This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2020, 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. This project adds to our knowledge of microbiomes, the communities of microorganisms that are in constant contact with most animals. Prior research on these microbiomes has shown that some microbes are associated with dietary changes and/or diseases but we have a limited understanding of how the gut microbiome affects behavior. Using the nematode worm C. elegans as a model system, this project seeks to characterize differences in microbiome composition during development and between males and females. It will further determine to what extent the microbiome affects behaviors and the neural signals that encode them. By focusing on mate choice and mating success-based behavior, this research will further explain the complex interactions of gut microbes with host tissues and subsequent behavioral changes. The Fellow will curate a network among scientists and teachers to develop educational (K-12) programming. These activities seek to improve scientists? communication skills while providing hands-on, research-based scientific resources to educators and students from diverse communities who are often underrepresented in scientific disciplines.
Microbiome studies are notoriously underpowered and what comprises a microbiome is inconsistently defined across laboratories. Therefore, this project will use a model microbiota, termed CeMbio, and its natural host, C. elegans, to facilitate reproducibility and collaborative efforts to characterize the effects of the microbiome on host biology. It seeks to integrate signals from microbial communities into neuronal circuitry and subsequent animal behavior. The Fellow will integrate large-scale genetic and metabolomic analyses with whole-brain calcium imaging from single-animal neural networks and small-population mating behavior studies. The project will address 1) how microbial colonization differs between males and females, 2) what molecular changes occur upon colonization in each sex, and 3) how colonization with a complex microbiota elicits differential behavioral patterns and neural circuitry. The Fellow seeks to understand if female- or male-specific behaviors and/or reproductive isolation can be caused, in part, by microbes. The Fellow will collaborate with expert mentors, attend conferences, and develop skills in computational and behavioral neuroscience. The Fellow will also develop a network of scientists and educators to bring research-based science lessons to local classrooms in the San Diego area by providing instructional tools and resources to teachers.
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.
