Predicting disease risk from community context and host phenotype: A trait-based approach

从社区背景和宿主表型预测疾病风险：基于性状的方法

• 批准号: 0923671
• 负责人: Charles Mitchell
• 金额: $ 67.5万
• 依托单位: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
• 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: 2009-09-01 至 2013-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0923671&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Predicting; disease; risk; community; context

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).This project will test whether an individual's risk of acquiring an infectious disease is determined by a handful of easily measured ecological traits of the host individual (i.e., host phenotype), and of other host species that are potential sources of infection (community context). Experiments will be conducted using a model system for multi-host vector-borne pathogens: barley yellow dwarf viruses, aphid (insect) vectors that transmit them, and 20 wild grass host species. First, greenhouse experiments will quantify the phenotypes of these grass species at low and high nitrogen (nutrient) availability. Phenotypes will be quantified based on a suite of physiological traits including rate of photosynthesis, concentration of nutrients in leaves, leaf growth rate, and leaf lifespan. Hosts with high nutrient concentrations are expected to also have high metabolic rates (comprising quick-return or QR phenotypes) while hosts with low nutrient concentrations will have low metabolic rates (slow-return or SR phenotypes). Greenhouse experiments will also test whether QR phenotypes are more heavily fed upon by aphids, are more susceptible to infection by feeding aphids, and are better able to withstand the negative impacts of infection than SR phenotypes. Field experiments will test whether QR phenotypes experience greater risk than SR phenotypes of disease transmission from other host species, and whether that risk depends on community context. The field experiments will test whether increased nutrient availability, a major result of human activities, alters disease risk. Predicting risk of disease is a critical ecological, agricultural, and public health goal. Of particular concern are vector-borne diseases that infect multiple host species. For example, West Nile virus is transmitted to humans (hosts) chiefly by mosquitoes (vectors) that fed on infected birds (hosts). Similarly, most pathogens of crops also infect wild plant host species. Understanding sources of risk will improve management of diseases in wild and domestic plants and animals, as well as humans. This project will involve both undergraduate and graduate students, and results will be communicated to citizens ranging from local high school students to public health professionals.

该奖项根据 2009 年美国复苏和再投资法案（公法 111-5）提供资金。该项目将测试一个人感染传染病的风险是否由宿主个体的一些易于测量的生态特征决定（即， 、宿主表型）以及作为潜在感染源的其他宿主物种（社区环境）。 实验将使用多宿主媒介传播病原体的模型系统进行：大麦黄矮病毒、传播它们的蚜虫（昆虫）媒介和 20 种野草宿主物种。 首先，温室实验将量化这些草种在低氮（养分）利用率和高氮（养分）利用率下的表型。 表型将根据一系列生理特征进行量化，包括光合作用速率、叶子中营养物质的浓度、叶子生长速率和叶子寿命。 营养浓度高的宿主预计也具有高代谢率（包括快速返回或 QR 表型），而营养浓度低的宿主将具有低代谢率（慢返回或 SR 表型）。 温室实验还将测试QR表型是否更容易被蚜虫取食，是否更容易受到取食蚜虫的感染，以及是否比SR表型能够更好地承受感染的负面影响。 现场实验将测试 QR 表型是否比 SR 表型经历来自其他宿主物种的疾病传播更大的风险，以及该风险是否取决于社区环境。 现场实验将测试人类活动的主要结果——营养物质可用性的增加是否会改变疾病风险。 预测疾病风险是一个重要的生态、农业和公共卫生目标。 特别值得关注的是感染多种宿主物种的媒介传播疾病。 例如，西尼罗河病毒主要通过以受感染鸟类（宿主）为食的蚊子（媒介）传播给人类（宿主）。同样，大多数农作物的病原体也感染野生植物宿主物种。 了解风险来源将改善对野生和家养动植物以及人类疾病的管理。 该项目将涉及本科生和研究生，结果将传达给从当地高中生到公共卫生专业人员等公民。