A genome informatics approach to discover the genetic determinants of the evolution of parasitism in nematode worms.

一种基因组信息学方法，用于发现线虫寄生进化的遗传决定因素。

• 批准号: RGPIN-2015-06239
• 负责人: Wasmuth, James
• 金额: $ 2.48万
• 依托单位: University of Calgary
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2016
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2016-01-01 至 2017-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=614029
• 关键词: genome; informatics; approach; discover; genetic

Species of nematodes are ubiquitous, and significant parasites of animals and plants. This parasitism has evolved multiple times independently from free-living ancestral species. The biological mechanisms that support parasitism are encoded in the nematodes’ genomes. The long-term objectives of my research program are to understand which regions of the genome evolved, and how this leads to the origin and maintenance of the behaviour and biochemical traits that we observe in today’s parasitic nematodes. Using a combination of genomics, bioinformatics and evolutionary biology approaches, my research program examines the evolution of gene duplications and growth of gene families in the genomes of both free-living and parasitic nematodes of livestock animals. Large gene families are implicated in responding to an organism’s response to its environment. Changes in these gene families frequently correlate to the adaptation of a new environment, which can lead to the emergence of a new species. The fully sequenced genomes of over 20 nematode species of interest – Caenorhabditis (free-living) and Strongylida (livestock parasites) – enable us to test various key questions in species evolution. We will determine whether different gene families are evolving rapidly in free-living and parasitic species. We will identify those gene families that are evolving in parallel in species that have independently adapted to the parasitism of cattle. The genetic determinants that enable closely related species of Haemonchus to adapt to parasitism of different hosts will also be identified. Finally, we will use gene expression and protein structural data to predict how protein function changes in these important gene families. Overall, these research objectives aim to significantly improve our understanding of how the genome evolves in response to new environments and how these changes support the adaptation and fixation in that new environment. This has implications across a broad range of species, not only parasites.

线虫种类普遍存在，是动植物的重要寄生虫。这种寄生性已经独立于自由生活的祖先物种进化了多次。支持寄生的生物机制编码在线虫的基因组中。我的研究计划的长期目标是了解基因组的哪些区域进化，以及这如何导致我们在今天的寄生线虫中观察到的行为和生化特征的起源和维持。使用基因组学，生物信息学和进化生物学方法的组合，我的研究计划检查基因复制和基因家族的生长在家畜动物的自由生活和寄生线虫的基因组中的进化。大型基因家族与生物体对其环境的反应有关。这些基因家族的变化通常与新环境的适应相关，这可能导致新物种的出现。超过20个感兴趣的线虫物种的基因组完全测序-小杆线虫（自由生活）和圆线虫（家畜寄生虫）-使我们能够测试物种进化中的各种关键问题。我们将确定不同的基因家族是否在自由生活和寄生物种中迅速进化。我们将确定那些基因家族是平行进化的物种，独立适应牛的寄生。还将确定使密切相关的血矛线虫物种适应不同宿主寄生的遗传决定因素。最后，我们将使用基因表达和蛋白质结构数据来预测这些重要基因家族中蛋白质功能的变化。总的来说，这些研究目标旨在显著提高我们对基因组如何响应新环境而进化以及这些变化如何支持新环境中的适应和固定的理解。这对广泛的物种都有影响，而不仅仅是寄生虫。