Infection, specificity and host manipulation of Australapatemon sp (Trematoda, Strigeidae) in two sympatric species of leeches (Hirudinea)

0479125 - BC 2018 RIV GB eng J - Článek v odborném periodiku
Karvonen, A. - Faltýnková, Anna - Choo, J. M. - Valtonen, E. T.
Infection, specificity and host manipulation of Australapatemon sp (Trematoda, Strigeidae) in two sympatric species of leeches (Hirudinea).
Parasitology. Roč. 144, č. 10 (2017), s. 1346-1355. ISSN 0031-1820. E-ISSN 1469-8161
Institucionální podpora: RVO:60077344
Klíčová slova: complex life cycle * Digenea * host manipulation * host-parasite relationship * spatiotemporal variation * specificity * Trematoda
Obor OECD: Zoology
Impakt faktor: 2.511, rok: 2017

Factors that drive parasite specificity and differences in infection dynamics among alternative host species are important for ecology and evolution of host-parasite interactions, but still often poorly known in natural systems. Here, we investigated spatiotemporal dynamics of infection, host susceptibility and parasite-induced changes in host phenotype in a rarely explored host-parasite system, the Australapatemon sp. trematode infecting two sympatric species of freshwater leeches, Erpobdella octoculata and Helobdella stagnalis. We show significant variation in infection abundance between the host species in both space and time. Using experimental infections, we also show that most of this variation likely comes from interspecific differences in exposure rather than susceptibility. Moreover, we demonstrate that the hiding behaviour of E. octoculata, but not that of H. stagnalis, was impaired by the infection irrespective of the parasite abundance. This may increase susceptibility of E. octoculata to predation by the final avian host. We conclude that differences in patterns of infection and in behavioural alterations among alternative sympatric host species may arise in narrow spatial scales, which emphasises the importance of local infection and transmission dynamics for parasite life cycles.
Trvalý link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0275136