A team of entomologists at Brigham Young University will investigate the evolutionary relationships within Orthoptera, an insect group that contains grasshoppers, crickets, and katydids. They will generate DNA sequences from 168 species to address three fundamental questions: How are the major groups of Orthoptera related to each other? How has the male reproductive system, one of the most important characters in orthopteran classification, evolved? How do non-functional copies of mitochondrial genes evolve in Orthoptera? Investigators will conduct international field studies to collect specimens and then analyze the data using advanced analytic software and high-resolution digital imaging technology.
The results from this project will not only advance our understanding of orthopteran diversity, but also provide an excellent model system to study the evolution of the male reproductive system and mitochondrial DNA. The comprehensive scope of this project will facilitate domestic and international collaborations. A six-week summer workshop for each of the three years of funding will provide training in modern methods of systematic analysis and scientific communication to three undergraduates of Pacific Island descent. Additionally, one postdoctoral researcher and two undergraduates will be trained by thoroughly being involved in all aspects of this project.
Intellectual Merit: Orthoptera is a fascinating group of insects that includes ecologically and agriculturally important species such as grasshoppers, crickets and katydids. Despite their importance and familiarity, Orthoptera had not been systematically investigated for nearly two decades, and the rationale behind the funded project was to transform and advance our understanding on the evolutionary history of Orthoptera based on a large amount of DNA data. During the funding period (2008-2012), PI Song and his students carried out several field expeditions to collect crucial specimens and sequenced complete mitochondrial genome and several nuclear genes from all major lineages of Orthoptera. This project resulted in the most comprehensive hypothesis of the evolutionary history of Orthoptera to date. Using this hypothesis as a reference, the project also revealed how male reproductive systems in grasshoppers might have evolved. The project also surveyed the prevalence of nuclear mitochondrial pseudogenes (numts) across Orthoptera, and found that numts were rampant in all lineages within this group. To date, the funded project resulted in 5 peer-reviewed publications, 2 accepted manuscripts, 3 submitted manuscripts, and 3 more manuscripts in the final stage of submission as well as more than 15 presentations at local and national scientific meetings. The funded project was also used to initiate several new projects in collaboration with experts around the world. Broader Impacts: The comprehensive scope of the funded project led to the development of domestic and international collaborative networks. PI Song was able to establish collaborative relationships with more than 20 researchers from nine different countries. Training was a major part of this project as well, and to date, the project has provided direct training for one postdoc, five graduate students, and 18 undergraduate students including eight minority students. The research opportunities provided by this project resulted in five manuscripts and 14 presentations with these students as co-authors. For broader impacts, PI Song conducted three 6-week summer workshops for underrepresented students throughout the duration of the funding. The first two, held in 2009 and 2010, provided hands-on research experience to five Polynesian students. The third workshop, held in 2011, provided invaluable field and collection-based research experience to three Hispanic and African American students.
