Fitness and virulence of a bacterial endoparasite in an environmentally stressed crustacean host

Parasitology ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 138 (1) ◽  
pp. 122-131 ◽  
Author(s):  
ANJA COORS ◽  
LUC DE MEESTER
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Pollutants ◽  
Somatic Growth ◽  
Parasite Development ◽  
Predation Threat ◽  
Host Condition ◽  
Parasite Fitness ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Fish Kairomone ◽  
Host Parasite ◽  
Crustacean Host

SUMMARYHost-parasite interactions are shaped by the co-evolutionary arms race of parasite virulence, transmission success as well as host resistance and recovery. The virulence and fitness of parasites may depend on host condition, which is mediated, for instance, by host energy constraints. Here, we investigated to what extent stress imposed by predation threat and environmental pollutants influences host-parasite interactions. We challenged the crustacean hostDaphnia magnawith the sterilizing bacterial endoparasitePasteuria ramosaand simultaneously exposed the host to fish kairomones, the pesticide carbaryl or both stressors. While parasite virulence, measured as impact on host mortality and sterilization, increased markedly after short-term pesticide exposure, it was not influenced by predation threat. Parasite fitness, measured in terms of produced transmission stages, decreased both in fish and pesticide treatments. This effect was much stronger under predation threat than carbaryl exposure, and was attributable to reduced somatic growth of the host, presumably resulting in fewer resources for parasite development. While the indirect impact of both stressors on spore loads provides evidence for host condition-dependent parasite fitness, the finding of increased virulence only under carbaryl exposure indicates a stronger physiological impact of the neurotoxic chemical compared with the effect of a non-toxic fish kairomone.

scholarly journals Analysis of Plasmodium vivax schizont transcriptomes from field isolates reveals heterogeneity of expression of genes involved in host-parasite interactions

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sasha V. Siegel ◽  
Lia Chappell ◽  
Jessica B. Hostetler ◽  
Chanaki Amaratunga ◽  
Seila Suon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plasmodium Vivax ◽  
Ex Vivo ◽  
Culture Method ◽  
Surface Proteins ◽  
Parasite Development ◽  
Field Isolates ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Short Period ◽  
Host Parasite

Abstract Plasmodium vivax gene regulation remains difficult to study due to the lack of a robust in vitro culture method, low parasite densities in peripheral circulation and asynchronous parasite development. We adapted an RNA-seq protocol “DAFT-seq” to sequence the transcriptome of four P. vivax field isolates that were cultured for a short period ex vivo before using a density gradient for schizont enrichment. Transcription was detected from 78% of the PvP01 reference genome, despite being schizont-enriched samples. This extensive data was used to define thousands of 5′ and 3′ untranslated regions, some of which overlapped with neighbouring transcripts, and to improve the gene models of 352 genes, including identifying 20 novel gene transcripts. This dataset has also significantly increased the known amount of heterogeneity between P. vivax schizont transcriptomes from individual patients. The majority of genes found to be differentially expressed between the isolates lack Plasmodium falciparum homologs and are predicted to be involved in host-parasite interactions, with an enrichment in reticulocyte binding proteins, merozoite surface proteins and exported proteins with unknown function. An improved understanding of the diversity within P. vivax transcriptomes will be essential for the prioritisation of novel vaccine targets.

Host–parasite interactions of Tribolium confusum and Tribolium castaneum with Hymenolepis diminuta

1971 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 265-273 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gordon E. Soltice ◽  
Hisao P. Arai ◽  
Eliyahu Scheinberg
Keyword(s):  
Tribolium Castaneum ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Tribolium Confusum ◽  
Hymenolepis Diminuta ◽  
Parasite Development ◽  
Female Sex ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Female Host ◽  
Host Infection ◽  
Host Parasite

An investigation of (1) host infection and respiration, and (2) parasite development and crowding, between two Tribolium hosts and Hymenolepis diminuta has been carried out.The results show that infection of the host was influenced by temperature but not by the host's species or sex or the number of eggs ingested. The respiration of the host was observed to increase with infection and to occur at a higher rate in Tribolium castaneum and the female sex of each host. The results also indicate that parasite development was more rapid in the female host. The effects of parasitic crowding on the parasite could not be demonstrated. The results of this study are discussed in relation to current knowledge and suggestions about the mechanisms of the aforementioned effects are proposed.

