Architecture of fitness-related traits in wildlife populations

野生动物种群健康相关特征的结构

• 批准号: RGPIN-2018-04354
• 负责人: Coltman, David
• 金额: $ 5.68万
• 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: 2018
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2018-01-01 至 2019-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=647954
• 关键词: Architecture; fitness; related; traits; wildlife

Individuals vary in their phenotype, and differences among individuals are what selection acts upon. The architecture of phenotypic differences – how they are inherited and genetically determined – sets the potential for evolutionary change. The long term goal of my research program is to understand the evolutionary dynamics of phenotypic traits in wild populations by studying the architecture of trait variation and how it relates to fitness. My students and I use microsatellites and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to study heritability, the fitness consequences of inbreeding and outbreeding, and to identify the genes that underlie trait variation. This proposal applies these genetic tools to address interrelated short-term goals in four long-term studies of wild populations. The Ram Mountain bighorn sheep population has experienced intense trophy hunting and has declined since the middle of the 1990s. Rams also exhibit diminished horn growth, consistent with a response to artificial selection imposed by hunting. Over the past 10 years, sheep have been transplanted from Cadomin to provide a demographic and genetic rescue. The goal of this project is to assess the effects of genetic background, pedigree, inbreeding and specific alleles introduced during the rescue on phenotypic traits. The National Bison Range bighorn sheep population was founded in 1922 by the introduction of sheep from Banff. The population grew but suffered from inbreeding depression until it was genetically rescued through transplant of new sheep in the 1990s. The population just experienced an all-age epidemic of pneumonia in the spring of 2016, killing more than 50% of all individuals. The goal of this project is to assess whether genetic factors contribute to the survival of individuals and demographic recovery of the population as it passes through a selective bottleneck. The Kluane red squirrel population has been studied since the late 1980s and has a pedigree to a depth of ~8 generations. Theory predicts that large populations like Kluane should have high genetic load, however we know little about the importance of inbreeding depression. The goal of this project is to study the fitness consequences of inbreeding and genomic coancestry. The Sable Island grey seal population has grown exponentially over the past 50 years and is now the world's largest breeding colony. Breeding females exhibit highly repeatable maternal performance characteristics, raising the question why are some mothers better than others? The goal of this project is to estimate the repeatability of a personality trait and assess its influence on reproductive success in wild female grey seals. Assessing the architecture of ecologically important traits elevates our understanding of the evolutionary potential of wildlife populations, and will aid in predicting their responses to changing environmental conditions and human threats.*****

个体的表型各不相同，而个体之间的差异是选择的作用。表型差异的架构--它们是如何遗传和遗传决定的--设定了进化变化的可能性。我的研究计划的长期目标是通过研究性状变异的结构及其与适应度的关系来了解野生种群表型性状的进化动态。我和我的学生使用微卫星和单核苷酸多态(SNPs)来研究遗传力、近亲交配和近亲交配的适合性结果，并识别导致性状变异的基因。这项建议应用这些遗传工具来解决四项对野生种群的长期研究中相互关联的短期目标。公羊山大角羊的数量经历了激烈的战利品狩猎，自20世纪90年代中期以来一直在下降。公羊也表现出角的生长减少，这与狩猎强加的人工选择的反应一致。在过去的10年里，从卡多明移植了绵羊，以提供人口统计和遗传拯救。这个项目的目标是评估遗传背景、家系、近亲交配和在救援过程中引入的特定等位基因对表型性状的影响。国家野牛牧场大角羊种群成立于1922年，是从班夫引进的绵羊。种群数量增加了，但遭受了近亲繁殖衰退的痛苦，直到20世纪90年代通过移植新羊从基因上拯救了它。2016年春季，该国人口刚刚经历了一场全年龄段的肺炎疫情，导致超过50%的人死亡。该项目的目标是评估遗传因素是否有助于个体的生存和人口在通过选择性瓶颈时的人口恢复。Kluane红松鼠种群自20世纪80年代末被研究以来，已有8个世代的谱系。理论预测，像克鲁恩这样的大种群应该有很高的遗传负荷，但我们对近亲繁殖衰退的重要性知之甚少。这个项目的目标是研究近亲交配和基因组同源的健康后果。黑斑岛灰海豹的数量在过去50年里呈指数级增长，现在是世界上最大的繁殖群体。繁殖的雌性表现出高度可重复的母性表现特征，这引发了一个问题，为什么有些母亲比其他母亲更好？该项目的目标是评估一种性格特征的重复性，并评估其对野生雌性灰海豹繁殖成功的影响。评估生态上重要特征的架构有助于提高我们对野生动物种群进化潜力的理解，并有助于预测它们对不断变化的环境条件和人类威胁的反应。