This $360,000 project grant award from the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Division of Integrative Organismal Systems under CFDA 47.074 Biological Sciences supports research to investigate the effects of atmospheric pollutants on plant-pollinator interactions and the processing of floral scents. The project will use the nocturnal moth (Manduca sexta) and diurnal honeybee (Apis mellifera) as model pollinators to examine how daytime (ozone, hydroxyl radicals) and nighttime (nitrate radicals) pollutants degrade diverse floral scents, and how this degradation impacts neural processing in the pollinators' olfactory systems and their ability to locate and pollinate flowers. The research will provide a framework for understanding the impact of scent oxidation on early olfactory circuits and plant-pollinator interactions. The award also supports training and development of high school, undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral researchers. No subawards are planned under this grant.
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