1
|
Unterköfler MS, Schausberger M, Deutz A, Gressmann G, Kübber-Heiss A, Ferroglio E, Joachim A. Sarcoptic mange in wild ungulates in the European Alps - A systematic review. Int J Parasitol Parasites Wildl 2023; 22:121-125. [PMID: 37854272 PMCID: PMC10579859 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijppaw.2023.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2023] [Revised: 10/02/2023] [Accepted: 10/02/2023] [Indexed: 10/20/2023]
Abstract
Sarcoptic mange, caused by Sarcoptes scabiei, is a disease that affects many species of mammals, including several wild ungulate species in the region of the European Alps, especially the Alpine chamois and the Alpine ibex, which act as parasite reservoirs. Here records of mange in alpine wild ungulates and its spread over time across the eastern parts of the European Alps are reviewed. First cases were recorded from Austria in 1824, and epizootic outbreaks have been described since then from the mountainous regions of Austria (mostly Tyrol, Carinthia, and Styria), Germany (Bavaria), Italy (Udine and Trentino) and Slovenia. Switzerland, by contrast, has so far been free of mange except for cases in wild boar, indicating that this species is not a reservoir host of sarcoptic mites for other ungulate species in the European Alps, and that, so far, the disease in ruminant ungulates is restricted to the eastern and central parts of the Alps. Mutual transmission among wild and domestic ruminants is possible and, together with the protection of vulnerable wildlife, is also a reason for monitoring and, if necessary, intervention to contain mange outbreaks.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Maria Sophia Unterköfler
- Institute of Parasitology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Austria
| | - Magdalena Schausberger
- Institute of Parasitology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Austria
| | - Armin Deutz
- District Administration Murau - Veterinary Department, Styria, Austria
| | | | - Anna Kübber-Heiss
- Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, Department of Interdisciplinary Life Sciences, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Austria
| | - Ezio Ferroglio
- Department of Veterinary Science, University of Turin, Italy
| | - Anja Joachim
- Institute of Parasitology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Nelson-Flower MJ, Grieves LA, Reid JM, Germain RR, Lazic S, Taylor SS, MacDougall-Shackleton EA, Arcese P. Immune genotypes, immune responses, and survival in a wild bird population. Mol Ecol 2023. [PMID: 36919652 DOI: 10.1111/mec.16923] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2022] [Revised: 02/18/2023] [Accepted: 03/02/2023] [Indexed: 03/16/2023]
Abstract
Individuals vary in their immune genotype, inbreeding coefficient f, immune responses, survival to adulthood, and adult longevity. However, whether immune genes predict survival or longevity, whether such relationships are mediated through immune responses, and how f affects immune genotype remain unclear. We use a wild song sparrow (Melospiza melodia) population in which survival to adulthood, adult longevity, and f were measured precisely, and in which immune responses have previously been assessed. We investigate four toll-like receptor (TLR) and the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class IIB exon 2 genes. We test whether immune genes predict fitness (survival to adulthood or adult longevity); whether immune genes predict immune response; whether immune response predicts fitness and whether fitness, immune responses, or immune genotypes are correlated with f. We find that survival to adulthood is not associated with immune gene variation, but adult longevity is decreased by high MHC allele diversity (especially in birds that were relatively outbred), and by the presence of a specific MHC supertype. Immune responses were affected by specific immune genotypes. Survival to adulthood and adult longevity were not predicted by immune response, implying caution in the use of immune response as a predictor for fitness. We also found no relationship between f and immune genotype. This finding indicates that immune gene associations with longevity and immune response are not artefacts of f, and suggests that pathogen-mediated selection at functional loci can slow the loss of genetic variation arising from genetic drift and small population size.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Martha J Nelson-Flower
- Department of Forest and Conservation Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
- Department of Biology, Langara College, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Leanne A Grieves
- Department of Biology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Biology, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
| | - Jane M Reid
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Institut for Biologi, NTNU, Trondheim, Norway
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK
| | - Ryan R Germain
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, GLOBE Institute, University of Copenhagen, Kobenhavn, Denmark
| | - Savo Lazic
- Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Sabrina S Taylor
- School of Renewable Natural Resources, Louisiana State University and AgCenter, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA
| | | | - Peter Arcese
- Department of Forest and Conservation Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Brambilla A, von Hardenberg A, Canedoli C, Brivio F, Sueur C, Stanley CR. Long term analysis of social structure: evidence of age‐based consistent associations in male Alpine ibex. OIKOS 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.09511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Alice Brambilla
- Dept of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, Univ. of Zurich Zurich Switzerland
- Alpine Wildlife Research Center, Gran Paradiso National Park Torino Italy
| | - Achaz von Hardenberg
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Dept of Biological Sciences, Univ. of Chester Chester UK
| | - Claudia Canedoli
- Dept of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Univ. of Milano Bicocca Milano Italy
| | | | - Cédric Sueur
- Univ. de Strasbourg, CNRS, IPHC UMR 7178 Strasbourg France
- Inst. Universitaire de France, Saint‐Michel 103 Paris France
| | - Christina R. Stanley
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Dept of Biological Sciences, Univ. of Chester Chester UK
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Robin M, Ferrari G, Akgül G, Münger X, von Seth J, Schuenemann VJ, Dalén L, Grossen C. Ancient mitochondrial and modern whole genomes unravel massive genetic diversity loss during near extinction of Alpine ibex. Mol Ecol 2022; 31:3548-3565. [PMID: 35560856 PMCID: PMC9328357 DOI: 10.1111/mec.16503] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2021] [Revised: 04/13/2022] [Accepted: 05/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Population bottlenecks can have dramatic consequences for the health and long-term survival of a species. Understanding of historic population size and standing genetic variation prior to a contraction allows estimating the impact of a bottleneck on the species genetic diversity. Although historic population sizes can be modelled based on extant genomics, uncertainty is high for the last 10-20 millenia. Hence, integrating ancient genomes provides a powerful complement to retrace the evolution of genetic diversity through population fluctuations. Here, we recover 15 high-quality mitogenomes of the once nearly extinct Alpine ibex spanning 8601 BP to 1919 CE and combine these with 60 published modern whole genomes. Coalescent demography simulations based on modern whole genomes indicate population fluctuations coinciding with the last major glaciation period. Using our ancient and historic mitogenomes, we investigate the more recent demographic history of the species and show that mitochondrial haplotype diversity was reduced to a fifth of the pre-bottleneck diversity with several highly differentiated mitochondrial lineages having co-existed historically. The main collapse of mitochondrial diversity coincides with elevated human population growth during the last 1-2 kya. After recovery, one lineage was spread and nearly fixed across the Alps due to recolonization efforts. Our study highlights that a combined approach integrating genomic data of ancient, historic and extant populations unravels major long-term population fluctuations from the emergence of a species through its near extinction up to the recent past.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mathieu Robin