scholarly journals Interactions among bacterial strains and fluke genotypes shape virulence of co-infection

2015 ◽  
Vol 282 (1821) ◽  
pp. 20152097 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katja-Riikka Louhi ◽  
Lotta-Riina Sundberg ◽  
Jukka Jokela ◽  
Anssi Karvonen
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary Dynamics ◽  
Parasite Species ◽  
Bacterial Strains ◽  
Parasite Fitness ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Host Health ◽  
Infection Focus ◽  
Host Mortality ◽  
Host Parasite ◽  
Virulent Parasite

Most studies of virulence of infection focus on pairwise host–parasite interactions. However, hosts are almost universally co-infected by several parasite strains and/or genotypes of the same or different species. While theory predicts that co-infection favours more virulent parasite genotypes through intensified competition for host resources, knowledge of the effects of genotype by genotype (G × G) interactions between unrelated parasite species on virulence of co-infection is limited. Here, we tested such a relationship by challenging rainbow trout with replicated bacterial strains and fluke genotypes both singly and in all possible pairwise combinations. We found that virulence (host mortality) was higher in co-infections compared with single infections. Importantly, we also found that the overall virulence was dependent on the genetic identity of the co-infecting partners so that the outcome of co-infection could not be predicted from the respective virulence of single infections. Our results imply that G × G interactions among co-infecting parasites may significantly affect host health, add to variance in parasite fitness and thus influence evolutionary dynamics and ecology of disease in unexpected ways.

scholarly journals Immune defence, parasite evasion strategies and their relevance for ‘macroscopic phenomena’ such as virulence

2008 ◽  
Vol 364 (1513) ◽  
pp. 85-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Schmid-Hempel
Keyword(s):  
Immune Evasion ◽  
Life History Theory ◽  
Evolutionary Ecology ◽  
Parasite Clearance ◽  
Multiple Infections ◽  
Parasite Fitness ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Evolution Of Virulence ◽  
Host Parasite ◽  
Insight Into

The discussion of host–parasite interactions, and of parasite virulence more specifically, has so far, with a few exceptions, not focused much attention on the accumulating evidence that immune evasion by parasites is not only almost universal but also often linked to pathogenesis, i.e. the appearance of virulence. Now, the immune evasion hypothesis offers a deeper insight into the evolution of virulence than previous hypotheses. Sensitivity analysis for parasite fitness and life-history theory shows promise to generate a more general evolutionary theory of virulence by including a major element, immune evasion to prevent parasite clearance from the host. Also, the study of dose–response relationships and multiple infections should be particularly illuminating to understand the evolution of virulence. Taking into account immune evasion brings immunological processes to the core of understanding the evolution of parasite virulence and for a range of related issues such as dose, host specificity or immunopathology. The aim of this review is to highlight the mechanism underlying immune evasion and to discuss possible consequences for the evolutionary ecology analysis of host–parasite interactions.

scholarly journals FLAgellum Member 8 modulates extravascular trypanosome distribution in the mammalian host

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Estefanía Calvo Alvarez ◽  
Aline Crouzols ◽  
Brice Rotureau
Keyword(s):  
Blood Circulation ◽  
Parasite Development ◽  
Mammalian Host ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Flagellar Protein ◽  
Host Parasite ◽  
Parasite Populations ◽  
Extravascular Compartment ◽  
Host Tissues

