DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Mate choice, parasites and immune response in Western bluebirds"

寄生虫可以影响宿主生活的许多方面，包括它们选择的配偶。动物可能会与受寄生较少的个体交配，通过这样做，确保抗寄生虫的基因传递给它们的后代。大量的工作集中在研究寄生虫如何通过测量免疫反应来影响配偶选择，并确定首选配偶是否有更强的免疫反应。这是假设免疫反应越强，感染宿主的寄生虫就越少。然而，这种假设很少得到验证。此外，许多研究发现了相互矛盾的结果，一些研究报告称，首选伴侣的免疫反应更强，而另一些研究报告的结果恰恰相反。祖克博士和雅各布斯女士将通过对西部蓝鸟进行的一项实验，阐明免疫在决定寄生虫水平和配偶选择方面的作用。他们将使用喂养试验来研究免疫反应如何影响野生鸟类体内寄生虫的水平。在试验中，一些个体接受补充食物，而另一些个体单独作为对照。补充食物已被证明可以使个体产生更强的免疫反应；如果强烈的免疫反应总是导致较低的寄生虫负荷，那么喂食的鸟类应该有更少的寄生虫，免疫力更强和寄生虫更少的鸟类应该被首选为配偶。研究人员将使用新的分子方法来精确测量禽疟疾的感染，禽疟疾是一种常见的鸟类寄生虫。这个项目将帮助研究人员更好地了解是什么影响了野生动物的免疫反应和寄生虫水平。这些知识对人类健康具有重要影响，因为人类中许多新出现的疾病来自动物。这个项目的成果将通过开放获取的期刊广泛传播，项目本身将提供一个在基本领域和研究技术方面培训本科生研究助理的机会。

Parasites can influence many aspects of their hosts' lives, including the mates they chose. Animals may mate with less-parasitized individuals, and, by doing so, ensure that genes for parasite resistance are passed on to their offspring. A large body of work has focused on examining how parasites influence mate choice by measuring immune response and determining whether preferred mates have a stronger immune response. This assumes that a stronger immune response results in fewer parasites infecting the host. However, this assumption is rarely tested. Moreover, many studies have found conflicting results, with some reporting that preferred mates have a stronger immune response, while others report the exact opposite result. Dr. Zuk and Ms. Jacobs will clarify the role of immunity in determining parasite levels and mate choice using an experiment conducted on western bluebirds. They will use feeding trials, in which some individuals receive supplemental food, while others are left alone as controls, to examine how immune response influences parasite levels in wild birds. Supplemental food has been shown to allow individuals to mount a stronger immune response; if a strong immune response always results in lower parasite loads, then fed birds should have fewer parasites, and birds with stronger immunity and fewer parasites should be preferred as mates. The investigators will use new molecular methods to accurately measure infection with avian malaria, a common parasite of birds. This project will help researchers better understand what affects immune response and parasite levels in wild animals. Such knowledge has important consequences for human health, as many emerging diseases in humans come from animals. Results of this project will be broadly disseminated using open access journals, and the project itself will provide an opportunity to train undergraduate research assistants in basic field and research techniques.