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland.,Institute of Evolutionary Medicine, University of Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Giada Ferrari
- Institute of Evolutionary Medicine, University of Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Gülfirde Akgül
- Institute of Evolutionary Medicine, University of Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Xenia Münger
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Johanna von Seth
- Department of Bioinformatics and Genetics, Swedish Museum of Natural History, Stockholm, Sweden.,Centre for Palaeogenetics, Stockholm, Sweden
| | | | - Love Dalén
- Department of Bioinformatics and Genetics, Swedish Museum of Natural History, Stockholm, Sweden.,Centre for Palaeogenetics, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Christine Grossen
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Purohit D, Manu S, Ram MS, Sharma S, Patnaik HC, Deka PJ, Narayan G, Umapathy G. Genetic effects of long-term captive breeding on the endangered pygmy hog. PeerJ 2021; 9:e12212. [PMID: 34707930 PMCID: PMC8504462 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.12212] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2021] [Accepted: 09/05/2021] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Long-term captive populations often accumulate genetic changes that are detrimental to their survival in the wild. Periodic genetic evaluation of captive populations is thus necessary to identify deleterious changes and minimize their impact through planned breeding. Pygmy hog (Porcula salvania) is an endangered species with a small population inhabiting the tall sub-Himalayan grasslands of Assam, India. A conservation breeding program of pygmy hog from six founders has produced a multi-generational captive population destined for reintroduction into the wild. However, the impact of conservation breeding on its genetic diversity remained undocumented. Here, we evaluate temporal genetic changes in 39 pygmy hogs from eight consecutive generations of a captive population using genome-wide SNPs, mitochondrial genomes, and MHC sequences, and explore the relationship between genetic diversity and reproductive success. We find that pygmy hog harbors a very low genome-wide heterozygosity (H) compared to other members of the Suidae family. However, within the captive population we find excess heterozygosity and a significant increase in H from the wild-caught founders to the individuals in subsequent generations due to the selective pairing strategy. The MHC and mitochondrial nucleotide diversities were lower in captive generations compared to the founders with a high prevalence of low-frequency MHC haplotypes and more unique mitochondrial genomes. Further, even though no signs of genetic inbreeding were observed from the estimates of individual inbreeding coefficient F and between individuals (FIS) in each generation, the kinship coefficient showed a slightly increasing trend in the recent generations, due to a relatively smaller non-random sample size compared to the entire captive population. Surprisingly, male pygmy hogs that had higher heterozygosity also showed lower breeding success. We briefly discuss the implications of our findings in the context of breeding management and recommend steps to minimize the genetic effects of long-term captive breeding.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Shivakumara Manu
- CSIR- Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad, India
| | - Muthuvarmadam Subramanian Ram
- CSIR- Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad, India.,CES, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India
| | - Shradha Sharma
- CSIR- Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad, India
| | | | - Parag Jyoti Deka
- Aaranyak, Threatened Species Recovery Programme,, Beltola, Guwahati, India.,Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust - Pygmy Hog Conservation Programme, Indira Nagar, Basistha, Guwahati, Assam, India
| | - Goutam Narayan
- EcoSystems-India, Rare & Endangered Species Conservation Unit, Beltola, Guwahati, India
| | | |
Collapse
|
6
|
Surviving despite reduce MHC variation: selection patterns and genetic variation of the endangered Huillín (Lontra provocax). MAMMAL RES 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s13364-021-00594-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
|
7
|
Undin M, Lockhart PJ, Hills SFK, Armstrong DP, Castro I. Mixed Mating in a Multi-Origin Population Suggests High Potential for Genetic Rescue in North Island Brown Kiwi, Apteryx mantelli. FRONTIERS IN CONSERVATION SCIENCE 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fcosc.2021.702128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Reinforcement translocations are increasingly utilised in conservation with the goal of achieving genetic rescue. However, concerns regarding undesirable results, such as genetic homogenisation or replacement, are widespread. One factor influencing translocation outcomes is the rate at which the resident and the introduced individuals interbreed. Consequently, post-release mate choice is a key behaviour to consider in conservation planning. Here we studied mating, and its consequences for genomic admixture, in the North Island brown kiwi Apteryx mantelli population on Ponui Island which was founded by two translocation events over 50 years ago. The two source populations used are now recognised as belonging to two separate management units between which birds differ in size and are genetically differentiated. We examined the correlation between male and female morphometrics for 17 known pairs and quantified the relatedness of 20 pairs from this admixed population. In addition, we compared the genetic similarity and makeup of 106 Ponui Island birds, including 23 known pairs, to birds representing the source populations for the original translocations. We found no evidence for size-assortative mating. On the contrary, genomic SNP data suggested that kiwi of one feather did not flock together, meaning that mate choice resulted in pairing between individuals that were less related than expected by random chance. Furthermore, the birds in the current Ponui Island population were found to fall along a gradient of genomic composition consistent with non-clustered representation of the two parental genomes. These findings indicate potential for successful genetic rescue in future Apteryx reinforcement translocations, a potential that is currently under utilised due to restrictive translocation policies. In light of our findings, we suggest that reconsideration of these policies could render great benefits for the future diversity of this iconic genus in New Zealand.