The African trypanosome flagellum is essential in multiple aspects of the parasite development. In the mammalian infective form of this protist, FLAgellar Member 8 (FLAM8) is a large protein distributed along the entire flagellum that is suspected to be involved in host-parasite interactions. Analyses of knockdown and knockout trypanosomes demonstrated that FLAM8 is not essential in vitro for survival, growth, motility and slender to stumpy differentiation. Functional investigations in experimental infections showed that FLAM8 -deprived trypanosomes are able to establish and maintain the infection in the blood circulation, and to differentiate into transmissible stumpy forms. However, bioluminescence imaging revealed that FLAM8 -null parasites exhibit an impaired dissemination in the extravascular compartment, especially in the skin, that is partially restored by the addition of a single rescue copy of FLAM8 . To our knowledge, FLAM8 is the first example of a flagellar protein that modulates T. brucei parasite distribution in the host tissues, contributing to the maintenance of extravascular parasite populations in mammalian anatomical niches.

scholarly journals Environmental constraints influencing survival of an African parasite in a north temperate habitat: effects of temperature on development within the host

Parasitology ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 138 (8) ◽  
pp. 1039-1052 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. C. TINSLEY ◽  
J. E. YORK ◽  
L. C. STOTT ◽  
A. L. E. EVERARD ◽  
S. J. CHAPPLE ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Surface Waters ◽  
Experimental System ◽  
Parasite Development ◽  
Specific Host ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Secondary Infections ◽  
Host Sex ◽  
Developmental Rates ◽  
Effects Of Temperature ◽  
Host Parasite

SUMMARYThe monogenean Protopolystoma xenopodis has been established in Wales for >40 years following introduction with Xenopus laevis from South Africa. This provides an experimental system for determining constraints affecting introduced species in novel environments. Parasite development post-infection was followed at 15, 20 and 25°C for 15 weeks and at 10°C for ⩾1 year and correlated with temperatures recorded in Wales. Development was slowed/arrested at ⩽10°C which reflects habitat conditions for >6 months/year. There was wide variation in growth at constant temperature (body size differing by >10 times) potentially attributable in part to genotype-specific host-parasite interactions. Parasite density had no effect on size but host sex did: worms in males were 1·8 times larger than in females. Minimum time to patency was 51 days at 25°C and 73 days at 20°C although some infections were still not patent at both temperatures by 105 days p.i. In Wales, fastest developing infections may mature within one summer (about 12 weeks), possibly accelerated by movements of hosts into warmer surface waters. Otherwise, development slows/stops in October–April, delaying patency to about 1 year p.i., while wide variation in developmental rates may impose delays of 2 years in some primary infections and even longer in secondary infections.

THE IMPORTANCE OF COINCIDENCE IN THE FUNCTIONAL AND NUMERICAL RESPONSES OF TWO PARASITES OF THE EUROPEAN PINE SAWFLY, NEODIPRION SERTIFER

1969 ◽  
Vol 101 (7) ◽  
pp. 673-713 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. J. Griffiths
Keyword(s):  
Functional Response ◽  
First Generation ◽  
Initial Conditions ◽  
Host Density ◽  
Parasite Development ◽  
Neodiprion Sertifer ◽  
Pine Sawfly ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
European Pine Sawfly ◽  
Host Parasite

AbstractThe possibility of imperfect coincidence between the appropriate stages of Neodiprion sertifer (Geoff.) and two of its important parasites was demonstrated. One of the parasites, the indigenous ichneumonid Exenterus canadensis Prov., which attacks late-stage larvae, has good spatial coincidence; but some members of each generation suffer from imperfect temporal coincidence, or asynchrony, caused by the interaction of temperature influence on parasite development rate and temperature variability between development sites in the litter. The second parasite, Pleolophus basizonus (Grav.), is an introduced, multivoltine ichneumonid cocoon parasite. It may be imperfectly synchronized in its first generation each year and may show imperfect spatial coincidence in all generations through its inability to attack host cocoons beneath approximately 1 in. or more of litter.The intricate relations between parasite and host density, time, attack, and coincidence were investigated using the basic functional response submodel developed by Holling, a submodel that describes changes in oviposition behaviour with time, and a submodel that predicts the number of hosts attacked, given the number of eggs laid and data on the distribution of eggs among hosts. In the two species studied, the effect of asynchrony in one generation cannot be considered without considering the influence of superparasitism. At low host densities, superparasitism largely buffers the effects of decreased synchrony. This buffering effect decreases as host density increases until when each parasite is attacking all the hosts it can, it is almost eliminated. Imperfect spatial coincidence in one generation merely lowers the usable host density. Thus its effect can be seen in the functional response of the parasite to host density. When host–parasite interactions over 25 to 35 host generations were simulated, using initial conditions resembling those ensuing when small numbers of both host and parasite invade a previously unattacked stand, populations became stable after passing through one or more oscillations. Decreasing temporal or spatial coincidence increased host and parasite densities at the peaks of oscillations and increased the ultimate steady density of host and parasite, until coincidence was reduced to nearly half. At this level, the host escaped the regulating ability of both species of parasites.

