Chemical Basis for Prey Selection in Pelagic Cnidarians: ROW Career Advancement Award

一个重要的生态海洋动物群是水母或刺胞动物。它们是生活在海洋表面附近的漂流动物的主要组成部分，不同的物种对猎物的选择也不同。只有当猎物与水母接触时，水母才会使用触角上的刺细胞（刺胞细胞）来捕捉猎物。因此，观察到的对鱼类或甲壳类动物的选择性进食需要水母的一些感官机制来区分猎物。本研究将利用现代神经生理学技术对刺细胞进行贴片夹紧，并解决是否存在一些化学感觉调节刺的释放的重要问题。这一职业晋升奖的影响将大大提高Jennifer Purcell博士的职业能力，其结果将对化学感觉科学、动物行为、神经生物学和海洋生物学具有重要意义。

A major ecologically important group of marine animals are the jellyfish, or cnidarians. They form a major part of the drifting animals living near the ocean surface, and different species show different selection of prey animals on which they feed. Jellyfish capture their prey animals by using the stinging cells (cnidocytes) in the tentacles only when the prey comes into contact with the jellyfish. So the observed selective feeding on either fish or crustaceans requires some sensory mechanism for the jellyfish to distinguish prey. This study will use modern neurophysiological techniques of patch-clamping on the stinging cells, and address the important question of whether there is some chemosensory regulation of release of the stingers. The impact of this Career Advancement Award will enhance Dr. Jennifer Purcell's career capability significantly, and results will be important to chemosensory science, animal behavior, neurobiology, and marine biology.