Collaborative Research: Novel Trophic Interactions Determined by Phytochemistry, Pathogen Infection, and Parasitoids

合作研究：通过植物化学、病原体感染和寄生蜂确定的新型营养相互作用

• 批准号: 1929544
• 负责人: M. Deane Bowers
• 金额: $ 40万
• 依托单位: University of Colorado at Boulder
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2019
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2019-09-01 至 2024-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1929544&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Novel; Trophic; Interactions

In a rapidly changing environment, the value of understanding the complexity of species interactions cannot be overstated. This includes the formation of associations between parasites and novel hosts. This research investigates the interaction between a virus that infects butterflies on both their native food plant, or 'hostplant', and a recently adopted exotic hostplant. This newly discovered virus has unknown consequences for populations of butterflies. However, prior research suggests that the chemistry of the hostplants may have therapeutic effects. How does the outcome of viral infection on individuals and populations of Baltimore checkerspot butterflies depend on the choice of a native or exotic hostplant? The researchers also will study parasitic wasps that attack the caterpillars. Parasitic wasps may alter the entire set of interactions between the butterflies, hostplants and the virus. By understanding disease dynamics within human-altered environments, detrimental impacts on species can be mitigated. This project includes a museum exhibit on the diversity of viruses, a symposium on insect-virus ecology, and the inclusion of undergraduate and graduate student research. All consumers use a subset of the organic resources in their environment. Understanding which resources are used by a particular consumer, and the limitations of those resources, are issues that are both foundational to the ecological sciences and important for understanding rapid global environmental change. Herbivorous insects are central to general theory to understand dietary niche breadth. The relevant resources (hostplants) are discrete and experimentally tractable, and herbivorous insects are key to terrestrial ecosystem function. A relatively understudied element of dietary breadth is the process of host expansion, when new hostplants are adopted into the diet of an insect herbivore. This project takes advantage of a recently formed interaction between the Baltimore checkerspot butterfly (Euphydryas phaeton, Nymphalidae) and the exotic narrow-leaved plantain (Plantago lanceolata, Plantaginaceae) to develop mathematical models for macroparasite population dynamics on a novel plant species. Predictions will be tested using laboratory and mesocosm experiments that include infection with butterfly 'enemies', a naturally-occurring pathogenic virus and parasitoid wasp, both of which attack caterpillars of the butterfly. The overarching question of this project is: Can we predict persistence of the butterfly populations from the interactions with enemies on native and exotic hostplants? While addressing this larger question, the study will improve our empirical understanding of virus and parasite ecology by investigating dose dependent effects of the pathogen, virus transmission, and caterpillar survival mediated by hostplant chemistry.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.

在快速变化的环境中，理解物种相互作用的复杂性的价值不能被夸大。这包括寄生虫和新宿主之间的关联的形成。这项研究调查了一种病毒感染蝴蝶的本地食用植物或“寄主植物”和最近采用的外来寄主植物之间的相互作用。这种新发现的病毒对蝴蝶种群的影响尚不清楚。然而，先前的研究表明，寄主植物的化学成分可能具有治疗作用。病毒感染对巴尔的摩棋盘斑蝶个体和种群的影响如何取决于本地或外来寄主的选择？研究人员还将研究攻击毛虫的寄生蜂。寄生蜂可能会改变蝴蝶、寄主植物和病毒之间的整套相互作用。通过了解人类改变的环境中的疾病动态，可以减轻对物种的有害影响。该项目包括一个关于病毒多样性的博物馆展览，一个关于昆虫病毒生态学的研讨会，以及本科生和研究生的研究。所有消费者都使用其环境中的一部分有机资源。了解哪些资源被特定的消费者使用，以及这些资源的局限性，是生态科学的基础，也是理解快速全球环境变化的重要问题。草食性昆虫是理解食物生态位宽度的一般理论的核心。相关的资源（寄主植物）是离散的，实验上容易处理，草食性昆虫是陆地生态系统功能的关键。食物宽度的一个相对未被充分研究的因素是寄主扩展的过程，当新的寄主植物被采纳到食草昆虫的食物中时。该项目利用最近形成的相互作用之间的巴尔的摩格斑蝶（Euphydryas phaeton，Nymphalidae）和外来的狭叶车前草（Plantago lanceolata，Plantinaceae）的一个新的植物物种的大型寄生虫种群动态的数学模型。预测将使用实验室和围隔实验进行测试，这些实验包括感染蝴蝶“敌人”，一种自然发生的致病病毒和寄生蜂，两者都会攻击蝴蝶的毛虫。这个项目的首要问题是：我们可以预测持久性的蝴蝶种群与本地和外来寄主植物上的敌人的相互作用？在解决这个更大的问题的同时，这项研究将通过调查病原体、病毒传播和寄主植物化学介导的毛虫存活的剂量依赖效应，提高我们对病毒和寄生虫生态学的经验理解。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得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来支持。

项目成果

Seasonal Variation in Host Plant Chemistry Drives Sequestration in a Specialist Caterpillar

• DOI: 10.1007/s10886-021-01321-7
• 发表时间: 2021-11
• 期刊: Journal of Chemical Ecology
• 影响因子: 2.3
• 作者: Adrian L. Carper;Leif L. Richardson;Rebecca E. Irwin;M. Bowers