EAGER: Origin and Physiological Consequences of a Neoplasm Outbreak in Antarctic Fish

南极洲的本土动物面临着海洋变暖带来的压力。一个关键的悬而未决的问题是南极生命将如何应对。如果温暖的沃茨导致鱼类疾病的易感性，那么他们所支持的标志性南极捕食者，包括企鹅，海豹和虎鲸，将遭受损失。最近在南极半岛进行的一次科学巡航遇到了一群被粉红色疣状肿瘤困扰的冠背鱼，这些肿瘤覆盖了大约三分之一动物体表的10%到30%。以前没有报道过类似的肿瘤，这表明这可能是一种威胁南极鱼类的新疾病。拟议工作的目标是确定肿瘤的生物起源以及它如何影响细胞功能和生物体生理学。这项工作具有潜在的变革性，因为它研究了南极鱼类对全球气候变化反应的先兆。该项目有几个更广泛的影响。首先，它会宣传肿瘤。由于南极研究人员从未报告过肿瘤流行病，因此社区必须了解疫情和肿瘤的独特诊断特征。第二，项目成果的传播将激发进一步的研究，以确定这是一个孤立的事件还是正在成为一个普遍现象，从而引起对南极生态系统的广泛关注。第三，该项目开发的检测疾病的方法将加强研究基础设施。最后，这项工作将通过为来自科学研究代表性不足的群体的高中生和本科生提供真实的研究经验来扩大国家的科学劳动力。拟议工作的总体目标是确定肿瘤的生物起源以及它如何影响细胞功能和生理。目的1是确定病原体。目的1a是通过从瘤形成和未明显受影响的动物中分离病毒核酸并对其进行测序来检验病毒引起瘤形成的假设。目的1b是检测肿瘤中是否存在健康皮肤中不存在的细菌、真菌、原生动物或无脊椎动物寄生虫。目标2是了解疾病如何改变受影响细胞的生物学。目的2a是检查受影响的组织和对照组织的组织切片，看看肿瘤是否与以前报道的温带水域鱼类皮肤病相似。目的2b是通过RNA-seq转录组学检查肿瘤细胞的功能，以鉴定在肿瘤和正常皮肤中差异表达的基因。实现这些目标将通过确定南极鱼类肿瘤爆发的原因和后果来增进知识。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Antarctica’s native animals face increasing stressors from warming oceans. A key unanswered question is how Antarctic life will respond. If warmer waters contribute to fish disease susceptibility, then iconic Antarctic predators they support, including penguins, seals, and killer whales, will suffer. A recent scientific cruise on the Antarctic peninsula encountered a population of crowned notothen fish that were plagued by pink, wart-like tumors that covered 10% to 30% of the body surface on about a third of the animals. Similar tumors had not previously been reported, suggesting that this might be a new disease that threatens Antarctic fish. The goal of proposed work is to identify the biological origins of the tumor and how it affects cell function and organismal physiology. The work is potentially transformative because it studies what might be a harbinger of Antarctic fish responses to global climate change. The project has several Broader Impacts. First, it will publicize the tumors. Because Antarctic researchers have never reported a tumor epidemic, the community must become aware of the outbreak and the tumor’s distinct diagnostic features. Second, dissemination of project results will stir further research to determine if this is an isolated event or is becoming a general phenomenon, and thus a broad concern for Antarctic ecosystems. Third, assays the project develops to detect the disease will enhance research infrastructure. Finally, work will broaden the nation’s scientific workforce by providing authentic research experiences for high school students and undergraduates from groups underrepresented in scientific research. The overall goal of proposed work is to identify the biological origins of the neoplasia and how it affects cell function and physiology. Aim 1 is to identify the pathogenic agent. Aim 1a is to test the hypothesis that a virus causes the neoplasia by isolating and sequencing viral nucleic acids from neoplasias and from animals that are not visibly affected. Aim 1b is to test neoplasias for bacteria, fungi, protozoa, or invertebrate parasites not present in healthy skin. Aim 2 is to learn how the disease alters the biology of affected cells. Aim 2a is to examine histological sections of affected and control tissues to see if the neoplasias are similar to previously reported skin diseases in temperate water fishes. Aim 2b is to examine the function of neoplastic cells by RNA-seq transcriptomics to identify genes that are differentially expressed in neoplasias and normal skin. Achieving these Aims will advance knowledge by identifying the causes and consequences of an outbreak of neoplasias in Antarctic fish. Proposed work is significant because it is the first to investigate a neoplasia cluster in Antarctic fish.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.