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  1. Article ; Online: Ongoing evolution of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis lactate dehydrogenase reveals the pleiotropic effects of bacterial adaption to host pressure.

    Stanley, Sydney / Wang, Xin / Liu, Qingyun / Kwon, Young Yon / Frey, Abigail M / Hicks, Nathan D / Vickers, Andrew J / Hui, Sheng / Fortune, Sarah M

    PLoS pathogens

    2024  Volume 20, Issue 2, Page(s) e1012050

    Abstract: The bacterial determinants that facilitate Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) adaptation to the human host environment are poorly characterized. We have sought to decipher the pressures facing the bacterium in vivo by assessing Mtb genes that are under ... ...

    Abstract The bacterial determinants that facilitate Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) adaptation to the human host environment are poorly characterized. We have sought to decipher the pressures facing the bacterium in vivo by assessing Mtb genes that are under positive selection in clinical isolates. One of the strongest targets of selection in the Mtb genome is lldD2, which encodes a quinone-dependent L-lactate dehydrogenase (LldD2) that catalyzes the oxidation of lactate to pyruvate. Lactate accumulation is a salient feature of the intracellular environment during infection and lldD2 is essential for Mtb growth in macrophages. We determined the extent of lldD2 variation across a set of global clinical isolates and defined how prevalent mutations modulate Mtb fitness. We show the stepwise nature of lldD2 evolution that occurs as a result of ongoing lldD2 selection in the background of ancestral lineage-defining mutations and demonstrate that the genetic evolution of lldD2 additively augments Mtb growth in lactate. Using quinone-dependent antibiotic susceptibility as a functional reporter, we also find that the evolved lldD2 mutations functionally increase the quinone-dependent activity of LldD2. Using 13C-lactate metabolic flux tracing, we find that lldD2 is necessary for robust incorporation of lactate into central carbon metabolism. In the absence of lldD2, label preferentially accumulates in dihydroxyacetone phosphate (DHAP) and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate (G3P) and is associated with a discernible growth defect, providing experimental evidence for accrued lactate toxicity via the deleterious buildup of sugar phosphates. The evolved lldD2 variants increase lactate incorporation to pyruvate while altering triose phosphate flux, suggesting both an anaplerotic and detoxification benefit to lldD2 evolution. We further show that the mycobacterial cell is transcriptionally sensitive to the changes associated with altered lldD2 activity which affect the expression of genes involved in cell wall lipid metabolism and the ESX- 1 virulence system. Together, these data illustrate a multifunctional role of LldD2 that provides context for the selective advantage of lldD2 mutations in adapting to host stress.
    MeSH term(s) Humans ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis/metabolism ; L-Lactate Dehydrogenase ; Lactic Acid/metabolism ; Pyruvates/metabolism ; Quinones/metabolism ; Phosphates/metabolism
    Chemical Substances L-Lactate Dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.27) ; Lactic Acid (33X04XA5AT) ; Pyruvates ; Quinones ; Phosphates
    Language English
    Publishing date 2024-02-29
    Publishing country United States
    Document type Journal Article
    ZDB-ID 2205412-1
    ISSN 1553-7374 ; 1553-7374
    ISSN (online) 1553-7374
    ISSN 1553-7374
    DOI 10.1371/journal.ppat.1012050
    Database MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System OnLINE

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  2. Article ; Online: Loss of RNase J leads to multi-drug tolerance and accumulation of highly structured mRNA fragments in Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

    Martini, Maria Carla / Hicks, Nathan D / Xiao, Junpei / Alonso, Maria Natalia / Barbier, Thibault / Sixsmith, Jaimie / Fortune, Sarah M / Shell, Scarlet S

    PLoS pathogens

    2022  Volume 18, Issue 7, Page(s) e1010705

    Abstract: Despite the existence of well-characterized, canonical mutations that confer high-level drug resistance to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), there is evidence that drug resistance mechanisms are more complex than simple acquisition of such mutations. ... ...