Collapse
|
8
|
Towards a more healthy conservation paradigm: integrating disease and molecular ecology to aid biological conservation †. J Genet 2021. [PMID: 33622992 PMCID: PMC7371965 DOI: 10.1007/s12041-020-01225-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Parasites, and the diseases they cause, are important from an ecological and evolutionary perspective because they can negatively affect host fitness and can regulate host populations. Consequently, conservation biology has long recognized the vital role that parasites can play in the process of species endangerment and recovery. However, we are only beginning to understand how deeply parasites are embedded in ecological systems, and there is a growing recognition of the important ways in which parasites affect ecosystem structure and function. Thus, there is an urgent need to revisit how parasites are viewed from a conservation perspective and broaden the role that disease ecology plays in conservation-related research and outcomes. This review broadly focusses on the role that disease ecology can play in biological conservation. Our review specifically emphasizes on how the integration of tools and analytical approaches associated with both disease and molecular ecology can be leveraged to aid conservation biology. Our review first concentrates on disease-mediated extinctions and wildlife epidemics. We then focus on elucidating how host–parasite interactions has improved our understanding of the eco-evolutionary dynamics affecting hosts at the individual, population, community and ecosystem scales. We believe that the role of parasites as drivers and indicators of ecosystem health is especially an exciting area of research that has the potential to fundamentally alter our view of parasites and their role in biological conservation. The review concludes with a broad overview of the current and potential applications of modern genomic tools in disease ecology to aid biological conservation.
Collapse
|
9
|
Gutiérrez J, Seguel M, Saenz‐Agudelo P, Acosta‐Jamett G, Verdugo C. Genetic diversity and kinship relationships in one of the largest South American fur seal (
Arctocephalus australis
) populations of the Pacific Ocean. Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/ece3.7683] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Josefina Gutiérrez
- Instituto de Patología Animal Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias Universidad Austral de Chile Valdivia Chile
- Programa de Investigación Aplicada a la Fauna Silvestre Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias Universidad Austral de Chile Valdivia Chile
| | - Mauricio Seguel
- Department of Pathobiology Ontario Veterinary College University of Guelph ON Canada
| | - Pablo Saenz‐Agudelo
- Instituto de Ciencias Ambientales y Evolutivas Facultad de Ciencias Universidad Austral de Chile Valdivia Chile
| | - Gerardo Acosta‐Jamett
- Programa de Investigación Aplicada a la Fauna Silvestre Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias Universidad Austral de Chile Valdivia Chile
- Instituto de Medicina Preventiva Veterinaria Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias Universidad Austral de Chile Valdivia Chile
| | - Claudio Verdugo
- Instituto de Patología Animal Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias Universidad Austral de Chile Valdivia Chile
- Programa de Investigación Aplicada a la Fauna Silvestre Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias Universidad Austral de Chile Valdivia Chile
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Kessler C, Brambilla A, Waldvogel D, Camenisch G, Biebach I, Leigh DM, Grossen C, Croll D. A robust sequencing assay of a thousand amplicons for the high-throughput population monitoring of Alpine ibex immunogenetics. Mol Ecol Resour 2021; 22:66-85. [PMID: 34152681 PMCID: PMC9292246 DOI: 10.1111/1755-0998.13452] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2020] [Revised: 06/10/2021] [Accepted: 06/14/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Polymorphism for immune functions can explain significant variation in health and reproductive success within species. Drastic loss in genetic diversity at such loci constitutes an extinction risk and should be monitored in species of conservation concern. However, effective implementations of genome‐wide immune polymorphism sets into high‐throughput genotyping assays are scarce. Here, we report the design and validation of a microfluidics‐based amplicon sequencing assay to comprehensively capture genetic variation in Alpine ibex (Capra ibex). This species represents one of the most successful large mammal restorations recovering from a severely depressed census size and a massive loss in diversity at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC). We analysed 65 whole‐genome sequencing sets of the Alpine ibex and related species to select the most representative markers and to prevent primer binding failures. In total, we designed ~1,000 amplicons densely covering the MHC, further immunity‐related genes as well as randomly selected genome‐wide markers for the assessment of neutral population structure. Our analysis of 158 individuals shows that the genome‐wide markers perform equally well at resolving population structure as RAD‐sequencing or low‐coverage genome sequencing data sets. Immunity‐related loci show unexpectedly high degrees of genetic differentiation within the species. Such information can now be used to define highly targeted individual translocations. Our design strategy can be realistically implemented into genetic surveys of a large range of species. In conclusion, leveraging whole‐genome sequencing data sets to design targeted amplicon assays allows the simultaneous monitoring of multiple genetic risk factors and can be translated into species conservation recommendations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Camille Kessler
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Genetics, Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Alice Brambilla
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.,Alpine Wildlife Research Center, Gran Paradiso National Park, Italy
| | - Dominique Waldvogel
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Glauco Camenisch
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Iris Biebach
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Deborah M Leigh
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.,WSL Swiss Federal Research Institute, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Christine Grossen
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Daniel Croll
