The biology of fish olfaction: amino acids and Ga-proteins

鱼类嗅觉的生物学：氨基酸和 Ga 蛋白

• 批准号: 385930-2012
• 负责人: Tierney, Keith
• 金额: $ 2.33万
• 依托单位: University of Alberta
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2017
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2017-01-01 至 2018-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=630653
• 关键词: biology; fish; olfaction; amino; acids

The sense of smell (olfaction) is a major route by which organisms gather information from their environment. The external cues can induce a diverse array of responses, ranging from internal physiological adjustments to complex behaviours. In fish, dissolved amino acids are essential do numerous behaviours, ranging from food location, to predator avoidance, to migration. At present we know that amino acids can be detected by three morphologically distinct sensory neurons, but what is not known is how these different neurons work together to evoke behavioural responses. The central goal of my research is to help solve this olfactory puzzle, by characterizing what type of olfactory sensory neuron receptor responds to which odorant to eventually evoke a given outcome? My long-term research has three objectives: i) to link olfactory receptors to odours and the organismal responses they evoke, ii) to explore how these relationships may change during the lifecycle of a fish when varying demands are placed on olfaction, and iii) to determine the ramifications of impaired olfaction over such lifecycles. This Discovery proposal details two first steps to meet these objectives. Firstly, in order to link odours to receptors, a pathway is needed to focus research on a subset of the ~150 receptors fish have. I propose to temporarily disable the machinery that links odour receptors to cellular responses as this effectively divides the receptors into four groups. These groups also appear to be associated with different organism-level responses. Secondly, a method is needed to detect what an odour-receptor pairing evokes. As many odours evoke motion, my research will explore how odours evoke different types of activities. The research will also explore how changes in odour perception affect swimming activity, as many natural and synthetic agents impair olfaction. This grant is about the importance of amino acids to olfaction in fishes, and more broadly, it is about how complex signals are perceived and used to direct animals through the changing nature of the present environment.

嗅觉（嗅觉）是生物体从环境中收集信息的主要途径。外部线索可以引发多种反应，从内部生理调整到复杂行为。对于鱼类来说，溶解的氨基酸对于许多行为至关重要，从食物位置到躲避捕食者，再到迁徙。目前我们知道氨基酸可以通过三个形态不同的感觉神经元来检测，但尚不清楚这些不同的神经元如何协同工作以引起行为反应。我研究的中心目标是通过表征哪种类型的嗅觉感觉神经元受体对哪种气味做出反应以最终引起给定的结果来帮助解决这个嗅觉难题？我的长期研究有三个目标：i）将嗅觉受体与气味及其引起的有机反应联系起来，ii）探索当对嗅觉的需求不同时，这些关系在鱼的生命周期中如何变化，以及iii）确定嗅觉受损在这些生命周期中的影响。该发现提案详细介绍了实现这些目标的两个首要步骤。首先，为了将气味与受体联系起来，需要一条途径来集中研究鱼类所拥有的约 150 个受体的子集。我建议暂时禁用将气味受体与细胞反应联系起来的机制，因为这可以有效地将受体分为四组。这些群体似乎也与不同的生物体水平反应相关。其次，需要一种方法来检测气味受体配对会引起什么。由于许多气味会引起运动，我的研究将探讨气味如何引起不同类型的活动。该研究还将探讨气味感知的变化如何影响游泳活动，因为许多天然和合成物质会损害嗅觉。这项资助是关于氨基酸对鱼类嗅觉的重要性，更广泛地说，它是关于如何感知和使用复杂的信号来指导动物适应当前环境不断变化的性质。