The postdoctoral research outlined in this proposal is designed to expand the applicant's capability as an independent investigator by learning new techniques in the field of neurophysiology and aquatic toxicology. By combining these new skills with the applicant's established abilities in neuroanatomical morphometry, it will hopefully provide him with a variety of powerful approaches to apply to the study of effects of xenobiotic exposure on animal behavior and physiology in wild populations. It is the applicant's goal to establish an independent laboratory, and to continue to apply the skills gained during this fellowship in research at an academic institution where he can teach undergraduate and graduate students in laboratory and classroom settings. The general hypothesis of this proposal is that exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations of carbamate pesticides alters the physiological and neurobiological function of the peripheral olfactory system in the Coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch), and results in measurable functional deficits. This hypothesis will be tested by exposing juvenile salmon to 2 carbamate pesticides, then examining the anatomy (as measured histologically), functional neurophysiology (as measured by the electro-olfactogram-EOG), biotransformational capacities (as measured by Western blots, in vitro enzyme essays, and in vivo enzyme inhibition), and behavioral capabilities (as measured by avoidance assay performance in laboratory-exposed populations) of the olfactory epithelium for carbamate-induced alterations. Using these approaches the applicant will acquire a broad picture of carbamate pesticide effects on the functional capabilities of the vertebrate olfactory system, a system that is structurally-conserved among vertebrates and of central medical and behavioral importance in both humans and animal species.
| Jarrard, H E; Delaney, K R; Kennedy, C J (2004) Impacts of carbamate pesticides on olfactory neurophysiology and cholinesterase activity in coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch). Aquat Toxicol 69:133-48 |