scholarly journals Leishmaniaflagellum attachment zone is critical for flagellar pocket shape, development in the sand fly, and pathogenicity in the host

2019 ◽  
Vol 116 (13) ◽  
pp. 6351-6360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jack D. Sunter ◽  
Ryuji Yanase ◽  
Ziyin Wang ◽  
Carolina Moura Costa Catta-Preta ◽  
Flavia Moreira-Leite ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Neck Region ◽  
Sand Fly ◽  
Parasite Development ◽  
Sand Flies ◽  
Flagellar Pocket ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Host Parasite ◽  
Attachment Zone ◽  
Modest Effect

Leishmaniakinetoplastid parasites infect millions of people worldwide and have a distinct cellular architecture depending on location in the host or vector and specific pathogenicity functions. An invagination of the cell body membrane at the base of the flagellum, the flagellar pocket (FP), is an iconic kinetoplastid feature, and is central to processes that are critical forLeishmaniapathogenicity. TheLeishmaniaFP has a bulbous region posterior to the FP collar and a distal neck region where the FP membrane surrounds the flagellum more closely. The flagellum is attached to one side of the FP neck by the short flagellum attachment zone (FAZ). We addressed whether targeting the FAZ affects FP shape and its function as a platform for host–parasite interactions. Deletion of the FAZ protein, FAZ5, clearly altered FP architecture and had a modest effect in endocytosis but did not compromise cell proliferation in culture. However, FAZ5 deletion had a dramatic impact in vivo: Mutants were unable to develop late-stage infections in sand flies, and parasite burdens in mice were reduced by >97%. Our work demonstrates the importance of the FAZ for FP function and architecture. Moreover, we show that deletion of a single FAZ protein can have a large impact on parasite development and pathogenicity.

scholarly journals Analysis of Plasmodium vivax schizont transcriptomes from field isolates reveals heterogeneity of expression of genes involved in host-parasite interactions

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sasha V. Siegel ◽  
Lia Chappell ◽  
Jessica B. Hostetler ◽  
Chanaki Amaratunga ◽  
Seila Suon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plasmodium Vivax ◽  
Ex Vivo ◽  
Culture Method ◽  
Surface Proteins ◽  
Parasite Development ◽  
Field Isolates ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Short Period ◽  
Host Parasite

AbstractPlasmodium vivax gene regulation remains difficult to study due to the lack of a robust in vitro culture method, low parasite densities in peripheral circulation and asynchronous parasite development. We adapted an RNA-seq protocol “DAFT-seq” to sequence the transcriptome of four P. vivax field isolates that were cultured for a short period ex vivo before using a density gradient for schizont enrichment. Transcription was detected from 78% of the PvP01 reference genome, despite being schizont-enriched samples. This extensive data was used to define thousands of 5’ and 3’ untranslated regions (UTRs), some of which overlapped with neighbouring transcripts, and to improve the gene models of 352 genes, including identifying 20 novel gene transcripts. This dataset has also significantly increased the known amount of heterogeneity between P. vivax schizont transcriptomes from individual patients. The majority of genes found to be differentially expressed between the isolates lack Plasmodium falciparum homologs and are predicted to be involved in host-parasite interactions, with an enrichment in reticulocyte binding proteins, merozoite surface proteins and exported proteins with unknown function. An improved understanding of the diversity within P. vivax transcriptomes will be essential for the prioritisation of novel vaccine targets.

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