Collaborative Research: Epidermal gland evolution and the origins of structural and chemical signaling diversity

合作研究：表皮腺进化以及结构和化学信号多样性的起源

• 批准号: 1855875
• 负责人: Luke Frishkoff
• 金额: $ 36.94万
• 依托单位: University of Texas at Arlington
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2019
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2019-12-01 至 2024-11-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1855875&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Epidermal; gland; evolution

Animal communication systems have evolved an extraordinarily varied set of morphological and physiological structures and signals in order to control essential behavioral interactions, such as individual recognition, establishment of social hierarchies, territoriality, and intersexual selection. Visual, acoustic, and chemical signaling modes allow for complex repertoires of behavioral displays, yet little is known of how communication systems originated and evolved in most species in the animal tree of life, including reptiles. This project aims to fill this important gap by investigating the origin and evolution of novel communication mechanisms (epidermal glands) in lizards and how such systems are shaped by ecological and environmental parameters. Results from this research will provide a framework for predicting how human-induced environmental changes could impact chemical signaling. This project converges with NSF priorities for both science and society by expanding natural history collections and genetic resources in the U.S., building large data sets for comparative studies, developing new teaching materials focused on chemical communication, and directly contributing to scientific education and public outreach with the development of a new public exhibit at the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture.Among lizards and snakes, chemical signaling has been increasingly acknowledged as a critical, yet underappreciated, component of communication. This project will use integrative methods and tools, including advanced imaging, biochemistry, phylogenetics, and gene expression across diverse lizard groups from North America, South America, and Africa to investigate the evolution of novel epidermal glands that are crucial in mediating behavioral interactions in several groups of lizards. This project will test several hypotheses with the diverse data types collected over the course of the research, including (1) chemical differences between species correlate with environmental parameters and structural complexity of the habitats and microhabitats; (2) major transitions in the presence or absence of epidermal glands and chemical signals across the lizard tree of life track shifts in habitat/microhabitat (such as changes in temperature, humidity, and solar radiation preferences); (3) independent origins of epidermal glands across the lizard tree of life share a common genetic origin, providing strong evidence that such structures share deep and common ancestry. By using lizard epidermal glands as our study system, this project will provide insight into the evolution of novelty and those structures that play important roles in communication and behavior.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.

动物通讯系统已经进化出一套极其多样化的形态和生理结构和信号，以控制基本的行为相互作用，例如个体识别、社会等级制度的建立、领土性和间性选择。视觉、听觉和化学信号模式允许复杂的行为显示，但对于动物生命树中大多数物种（包括爬行动物）的通信系统是如何起源和进化的却知之甚少。该项目旨在通过研究蜥蜴新型通讯机制（表皮腺）的起源和进化以及生态和环境参数如何塑造此类系统来填补这一重要空白。这项研究的结果将为预测人类引起的环境变化如何影响化学信号传导提供一个框架。该项目与美国国家科学基金会在科学和社会方面的优先事项相一致，扩大了美国的自然历史收藏和遗传资源，建立了用于比较研究的大型数据集，开发了专注于化学通讯的新教材，并通过在伯克自然历史和文化博物馆开发了一个新的公共展览，直接为科学教育和公众宣传做出了贡献。在蜥蜴和蛇中，化学信号传导越来越被认为是生物信息学的重要组成部分，但却被低估了。 沟通。该项目将使用综合方法和工具，包括北美、南美和非洲不同蜥蜴类群的先进成像、生物化学、系统发育学和基因表达，以研究新型表皮腺体的进化，这些腺体对于介导多个蜥蜴类群的行为相互作用至关重要。该项目将利用研究过程中收集的不同数据类型来测试几个假设，包括（1）物种之间的化学差异与环境参数以及栖息地和微栖息地的结构复杂性相关； (2) 蜥蜴生命树中是否存在表皮腺和化学信号的重大转变，导致栖息地/微栖息地的变化（例如温度、湿度和太阳辐射偏好的变化）； (3)整个蜥蜴生命树上表皮腺的独立起源具有共同的遗传起源，这提供了强有力的证据，表明这些结构具有深刻而共同的祖先。通过使用蜥蜴表皮腺作为我们的研究系统，该项目将深入了解新奇事物的演变以及那些在交流和行为中发挥重要作用的结构。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。