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Genetics, Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Quéméré E, Hessenauer P, Galan M, Fernandez M, Merlet J, Chaval Y, Morellet N, Verheyden H, Gilot-Fromont E, Charbonnel N. Pathogen-mediated selection favours the maintenance of innate immunity gene polymorphism in a widespread wild ungulate. J Evol Biol 2021; 34:1156-1166. [PMID: 34062025 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13876] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2021] [Revised: 05/07/2021] [Accepted: 05/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Toll-like receptors (TLR) play a central role in recognition and host frontline defence against a wide range of pathogens. A number of recent studies have shown that TLR genes (Tlrs) often exhibit large polymorphism in natural populations. Yet, there is little knowledge on how this polymorphism is maintained and how it influences disease susceptibility in the wild. In previous work, we showed that some Tlrs exhibit similarly high levels of genetic diversity as genes of the Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC), and signatures of contemporary balancing selection in roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), the most abundant cervid species in Europe. Here, we investigated the evolutionary mechanisms by which pathogen-mediated selection could shape this innate immunity genetic diversity by examining the relationships between Tlr (Tlr2, Tlr4 and Tlr5) genotypes (heterozygosity status and presence of specific alleles) and infections with Toxoplasma and Chlamydia, two widespread intracellular pathogens known to cause reproductive failure in ungulates. We showed that Toxoplasma and Chlamydia exposures vary significantly across years and landscape features with few co-infection events detected and that the two pathogens exert antagonistic selection on Tlr2 polymorphism. By contrast, we found limited support for Tlr heterozygote advantage. Our study confirmed the importance of looking beyond Mhc genes in wildlife immunogenetic studies. It also emphasized the necessity to consider multiple pathogen challenges and their spatiotemporal variation to improve our understanding of vertebrate defence evolution against pathogens.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Erwan Quéméré
- Université de Toulouse, INRAE, CEFS, Castanet-Tolosan, France.,LTSER ZA PYRénées GARonne, Auzeville-Tolosane, France.,ESE, Ecology and Ecosystems Health, INRAE, Rennes, France
| | | | - Maxime Galan
- Département de Foresterie, Université Laval, Quebec, QC, Canada
| | - Marie Fernandez
- Université de Toulouse, INRAE, CEFS, Castanet-Tolosan, France.,LTSER ZA PYRénées GARonne, Auzeville-Tolosane, France
| | - Joël Merlet
- Université de Toulouse, INRAE, CEFS, Castanet-Tolosan, France.,LTSER ZA PYRénées GARonne, Auzeville-Tolosane, France
| | - Yannick Chaval
- Université de Toulouse, INRAE, CEFS, Castanet-Tolosan, France.,LTSER ZA PYRénées GARonne, Auzeville-Tolosane, France
| | - Nicolas Morellet
- Université de Toulouse, INRAE, CEFS, Castanet-Tolosan, France.,LTSER ZA PYRénées GARonne, Auzeville-Tolosane, France
| | - Hélène Verheyden
- Université de Toulouse, INRAE, CEFS, Castanet-Tolosan, France.,LTSER ZA PYRénées GARonne, Auzeville-Tolosane, France
| | - Emmanuelle Gilot-Fromont
- Université de Lyon, Université Lyon 1, UMR CNRS 5558, Villeurbanne, France.,Université de Lyon, VetAgro Sup, Marcy l'Etoile, France
| | - Nathalie Charbonnel
- CBGP, INRAE, CIRAD, IRD, Institut Agro, Univ Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Stefanović M, Ćirović D, Bogdanović N, Knauer F, Heltai M, Szabó L, Lanszki J, Zhelev CD, Schaschl H, Suchentrunk F. Positive selection on the MHC class II DLA-DQA1 gene in golden jackals (Canis aureus) from their recent expansion range in Europe and its effect on their body mass index. BMC Ecol Evol 2021; 21:122. [PMID: 34134625 PMCID: PMC8207625 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-021-01856-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2020] [Accepted: 06/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Background In Europe, golden jackals (Canis aureus) have been expanding their range out of the southern and southeastern Balkans towards central Europe continually since the 1960s. Here, we investigated the level of functional diversity at the MHC class II DLA-DQA1 exon 2 in golden jackal populations from Bulgaria, Serbia, and Hungary. Specifically, we tested for positive selection on and geographic variation at that locus due to adaptation to supposedly regionally varying pathogenic landscapes. To test for potential fitness effects of different protein variants on individual body condition, we used linear modeling of individual body mass indexes (bmi) and accounted for possible age, sex, geographical, and climatic effects. The latter approach was performed, however, only on Serbian individuals with appropriate data. Results Only three different DLA-DQA1 alleles were detected, all coding for different amino-acid sequences. The neutrality tests revealed no significant but positive values; there was no signal of spatial structuring and no deviation from the Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium across the studied range of expansion. However, we found a signal of trans-species polymorphism and significant test results for positive selection on three codons. Our information-theory based linear modeling results indicated an effect of ambient temperature on the occurrence of individual DLA-DQA1 genotypes in individuals from across the studied expansion range, independent from geographical position. Our linear modeling results of individual bmi values indicated that yearlings homozygous for DLA-DQA1*03001 reached values typical for adults contrary to yearlings carrying other genotypes (protein combinations). This suggested better growth rates and thus a possible fitness advantage of yearlings homozygous for DLA-DQA1*03001. Conclusions Our results indicate a demographic (stochastic) signal of reduced DLA-DQA1 exon 2 variation, in line with the documented historical demographic bottleneck. At the same time, however, allelic variation was also affected by positive selection and adaptation to varying ambient temperature, supposedly reflecting geographic variation in the pathogenic landscape. Moreover, an allele effect on body mass index values of yearlings suggested differential fitness associated with growth rates. Overall, a combination of a stochastic effect and positive selection has shaped and is still shaping the variation at the studied MHC locus. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12862-021-01856-z.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Milomir Stefanović
- Department of Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Novi Sad, Trg Dositeja Obradovića 2, 21000, Novi Sad, Serbia.,Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Savoyenstrasse 1, 1160, Vienna, Austria
| | - Duško Ćirović
- Faculty of Biology, University of Belgrade, Studentski trg 16, 11000, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Neda Bogdanović
- Faculty of Biology, University of Belgrade, Studentski trg 16, 11000, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Felix Knauer
- Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Savoyenstrasse 1, 1160, Vienna, Austria
| | - Miklós Heltai
- Institute for Wildlife Conservation, Szent István University, Páter Károly utca 1, Gödöllő, 2100, Hungary
| | - László Szabó
- Institute for Wildlife Conservation, Szent István University, Páter Károly utca 1, Gödöllő, 2100, Hungary
| | - József Lanszki
- Ecological Research Group, University of Kaposvár, PO Box 16, 7401, Kaposvár, Hungary
| | | | - Helmut Schaschl
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Vienna, Althanstrasse 14, 1090, Vienna, Austria.
