A generalist vector-transmitted parasite exhibits population genetic structure among host genera
Generalist parasites experience selective pressures from the various host species they infect. However, it is unclear if parasite transmission among host species precludes the establishment of host-specific adaptations and population genetic structure. We assessed the population genetic structure of...
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Cambridge University Press
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| Series: | Parasitology |
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| author | Vincenzo A. Ellis Mélanie Duc Arif Ciloglu Olof Hellgren Staffan Bensch |
| author_facet | Vincenzo A. Ellis Mélanie Duc Arif Ciloglu Olof Hellgren Staffan Bensch |
| author_sort | Vincenzo A. Ellis |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Generalist parasites experience selective pressures from the various host species they infect. However, it is unclear if parasite transmission among host species precludes the establishment of host-specific adaptations and population genetic structure. We assessed the population genetic structure of the vector-transmitted avian haemosporidian parasite Haemoproteus majoris (lineage WW2; n = 34 infections) in a single site in southern Sweden among 10 of its host species. The 2 best-sampled host genera were Phylloscopus (2 species, n = 15 infections) and Sylvia (4 species, n = 15). We designed a sequence capture protocol to isolate 1.13 Mbp (ca. 5%) of the parasite genome and identified 1399 variable sites among the sequenced infections. In a principal components analysis, infections of Phylloscopus and Sylvia species mostly separated along the first 2 principal components. Sites with the highest FST values between the genera were found in genes that have mostly not been implicated in infection pathways, but several sites code for amino acid changes. An analysis of molecular variance confirmed significant variation among host genera, but not among host species within genera. The distribution of Tajima’s D among sequenced loci was negatively skewed, plausibly reflecting a history of bottleneck followed by population expansion. Tajima’s D was lower in infections of Phylloscopus than Sylvia, plausibly because WW2 began infecting Phylloscopus hosts after it was already a parasite of Sylvia hosts. Our results provide evidence of vector-transmitted parasite population differentiation among host species in a single location. Future work should focus on identifying the mechanisms underlying this genetic population structure. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ff54647de9224dec8c2d3954dbab5a10 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 0031-1820 1469-8161 |
| language | English |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
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| spelling | doaj-art-ff54647de9224dec8c2d3954dbab5a102025-01-30T15:22:27ZengCambridge University PressParasitology0031-18201469-816111010.1017/S0031182024001641A generalist vector-transmitted parasite exhibits population genetic structure among host generaVincenzo A. Ellis0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7193-9408Mélanie Duc1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5468-2594Arif Ciloglu2https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2695-7102Olof Hellgren3https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4062-7276Staffan Bensch4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0082-0899Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USAP. B. Šivickis Laboratory of Parasitology, Nature Research Centre, Vilnius, LithuaniaDepartment of Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Erciyes University, Kayseri, Türkiye Vectors and Vector-Borne Diseases Implementation and Research Center, Erciyes University, Kayseri, TürkiyeDepartment of Biology, Lund University, Lund, SwedenDepartment of Biology, Lund University, Lund, SwedenGeneralist parasites experience selective pressures from the various host species they infect. However, it is unclear if parasite transmission among host species precludes the establishment of host-specific adaptations and population genetic structure. We assessed the population genetic structure of the vector-transmitted avian haemosporidian parasite Haemoproteus majoris (lineage WW2; n = 34 infections) in a single site in southern Sweden among 10 of its host species. The 2 best-sampled host genera were Phylloscopus (2 species, n = 15 infections) and Sylvia (4 species, n = 15). We designed a sequence capture protocol to isolate 1.13 Mbp (ca. 5%) of the parasite genome and identified 1399 variable sites among the sequenced infections. In a principal components analysis, infections of Phylloscopus and Sylvia species mostly separated along the first 2 principal components. Sites with the highest FST values between the genera were found in genes that have mostly not been implicated in infection pathways, but several sites code for amino acid changes. An analysis of molecular variance confirmed significant variation among host genera, but not among host species within genera. The distribution of Tajima’s D among sequenced loci was negatively skewed, plausibly reflecting a history of bottleneck followed by population expansion. Tajima’s D was lower in infections of Phylloscopus than Sylvia, plausibly because WW2 began infecting Phylloscopus hosts after it was already a parasite of Sylvia hosts. Our results provide evidence of vector-transmitted parasite population differentiation among host species in a single location. Future work should focus on identifying the mechanisms underlying this genetic population structure.https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0031182024001641/type/journal_articleavian haemosporidianshost specificityparasite evolutionpathogenpopulation genomics |
| spellingShingle | Vincenzo A. Ellis Mélanie Duc Arif Ciloglu Olof Hellgren Staffan Bensch A generalist vector-transmitted parasite exhibits population genetic structure among host genera Parasitology avian haemosporidians host specificity parasite evolution pathogen population genomics |
| title | A generalist vector-transmitted parasite exhibits population genetic structure among host genera |
| title_full | A generalist vector-transmitted parasite exhibits population genetic structure among host genera |
| title_fullStr | A generalist vector-transmitted parasite exhibits population genetic structure among host genera |
| title_full_unstemmed | A generalist vector-transmitted parasite exhibits population genetic structure among host genera |
| title_short | A generalist vector-transmitted parasite exhibits population genetic structure among host genera |
| title_sort | generalist vector transmitted parasite exhibits population genetic structure among host genera |
| topic | avian haemosporidians host specificity parasite evolution pathogen population genomics |
| url | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0031182024001641/type/journal_article |
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