    Abstract Despite the existence of well-characterized, canonical mutations that confer high-level drug resistance to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), there is evidence that drug resistance mechanisms are more complex than simple acquisition of such mutations. Recent studies have shown that Mtb can acquire non-canonical resistance-associated mutations that confer survival advantages in the presence of certain drugs, likely acting as stepping-stones for acquisition of high-level resistance. Rv2752c/rnj, encoding RNase J, is disproportionately mutated in drug-resistant clinical Mtb isolates. Here we show that deletion of rnj confers increased tolerance to lethal concentrations of several drugs. RNAseq revealed that RNase J affects expression of a subset of genes enriched for PE/PPE genes and stable RNAs and is key for proper 23S rRNA maturation. Gene expression differences implicated two sRNAs and ppe50-ppe51 as important contributors to the drug tolerance phenotype. In addition, we found that in the absence of RNase J, many short RNA fragments accumulate because they are degraded at slower rates. We show that the accumulated transcript fragments are targets of RNase J and are characterized by strong secondary structure and high G+C content, indicating that RNase J has a rate-limiting role in degradation of highly structured RNAs. Taken together, our results demonstrate that RNase J indirectly affects drug tolerance, as well as reveal the endogenous roles of RNase J in mycobacterial RNA metabolism.
    MeSH term(s) Drug Tolerance ; Endoribonucleases/genetics ; Endoribonucleases/metabolism ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis/genetics ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis/metabolism ; RNA, Messenger/genetics ; RNA, Messenger/metabolism ; Ribonucleases/genetics ; Ribonucleases/metabolism
    Chemical Substances RNA, Messenger ; Endoribonucleases (EC 3.1.-) ; Ribonucleases (EC 3.1.-)
    Language English
    Publishing date 2022-07-13
    Publishing country United States
    Document type Journal Article ; Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural ; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
    ZDB-ID 2205412-1
    ISSN 1553-7374 ; 1553-7374
    ISSN (online) 1553-7374
    ISSN 1553-7374
    DOI 10.1371/journal.ppat.1010705
    Database MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System OnLINE

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  3. Article ; Online: Dynamics of clonal diversity in natural infections of the malaria parasite Plasmodium mexicanum in its free-ranging lizard host.

    Hicks, Nathan D / Schall, Jos J

    Parasitology research

    2014  Volume 113, Issue 6, Page(s) 2059–2067

    Abstract: Within mixed-genotype infections of malaria parasites (Plasmodium), the number of genetic clones present is associated with variation in important life history traits of the infection, including virulence. Although the number of clones present is ... ...

    Abstract Within mixed-genotype infections of malaria parasites (Plasmodium), the number of genetic clones present is associated with variation in important life history traits of the infection, including virulence. Although the number of clones present is important, how the proportion of those clones varies over time is poorly known. Clonal proportions of the lizard malaria parasite, Plasmodium mexicanum, were assessed in naturally infected free-ranging lizards followed in a mark-recapture program over as long as two warm seasons, the typical life span of the lizard. Clonal proportions were determined by amplifying two microsatellite markers, a method previously verified for accuracy. Most blood samples had been stored for over a decade, so a verification test determined that these samples had not degraded. Although the environment experienced by the parasite (its host) varies over the seasons and transmission occurs over the entire warm season, 68% of infections were stable over time, harboring a single clone (37% of infections) or multiple clones changing only 1-12% maximum comparing any two samples (31% of infections). The maximum change seen in any infection (comparing any two sample periods) was only 30%. A new clone entered three infections (only once successfully), and a clone was lost in only three infections. These results mirror those seen for a previous study of experimentally induced infections that showed little change in relative proportions over time. The results of this study, the first look at how clonal proportions vary over time for any malaria parasite of a nonhuman vertebrate host for natural infections, were surprising because experimental studies show clones of P. mexicanum appear to interact, yet relative proportions of clones typically remain constant over time.
    MeSH term(s) Animals ; Animals, Wild ; Genetic Variation ; Genotype ; Lizards/parasitology ; Malaria/parasitology ; Malaria/veterinary ; Microsatellite Repeats ; Plasmodium/classification ; Plasmodium/genetics
    Language English
    Publishing date 2014-03-20
    Publishing country Germany
    Document type Journal Article ; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't ; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
    ZDB-ID 284966-5
    ISSN 1432-1955 ; 0932-0113 ; 0044-3255
    ISSN (online) 1432-1955
    ISSN 0932-0113 ; 0044-3255
    DOI 10.1007/s00436-014-3854-4
    Database MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System OnLINE

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  4. Article: Ongoing evolution of the

    Stanley, Sydney / Wang, Xin / Liu, Qingyun / Kwon, Young Yon / Frey, Abigail M / Hicks, Nathan D / Vickers, Andrew J / Hui, Sheng / Fortune, Sarah M

    bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology

    2023  

    Abstract: The bacterial determinants that ... ...