| | - Franz Suchentrunk
- Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Savoyenstrasse 1, 1160, Vienna, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Zanet S, Ferroglio E, Orlandini F, Bassano B, Battisti E, Brambilla A. Bronchopulmonary Nematodes in Alpine Ibex: Shedding of First Stage Larvae Analyzed at the Individual Host Level. Front Vet Sci 2021; 8:663268. [PMID: 33996985 PMCID: PMC8116586 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2021.663268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2021] [Accepted: 04/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Pneumonia is the most frequent cause of death for Alpine ibex (Capra ibex) in Gran Paradiso National Park, (Italy). The etiology of this form of pneumonia is currently unknown and the identification of the primary etiological agent remains difficult due to biological and logistic constraints. Uncovering individual differences in Protostrongylid prevalence and intensity is important to further investigate the epidemiology of respiratory diseases and their relationship to heterozygosity and inbreeding in a once almost extinct population like C. ibex. In a group of 21 individually recognizable adult male we monitored monthly prevalence and intensity of Protostrongylid first-stage larvae using Baerman's technique from June to September 2019. First-stage larvae of 5 genera were detected. Muellerius (P = 100%, CI95% = 84–100) and Protostrongylus (P = 86%, CI95%:71–100) were two dominant genera according to Bush's importance index. Neostrongylus (P = 38%,CI95%: 17–59), Cystocaulus (P = 33%,CI95% = 13–53) were classified as co-dominant genera while Dictyocaulus filaria (P = 0.05%, CI95% = 0.04–0.13) was detected, for the first time in Alpine ibex, in one subject. Protostrongylidae larval excretion varied significantly over time, with minimum L1 excretion in July. Individual median larval intensity ranged from 4.4 lpg to 82.2 lpg with Poulin's discrepancy index showing highly aggregated distribution patterns for Muellerius spp. (D = 0.283, CI95% = 0.760–0.895) and Protostrongylus spp. (D = 0.635, CI95% = 0.580–0.705). Presented data provide the necessary base point to further investigate how lungworm infection account for the different rates of progression of pneumonia in C. ibex. Individual aggregation of larval intensity must be further evaluated to determine whether these differences mirror different levels of parasitic infection related to individual differences in immune response, hormonal-states or genetic fitness.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Stefania Zanet
- Department Veterinary Sciences, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Ezio Ferroglio
- Department Veterinary Sciences, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | | | - Bruno Bassano
- Gran Paradiso National Park, Alpine Wildlife Research Center, Noasca, Italy
| | - Elena Battisti
- Department Veterinary Sciences, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Alice Brambilla
- Gran Paradiso National Park, Alpine Wildlife Research Center, Noasca, Italy.,Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Ivy-Israel NMD, Moore CE, Schwartz TS, Steury TD, Zohdy S, Newbolt CH, Ditchkoff SS. Association between sexually selected traits and allelic distance in two unlinked MHC II loci in white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). Evol Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s10682-021-10108-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
|
15
|
DeCandia AL, Schrom EC, Brandell EE, Stahler DR, vonHoldt BM. Sarcoptic mange severity is associated with reduced genomic variation and evidence of selection in Yellowstone National Park wolves ( Canis lupus). Evol Appl 2021; 14:429-445. [PMID: 33664786 PMCID: PMC7896714 DOI: 10.1111/eva.13127] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2020] [Revised: 07/28/2020] [Accepted: 08/25/2020] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Population genetic theory posits that molecular variation buffers against disease risk. Although this "monoculture effect" is well supported in agricultural settings, its applicability to wildlife populations remains in question. In the present study, we examined the genomics underlying individual-level disease severity and population-level consequences of sarcoptic mange infection in a wild population of canids. Using gray wolves (Canis lupus) reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park (YNP) as our focal system, we leveraged 25 years of observational data and biobanked blood and tissue to genotype 76,859 loci in over 400 wolves. At the individual level, we reported an inverse relationship between host genomic variation and infection severity. We additionally identified 410 loci significantly associated with mange severity, with annotations related to inflammation, immunity, and skin barrier integrity and disorders. We contextualized results within environmental, demographic, and behavioral variables, and confirmed that genetic variation was predictive of infection severity. At the population level, we reported decreased genome-wide variation since the initial gray wolf reintroduction event and identified evidence of selection acting against alleles associated with mange infection severity. We concluded that genomic variation plays an important role in disease severity in YNP wolves. This role scales from individual to population levels, and includes patterns of genome-wide variation in support of the monoculture effect and specific loci associated with the complex mange phenotype. Results yielded system-specific insights, while also highlighting the relevance of genomic analyses to wildlife disease ecology, evolution, and conservation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Edward C. Schrom
