather than size or phylogeny. The fellow will receive training in micro-CT imaging techniques, quantitative analysis of 3D morphological data, and phylogenetic comparative methods; 3D data collected during this project will be made publicly available for use by future researchers. The fellow will engage the public in the study of convergent evolution and extreme morphologies through education and outreach programs, including the Field Museum of Natural History?s YouTube series The Brain Scoop. The fellow will collaborate on videos for The Brain Scoop highlighting this project and collections-based biological research generally, aiming to increasing scientific literacy and critical thinking skills by encouraging audience members to become engaged with natural history.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.