scholarly journals Host defense or parasite cue: Skin secretions mediate interactions between amphibians and their parasites

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Mayer ◽  
Lia Schlippe Justicia ◽  
Richard Shine ◽  
Gregory Brown
Keyword(s):  
Chemical Cues ◽  
Geographic Area ◽  
Amphibian Skin ◽  
First Line ◽  
Toad Skin ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Skin Secretions ◽  
Range Core ◽  
Host Parasite

Amphibian skin secretions (substances produced by the amphibian plus microbiota) plausibly act as a first line of defense against pathogen attack, but may also provide chemical cues for pathogens. To clarify the role of skin secretions in host-parasite interactions, we conducted experiments using cane toads (Rhinella marina) and their lungworms (Rhabdias pseudosphaerocephala) from the range-core and invasion-front of the introduced anurans’ range in Australia. Depending on the geographic area, toad skin secretions can reduce the longevity and infection success of parasite larvae, or attract lungworm larvae and enhance their infection success. These striking differences between the two regions were due both to differential responses of the larvae, and differential effects of the skin secretions. Our data suggest that skin secretions play an important role in host-parasite interactions in anurans, and that the arms race between a host and parasite can rapidly generate spatial variation in critical features of that interaction.

scholarly journals B Chromosomes in Populations of Mammals Revisited

Genes ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 487 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mladen Vujošević ◽  
Marija Rajičić ◽  
Jelena Blagojević
Keyword(s):  
Mammalian Species ◽  
B Chromosome ◽  
Molecular Techniques ◽  
B Chromosomes ◽  
General View ◽  
Protein Coding ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Quantitative Characteristics ◽  
Host Parasite

The study of B chromosomes (Bs) started more than a century ago, while their presence in mammals dates since 1965. As the past two decades have seen huge progress in application of molecular techniques, we decided to throw a glance on new data on Bs in mammals and to review them. We listed 85 mammals with Bs that make 1.94% of karyotypically studied species. Contrary to general view, a typical B chromosome in mammals appears both as sub- or metacentric that is the same size as small chromosomes of standard complement. Both karyotypically stable and unstable species possess Bs. The presence of Bs in certain species influences the cell division, the degree of recombination, the development, a number of quantitative characteristics, the host-parasite interactions and their behaviour. There is at least some data on molecular structure of Bs recorded in nearly a quarter of species. Nevertheless, a more detailed molecular composition of Bs presently known for six mammalian species, confirms the presence of protein coding genes, and the transcriptional activity for some of them. Therefore, the idea that Bs are inert is outdated, but the role of Bs is yet to be determined. The maintenance of Bs is obviously not the same for all species, so the current models must be adapted while bearing in mind that Bs are not inactive as it was once thought.

scholarly journals Melanin-based coloration and host–parasite interactions under global change

2018 ◽  
Vol 285 (1879) ◽  
pp. 20180285 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Côte ◽  
A. Boniface ◽  
S. Blanchet ◽  
A. P. Hendry ◽  
J. Gasparini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Global Change ◽  
Potential Role ◽  
Disease Risk ◽  
Multiple Stressors ◽  
Colour Polymorphism ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
To Come ◽  
Colour Morphs ◽  
Host Parasite

The role of parasites in shaping melanin-based colour polymorphism, and the consequences of colour polymorphism for disease resistance, remain debated. Here we review recent evidence of the links between melanin-based coloration and the behavioural and immunological defences of vertebrates against their parasites. First we propose that (1) differences between colour morphs can result in variable exposure to parasites, either directly (certain colours might be more or less attractive to parasites) or indirectly (variations in behaviour and encounter probability). Once infected, we propose that (2) immune variation between differently coloured individuals might result in different abilities to cope with parasite infection. We then discuss (3) how these different abilities could translate into variable sexual and natural selection in environments varying in parasite pressure. Finally, we address (4) the potential role of parasites in the maintenance of melanin-based colour polymorphism, especially in the context of global change and multiple stressors in human-altered environments. Because global change will probably affect both coloration and the spread of parasitic diseases in the decades to come, future studies should take into account melanin-based coloration to better predict the evolutionary responses of animals to changing disease risk in human-altered environments.

