Santa Cruz Island Reserve

29 Mar, 05 AM - 03 Apr, 01 AM

Interactions between microbes and eukaryote hosts are common and have independently evolved numerous times. Among bacterial endosymbionts, the interaction between the intracellular parasite Wolbachia and its insect host is one of the most successful. Wolbachia are gram-negative obligate intracellular bacteria carried by millions of arthropod and nematode hosts worldwide. Wolbachia also maintain a symbiotic relationship with many pathogenic filarial nematodes such as Brugia malayi, known for causing elephantiasis, and Onchocerca volvulus, associated with the condition Onchocerciasis (River blindness). An estimated 120 million people are afflicted with Elephantiasis and 18 million with African river blindness. Consequently, a top priority of WHO (World Health Organization) and TDR (Tropical Disease Research Foundation) is the development of new drugs to combat filarial diseases. Although Wolbachia have been the subject of intense ecological, evolutionary, and population genetic investigations, little attention has been directed toward the molecular and cell biology of Wolbachia/host interactions. This neglect is surprising given Wolbachia's amazing ability to manipulate host cellular processes to their own advantage. Our lab has begun to address this issue by exploring host-Wolbachia interactions involved in Wolbachia-induced cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI), maternal-transmission and replication. In addition, we are tracking the distribution of Wolbachia in wild populations of Drosophila throughout the state of California

Visit #20941 @Santa Cruz Island Reserve

Approved

Under Project # 21446 | Research

Distribution of Wolbachia in California Drosophila Populations

faculty - University of California, Santa Barbara

Reservation Members(s)

Group of 2 Faculty Mar 29 - Apr 3, 2010 (6 days)
Dennis Clegg Mar 29 - Apr 3, 2010 (6 days)

Reserve Resources(s) | Create Invoice

Private Room 3 Mar 29 - Apr 3, 2010