NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biology: Uncovering the Genomic and Developmental Basis of Gliding Structure Evolution in Gecko Lizards

NSF 生物学博士后奖学金：揭示壁虎滑动结构进化的基因组和发育基础

基本信息

批准号：
2209090
负责人：
Aaron Griffing
金额：
$ 13.8万
依托单位：
Griffing, Aaron H
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
Fellowship Award
财政年份：
2023
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
2023-06-01 至 2025-05-31
项目状态：
未结题

来源：
https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2209090&HistoricalAwards=false
关键词：
NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship Biology Uncovering

项目摘要

This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2022, Integrative Research Investigating the Rules of Life Governing Interactions Between Genomes, Environment and Phenotypes. The fellowship supports research and training of the Fellow that will contribute to the area of Rules of Life in innovative ways. Aerial locomotion, such as gliding, has evolved repeatedly across the tree of life. Gliding behavior is often facilitated by the presence of patagia: flappy, membranous structures which allow the organism to slow and control their descent through the air. Although these features have evolved numerous times, little is known about their developmental origins. The core aim of this fellowship is to determine how membranous structures, such as those found in gliding organisms or in pathologies, are formed. The Fellow will characterize patagium development in gecko lizards, which have evolved gliding behavior and membranes several times. By characterizing development from the tissue level to the genomic level, the Fellow aims to uncover genes and pathways required for the formation of gliding membranes. The Fellow will also reach diverse audiences by involving early undergraduate students at the hosting institution in research as well performing public outreach through institutions like the Milwaukee Public Museum.Using histology, apoptosis assays, and cell proliferation assays, the Fellow will characterize the tissue composition and cellular activity of developing patagia in two species of gecko to determine if convergently evolved gecko patagia are the result of convergent or divergent cellular and developmental patterns. To identify candidate genes and regulatory pathways which result in patagium outgrowth, the Fellow will characterize the transcriptional and regulatory landscape of embryonic patagium formation using RNAseq and ATACseq. The Fellow will experimentally inhibit candidate genes and pathways to test their function in patagium development. Collectively, this research provides a foundation for the study of membrane formation in lizards, specifically, and vertebrates, broadly. Generated morphological and sequence data will be made publicly available. This fellowship will also facilitate training the Fellow in genomic and developmental genetic techniques as well as mentoring undergraduate and graduate students in evolutionary developmental biology.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.

该行动资助 2022 财年 NSF 生物学博士后研究奖学金，旨在调查基因组、环境和表型之间相互作用的生命规则的综合研究。该奖学金支持研究员的研究和培训，以创新的方式为生活规则领域做出贡献。空中运动，例如滑翔，在生命之树上反复进化。滑翔行为通常是由翼状结构的存在所促进的：翼状的膜状结构使生物体能够减慢并控制它们在空气中的下降。尽管这些特征已经进化了无数次，但人们对它们的发育起源知之甚少。该奖学金的核心目标是确定膜结构（例如在滑翔生物或病理学中发现的膜结构）是如何形成的。该研究员将描述壁虎蜥蜴的翼膜发育特征，这种蜥蜴已经多次进化出滑翔行为和膜。通过描述从组织水平到基因组水平的发育特征，该研究员的目标是揭示形成滑动膜所需的基因和途径。该研究员还将通过让主办机构的早期本科生参与研究以及通过密尔沃基公共博物馆等机构进行公共宣传来接触不同的受众。使用组织学、细胞凋亡测定和细胞增殖测定，该研究员将表征组织成分和两种壁虎中发育中的帕塔吉亚的细胞活动，以确定趋同进化的壁虎帕塔吉亚是否是趋同或发散的细胞和发育模式的结果。为了确定导致 patagium 生长的候选基因和调控途径，该研究员将使用 RNAseq 和 ATACseq 描述胚胎 patagium 形成的转录和调控景观。该研究员将通过实验抑制候选基因和途径，以测试它们在翼状体发育中的功能。总的来说，这项研究为蜥蜴（特别是脊椎动物）的膜形成研究奠定了基础。生成的形态学和序列数据将公开。该奖学金还将促进基因组和发育遗传技术方面的培训，并指导本科生和研究生进化发育生物学。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响进行评估，被认为值得支持审查标准。