    Abstract The bacterial determinants that facilitate
    Language English
    Publishing date 2023-10-09
    Publishing country United States
    Document type Preprint
    DOI 10.1101/2023.10.09.561592
    Database MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System OnLINE

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  5. Article ; Online: Establishment efficiency among clones of the malaria parasite, Plasmodium mexicanum, for mixed-clone infections in its natural lizard host.

    Hicks, Nathan D / Schall, Jos J

    The Journal of parasitology

    2013  Volume 99, Issue 6, Page(s) 1050–1055

    Abstract: Within genetically diverse infections of malaria parasites ( Plasmodium spp.), the relative proportions of genetic clones in the vertebrate host's blood can influence clonal competition, transmission success, gametocyte sex ratio, and virulence. Clonal ... ...

    Abstract Within genetically diverse infections of malaria parasites ( Plasmodium spp.), the relative proportions of genetic clones in the vertebrate host's blood can influence clonal competition, transmission success, gametocyte sex ratio, and virulence. Clonal proportions depend on establishment success of each clone when they enter a new host and on subsequent differences in rates of asexual replication and clearance. Both of these life history traits could be influenced by clone genotype. To assess genetic (clonal) influences on both establishment success and later changes in relative proportion for the lizard malaria parasite Plasmodium mexicanum , 7 naturally infected fence lizards harboring a single clone of P. mexicanum served as donors to initiate replicate experimental infections containing each of the clones and combinations of 2 clones. Measured were relative establishment success of each clone, change in relative proportions over time, and rate of increase of parasite density and total parasitemia. Relative clonal proportions were determined using microsatellite markers. Rates of increase in the parasitemia and degree of change in relative proportions were not correlated, so both rapidly and slowly growing infections could show either little or substantial change in clonal proportions over time. There was a significant clone effect on establishment efficiency but not on later changes in relative proportions. These results argue for a combination of genetic and environmental (host) effects on the success of P. mexicanum clones in genetically complex infections. The maintenance of genetic variation for establishment success, but not subsequent replication rate or shifts in relative proportion, suggests trade-offs between these traits during life history evolution of malaria parasites.
    MeSH term(s) Animals ; California ; Cloning, Molecular ; Cytochromes b/genetics ; DNA, Protozoan/blood ; Erythrocytes/parasitology ; Female ; Genetic Variation ; Lizards/parasitology ; Malaria/diagnosis ; Malaria/parasitology ; Malaria/veterinary ; Male ; Microsatellite Repeats ; Parasitemia/diagnosis ; Parasitemia/parasitology ; Parasitemia/veterinary ; Plasmodium/classification ; Plasmodium/genetics ; Polymerase Chain Reaction/veterinary ; Random Allocation
    Chemical Substances DNA, Protozoan ; Cytochromes b (9035-37-4)
    Language English
    Publishing date 2013-12
    Publishing country United States
    Document type Journal Article ; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't ; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
    ZDB-ID 300870-8
    ISSN 1937-2345 ; 0022-3395
    ISSN (online) 1937-2345
    ISSN 0022-3395
    DOI 10.1645/12-72.1
    Database MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System OnLINE

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  6. Article ; Online: Structural and functional insight into the Mycobacterium tuberculosis protein PrpR reveals a novel type of transcription factor.

    Tang, Su / Hicks, Nathan D / Cheng, Yu-Shan / Silva, Andres / Fortune, Sarah M / Sacchettini, James C

    Nucleic acids research

    2019  Volume 47, Issue 18, Page(s) 9934–9949

    Abstract: The pathogenicity of Mycobacterium tuberculosis depends upon its ability to catabolize host cholesterol. Upregulation of the methylcitrate cycle (MCC) is required to assimilate and detoxify propionyl-CoA, a cholesterol degradation product. The ... ...

