Objective
"All animals are exposed to disease and infection, with the immune system providing crucial defences to stop animals becoming sick. Yet immunological variation is widespread, with the costs of immunity and differences in disease exposure being two potential causes. This proposal investigates how variation in disease pressure during early life influences immunity and what the consequences are for growth, a key developmental process against which immune investment may be traded-off. To do this I will study avian brood parasites called Honeyguides that exploit other species to raise their young. This exposes parasite nestlings to diverse antigens related to the range of hosts that might raise them. Honeyguides also destroy host eggs and kill host chicks which remain rotting in the nest, further exposing parasite nestlings to high disease pressure. I will ask if over evolutionary time this has selected for strong immune defences and if Honeyguides suffer less than host nestlings in terms of reduced growth when disease conditions are experimentally altered. Using a second brood parasite, where host-specific races parasitize hosts of different sizes, I will explore a related question: do growth conditions during development affect immune function in adulthood? Finally, using modern metagenomic approaches I will examine how brood parasites and hosts acquire their gut microbiota and how disease exposure might shape this microbial community, providing important data on the microbiomes of wild birds that is currently lacking. Combining immunology, ecology, microbiology and evolutionary biology, this study will provide key insights into how disease exposure influences immunity and growth, and will be relevant for researchers interested in disease ecology, coevolution and the broad implications of disease for human and animal health. The project also offers excellent training prospects and will strengthen my qualities as a mature, independent researcher."
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences biological sciences zoology ornithology
- natural sciences biological sciences ecology
- natural sciences biological sciences evolutionary biology
- natural sciences biological sciences microbiology microbiomes
- medical and health sciences basic medicine immunology
You need to log in or register to use this function
We are sorry... an unexpected error occurred during execution.
You need to be authenticated. Your session might have expired.
Thank you for your feedback. You will soon receive an email to confirm the submission. If you have selected to be notified about the reporting status, you will also be contacted when the reporting status will change.
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
FP7-PEOPLE-2012-IEF
See other projects for this call
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Coordinator
CB2 1TN CAMBRIDGE
United Kingdom
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.