NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biology FY 2016

Vicente-Raczkowski Jan, Honolulu HI

Investigators

Abstract

Fellow?s Name: Jan Vicente-Raczkowski Proposal Number: 1612307 This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2016, Research Using Biological Collections. The fellowship supports a research and training plan for the Fellow to take transformative approaches to grand challenges in biology that employ biological collections in highly innovative ways. The title of the research plan for this fellowship to Jan Vicente is "Is the coral triangle a hot spot of sponge biodiversity?" The host institution for this fellowship is the University of Hawai'i at Manoa, and the sponsoring scientist is Dr. Robert J. Toonen. The goal of this research is to characterize the biodiversity of sponges in the 'coral triangle.' This area is known for its generally high level of biodiversity, but there is very little information on biodiversity of sponges, an important yet cryptic group. The Fellow is using a newly-developed molecular tool called ezRAD that allows for efficient sequencing of genomes. Fewer than 1% of sponge holotype specimens in museums have been barcoded and none have had a genome sequenced. Genotyping holotype specimens will allow for proper phylogenetic analysis of closely related species. The Fellow is using this tool to analyze biodiversity on sponges that settle on Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structures (ARMS) deployed in the Coral Triangle; this is allowing for assessment of sponge species and sponge populations of the sequenced holotype specimens. The Fellow is also making publicly available all of the sequence data, using the Sponge Barcoding Project, Porifera Tree of Life, GenBank and BOLD online databases. Making such data available to the public allows scientists to optimize the quality of barcodes to characterize sponge species that have settled on ARMS all over the world. The Fellow is also developing a web-based field guide with photographic images of each sponge species identified, with up to date discoveries of any cryptic new species. With the discovery of new species comes the opportunity to evaluate sponges for their ability to produce antibiotic drugs as sponges continue to be the leading phylum in the discovery of natural products. The Fellow is also submitting DNA samples from new described species to the Earth Microbiome Project, a citizen science initiative that helps reveal the world?s microbial diversity. The Fellow is expanding his scientific horizons in several ways. He is gaining expertise in population genetics, phylogenetics and bioinformatics, which will help him achieve his future career goals. The Fellow is also mentoring students from underrepresented groups, working with the Toonen lab at the Hawai'i Institute of Marine Biology. He is also giving public seminars through national and international meetings as well as general public presentations at the Hawai'i Institute of Marine Biology, the Waikiki; Aquarium, the Bishop Museum, and the Hanauma Bay Lecture Series. The Fellow's previous working experience as a Nancy Foster Scholar with the education and outreach coordinator of NOAA's office of National Marine Sanctuaries allows him to continue participating in outreach events like ocean festivals, Biodiversity Day and Ocean Science Day. At the end of the award the Fellow plans to return to Puerto Rico, to become a professor and continue training the next generation of fellow Puerto Rican scientists.