ANT LIA Collaborative Research: Interrogating Molecular and Physiological Adaptations in Antarctic Marine Animals.

ANT LIA 合作研究：探究南极海洋动物的分子和生理适应。

• 批准号: 1935635
• 负责人: Scott Santagata
• 金额: $ 15.22万
• 依托单位: Long Island University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2020
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2020-06-01 至 2025-05-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1935635&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: ANT; LIA; Collaborative; Research; Interrogating

The Antarctic benthic marine invertebrate communities are currently experiencing rapid environmental change due to the combined effects of global warming, ocean acidification, and the potential for ice-shelf collapse. Colonial invertebrate animals called bryozoans create specialized ‘reef-like’ habitats that are reminiscent of the coral reefs found in tropical marine environments. In the Antarctic, these bryozoan communities occupy significant portions of the shallow and deep seafloor, and provide habitat for other marine animals. The bryozoan lineages that make up these communities have undergone dramatic genetic and physiological changes in response to the unique environmental conditions found in Antarctica. Comparison of the DNA data from multiple Antarctic bryozoans to those of related warm-water species will help researchers identify unique and shared adaptations characteristic of bryozoans and other marine organisms that have adapted to the Antarctic environment. Additionally, direct experimental tests of catalytic-related genes (enzymes) will shed light on potential cold-adaption in various cell processes. Workshops will train diverse groups of scientists using computational tools to identify genetic modifications of organisms from disparate environments. Public outreach activities to students, social media, and science journalists are designed to raise awareness and appreciation of the spectacular marine life in the Antarctic and the hidden beauty of bryozoan biology. Understanding the genomic changes underlying adaptations to polar environments is critical for predicting how ecological changes will affect life in these fragile environments. Accomplishing these goals requires looking in detail at genome-scale data across a wide array of organisms in a phylogenetic framework. This study combines multifaceted computational and functional approaches that involves analyzing in the genic evolution of invertebrate organisms, known as the bryozoans or ectoprocts. In addition, the commonality of bryozoan results with those of other taxa will be tested by comparing newly generated data to that produced in previous workshops. The specific aims of this study include: 1) identifying genes involved in adaptation to Antarctic marine environments using transcriptomic and genomic data from bryozoans to test for positively selected genes in a phylogenetic framework, 2) experimentally testing identified candidate enzymes (especially those involved in calcium signaling, glycolysis, the citric acid cycle, and the cytoskeleton) for evidence of cold adaption, and 3) conducting computational workshops aimed at training scientists in techniques for the identification of genetic adaptations to polar and other disparate environments. The proposed work provides critical insights into the molecular rules of life in rapidly changing Antarctic environments, and provides important information for understanding how Antarctic taxa will respond to future environmental conditions.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.

南极底栖海洋无脊椎动物群落目前正在由于全球变暖，海洋酸化的综合作用以及冰壳塌陷的潜力而造成的迅速环境变化。殖民地无脊椎动物动物称为bryozoans创造了专业的“礁石样”栖息地，使人想起了在热带海洋环境中发现的珊瑚礁。在南极，这些bryozoan社区占据了浅水区和深海的大部分地区，并为其他海洋动物提供栖息地。构成这些群落的野生动物谱系具有基本的动态遗传和物理变化，以响应南极中的独特环境条件。比较来自多个南极桥梁的DNA数据与相关暖水物种的DNA数据将有助于研究人员确定适合南极环境的Bryozoans和其他海洋生物的独特和共享适应性。此外，催化相关基因（酶）的直接实验测试将揭示各种细胞过程中潜在的冷适应。讲习班将使用计算工具来训练各种科学家组，以识别不同环境中生物体的遗传修饰。对学生，社交媒体和科学记者的公共宣传活动旨在提高人们对南极生物学的壮观海洋生物的认识和欣赏。了解对极性环境的适应基因组变化对于预测生态变化如何影响这些脆弱环境的生命至关重要。实现这些目标需要详细介绍系统发育框架中各种生物的基因组规模数据。这项研究结合了多方面的计算方法和功能方法，涉及分析无脊椎动物生物（称为bryozoans或ectoprotects）的基因演化。此外，将通过将新生成的数据与以前的研讨会中产生的数据进行比较，将测试Bryozoan结果与其他分类单元的共同点。 The specific aims of this study include: 1) identifying genes involved in adaptation to Antarctic marine environments using transcriptomic and genomic data from bryozoans to test for positively selected genes in a phylogenetic framework, 2) experimentally Testing identified candidate enzymes (especially those involved in calcium signaling, glycolysis, the citric acid cycle, and the cytoskeleton) for evidence of cold adaptation, and 3）进行旨在培训科学家的计算研讨会，以鉴定对极性和其他不同环境的遗传适应性。拟议的工作为快速变化的南极环境中的生命分子规则提供了重要的见解，并提供了重要的信息，以了解南极分类单元将如何应对未来的环境状况。这项奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并被认为是通过基金会的知识分子和更广泛影响的评估来审查审查标准，以此认为是通过评估来支持的。