Cooperative Agreement for CESU-affiliated Partner with Chesapeake Watershed Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit

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The USGS is offering a funding opportunity to a CESU partner for research in a variety of targeted amplicon sequencing molecular studies. These studies include topics such as diet, honeybee pollen and coral reefs. Although the samples are different, the goal is the same using our ability to extract DNA from a variety of samples and perform next generation sequencing. For instance, amplicon sequencing methods use a set of genetic barcodes to amplify all contributing components in a DNA sample at one time, and next generation sequencing platforms can analyze thousands to hundreds of thousands of individuals per run. These technologies allow detectability and quantification of diet components at levels not achieved with microscopy. While such sequencing techniques have been developed and successfully employed frequently with carnivores, herbivorous animals may present additional challenges due to chemical inhibitors present in plants, and fewer genetic barcoding resources for local plant communities. As a consequence, there are very few examples of herbivorous PCR-based diet studies currently found in the scientific literature.

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