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MHC class II genotype-by-pathogen genotype interaction for infection prevalence in a natural rodent-Borrelia system

Råberg, Lars LU ; Clough, Dagmar LU ; Hagström, Åsa LU ; Scherman, Kristin LU ; Andersson, Martin LU ; Drews, Anna LU ; Strandh, Maria LU ; Tschirren, Barbara LU and Westerdahl, Helena LU (2022) In Evolution 76(9). p.2067-2075
Abstract

MHC genes are extraordinarily polymorphic in most taxa. Host-pathogen coevolution driven by negative frequency-dependent selection (NFDS) is one of the main hypotheses for the maintenance of such immunogenetic variation. Here, we test a critical but rarely tested assumption of this hypothesis—that MHC alleles affect resistance/susceptibility to a pathogen in a strain-specific way, that is, there is a host genotype-by-pathogen genotype interaction. In a field study of bank voles naturally infected with the tick-transmitted bacterium Borrelia afzelii, we tested for MHC class II (DQB) genotype-by-B. afzelii strain interactions for infection prevalence between 10 DQB alleles and seven strains. One allele (DQB*37) showed an interaction, such... (More)

MHC genes are extraordinarily polymorphic in most taxa. Host-pathogen coevolution driven by negative frequency-dependent selection (NFDS) is one of the main hypotheses for the maintenance of such immunogenetic variation. Here, we test a critical but rarely tested assumption of this hypothesis—that MHC alleles affect resistance/susceptibility to a pathogen in a strain-specific way, that is, there is a host genotype-by-pathogen genotype interaction. In a field study of bank voles naturally infected with the tick-transmitted bacterium Borrelia afzelii, we tested for MHC class II (DQB) genotype-by-B. afzelii strain interactions for infection prevalence between 10 DQB alleles and seven strains. One allele (DQB*37) showed an interaction, such that voles carrying DQB*37 had higher prevalence of two strains and lower prevalence of one strain than individuals without the allele. These findings were corroborated by analyses of strain composition of infections, which revealed an effect of DQB*37 in the form of lower β diversity among infections in voles carrying the allele. Taken together, these results provide rare support at the molecular genetic level for a key assumption of models of antagonistic coevolution through NFDS.

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author
; ; ; ; ; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Borrelia, coevolution, frequency-dependent selection, Myodes glareolus, ospC
in
Evolution
volume
76
issue
9
pages
9 pages
publisher
Wiley-Blackwell
external identifiers
  • pmid:35909235
  • scopus:85135571341
ISSN
0014-3820
DOI
10.1111/evo.14590
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
6e4dd98a-4677-472e-af08-2ca6be1b51e6
date added to LUP
2022-10-07 12:57:30
date last changed
2024-04-18 14:49:09
@article{6e4dd98a-4677-472e-af08-2ca6be1b51e6,
  abstract     = {{<p>MHC genes are extraordinarily polymorphic in most taxa. Host-pathogen coevolution driven by negative frequency-dependent selection (NFDS) is one of the main hypotheses for the maintenance of such immunogenetic variation. Here, we test a critical but rarely tested assumption of this hypothesis—that MHC alleles affect resistance/susceptibility to a pathogen in a strain-specific way, that is, there is a host genotype-by-pathogen genotype interaction. In a field study of bank voles naturally infected with the tick-transmitted bacterium Borrelia afzelii, we tested for MHC class II (DQB) genotype-by-B. afzelii strain interactions for infection prevalence between 10 DQB alleles and seven strains. One allele (DQB*37) showed an interaction, such that voles carrying DQB*37 had higher prevalence of two strains and lower prevalence of one strain than individuals without the allele. These findings were corroborated by analyses of strain composition of infections, which revealed an effect of DQB*37 in the form of lower β diversity among infections in voles carrying the allele. Taken together, these results provide rare support at the molecular genetic level for a key assumption of models of antagonistic coevolution through NFDS.</p>}},
  author       = {{Råberg, Lars and Clough, Dagmar and Hagström, Åsa and Scherman, Kristin and Andersson, Martin and Drews, Anna and Strandh, Maria and Tschirren, Barbara and Westerdahl, Helena}},
  issn         = {{0014-3820}},
  keywords     = {{Borrelia; coevolution; frequency-dependent selection; Myodes glareolus; ospC}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{9}},
  pages        = {{2067--2075}},
  publisher    = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
  series       = {{Evolution}},
  title        = {{MHC class II genotype-by-pathogen genotype interaction for infection prevalence in a natural rodent-Borrelia system}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/evo.14590}},
  doi          = {{10.1111/evo.14590}},
  volume       = {{76}},
  year         = {{2022}},
}