Convergent multispecies interactions in coprophagous pitcher plant species

在这里，我们提出了一个多学科的合作项目，来自四个国家的五所大学的研究小组参与其中。我们将研究猪笼草物种独立地进化出共噬作为新的营养获取策略，以及它们与哺乳动物互惠合作伙伴和植物消化液中微生物群落的相互作用。通过比较共食性植物物种之间以及与它们捕捉节肢动物的近亲的比较，我和我的合作者将揭示它们与微生物群落可能的趋同适应和趋同相互作用。我们将研究这些多物种相互作用和植物特征的共同性和差异性。这些结果将使我们能够就推动这些相互作用演变的选择压力得出结论。除了关于这些特定系统的许多有趣的有待回答的研究问题(例如，为什么这些植物从肉食性转变为中食性作为首选的营养获取策略)，这个项目还将阐明互惠研究中一些最有趣的一般性问题：1)伴侣物种的哪些特征促进了互惠互动？2)互惠互动是否包括在更大的参与者网络中，例如微生物，如果是这样的话，不同的物种是如何相互作用的？3)在相似类型的互惠作用中能找到相似的适应和群落结构吗？4)在种间相互作用中，导致趋同适应和群落结构的选择压力是什么？为了解决这些问题，我和我的合作者将进行详细的现场和实验室实验，并使用最先进的技术，如下一代测序和元蛋白质组学。研究结果将可应用于广泛的互惠互利，例如进一步的动植物互惠和它们的微生物相互作用伙伴。此外，该项目将有助于更好地了解其他消化互惠作用，包括蚂蚁-植物互惠作用以及动物和肠道内微生物之间的互惠作用。最后，通过对这些动物-植物-微生物相互作用提供新的见解，我们希望启发关于互惠共生的起源和进化的新的理论方法。

Here we propose a multidisciplinary, collaborative project that involves research groups from five universities in four countries. We will investigate pitcher plant species that independently evolved coprophagy as novel nutrient acquisition strategy and their interactions with mammal mutualism partners and the microbial communities within the plants' digestive fluid. By comparing coprophagous plant species with each other and with their arthropod-capturing relatives my collaborators and I will reveal possible convergent adaptations and convergent interactions with their microbial communities. We will study the communalities and the differences of these multispecies interactions and of the plants' traits. These results will allow us to draw conclusions on the selective pressures that drive the evolution of these interactions. In addition to many fascinating research questions on these specific systems that remain to be answered (e.g., why these plants switched from carnivory to coprophagy as preferred nutrient-acquisition strategy), this project will shed light on some of the most interesting general questions in mutualistic research: 1) Which traits of the partner species facilitate mutualistic interactions? 2) Are mutualistic interactions included in a larger network of further participants, e.g., microbes, and if this is the case, how do the different involved species interact? 3) Can similar adaptations and community structures be found in similar types of mutualisms? 4) What are the selective pressures leading to convergent adaptations and community structures in interspecific interactions? To address these questions, my collaborators and I will conduct elaborated field and lab experiments and use state-of-the-art technologies such as Next Generation Sequencing and metaproteomics. The results will be transferable to a wide range of mutualisms, e.g., to further animal-plant mutualisms and their microbial interaction partners. Moreover, this project will contribute to a better understanding of other digestive mutualisms, including ant-plant mutualisms and mutualisms between animals and microbes in their intestinal tracts. Finally, by providing novel insights into these animal-plant-microbe interactions we hope to inspire novel theoretical approaches on the origin and evolution of mutualisms.