NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biology FY 2021: Exploring host-parasite co-evolution under diverse selection pressures

2021 财年 NSF 生物学博士后奖学金：探索不同选择压力下的宿主-寄生虫共同进化

• 批准号: 2109394
• 负责人: Jessica Hernandez
• 金额: $ 13.8万
• 依托单位: Hernandez, Jessica
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Fellowship Award
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2021-09-01 至 2023-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2109394&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: NSF; Postdoctoral; Fellowship; Biology; FY

This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2021, Integrative Research Investigating the Rules of Life Governing Interactions Between Genomes, Environment and Phenotypes. The fellowship supports research and training of the fellow that will contribute to the area of Rules of Life in innovative ways. The project will investigate the causes and consequences of the modes of parasite transmission, for both the parasite and the host. Parasites are an integral part of the natural world and have evolved multiple ways to use host resources, evade host immune defenses, and achieve transmission to new hosts. Previous research has primarily explored either vertical (e.g., parent to offspring) or horizontal (e.g., between adults of the same generation) parasite transmission. However, many parasites are transmitted both vertically and horizontally, and the role of these different transmission modes in host and parasite evolution are not well understood. Discovering the causes and consequences of diverse parasite transmission modes help us understand how parasites infect hosts, and could help inform disease control strategies. The Fellow will explore these questions using a stored grain pest, the Red Flour Beetle, and its naturally occurring protozoan parasite. In addition, the Fellow will: (1) increase the participation and retention of individuals from underrepresented groups in STEM through mentorship spanning multiple educational stages and (2) build relationships between researchers and stakeholders in agriculture. The Fellow will use an experimental evolution approach to coevolve beetle and parasite lines over multiple generations under horizontal, vertical, or mixed parasite transmission regimes. This project will assay host and parasite fitness trajectories as a function of transmission mode, and employ transcriptomic methods to identify the evolutionary consequences of parasite transmission mode for host immune system evolution. The fellow will develop a mathematical model using an adaptive dynamics framework to assess how epidemiological feedbacks associated with complex host-parasite interactions influence evolution of both the host immune phenotype and parasite virulence. The Fellow will work with Vanderbilt’s Collaborative for STEM Education and Outreach to develop a mentoring program focused on matching high school women of color interested in STEM with undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral women of color at Vanderbilt. In addition, the Fellow will collaborate with grain mill operators and the local integrated pest management office to discuss how the knowledge generated from this project can inform pest management strategies.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.

该行动资助了2021财年的NSF生物学博士后研究奖学金，即调查基因组，环境和表型之间相互作用的生命规则的综合研究。该研究金支持研究员的研究和培训，以创新的方式为生活规则领域做出贡献。该项目将调查寄生虫传播模式的原因和后果，包括寄生虫和宿主。寄生虫是自然界中不可或缺的一部分，并已进化出多种方式来利用宿主资源，逃避宿主免疫防御，并实现向新宿主的传播。以前的研究主要探索垂直（例如，父代到后代）或水平（例如，同代成年人之间）寄生虫传播。然而，许多寄生虫是垂直和水平传播的，这些不同的传播模式在宿主和寄生虫进化中的作用还不清楚。发现不同寄生虫传播模式的原因和后果有助于我们了解寄生虫如何感染宿主，并有助于制定疾病控制策略。该研究员将探索这些问题使用一个存储粮食害虫，红粉甲虫，和它的自然发生的原生动物寄生虫。此外，该研究员将：（1）通过跨越多个教育阶段的导师制，增加STEM中代表性不足群体的个人的参与和保留;（2）建立研究人员与农业利益相关者之间的关系。该研究员将使用实验进化方法，在水平，垂直或混合寄生虫传播制度下，在多代中共同进化甲虫和寄生虫。本研究将分析宿主和寄生虫适应度轨迹与传播模式的关系，并采用转录组学方法来确定寄生虫传播模式对宿主免疫系统进化的影响。该研究员将使用自适应动力学框架开发一个数学模型，以评估与复杂的宿主-寄生虫相互作用相关的流行病学反馈如何影响宿主免疫表型和寄生虫毒力的演变。该研究员将与范德比尔特的STEM教育和推广合作，制定一个指导计划，重点是将对STEM感兴趣的高中有色人种女性与范德比尔特的本科生，研究生和博士后有色人种女性相匹配。此外，该研究员将与谷物加工厂运营商和当地综合虫害管理办公室合作，讨论如何从该项目中产生的知识可以为虫害管理策略提供信息。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。