CAREER: Exploring the Immunological Priming in Basal Metazoan (Anthozoan)

职业：探索基底后生动物（Anthozoan）的免疫启动

• 批准号: 1453519
• 负责人: Mauricio Rodriguez-Lanetty
• 金额: $ 57.5万
• 依托单位: Florida International University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2015
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2015-08-01 至 2022-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1453519&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: CAREER; Exploring; Immunological; Priming; Basal

Coral reefs are among the most biologically diverse and economically important ecosystems on the planet. However, they are at risk of demise from ongoing and impending environmental stressors and disease-causing agents. There is a need to understand the mechanisms of resistance to pathogenic stressors by corals if we are to influence the persistence of coral reefs under current challenges. Here a research program will elucidate the specificity, memory and molecular basis of the defense response of corals upon repetitive encounters with pathogens. Understanding how the immune system of these organisms responds to pathogens may offer insights into the resilience of these ecosystems, and potentially may inform remediation of them. One clear implication would be the development of immunization protocols to improve tolerance and survival of corals and their relatives. The proposed research will increase and potentially transform our understanding of the dynamic immunological response of these basal animals, which remains grossly understudied despite the ecological and economic importance of coral reefs. Furthermore, the project will build science capacity through the training and education of the next generation of American and international young scientists. The lead investigator will develop research and educational projects to support K-12, undergraduate, and graduate students within the integrated scope of the project. A strong emphasis will be placed on developing outreach programs for Hispanic high school students and other minority students from the Miami metropolitan area with the goal of generating interest in science education and facilitating growth in the recruitment and participation of these underrepresented groups in undergraduate fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. An important aspect of this educational project is the synergy between the research laboratory of an early-career scientist, a well-established Hispanic Serving Institution (Florida International University) and the local public school system in Miami-Dade County, all joined in the mission to stimulate interest in science careers through exposure to inspired teaching. Coral diseases are of great concern since they have emerged over recent decades as a significant threat to coral reef ecosystems. In order to understand and influence the persistence of coral reefs under current challenges, it is imperative to understand the mechanisms of immunological resistance to pathogens in corals and their relatives (Cnidaria, Anthozoa). The Principal Investigator will elucidate the role of immune priming in the response of anthozoans upon repetitive encounters to infectious agents. The approach uses the sea anemone model Exaiptasia pallida to determine whether the immune system of this organism exhibits specific memory in response to infectious agents, as indicated by accelerated defensive responses upon subsequent exposures to pathogens, a phenomenon that remains largely unknown in basal metazoans. This research also investigates the lasting effect of induced protective response upon multiple repetitive pathogenic encounters. Furthermore, transcriptomic profiles and histological approaches will be used to facilitate the discovery of the molecular and cellular mechanisms underpinning the phenomenon of immune priming.

珊瑚礁是地球上生物学上最多样化和经济上重要的生态系统之一。但是，它们面临着持续和即将发生的环境压力源和引起疾病的药物而灭亡的风险。如果我们要在当前挑战下影响珊瑚礁的持久性，则需要了解珊瑚对致病应激源的抗性机制。在这里，一项研究计划将阐明珊瑚在与病原体重复相遇时的防御反应的特异性，记忆和分子基础。了解这些生物的免疫系统如何反应病原体可能会提供对这些生态系统弹性的见解，并可能为它们的补救提供了信息。一个明显的含义是开发免疫方案，以提高珊瑚及其亲戚的容忍度和生存。拟议的研究将增加并有可能改变我们对这些基底动物的动态免疫反应的理解，尽管珊瑚礁的生态和经济重要性，这些基础动物仍被严重研究。此外，该项目将通过对下一代美国和国际年轻科学家的培训和教育来增强科学能力。首席研究人员将开发研究和教育项目，以支持该项目综合范围内的K-12，本科生和研究生。 将非常重视为西班牙裔高中学生和来自迈阿密大都会地区的其他少数族裔学生制定推广计划，目的是引起对科学教育的兴趣，并促进这些在科学，技术，工程，工程，工程学和数学的本科生领域中这些不足的群体的招募和参与。该教育项目的一个重要方面是早期职业科学家的研究实验室，一家成熟的西班牙裔服务机构（佛罗里达国际大学）与迈阿密戴德县的当地公立学校系统之间的协同作用，所有这些都涉及通过暴露于受启发的教学来激发科学职业的兴趣。珊瑚疾病非常关注，因为它们在近几十年来一直是对珊瑚礁生态系统的重大威胁。为了理解和影响当前挑战下珊瑚礁的持续性，必须了解珊瑚及其亲戚（Cnidaria，anthozoa）免疫抗病性的机制。首席研究者将阐明免疫启动在贫血反应中对反传感剂的反应的作用。该方法使用pallida的海葵模型释放症来确定该生物的免疫系统是否表现出对感染剂的特定记忆，如随后对病原体暴露时加速的防御性反应所表明的那样，这种现象在基础梅唑人中仍然在很大程度上尚不清楚。这项研究还研究了诱导的保护反应对多种重复致病性遭遇的持久作用。此外，将使用转录组谱和组织学方法来促进发现免疫启动现象的分子和细胞机制。