Mammal-microbial coevolution: mechanisms and health implications
Active Project Grant Awarded Last action
- Award ID
- R35GM160076
- Recipient
-
Arizona State University UEI NTLHJXM55KZ6 Part of Arizona Board Of Regents
- Awarding agency
-
National Institute of General Medical Sciences
National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services
- Obligated
- $713,338
Award facts
- Assistance listing
- 93.859 Biomedical Research and Research Training
- Completion date 24% complete
- Place of performance
- Tempe, AZ 85287, USA
Award details come from USAspending.gov.
Description
- Abstract
- The goal of my research program is to investigate the mechanisms of mammal-microbial coevolution and its implications for host health, with a focus on codiversification-the parallel evolutionary history of host and microbial lineages. The microbiome has emerged as a key therapeutic target, and disruptions in these coevolved relationships are linked to adverse health outcomes, including immune, metabolic, and behavioral changes. However, the mechanisms underlying codiversification and the health impacts of losing vertically transmitted microbes in mammals remain unclear. As human migration and translocation increase, populations are exposed to novel microbes, making IT crucial to predict host-microbial interactions in changing environments. Over the next five years, we will utilize peromyscus SPP. (deer mice) in the arizona sky islands-an isolated system where mouse populations diverged similarly to major human populations-to disentangle the mechanisms of codiversification across various temporal and spatial scales. This natural experiment, combined with laboratory experiments, provides a unique model to assess how codiversification influences host phenotypes. The research will address three major knowledge gaps: (1) identify codiversified microbial taxa and traits across body sites (skin, vaginal tract, small intestine, and feces), populations, and species; (2) investigate mechanisms driving codiversification, specifically whether host filtering or dispersal limitation governs microbiome assembly; and (3) assess how disruptions in codiversification affect host health by measuring changes in immune response, metabolic function, and behavior. We will generate whole-genome and metagenomic sequencing data to construct phylogenies for both host and microbial lineages and identify key microbial taxa and traits that are passed across generations. A key challenge will be distinguishing host filtering from dispersal limitations in shaping evolutionarily stable host-microbial associations. However, our comprehensive sampling design, manipulative laboratory experiments, and new bioinformatic tools provide a rigorous framework to tackle this issue. Fecal transplant experiments will offer the first description of mammalian phenotypes in response to host population- and species-level differences in microbiomes, addressing critical knowledge gaps and motivating future research. These findings have significant implications for the development of microbiome-based therapeutics tailored to specific host genotypes and ancestries, supporting a precision medicine approach.
Transactions
| Action | Obligated | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Amendment | $351,922 | |
| Original award | $361,416 |
Quick answers
Who received award R35GM160076?
R35GM160076 was awarded to Arizona State University by National Institute of General Medical Sciences (National Institutes of Health) on September 1, 2025.
How much is award R35GM160076 worth?
$713,338 has been obligated on R35GM160076.
On GovTribe
See this award's full record
- Every transaction and subaward
- The recipient's other awards and teaming partners
- Similar grant awards
- Ask GovTribe AI about this award