Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biological Informatics for FY 2000

这一行动资助了NSF 2000年生物信息学博士后研究奖学金。该研究和培训计划是在生态和进化生理学领域，是分析宿主-寄生虫特征进化的系统发育比较方法。这项提议的目的是开发比较方法来测试相关进化。以往对寄主-寄生虫进化的研究提供了寄主和寄生虫系统发育树的一致性分析，但未能刻画和描述对性状进化的相关/因果效应。本研究的目的是：1.使用模拟技术，通过计算机模拟，确定不同水平的寄主-寄生树一致性在性状进化的比较研究中的统计结果；2.开发一个系统，当寄生树不完全一致时，最大限度地减少统计偏差和不一致性；3.将这些方法应用于真实世界的数据集，以检验灵长类和食肉动物中寄生-寄生树特征进化的假设。这项研究将极大地促进对进化论的认识。

This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biological Informatics for 2000.The research and training plan is in the area of Ecological and Evolutionary Physiology and is Phylogenetic Comparative Methods to Analyze Host-Parasite Trait Evolution". The aim of this proposal is to develop comparative methods to test for correlated evolution. Previous investigations of host-parasite evolution have provided analyses of the congruence of the phylogenetic trees of hosts and parasites, yet have failed to characterize and describe correlative/causal effects on trait evolution. The aims of this research are 1. To use simulation techniques to identify the statistical consequences of different levels of host-parasite tree congruence on comparative studies of trait evolution, via computer simulation 2. Develop a system that minimizes statistical bias and inconsistency when host-parasite trees are not fully congruent, and 3. Apply these methods to real-world datasets to test hypotheses for host-parasite trait evolution in primates and carnivores. This research will contribute greatly to knowledge of evolution.