    Abstract The pathogenicity of Mycobacterium tuberculosis depends upon its ability to catabolize host cholesterol. Upregulation of the methylcitrate cycle (MCC) is required to assimilate and detoxify propionyl-CoA, a cholesterol degradation product. The transcription of key genes prpC and prpD in MCC is activated by MtPrpR, a member of a family of prokaryotic transcription factors whose structures and modes of action have not been clearly defined. We show that MtPrpR has a novel overall structure and directly binds to CoA or short-chain acyl-CoA derivatives to form a homotetramer that covers the binding cavity and locks CoA tightly inside the protein. The regulation of this process involves a [4Fe4S] cluster located close to the CoA-binding cavity on a neighboring chain. Mutations in the [4Fe4S] cluster binding residues rendered MtPrpR incapable of regulating MCC gene transcription. The structure of MtPrpR without the [4Fe4S] cluster-binding region shows a conformational change that prohibits CoA binding. The stability of this cluster means it is unlikely a redox sensor but may function by sensing ambient iron levels. These results provide mechanistic insights into this family of critical transcription factors who share similar structures and regulate gene transcription using a combination of acyl-CoAs and [4Fe4S] cluster.
    MeSH term(s) Acyl Coenzyme A/chemistry ; Acyl Coenzyme A/genetics ; Bacterial Proteins/chemistry ; Bacterial Proteins/genetics ; Cholesterol/genetics ; Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial/genetics ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis/chemistry ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis/genetics ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis/pathogenicity ; PrPC Proteins/chemistry ; PrPC Proteins/genetics ; Transcription Factors/chemistry ; Transcription Factors/genetics ; Tuberculosis/genetics ; Tuberculosis/microbiology
    Chemical Substances Acyl Coenzyme A ; Bacterial Proteins ; PrPC Proteins ; Transcription Factors ; propionyl-coenzyme A (317-66-8) ; Cholesterol (97C5T2UQ7J)
    Language English
    Publishing date 2019-08-29
    Publishing country England
    Document type Journal Article ; Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural ; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
    ZDB-ID 186809-3
    ISSN 1362-4962 ; 1362-4954 ; 0301-5610 ; 0305-1048
    ISSN (online) 1362-4962 ; 1362-4954
    ISSN 0301-5610 ; 0305-1048
    DOI 10.1093/nar/gkz724
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  7. Article ; Online: Rifampicin and rifabutin resistance in 1003 Mycobacterium tuberculosis clinical isolates.

    Farhat, Maha R / Sixsmith, Jaimie / Calderon, Roger / Hicks, Nathan D / Fortune, Sarah M / Murray, Megan

    The Journal of antimicrobial chemotherapy

    2019  Volume 74, Issue 6, Page(s) 1477–1483

    Abstract: Objectives: Drug-resistant TB remains a public health challenge. Rifamycins are among the most potent anti-TB drugs. They are known to target the RpoB subunit of RNA polymerase; however, our understanding of how rifamycin resistance is genetically ... ...

    Abstract Objectives: Drug-resistant TB remains a public health challenge. Rifamycins are among the most potent anti-TB drugs. They are known to target the RpoB subunit of RNA polymerase; however, our understanding of how rifamycin resistance is genetically encoded remains incomplete. Here we investigated rpoB genetic diversity and cross-resistance between the two rifamycin drugs rifampicin and rifabutin.
    Methods: We performed WGS of 1003 Mycobacterium tuberculosis clinical isolates and determined MICs of both rifamycin agents on 7H10 agar using the indirect proportion method. We generated rpoB mutants in a laboratory strain and measured their antibiotic susceptibility using the alamarBlue reduction assay.
    Results: Of the 1003 isolates, 766 were rifampicin resistant and 210 (27%) of these were rifabutin susceptible; 102/210 isolates had the rpoB mutation D435V (Escherichia coli D516V). Isolates with discordant resistance were 17.2 times more likely to harbour a D435V mutation than those resistant to both agents (OR 17.2, 95% CI 10.5-27.9, P value <10-40). Compared with WT, the D435V in vitro mutant had an increased IC50 of both rifamycins; however, in both cases to a lesser degree than the S450L (E. coli S531L) mutation.
    Conclusions: The observation that the rpoB D435V mutation produces an increase in the IC50 of both drugs contrasts with findings from previous smaller studies that suggested that isolates with the D435V mutation remain rifabutin susceptible despite being rifampicin resistant. Our finding thus suggests that the recommended critical testing concentration for rifabutin should be revised.
    MeSH term(s) Antitubercular Agents/pharmacology ; Bacterial Proteins/genetics ; Bacterial Proteins/metabolism ; Drug Resistance, Bacterial ; Humans ; Microbial Sensitivity Tests ; Mutation ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis/drug effects ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis/genetics ; Rifabutin/pharmacology ; Rifampin/pharmacology ; Tuberculosis/drug therapy ; Tuberculosis/microbiology
    Chemical Substances Antitubercular Agents ; Bacterial Proteins ; Rifabutin (1W306TDA6S) ; Rifampin (VJT6J7R4TR)
    Language English
    Publishing date 2019-02-19
    Publishing country England
    Document type Journal Article ; Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
    ZDB-ID 191709-2
    ISSN 1460-2091 ; 0305-7453
    ISSN (online) 1460-2091
    ISSN 0305-7453
    DOI 10.1093/jac/dkz048
    Database MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System OnLINE