The role of the phagocyte in host-parasite interactions

1973 ◽  
Vol 117 (5) ◽  
pp. 671-678 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.A. Jacobs ◽  
R.J. Selvaraj ◽  
R.R. Strauss ◽  
B.B. Paul ◽  
G.W. Mitchell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Host Parasite

scholarly journals Plasmodium falciparum STEVOR Proteins Are Highly Expressed in Patient Isolates and Located in the Surface Membranes of Infected Red Blood Cells and the Apical Tips of Merozoites

2008 ◽  
Vol 76 (7) ◽  
pp. 3329-3336 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane E. Blythe ◽  
Xue Yan Yam ◽  
Claudia Kuss ◽  
Zbynek Bozdech ◽  
Anthony A. Holder ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plasmodium Falciparum ◽  
Multigene Family ◽  
Blood Cells ◽  
Antigenic Variation ◽  
Human Parasite ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Maurer's Clefts ◽  
Host Parasite ◽  
Family Code

ABSTRACT The human parasite Plasmodium falciparum has the potential to express a vast repertoire of variant proteins on the surface of the infected red blood cell (iRBC). Variation in the expression pattern of these proteins is linked to antigenic variation and thereby evasion of host antibody-mediated immunity. The genes in the stevor multigene family code for small variant antigens that are expressed in blood-stage parasites where they can be detected in membranous structures called Maurer's clefts (MC). Some studies have indicated that STEVOR protein may also be trafficked to the iRBC membrane. To address the location of STEVOR protein in more detail, we have analyzed expression in several cultured parasite lines and in parasites obtained directly from patients. We detected STEVOR expression in a higher proportion of parasites recently isolated from patients than in cultured parasite lines and show that STEVOR is trafficked in schizont-stage parasites from the MC to the RBC cytosol and the iRBC membrane. Furthermore, STEVOR protein is also detected at the apical end of merozoites. Importantly, we show that culture-adapted parasites do not require STEVOR for survival. These findings provide new insights into the role of the stevor multigene family during both the schizont and merozoite stages of the parasite and highlight the importance of studying freshly isolated parasites, rather than parasite lines maintained in culture, when investigating potential mediators of host-parasite interactions.

scholarly journals Possible Roles of Ectophosphatases in Host-Parasite Interactions

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta T. Gomes ◽  
Angela H. Lopes ◽  
José Roberto Meyer-Fernandes
Keyword(s):  
Immune Responses ◽  
Active Sites ◽  
Vast Number ◽  
Host Immune Responses ◽  
Extracellular Milieu ◽  
Surface Molecules ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Hostile Environments ◽  
Host Parasite

The interaction and survival of pathogens in hostile environments and in confrontation with host immune responses are important mechanisms for the establishment of infection. Ectophosphatases are enzymes localized at the plasma membrane of cells, and their active sites face the external medium rather than the cytoplasm. Once activated, these enzymes are able to hydrolyze phosphorylated substrates in the extracellular milieu. Several studies demonstrated the presence of surface-located ecto-phosphatases in a vast number of pathogenic organisms, including bacteria, protozoa, and fungi. Little is known about the role of ecto-phosphatases in host-pathogen interactions. The present paper provides an overview of recent findings related to the virulence induced by these surface molecules in protozoa and fungi.

scholarly journals Parasite Microbiome Project: Systematic Investigation of Microbiome Dynamics within and across Parasite-Host Interactions

mSystems ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nolwenn M. Dheilly ◽  
Daniel Bolnick ◽  
Seth Bordenstein ◽  
Paul J. Brindley ◽  
Cédric Figuères ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Host Resistance ◽  
Systematic Investigation ◽  
Model Systems ◽  
Collaborative Effort ◽  
Host Interactions ◽  
Associated Diseases ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Experimental Approaches ◽  
Host Parasite

ABSTRACT Understanding how microbiomes affect host resistance, parasite virulence, and parasite-associated diseases requires a collaborative effort between parasitologists, microbial ecologists, virologists, and immunologists. We hereby propose the Parasite Microbiome Project to bring together researchers with complementary expertise and to study the role of microbes in host-parasite interactions. Understanding how microbiomes affect host resistance, parasite virulence, and parasite-associated diseases requires a collaborative effort between parasitologists, microbial ecologists, virologists, and immunologists. We hereby propose the Parasite Microbiome Project to bring together researchers with complementary expertise and to study the role of microbes in host-parasite interactions. Data from the Parasite Microbiome Project will help identify the mechanisms driving microbiome variation in parasites and infected hosts and how that variation is associated with the ecology and evolution of parasites and their disease outcomes. This is a call to arms to prevent fragmented research endeavors, encourage best practices in experimental approaches, and allow reliable comparative analyses across model systems. It is also an invitation to foundations and national funding agencies to propel the field of parasitology into the microbiome/metagenomic era.

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