For the Integrative Research Proposal, you need to craft a research question that is innovative, practical, and clearly aligned with the scope of your project. It should be measurable, controllable, and address a significant biological issue. To achieve the highest score, the research question must not only be clear and practical but also demonstrate originality and relevance.
Your proposal must integrate at least two distinct biological disciplines outside of the core focus. These disciplines should be meaningfully connected, with a strong interdisciplinary approach that shows how they contribute to the research. Be explicit in explaining the connections between the disciplines to ensure depth and clarity.
High-throughput sequencing should be a central part of your methodology. Use it appropriately and effectively, and provide a clear justification for its inclusion. Explain how the sequencing data will address your research question and contribute to your findings.
The quality of your writing is essential. The paper should be concise, clear, and well-structured, with logical reasoning that connects all parts of the proposal. Ensure that your language is scientific yet accessible to a broad audience, and avoid any grammar or punctuation errors. Transitions between sections should be smooth, making your arguments easy to follow.
You are also required to engage in peer review by providing detailed and constructive feedback to at least two classmates. Your feedback should be meaningful and contribute to improving the quality of their work.
Finally, your methods section should be well-thought-out, realistic, and directly connected to your research question. Anticipate potential challenges and propose thoughtful alternatives to address them. Ensure that your methodology is feasible and provides a clear path to achieving the research goals.
– extra requirement : one of the materials from Dr. McNeal lecture needs to be one of the things you use in your paper (slides from his lecture will be uploaded)
-I have an idea of how i want to structure the paper below, you are allowed to modify anything as long as it stays close to how i want to structure it:
1) Layout-
Times new roman, 12 fonts
Margin- Moderate
Spacing- double spaced
Include Page number
References- ApA7 (no specific choice)
2) Integrative scale 3-
-Genetics: Using genetic techniques, particularly high-throughput sequencing, to analyze parasite DNA. This helps identify the species of parasites present and assess their zoonotic potential, which is crucial for understanding risks to public health.
-Community Ecology: Examining how parasite-host relationships function within urban and rural rodent communities. Community ecology would allow you to explore how different rodent populations interact with parasite species and how these dynamics affect transmission rates and risks.
-Social Systems: Considering the human aspect, you could explore how knowledge of zoonotic parasites impacts public behavior, awareness, and health measures in different communities. Social systems could also encompass the role of human actions, such as waste management, in creating environments conducive to parasite spread.
3) Methodology
High-Throughput Sequencing: If relevant, explain how you might employ high-throughput sequencing to analyze DNA from parasites found in urban rodents to identify specific zoonotic threats. Justify why sequencing is important for accurately identifying parasite species and their potential health risks.
Methods Outline: Describe how you’ll collect samples, conduct DNA analysis, and interpret findings. Make sure methods are realistic, feasible, and well-aligned with the research question.
4) Writing quality
Using scientific language accessible to a general academic audience. Avoid jargon without explanation and ensure there’s a logical flow from one section to the next.
5) Conclusion
Summarize the feasibility of your research. Consider potential challenges, such as equipment limitations or sample collection in urban and rural settings. Offer solutions or alternatives if any method might face feasibility issues.
6) Additional notes
Dr. McNeal’s Lessons: Integrate relevant insights from Dr. McNeal’s lessons if they apply to your methodological approach or interdisciplinary focus.
References Section: Ensure consistency in format, possibly using APA or another scientific format, with all references properly cited.
Research information
Parasites in Rodent Populations: Exploring the Impact of Host Characteristics and Diet on Parasite Burden
Introduction: Host-parasite interactions play a crucial role in ecosystems. Despite their importance, our understanding of them remains limited. Host characteristics, such as diet, sex, and size, can have a significant effect on a host’s exposure to parasites, yet the intricacies of these relationships are often unknown. In addition, the impact of parasite infections on the health of rodents in certain regions of Georgia is unknown. This work is intended to fill these knowledge gaps by diving into the complexity of host-parasite interactions, providing a deeper understanding of these complex interactions and their consequences for the host.
Problem statement: How do host characteristics such as sex, size (measured by both length and weight), and diet influence parasite load, and how does parasite load affect host body condition? Furthermore, how do food differences across rodent species affect parasite exposure? We expect to find that particular host characteristics will be associated with increased parasite burdens, ultimately influencing host body conditions.
Methods: The study will involve dissecting and collecting parasites from various rodents obtained through collaborations with AWARE Wildlife Center and Dr. Nick Green, as well as from roadkill specimens. Host body size will be measured by recording total body length and body weight. We will assess host body condition using measurements of body length and chest girth. Internal parasites will be collected by carefully dissecting the entire rodent. The collected parasites will then be identified at the species or genus level. The parasite burden will then be measured by counting the number of parasites present in each host. We will use generalized linear mixed models to help investigate the relationships between parasite burden, host body condition, sex, and size. Furthermore, we will investigate how diet variation may affect the distribution of parasites among various rodent species by utilizing information from a published database that details the diets of the different mammal species.
Results: We anticipate finding significant correlations between host characteristics and parasite burden. We also expect to find correlations between diet and different parasite species.
Conclusion: Overall, we hope to gain better knowledge on the factors affecting parasite biodiversity and distributions in Georgia. By exploring these linkages, we hope to further understand host-parasite interactions and provide insights on the importance of preserving diverse habitats and maintaining healthy rodent and parasite populations, which play crucial roles in ecosystems.
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