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  8. Article ; Online: Bacterial Genome-Wide Association Identifies Novel Factors That Contribute to Ethionamide and Prothionamide Susceptibility in Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

    Hicks, Nathan D / Carey, Allison F / Yang, Jian / Zhao, Yanlin / Fortune, Sarah M

    mBio

    2019  Volume 10, Issue 2

    Abstract: ... ...

    Abstract In
    MeSH term(s) Antitubercular Agents/pharmacology ; China ; Drug Resistance, Bacterial ; Ethionamide/pharmacology ; Genome-Wide Association Study ; Microbial Sensitivity Tests ; Mutation ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis/drug effects ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis/enzymology ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis/genetics ; Oxidoreductases/genetics ; Oxidoreductases/metabolism ; Prothionamide/pharmacology
    Chemical Substances Antitubercular Agents ; Prothionamide (76YOO33643) ; Oxidoreductases (EC 1.-) ; Ethionamide (OAY8ORS3CQ)
    Language English
    Publishing date 2019-04-23
    Publishing country United States
    Document type Journal Article ; Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
    ZDB-ID 2557172-2
    ISSN 2150-7511 ; 2161-2129
    ISSN (online) 2150-7511
    ISSN 2161-2129
    DOI 10.1128/mBio.00616-19
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  9. Article ; Online: Identification of bacterial determinants of tuberculosis infection and treatment outcomes: a phenogenomic analysis of clinical strains.

    Stanley, Sydney / Spaulding, Caitlin N / Liu, Qingyun / Chase, Michael R / Ha, Dang Thi Minh / Thai, Phan Vuong Khac / Lan, Nguyen Huu / Thu, Do Dang Anh / Quang, Nguyen Le / Brown, Jessica / Hicks, Nathan D / Wang, Xin / Marin, Maximillian / Howard, Nicole C / Vickers, Andrew J / Karpinski, Wiktor M / Chao, Michael C / Farhat, Maha R / Caws, Maxine /
    Dunstan, Sarah J / Thuong, Nguyen Thuy Thuong / Fortune, Sarah M

    The Lancet. Microbe

    2024  

    Abstract: Background: Bacterial diversity could contribute to the diversity of tuberculosis infection and treatment outcomes observed clinically, but the biological basis of this association is poorly understood. The aim of this study was to identify associations ...

