NSF PRFB FY23: Heritable viruses as hidden drivers of host phenotypes: Densoviruses and aphid wing plasticity

NSF PRFB FY23：遗传病毒作为宿主表型的隐藏驱动因素：浓核病毒和蚜虫翅膀可塑性

• 批准号: 2305653
• 负责人: Paula Rozo-Lopez
• 金额: $ 24万
• 依托单位: Rozo-Lopez, Paula C
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Fellowship Award
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-07-01 至 2026-06-30
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2305653&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: NSF; PRFB; FY23; Heritable; viruses

This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2023, 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. Insects are the most abundant and diverse animal group, and like all living organisms, they evolved around viral infections. Understanding the impact viruses have on the lifecycles of insects is critical to maintaining healthy ecosystems throughout wildlands, agriculture, and urban environments. This project uses aphids, which are small insects that feed on plants, as a model organism. Aphids are found throughout ecosystems on many types of host plants and contain many different viruses. These viruses can impact the health and activity of both the insect and the host plants in ways that are still unknown. For this reason, this research aims to learn how inherited aphid viruses are passed on through generations while influencing the development of physical characteristics such as wings. This research also improves our ability to lessen the negative impacts of insects on agriculture while also promoting positive impacts on society. In addition, this project will engage students and agricultural communities on how interactions between viruses and insects contribute to healthy food webs and food security. This fellowship further addresses the impacts that virus-host interactions have on society by exploring the understudied role that viruses have in insect evolution. Specifically, this project uses single-stranded DNA viruses (Densovirinae) and viruses integrated into the aphid genomes (endogenous viral elements) as a tractable model system to study heritable virus-host interactions. RNA sequencing of field-collected aphids will be used to measure virus heritability, viral diversity, and the extent to which viral infection correlated with aphid wing production. CRISPR-targeted mutagenesis will be used to better understand the role of viruses integrated into host genomes. This research develops a comprehensive picture of the factors shaping heritable virus-host dynamics and the potential links to wing development while potentially uncovering previously unrecognized insect-specific viruses circulating in natural populations. This project will also promote undergraduate engagement in scientific research and generate outreach activities at local farm extension networks to improve the understanding of aphid biology and insect agricultural impact.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.

这一行动为NSF 2023财年生物学博士后研究奖学金提供了资金，综合研究调查了支配基因组、环境和表型之间相互作用的生命规则。该奖学金支持研究员的研究和培训，这些研究员将以创新的方式为生活规则领域做出贡献。昆虫是数量最多、种类最多的动物群体，和所有活着的生物一样，它们是围绕病毒感染而进化的。了解病毒对昆虫生命周期的影响对于在整个荒地、农业和城市环境中维持健康的生态系统至关重要。该项目使用以植物为食的小昆虫--蚜虫作为模式生物。在许多类型的寄主植物上的生态系统中都发现了蚜虫，它们含有许多不同的病毒。这些病毒可以以尚不清楚的方式影响昆虫和寄主植物的健康和活动。为此，这项研究旨在了解遗传的蚜虫病毒是如何在影响翅膀等物理特征发育的同时代代相传的。这项研究还提高了我们减少昆虫对农业的负面影响的能力，同时也促进了对社会的积极影响。此外，该项目将让学生和农业社区了解病毒和昆虫之间的相互作用如何有助于健康的食物网和食物安全。该奖学金通过探索病毒在昆虫进化中所扮演的未被充分研究的角色，进一步探讨了病毒与宿主的相互作用对社会的影响。具体地说，该项目使用单链DNA病毒(Densovirinae)和整合到蚜虫基因组中的病毒(内源病毒元件)作为一个易于处理的模型系统来研究可遗传的病毒与宿主的相互作用。田间采集的蚜虫的RNA测序将被用来测量病毒的遗传力、病毒多样性，以及病毒感染与蚜虫羽毛产生相关的程度。CRISPR靶向突变将用于更好地了解整合到宿主基因组中的病毒的作用。这项研究对形成可遗传病毒宿主动态的因素以及与翅膀发育的潜在联系进行了全面的描述，同时潜在地揭示了在自然种群中传播的以前未被识别的昆虫特有病毒。该项目还将促进本科生参与科学研究，并在当地农业推广网络产生外联活动，以提高对蚜虫生物学和昆虫农业影响的了解。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。