A generalist vector-transmitted parasite exhibits population genetic structure among host genera
Ellis, Vincenzo A. LU ; Duc, Mélanie ; Ciloglu, Arif LU ; Hellgren, Olof LU and Bensch, Staffan LU
(2025)
In Parasitology
- Abstract
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 two best-sampled host genera were Phylloscopus (two species, n = 15 infections) and Sylvia (four species, n = 15). We designed a sequence capture protocol to isolate 1.13 Mbp (ca. 5%) of the parasite genome and identified 1,399 variable sites among the sequenced... (More)
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 two best-sampled host genera were Phylloscopus (two species, n = 15 infections) and Sylvia (four species, n = 15). We designed a sequence capture protocol to isolate 1.13 Mbp (ca. 5%) of the parasite genome and identified 1,399 variable sites among the sequenced infections. In a principal components analysis, infections of Phylloscopus and Sylvia species mostly separated along the first two 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 AMOVA 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.
(Less)
- author
- Ellis, Vincenzo A.
LU
; Duc, Mélanie
; Ciloglu, Arif
LU
; Hellgren, Olof
LU
and Bensch, Staffan
LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2025
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- epub
- subject
- keywords
- avian haemosporidians, host specificity, parasite evolution, pathogen, population genomics
- in
- Parasitology
- pages
- 10 pages
- publisher
- Cambridge University Press
- external identifiers
-
- pmid:39834303
- scopus:85216123045
- ISSN
- 0031-1820
- DOI
- 10.1017/S0031182024001641
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- additional info
- Publisher Copyright: © The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press.
- id
- 3f5dd7ef-1f66-4292-8e78-d7a58cf52c9f
- date added to LUP
- 2025-04-09 13:36:48
- date last changed
- 2025-07-10 03:00:18
@article{3f5dd7ef-1f66-4292-8e78-d7a58cf52c9f,
abstract = {{<p>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 two best-sampled host genera were Phylloscopus (two species, n = 15 infections) and Sylvia (four species, n = 15). We designed a sequence capture protocol to isolate 1.13 Mbp (ca. 5%) of the parasite genome and identified 1,399 variable sites among the sequenced infections. In a principal components analysis, infections of Phylloscopus and Sylvia species mostly separated along the first two principal components. Sites with the highest F<sub>ST</sub> 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 AMOVA 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.</p>}},
author = {{Ellis, Vincenzo A. and Duc, Mélanie and Ciloglu, Arif and Hellgren, Olof and Bensch, Staffan}},
issn = {{0031-1820}},
keywords = {{avian haemosporidians; host specificity; parasite evolution; pathogen; population genomics}},
language = {{eng}},
publisher = {{Cambridge University Press}},
series = {{Parasitology}},
title = {{A generalist vector-transmitted parasite exhibits population genetic structure among host genera}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0031182024001641}},
doi = {{10.1017/S0031182024001641}},
year = {{2025}},
}