Nutritional, environmental, and genetic regulation of toxicity and growth in Dinophysis

恐龙毒性和生长的营养、环境和遗传调控

• 批准号: 0850421
• 负责人: Donald Anderson
• 金额: $ 74.74万
• 依托单位: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2009
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2009-05-01 至 2013-04-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0850421&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Nutritional; environmental; genetic; regulation; toxicity

The dinoflagellate genus Dinophysis is important from ecological, evolutionary, and public health perspectives. In the former category, some members of this genus derive their nutrition through a unique, multi-stage process requiring cryptophyte and ciliate prey. Evolutionarily, the modification of cryptophyte chloroplasts during feeding and their subsequent utilization for photosynthesis provides a model system for investigations of plastid acquisition and evolution. From the public health perspective, Dinophysis species are responsible for the vast majority of diarrhetic shellfish poisoning (DSP) cases. DSP is a syndrome predominantly associated with consumption of shellfish that have accumulated Dinophysis toxins. It is a major health and economic problem for many countries and is among the most important and widespread of the harmful algal bloom (HAB)-associated poisoning syndromes.For decades, many aspects of Dinophysis physiology, toxicity, and genetics have remained intractable due to our inability to grow and maintain these organisms in laboratory cultures. As a result of a recent breakthrough, however, this obstacle no longer exists and an array of important experiments and measurements are now possible. The opportunities for major advances on multiple fronts are significant. The investigators will conduct a comprehensive study to investigate nutritional, environmental, and genetic regulation of toxicity and growth in Dinophysis. Their overall hypothesis is that toxin variability in Dinophysis is regulated not only by genetic differences among Dinophysis species and strains, but also by differences in ciliate and cryptophyte food availability and quality, and by environmental influences as well. They will establish and genetically characterize a geographically diverse culture collection that will include a variety of isolates of Dinophysis, Myrionecta and other ciliates, and cryptophytes. Much of this culture collection has already been assembled in advance of this submission. The culture assemblage will then be used to investigate Dinophysis and ciliate feeding selectivity, grazing rates, and growth. The next major objective is to explore mechanisms underlying toxin variability in Dinophysis. This will include analysis of geographically dispersed Dinophysis isolates fed with an array of ciliates and cryptophytes, as well as an examination of the role of environmental factors such as temperature, light, and nutrients in toxin production. The research project will rely on a proven system and methods - cultures of Dinophysis that have been growing at high rates in the PI's laboratory many months, established experimental protocols, and sophisticated toxin chemistry using state-of-the-art instruments and techniques. This project will begin to answer longstanding questions in dinoflagellate physiology, ecology, toxicity, and evolution while providing valuable information on a significant public health and economic problem.Broader Impacts. This project lends itself to undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral training. PI Anderson will support a PhD student on this project and will involve several undergraduate interns in the study as well. Anderson typically supports several Northeastern University interns who work in the laboratory for 6 months to obtain experience to guide education and career options. Postdoctoral Scholar Juliette Smith will participate in the toxin analysis, on a WHOI fellowship. The resulting culture collection will be shared with others working in this field to accelerate scientific progress. Project results will be broadly disseminated through scientific papers, presentations at workshops, conferences, and seminars, and discussions with the media. Furthermore, since the organisms being studied are responsible for a major form of shellfish poisoning that affects countries throughout the world, this project has significant practical implications that readily satisfy the criterion fostering connections between discoveries and their use in the service of society.

从生态、进化和公共卫生的角度来看，甲藻属 Dinophys 非常重要。在前一类中，该属的一些成员通过独特的多阶段过程获取营养，需要隐植物和纤毛虫猎物。从进化角度来说，隐植物叶绿体在摄食过程中的修饰及其随后用于光合作用的作用为研究质体获得和进化提供了一个模型系统。从公共卫生的角度来看，绝大多数腹泻性贝类中毒 (DSP) 病例都是由恐龙物种造成的。 DSP 是一种主要与食用积累了 Dinophys 毒素的贝类有关的综合征。对于许多国家来说，它是一个重大的健康和经济问题，并且是与有害藻华 (HAB) 相关的中毒综合征中最重要和最广泛的一种。几十年来，由于藻华的影响，Dinophys 生理学、毒性和遗传学的许多方面仍然难以解决。我们无法在实验室培养物中培养和维持这些生物体。然而，由于最近的突破，这一障碍不再存在，并且现在可以进行一系列重要的实验和测量。在多个方面取得重大进展的机会是巨大的。研究人员将进行一项全面的研究，以调查恐龙的毒性和生长的营养、环境和遗传调控。他们的总体假设是，甲藻中的毒素变异不仅受到甲藻物种和品系之间遗传差异的调节，而且还受到纤毛虫和隐植物食物可用性和质量的差异以及环境影响的调节。他们将建立一个地理上多样化的培养物保藏库并对其进行遗传表征，其中包括恐龙、Myrionecta 和其他纤毛虫以及隐植物的各种分离株。在提交本次提交之前，大部分文化收藏品已经收集完毕。然后，该培养物组合将用于研究甲龙和纤毛虫的摄食选择性、放牧率和生长。下一个主要目标是探索恐龙中毒素变异的机制。这将包括对以一系列纤毛虫和隐植物为食的地理上分散的恐龙分离株进行分析，以及检查温度、光照和营养物质等环境因素在毒素产生中的作用。该研究项目将依赖于经过验证的系统和方法——在 PI 实验室中数月以来高速生长的 Dinophys 培养物、既定的实验方案以及使用最先进仪器和技术的复杂毒素化学。该项目将开始回答甲藻生理学、生态学、毒性和进化方面长期存在的问题，同时提供有关重大公共卫生和经济问题的宝贵信息。更广泛的影响。该项目适合本科生、研究生和博士后培训。 PI Anderson 将支持一名博士生参与该项目，并将让几名本科生实习生参与该研究。安德森通常支持几名东北大学实习生在实验室工作 6 个月，以获得指导教育和职业选择的经验。博士后学者 Juliette Smith 将通过 WHOI 奖学金参与毒素分析。由此产生的培养物收集将与该领域的其他工作人员共享，以加速科学进步。项目成果将通过科学论文、讲习班、会议和研讨会的演示以及与媒体的讨论来广泛传播。此外，由于正在研究的生物体是影响世界各国的贝类中毒的主要形式，因此该项目具有重大的实际意义，很容易满足促进发现及其在社会服务中的使用之间的联系的标准。