DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Olfactory reproductive isolating mechanisms in swordtail fishes

剑尾鱼是原产于中美洲的活产鱼类，是研究动物行为，特别是配偶选择的极好模型。在许多剑尾鱼中，雄性的尾鳍上有一个细长的装饰物，称为“剑”，这是为了回应雌性的交配偏好而进化的。雌性也喜欢自己物种雄性的气味（信息素）。最近的研究表明，嗅觉偏好是积极或消极影响的早期学习经验，这取决于物种。X.例如，malinche不喜欢熟悉的雄性气味，而它的姐妹物种X。动物的嗅觉是由鼻子中的嗅觉细胞产生的，这些细胞表达气味受体基因，每种基因都对一组特定的分子有特异性。剑尾鱼的气味受体基因大约有200种。这项研究将使用高通量DNA测序来观察在生命早期暴露于不同成年物种的鱼类中每个气味受体基因的拷贝数。通过比较三个实验组的表达模式，我们将试图找出专门用于检测物种特异性信息素线索的候选受体。更广泛的影响：这项研究可以帮助我们了解学习和大脑发育如何在分子水平上工作。在这个项目中，一到两名本科生将接受生物计算和编程方面的培训。热门文章将继续提供给Fishchum（http：//fishchum.okstate.edu/），这是一个连接鱼类生物学家和水族学家的网络平台。这些研究的结果将提供给多语种读者，因为文章将以英文、中文和西班牙文撰写，一些研究结果将通过流行的业余爱好者网站和/或杂志进行宣传。

Swordtails (Xiphophorus) are live-bearing fishes native to Central America and they are excellent models for studying animal behavior, especially mate choice. In many swordtails, males have an elongated ornament on their tail fins called a "sword", which has evolved in response to female mating preferences. Females also prefer the smell (pheromone) of males of their own species. Recent studies revealed that olfactory preference is either positively or negatively affected by early learning experience, depending on the species. X. malinche, for example, dislike the familiar male smell while its sister species X. birchmanni prefers it. Animals smell thanks to olfactory cells in their noses, which express odorant receptor genes, each specific to a particular set of molecules. There are about 200 types of odorant receptor genes in a Xiphophorus. This study will use high-throughput DNA sequencing to look at how many copies of each odorant receptor gene are expressed in the fish exposed to different adult species early in life. By comparing the expression patterns across the three experimental groups, we will try to pinpoint candidate receptors that are specialized for detecting species-specific pheromone cues. Broader impacts: This study can help us understand how learning and brain development work at a molecular level. During this project, one to two undergraduate students will be trained in biological computing and programming. Popular articles will continue to be contributed to Fishchum (http://fishchum.okstate.edu/), a web platform connecting fish biologists and aquarists. The findings from these studies will reach a multilingual audience as articles will be written in English, Chinese and Spanish and some findings will be used for outreach via popular hobbyist websites and/or magazines.