    Abstract Background: Bacterial diversity could contribute to the diversity of tuberculosis infection and treatment outcomes observed clinically, but the biological basis of this association is poorly understood. The aim of this study was to identify associations between phenogenomic variation in Mycobacterium tuberculosis and tuberculosis clinical features.
    Methods: We developed a high-throughput platform to define phenotype-genotype relationships in M tuberculosis clinical isolates, which we tested on a set of 158 drug-sensitive M tuberculosis strains sampled from a large tuberculosis clinical study in Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam. We tagged the strains with unique genetic barcodes in multiplicate, allowing us to pool the strains for in-vitro competitive fitness assays across 16 host-relevant antibiotic and metabolic conditions. Relative fitness was quantified by deep sequencing, enumerating output barcode read counts relative to input normalised values. We performed a genome-wide association study to identify phylogenetically linked and monogenic mutations associated with the in-vitro fitness phenotypes. These genetic determinants were further associated with relevant clinical outcomes (cavitary disease and treatment failure) by calculating odds ratios (ORs) with binomial logistic regressions. We also assessed the population-level transmission of strains associated with cavitary disease and treatment failure using terminal branch length analysis of the phylogenetic data.
    Findings: M tuberculosis clinical strains had diverse growth characteristics in host-like metabolic and drug conditions. These fitness phenotypes were highly heritable, and we identified monogenic and phylogenetically linked variants associated with the fitness phenotypes. These data enabled us to define two genetic features that were associated with clinical outcomes. First, mutations in Rv1339, a phosphodiesterase, which were associated with slow growth in glycerol, were further associated with treatment failure (OR 5·34, 95% CI 1·21-23·58, p=0·027). Second, we identified a phenotypically distinct slow-growing subclade of lineage 1 strains (L1.1.1.1) that was associated with cavitary disease (OR 2·49, 1·11-5·59, p=0·027) and treatment failure (OR 4·76, 1·53-14·78, p=0·0069), and which had shorter terminal branch lengths on the phylogenetic tree, suggesting increased transmission.
    Interpretation: Slow growth under various antibiotic and metabolic conditions served as in-vitro intermediate phenotypes underlying the association between M tuberculosis monogenic and phylogenetically linked mutations and outcomes such as cavitary disease, treatment failure, and transmission potential. These data suggest that M tuberculosis growth regulation is an adaptive advantage for bacterial success in human populations, at least in some circumstances. These data further suggest markers for the underlying bacterial processes that contribute to these clinical outcomes.
    Funding: National Health and Medical Research Council/A∗STAR, National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, and the Wellcome Trust Fellowship in Public Health and Tropical Medicine.
    Language English
    Publishing date 2024-05-06
    Publishing country England
    Document type Journal Article
    ISSN 2666-5247
    ISSN (online) 2666-5247
    DOI 10.1016/S2666-5247(24)00022-3
    Database MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System OnLINE

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  10. Article: Dynamics of clonal diversity in natural infections of the malaria parasite Plasmodium mexicanum in its free-ranging lizard host

    Hicks, Nathan D / Schall, Jos J

    Parasitology research. 2014 June, v. 113, no. 6

    2014  

    Abstract: Within mixed-genotype infections of malaria parasites (Plasmodium), the number of genetic clones present is associated with variation in important life history traits of the infection, including virulence. Although the number of clones present is ... ...

    Abstract Within mixed-genotype infections of malaria parasites (Plasmodium), the number of genetic clones present is associated with variation in important life history traits of the infection, including virulence. Although the number of clones present is important, how the proportion of those clones varies over time is poorly known. Clonal proportions of the lizard malaria parasite, Plasmodium mexicanum, were assessed in naturally infected free-ranging lizards followed in a mark-recapture program over as long as two warm seasons, the typical life span of the lizard. Clonal proportions were determined by amplifying two microsatellite markers, a method previously verified for accuracy. Most blood samples had been stored for over a decade, so a verification test determined that these samples had not degraded. Although the environment experienced by the parasite (its host) varies over the seasons and transmission occurs over the entire warm season, 68� % of infections were stable over time, harboring a single clone (37� % of infections) or multiple clones changing only 1–12� % maximum comparing any two samples (31� % of infections). The maximum change seen in any infection (comparing any two sample periods) was only 30� %. A new clone entered three infections (only once successfully), and a clone was lost in only three infections. These results mirror those seen for a previous study of experimentally induced infections that showed little change in relative proportions over time. The results of this study, the first look at how clonal proportions vary over time for any malaria parasite of a nonhuman vertebrate host for natural infections, were surprising because experimental studies show clones of P. mexicanum appear to interact, yet relative proportions of clones typically remain constant over time.
    Keywords Plasmodium ; blood ; clones ; life history ; lizards ; longevity ; malaria ; microsatellite repeats ; parasites ; virulence ; warm season
    Language English
    Dates of publication 2014-06
    Size p. 2059-2067.
    Publishing place Springer-Verlag
    Document type Article
    ZDB-ID 284966-5
    ISSN 1432-1955 ; 0932-0113 ; 0044-3255
    ISSN (online) 1432-1955
    ISSN 0932-0113 ; 0044-3255
    DOI 10.1007/s00436-014-3854-4
    Database NAL-Catalogue (AGRICOLA)

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