BRC-BIO: The effects of nanoparticle matter in air pollution on a sentinel species: House sparrows as the new Canary in the Coalmine

人类活动及其相关环境污染物的增加现在被认为是野生物种数量下降的主要原因。截至2020年，世界上估计已经失去了三分之二的动物种群，构成了第六次全球大规模灭绝事件。尽管人们越来越意识到空气污染对人类健康的影响，但对空气中颗粒物如何影响非人类人群的了解甚少。鸟类的呼吸解剖结构使它们对空气中的颗粒物特别敏感;因此，鸣禽可以作为整个生态系统空气污染问题的哨兵物种。该项目的总体目标是表征空气污染中颗粒物的纳米级部分如何影响暴露的生物体，特别是鸟类的生理和行为。在实现这一科学目标的同时，每年有4名本科生研究人员将监督所有数据收集。此外，研究生和PI还将与现有的校园外展计划ExploreHope合作，开发和领导为期一周的夏令营，名为“愤怒的小鸟起源：污染如何影响鸟类社区”。该夏令营将每年为15名来自传统上代表性不足背景的当地K-12学生提供奖学金，以帮助促进当地社区，K-12学生和本科研究人员之间的关系，最终目标是提高STEM中多样化学生的保留率。该项目的重点是实验研究氧化铁纳米颗粒（IONP）对鸣禽模型，麻雀（麻雀）的影响。家雀是一种理想的模式生物，因为它们栖息在人类占主导地位的地区，特别容易受到空气污染的影响。离子型纳米颗粒是大气污染中颗粒物的主要组成部分之一。总体假设是IONP暴露将通过对听觉感觉处理的神经性影响和/或通过纳米颗粒的生物累积来破坏生物体的行为。第一个目标是测试IONP暴露降低听力灵敏度的预测。野生捕获的鸟类将被分配到对照组或治疗组，并将接受暴露前和暴露后的听觉测试。初步数据表明，IONP暴露会对听力阈值产生不良影响。第二个目标是测试的预测，IONP暴露改变物种相关的行为。IONP暴露后的行为测试将评估觅食和反捕食反应的变化。这些行为与生物学相关，并与生物适应性有关。第三个目标是定位和量化IONP在相关器官中的积累。我们将通过电感耦合等离子体（ICP）评估IONP的器官生物累积。这项跨学科的工作将跨越霍普学院的生物和化学系，霍普学院是一所研究驱动的本科院校。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The rise of anthropogenic activities and their associated environmental pollutants are now considered a major contributor to population declines in wild species. As of 2020, the world had lost an estimated two-thirds of its animal populations, constituting a sixth global mass extinction event. Despite growing awareness of the consequences of air pollution on human health, there is little understanding of how airborne particulate matter affects non-human populations. The respiratory anatomy of avian species makes them uniquely susceptible to airborne particulates; songbirds can therefore serve as a sentinel species for ecosystem-wide air pollution concerns. The overall objective of this project is to characterize how the nanosized fraction of particulate matter in air pollution affects both the physiology and behavior of exposed organisms, in particular birds. While addressing this scientific goal, 4 undergraduate researchers per year will oversee all data collection. In addition, the research students and PIs will also partner with ExploreHope, an existing on-campus outreach program, to develop and lead a weeklong summer camp titled, Angry bird origins: How pollution affects avian communities. This camp will provide scholarships for 15 local K-12 students from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds per year to help foster relationships between the local community, K-12 students, and undergraduate researchers with the ultimate goal of increasing the retention of diverse students in STEM. This project focuses on experimentally investigating the impact of iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) on a songbird model, the house sparrow (Passer domesticus). House sparrows are an ideal model organism because they inhabit human dominated areas and could be particularly susceptible to airborne pollution. IONPs are one of the main components of the particulate matter fraction in air pollution. The overarching hypothesis is IONP exposure will disrupt the organism’s behavior by either detrimentally affecting auditory sensory processing and/or through bioaccumulation of nanoparticles. The first objective is to test the prediction that IONP exposure decreases hearing sensitivity. Wild-caught birds will be assigned into either a control or treatment group and will undergo a pre- and post-exposure auditory tests. Preliminary data suggests that IONP exposure detrimentally effects hearing thresholds. The second objective is to test the prediction that IONP exposure alters species-relevant behaviors. Behavioral tests after IONPs exposure will assess changes in foraging and the anti-predator response. These behaviors are biologically relevant and linked to biological fitness. The third objective is to localize and quantify the accumulation of IONPs in relevant organs. We will assess the organ bioaccumulation of IONPs via inductively coupled plasma (ICP). This interdisciplinary work will span the biology and chemistry departments at Hope College, a research-driven undergraduate institution.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.