Doctoral Dissertation Research: Using Ancient Crop DNA to Investigate Socio-Political Change

博士论文研究：利用古代作物 DNA 调查社会政治变化

• 批准号: 2334431
• 负责人: Andrew Somerville
• 金额: $ 3.83万
• 依托单位: Iowa State University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2024
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2024-01-01 至 2025-12-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2334431&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Doctoral; Dissertation; Research; Using; Ancient

This doctoral dissertation project addresses the question of the co-evolution of humans and maize and considers how human behavior influences maize evolution in a specific geographic context. The research integrates multiple lines of data to address these goals, including ancient maize genetics, radiocarbon dating, and the relevant archaeological record. The project documents early maize traits that were subject to human selection, shedding light on relevant political and ethnic influences and how they affected the process over time. The project is underpinned by inclusivity, with a focus on broadening the participation of underrepresented groups in STEM. Collaborative endeavors with local communities facilitate a comprehensive exploration of the historical record, actively engaging with the present. This initiative extends beyond academia, aiming to impact agricultural practices and to facilitate knowledge dissemination. Outreach initiatives encompass students from diverse academic levels, from high school to graduate studies, providing them with a unique opportunity to immerse themselves in the realm of plant genomics. The project provides empowerment within diverse communities, offers educational opportunities to the scientists of the future, and establishes a link between the present and the prehistoric past.Researchers analyze ancient maize macrofossils spanning 1,500 years to elucidate maize evolution and diversity including adaptation to extreme altitudinal gradients. By tracing highland and lowland genes and trait selection based on human occupational periods, the research offers unique insights into the co-evolution of humans and maize, answering questions about cultivar dispersal and the impact of social events on maize genetics. The project's methodology compares ancient DNA from radiocarbon dated maize fossils with modern maize, aiming to unravel how human group movement influenced maize genomics today, advancing our understanding of human-maize relationship. The research team is assembling and sequencing a diverse set of modern maize specimens that will be used as a comparative baseline sample by which to compare the ancient specimens.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.

该博士论文项目解决了人类和玉米共同进化的问题，并考虑了人类行为如何影响特定地理背景下的玉米进化。该研究整合了多种数据来实现这些目标，包括古代玉米遗传学、放射性碳测年和相关考古记录。该项目记录了受人类选择影响的早期玉米特征，揭示了相关的政治和种族影响以及它们如何随着时间的推移影响这一过程。该项目以包容性为基础，重点是扩大 STEM 中代表性不足的群体的参与。与当地社区的合作促进了对历史记录的全面探索，并积极参与当下。该倡议超越了学术界，旨在影响农业实践并促进知识传播。外展活动涵盖了从高中到研究生等不同学术水平的学生，为他们提供了沉浸在植物基因组学领域的独特机会。该项目为不同社区提供赋权，为未来的科学家提供教育机会，并在现在和史前过去之间建立联系。研究人员分析了跨越 1,500 年的古代玉米宏观化石，以阐明玉米的进化和多样性，包括对极端海拔梯度的适应。通过追踪高地和低地基因以及基于人类职业时期的性状选择，该研究为人类和玉米的共同进化提供了独特的见解，回答了有关品种传播和社会事件对玉米遗传学影响的问题。该项目的方法将来自放射性碳测年玉米化石的古代DNA与现代玉米进行比较，旨在揭示人类群体运动如何影响当今的玉米基因组学，增进我们对人类与玉米关系的理解。研究小组正在对一组不同的现代玉米标本进行组装和测序，这些标本将用作比较基线样本，用于比较古代标本。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力评估进行评估，被认为值得支持。优点和更广泛的影响审查标准。