- Ecology & Evolutionary BiologyPrinceton UniversityPrincetonNJUSA
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
16
|
Botero-Delgadillo E, Quirici V, Vásquez RA, Kempenaers B. Heterozygosity-Fitness Correlations in a Continental Island Population of Thorn-Tailed Rayadito. J Hered 2020; 111:628-639. [PMID: 33277658 DOI: 10.1093/jhered/esaa056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2020] [Accepted: 12/04/2020] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Heterozygosity-fitness correlations (HFCs) have been used to monitor the effects of inbreeding in threatened populations. HFCs can also be useful to investigate the potential effects of inbreeding in isolated relict populations of long-term persistence and to better understand the role of inbreeding and outbreeding as drivers of changes in genetic diversity. We studied a continental island population of thorn-tailed rayadito (Aphrastura spinicauda) inhabiting the relict forest of Fray Jorge National Park, north-central Chile. This population has experienced a long-term, gradual process of isolation since the end of the Tertiary. Using 10 years of field data in combination with molecular techniques, we tested for HFCs to assess the importance of inbreeding depression. If inbreeding depression is important, we predict a positive relationship between individual heterozygosity and fitness-related traits. We genotyped 183 individuals at 12 polymorphic microsatellite loci and used 7 measures of reproductive success and estimates of apparent survival to calculate HFCs. We found weak to moderate statistical support (P-values between 0.05 and 0.01) for a linear effect of female multi-locus heterozygosity (MLH) on clutch size and nonlinear effects on laying date and fledging success. While more heterozygous females laid smaller clutches, nonlinear effects indicated that females with intermediate values of MLH started laying earlier and had higher fledging success. We found no evidence for effects of MLH on annual fecundity or on apparent survival. Our results along with the long-term demographic stability of the study population contradict the hypothesis that inbreeding depression occurs in this population.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Esteban Botero-Delgadillo
- Department of Behavioural Ecology and Evolutionary Genetics, Max Plank Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
| | - Verónica Quirici
- Departamento de Ecología y Biodiversidad, Facultad de Ecología y Recursos Naturales, Universidad Andrés Bello, Santiago, Chile.,Centro de investigación para la sustentabilidad, Universidad Andrés Bello, Santiago, Chile
| | - Rodrigo A Vásquez
- Instituto de Ecología y Biodiversidad, Departamento de Ciencias Ecológicas, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Bart Kempenaers
- Department of Behavioural Ecology and Evolutionary Genetics, Max Plank Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Rödel HG, Oppelt C, Starkloff A, Prager N, Long E, Rüdiger AT, Seltmann MW, Monclús R, Hudson R, Poteaux C. Within-litter covariance of allele-specific MHC heterozygosity, coccidian endoparasite load and growth is modulated by sibling differences in starting mass. Oecologia 2020; 194:345-357. [PMID: 32980896 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-020-04764-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2018] [Accepted: 09/19/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Although littermates in altricial mammals usually experience highly similar environmental conditions during early life, considerable differences in growth and health can emerge among them. In a study on subadults of a European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) population with low MHC polymorphism, we tested whether litter-sibling differences in endoparasitic coccidia load and body mass at the end of the vegetation period were associated with within-litter differences in starting body mass (measured around 2 weeks prior to weaning) and in immune-genetic (MHC class II DRB) constitution. We hypothesized that siblings with a lighter starting mass might be more susceptible to endoparasite infections and thus, negative effects of a more unfavourable MHC constitution might be particularly pronounced in such individuals. Within-litter comparisons revealed that animals with a lighter starting mass reached a relatively lower body mass in autumn. Furthermore, there were indications for an allele-specific heterozygote advantage, as animals with heterozygous combinations of the allele Orcu-DRB*4 had relatively lower hepatic coccidia loads than their littermates with certain homozygous allele combinations. Consistent with our hypothesis, significantly higher hepatic coccidia loads and tendentially lower autumn body masses in homozygous compared to heterozygous individuals for the allele Orcu-DRB*4 were evident in initially lighter but not in heavier siblings, suggesting synergistic effects between an unfavourable MHC constitution and a light starting mass. Taken together, these effects might lead to notable differences in fitness among litter siblings, as a low body mass and a high endoparasite burden are key factors limiting young rabbits' survival during winter.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Heiko G Rödel
- Laboratoire d'Ethologie Expérimentale et Comparée UR 4443, Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, 93430, Villetaneuse, France. .,Department of Animal Physiology, University of Bayreuth, 95440, Bayreuth, Germany.
