Functional Genomics and Mosquito Innate Immunity

描述（申请人提供）：在研究生学习期间，我将在基本生物学原理和技术的基础上，利用生物化学，遗传学，细胞和分子技术来了解蚊子宿主与其传播的病原体之间的关系。蚊子对寄生虫产生抗性或易感的机制在很大程度上是未知的。我的研究兴趣源于缺乏对宿主和病原体各自和共同发生的情况的了解。我将利用对亚信天翁阿蚊所做的初步研究，作为理解先天免疫系统反应的细胞方面的基础，重点是血细胞。此外，我将使用现有的EST数据集，从免疫激活的血细胞cDNA文库中获得，对该宿主的转录组进行功能基因组评估，以及它如何响应寄生虫感染而变化。这将作为比较研究的基础，并允许增加对载体能力的影响以及驱动先天免疫反应的成分和机制的理解。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): During my graduate study, I will build on the foundation of basic biological principles and techniques in order to utilize biochemical, genetic, cellular and molecular techniques to understand the relationship between the mosquito host and the pathogens it transmits. The mechanism by which mosquitoes function to either be resistant or susceptible to parasites is largely unknown. My research interests stem from this lack of knowledge of what is occurring in the host and pathogen, individually and cooperatively. I will use preliminary work done with the mosquito Armigeres subalbatus, as a basis for understanding the cellular aspects of the innate immune system response, with emphasis on hemocytes. Also, I will use existing EST data sets, obtained from immune-activated hemocyte cDNA libraries, to employ a functional genomic evaluation of the transcriptome of this host, and how it changes in response to parasite infection. This will serve as a basis for comparative studies, and allow for an increased understanding of the implications of vector competence and the components and mechanisms that drive the innate immune response.