Buchwalter Lab Awarded NSF Grant

Grant Title: Comparative strategies of ion trafficking and antioxidant physiology in stream insects: A phylogenetic approach

Investigator:Dr. David Buchwalter, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Environmental and Molecular Toxicology, NCSU (david_buchwalter@ncsu.edu)

Project Period: 08/01/2009 – 07/31/2012

Grant Award: $485,999

Aquatic insects play critical ecological roles and are of practical importance due to their widespread use as ecological indicators in biomonitoring programs. However, their use as ecological indicators is limited in part, because the fundamental physiological processes that determine their responses to environmental challenges are poorly understood. Because there are so many aquatic insect species, it is impossible to perform the types of physiological experimentation required to characterize species specific responses to common environmental problems. Dr. Buchwalter’s research is exploring whether the evolutionary relatedness of species can be used as a predictor of their physiological performance in response to trace metal pollution. The physiological systems under study include ion regulation – fluxes of the elements calcium, zinc and cadmium – and antioxidant physiology.