| | - Claus Oppelt
- Department of Animal Physiology, University of Bayreuth, 95440, Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Anett Starkloff
- Department of Animal Physiology, University of Bayreuth, 95440, Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Nelly Prager
- Laboratoire d'Ethologie Expérimentale et Comparée UR 4443, Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, 93430, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Emilie Long
- Laboratoire d'Ethologie Expérimentale et Comparée UR 4443, Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, 93430, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Anna-Theresa Rüdiger
- Department of Animal Physiology, University of Bayreuth, 95440, Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Martin W Seltmann
- Department of Animal Physiology, University of Bayreuth, 95440, Bayreuth, Germany.,Department of Biology, University of Turku, 20014, Turku, Finland
| | - Raquel Monclús
- Laboratoire d'Ethologie Expérimentale et Comparée UR 4443, Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, 93430, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Robyn Hudson
- Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 04510, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Chantal Poteaux
- Laboratoire d'Ethologie Expérimentale et Comparée UR 4443, Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, 93430, Villetaneuse, France
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Brambilla A, Von Hardenberg A, Nelli L, Bassano B. Distribution, status, and recent population dynamics of Alpine ibexCapra ibexin Europe. Mamm Rev 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/mam.12194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Alice Brambilla
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies University of Zurich Winterthurerstrasse 1908057Zurich ZH Switzerland
- Alpine Wildlife Research Centre Gran Paradiso National Park Frazione Jamonin 510080Noasca TO Italy
| | - Achaz Von Hardenberg
- Conservation Biology Research Group Department of Biological Sciences University of Chester Parkgate RoadCH2 4BJChester UK
| | - Luca Nelli
- Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine University of Glasgow Graham Kerr BuildingG12 8QQGlasgow UK
| | - Bruno Bassano
- Alpine Wildlife Research Centre Gran Paradiso National Park Frazione Jamonin 510080Noasca TO Italy
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Quéméré E, Rossi S, Petit E, Marchand P, Merlet J, Game Y, Galan M, Gilot-Fromont E. Genetic epidemiology of the Alpine ibex reservoir of persistent and virulent brucellosis outbreak. Sci Rep 2020; 10:4400. [PMID: 32157133 PMCID: PMC7064506 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-61299-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2019] [Accepted: 02/25/2020] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
While it is now broadly accepted that inter-individual variation in the outcomes of host-pathogen interactions is at least partially genetically controlled, host immunogenetic characteristics are rarely investigated in wildlife epidemiological studies. Furthermore, most immunogenetic studies in the wild focused solely on the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) diversity despite it accounts for only a fraction of the genetic variation in pathogen resistance. Here, we investigated immunogenetic diversity of the Alpine ibex (Capra ibex) population of the Bargy massif, reservoir of a virulent outbreak of brucellosis. We analysed the polymorphism and associations with disease resistance of the MHC Class II Drb gene and several non-MHC genes (Toll-like receptor genes, Slc11A1) involved in the innate immune response to Brucella in domestic ungulates. We found a very low neutral genetic diversity and a unique MHC Drb haplotype in this population founded few decades ago from a small number of individuals. By contrast, other immunity-related genes have maintained polymorphism and some showed significant associations with the brucellosis infection status hence suggesting a predominant role of pathogen-mediated selection in their recent evolutionary trajectory. Our results highlight the need to monitor immunogenetic variation in wildlife epidemiological studies and to look beyond the MHC.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Erwan Quéméré
- CEFS, INRAE, Université de Toulouse, Castanet-Tolosan, France.
- ESE, Ecology and Ecosystems Health, Agrocampus Ouest, INRAE, 35042 Rennes, France.
| | - Sophie Rossi
- Office Français de la Biodiversité, Unité Sanitaire de la Faune, Gap, France
| | - Elodie Petit
- Office Français de la Biodiversité, Unité Ongulés sauvages, Gières, France
| | - Pascal Marchand
- Office Français de la Biodiversité, Unité Ongulés sauvages, Gières, France
| | - Joël Merlet
- CEFS, INRAE, Université de Toulouse, Castanet-Tolosan, France
| | - Yvette Game
- Laboratoire Départemental d'Analyses Vétérinaires de Savoie, Chambéry, France
| | - Maxime Galan
- CBGP, INRAE, CIRAD, IRD, Montpellier SupAgro, Univ Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Emmanuelle Gilot-Fromont
- Université de Lyon, VetAgro Sup - Campus vétérinaire de Lyon, Marcy l'Étoile, France
- Université de Lyon 1, UMR CNRS 5558 Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive (LBBE), Villeurbanne, France
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Litzke V, Ottensmann M, Forcada J, Heitzmann L, Ivan Hoffman J. Heterozygosity at neutral and immune loci is not associated with neonatal mortality due to microbial infection in Antarctic fur seals. Ecol Evol 2019; 9:7985-7996. [PMID: 31380066 PMCID: PMC6662382 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.5317] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2019] [Revised: 05/02/2019] [Accepted: 05/08/2019] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Numerous studies have reported correlations between the heterozygosity of genetic markers and fitness. These heterozygosity-fitness correlations (HFCs) play a central role in evolutionary and conservation biology, yet their mechanistic basis remains open to debate. For example, fitness associations have been widely reported at both neutral and functional loci, yet few studies have directly compared the two, making it difficult to gauge the relative contributions of genome-wide inbreeding and specific functional genes to fitness. Here, we compared the effects of neutral and immune gene heterozygosity on death from bacterial infection in Antarctic fur seal (Arctocephalus gazella) pups. We specifically developed a panel of 13 microsatellites from expressed immune genes and genotyped these together with 48 neutral loci in 234 individuals, comprising 39 pups that were classified at necropsy as having most likely died of bacterial infection together with a five times larger matched sample of healthy surviving pups. Identity disequilibrium quantified from the neutral markers was positive and significant, indicative of variance in inbreeding within the study population. However, multilocus heterozygosity did not differ significantly between healthy and infected pups at either class of marker, and little evidence was found for fitness associations at individual loci. These results support a previous study of Antarctic fur seals that found no effects of heterozygosity at nine neutral microsatellites on neonatal survival and thereby help to refine our understanding of how HFCs vary across the life cycle. Given that nonsignificant HFCs are underreported in the literature, we also hope that our study will contribute toward a more balanced understanding of the wider importance of this phenomenon.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vivienne Litzke
- Department of Animal BehaviourBielefeld UniversityBielefeldGermany
| | | | | | | | - Joseph Ivan Hoffman
- Department of Animal BehaviourBielefeld UniversityBielefeldGermany
- British Antarctic Survey, High CrossCambridgeUK
