NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biology: Linking Genotype-Phenotype and Environment of Human Head Lice to Understand the Drivers of Population Level Variation

NSF 生物学博士后奖学金：将人类头虱的基因型-表型和环境联系起来，以了解人口水平变化的驱动因素

• 批准号: 2209241
• 负责人: Niyomi House
• 金额: $ 13.8万
• 依托单位: Wijewardena, Niyomi
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Fellowship Award
• 财政年份: 2022
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2022-12-01 至 2024-11-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2209241&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: NSF; Postdoctoral; Fellowship; Biology; Linking

This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2022, 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. This research aims to quantify the impact of environment on the genotype and morphology of a globally distributed human parasite: the human head louse. This parasite is now commonly found among school-aged children but has had an impact on human health for all of modern human history. This research utilizes a global human head louse population to explore the connections between multiple biological systems at the genome, phenome, and environmental levels to understand how each of these layers are interconnected in shaping population level variation. Understanding how these parasites have adapted to their environments by undergoing both genetic and morphological changes will help in elucidating the mechanisms underlying adaptive evolution. Outreach to a diverse, public audience will assist in meeting one of the main goals of the study which is debunking the social stigma associated with head lice.Preliminary data from whole genome sequencing of louse specimens representing the worldwide louse population show strong evidence of continentally structured nuclear genetic clusters. This raises the possibility of regionally divergent adaptive trajectories. However, little is known about morphological and genetic adaptations in response to different environmental stimuli. This research aims to collect and integrate data from the genotype, phenotype, and environment in order to quantify variation and to identify potential adaptive responses of human head louse populations globally. More specifically, this project will (1) identify genes that are under positive selection and influence morphological variation, (2) quantify the spatial diversity of genotypic and phenotypic traits of the human louse, (3) evaluate the geographic extent of head louse populations and their co-occurrence probabilities, and (4) quantify the impact of environmental variables (e.g., landscape and climate) on the spatial differences in head louse genotypes and phenotypes. The Fellow will gain experience in the use of genome scans, high-resolution Computed Tomography (CT) scans, and environmental variables to achieve the above-mentioned objectives. In addition, the research organism of this project presents a unique opportunity to engage the public in many different ways; high-resolution CT scans, 3D prints of louse specimens, and slide mounts will be made available through public platforms incorporated into K-12 lesson plans.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.

该行动为2022财年的生物学生物学研究金提供了一项NSF博士后研究奖学金，该研究研究了研究基因组，环境和表型之间相互作用的生活规则。奖学金支持对研究员的研究和培训，这些研究和培训将以创新的方式为生活规则做出贡献。这项研究旨在量化环境对全球分布的人类寄生虫的基因型和形态的影响：人头虱子。现在，这种寄生虫通常在学龄儿童中发现，但对整个现代人类历史的人类健康产生了影响。这项研究利用全球人类头虱种群来探索基因组，现象和环境水平上多个生物系统之间的联系，以了解这些层中的每个层如何在塑造种群水平变化中相互联系。了解这些寄生虫如何通过经历遗传和形态学变化来适应其环境，这将有助于阐明适应性进化的机制。向多样化的公众观众推广，将有助于实现研究的主要目标之一，该目标是揭露与头虱相关的社会污名。来自代表全球虱子人群的虱子标本的整个基因组测序的初步数据显示出大陆结构结构化的核遗传簇的有力证据。这增加了区域不同的适应性轨迹的可能性。然而，对于响应不同环境刺激的形态和遗传适应知之甚少。这项研究旨在从基因型，表型和环境中收集和整合数据，以量化全球人类头虱种群的潜在自适应反应。更具体地说，该项目将（1）确定在积极选择下的基因并影响形态变化，（2）量化人类虱子基因型和表型特征的空间多样性，（3）评估头部裂口种群的地理范围及其共同率概率的地理范围及其在环境中的影响，以及（4）在环境变量上的影响（E.G. e.g.g.g.g.g.g.虱子基因型和表型。该研究员将获得使用基因组扫描，高分辨率计算机断层扫描（CT）扫描和环境变量的经验，以实现上述目标。此外，该项目的研究生物为以多种不同方式吸引公众提供了独特的机会。高分辨率CT扫描，虱子标本的3D印刷品和滑动坐骑将通过包含在K-12课程计划中的公共平台提供。该奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并被认为值得通过基金会的知识分子优点和更广泛的影响审查标准通过评估来进行评估。