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Antonides J, Mathur S, Sundaram M, Ricklefs R, DeWoody JA. Immunogenetic response of the bananaquit in the face of malarial parasites. BMC Evol Biol 2019; 19:107. [PMID: 31113360 PMCID: PMC6529992 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-019-1435-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2019] [Accepted: 05/08/2019] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND In the arms race between hosts and parasites, genes involved in the immune response are targets for natural selection. Toll-Like Receptor (TLR) genes play a role in parasite detection as part of the innate immune system whereas Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) genes encode proteins that display antigens as part of the vertebrate adaptive immune system. Thus, both gene families are under selection pressure from pathogens. The bananaquit (Coereba flaveola) is a passerine bird that is a common host of avian malarial parasites (Plasmodium sp. and Haemoproteus sp.). We assessed molecular variation of TLR and MHC genes in a wild population of bananaquits and identified allelic associations with resistance/susceptibility to parasitic infection to address hypotheses of avian immune response to haemosporidian parasites. RESULTS We found that allele frequencies are associated with infection status at the immune loci studied. A consistent general trend showed the infected groups possessed more alleles at lower frequencies, and exhibited unique alleles, compared to the uninfected group. CONCLUSIONS Our results support the theory of natural selection favoring particular alleles for resistance while maintaining overall genetic diversity in the population, a mechanism which has been demonstrated in some systems in MHC previously but understudied in TLRs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer Antonides
- Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, Purdue University, 715 W. State Street, Pfendler Hall 141, West Lafayette, IN 47907 USA
| | - Samarth Mathur
- Department of Biological Sciences, Purdue University, 915 W. State St, Indiana, USA
| | - Mekala Sundaram
- Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, Purdue University, 715 W. State Street, Pfendler Hall 141, West Lafayette, IN 47907 USA
| | - Robert Ricklefs
- Department of Biology, University of Missouri, 1 University Blvd, St. Louis, MO USA
| | - J. Andrew DeWoody
- Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, Purdue University, 715 W. State Street, Pfendler Hall 141, West Lafayette, IN 47907 USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, Purdue University, 915 W. State St, Indiana, USA
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Slade JWG, Watson MJ, MacDougall‐Shackleton EA. "Balancing" balancing selection? Assortative mating at the major histocompatibility complex despite molecular signatures of balancing selection. Ecol Evol 2019; 9:5146-5157. [PMID: 31110668 PMCID: PMC6509439 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.5087] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2019] [Revised: 02/19/2019] [Accepted: 03/04/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
In vertebrate animals, genes of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) determine the set of pathogens to which an individual's adaptive immune system can respond. MHC genes are extraordinarily polymorphic, often showing elevated nonsynonymous relative to synonymous sequence variation and sharing presumably ancient polymorphisms between lineages. These patterns likely reflect pathogen-mediated balancing selection, for example, rare-allele or heterozygote advantage. Such selection is often reinforced by disassortative mating at MHC. We characterized exon 2 of MHC class II, corresponding to the hypervariable peptide-binding region, in song sparrows (Melospiza melodia). We compared nonsynonymous to synonymous sequence variation in order to identify positively selected sites; assessed evidence for trans-species polymorphisms indicating ancient balancing selection; and compared MHC similarity of socially mated pairs to expectations under random mating. Six codons showed elevated ratios of nonsynonymous to synonymous variation, consistent with balancing selection, and we characterized several alleles similar to those occurring in at least four other avian families. Despite this evidence for historical balancing selection, mated pairs were significantly more similar at MHC than were randomly generated pairings. Nonrandom mating at MHC thus appears to partially counteract, not reinforce, pathogen-mediated balancing selection in this system. We suggest that in systems where individual fitness does not increase monotonically with MHC diversity, assortative mating may help to avoid excessive offspring heterozygosity that could otherwise arise from long-standing balancing selection.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Joel W. G. Slade
- Department of BiologyUniversity of Western OntarioLondonOntarioCanada
| | - Matthew J. Watson
- Department of BiologyUniversity of Western OntarioLondonOntarioCanada
| | | |
Collapse
|
23
|
McLennan EA, Wright BR, Belov K, Hogg CJ, Grueber CE. Too much of a good thing? Finding the most informative genetic data set to answer conservation questions. Mol Ecol Resour 2019; 19:659-671. [DOI: 10.1111/1755-0998.12997] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2018] [Revised: 01/10/2019] [Accepted: 01/14/2019] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Elspeth A. McLennan
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences University of Sydney Sydney New South Wales Australia
| | - Belinda R. Wright
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences University of Sydney Sydney New South Wales Australia
| | - Katherine Belov
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences University of Sydney Sydney New South Wales Australia
| | - Carolyn J. Hogg
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences University of Sydney Sydney New South Wales Australia
| | - Catherine E. Grueber
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences University of Sydney Sydney New South Wales Australia
- San Diego Zoo Global San Diego California
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Genetic Effects on Dispersion in Urinary Albumin and Creatinine in Three House Mouse ( Mus musculus) Cohorts. G3-GENES GENOMES GENETICS 2019; 9:699-708. [PMID: 30606755 PMCID: PMC6404620 DOI: 10.1534/g3.118.200940] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Conventionally, quantitative genetics concerns the heredity of trait means, but there is growing evidence for the existence of architectures in which certain alleles cause random variance in phenotype, termed ‘phenotypic dispersion’ (PD) or ‘variance QTL’ (vQTL), including in physiological traits like disease signs. However, the structure of this phenomenon is still poorly known. PD for urinary albumin (PDUAlb) and creatinine (PDUCrea) was mapped using curated data from two nearly genetically identical F2 mouse (Mus musculus) cohorts (383 male F2 C57BL/6J×A/J (97 SNP) and 207 male F2 C57BL/6J×A/J ApoE knockout mice (144 SNP)) and a related mapping cohort (340 male F2 DBA/2J×C57BL/6J (83 SNP, 8 microsatellites)). PDUAlb was associated with markers in regions of Chr 1 (5-64 megabases (MB); 141-158 MB), 3 (∼113 MB), 8 (37-68 MB), 14 (92-117 MB) and 17 (14-24 MB) with several positions and quantitative architectures in common between the two C57BL/6J×A/J cohorts, most of which had a negative dominant construction. One locus for PDUCrea was detected on Chr 19 (57 MB) in the C57BL/6J×A/J ApoE−/− cohort. The large number of negative dominant loci for albuminuria dispersion relative to conventional quantitative trait loci suggests that the development of albuminuria may be largely genetically dynamic and that randomization in this development is detrimental.
Collapse
|