Abstract
Major histocompatibility complex class II (MHC II) is an essential molecule triggering the adaptive immune response by the presentation of pathogens to helper T cells. The association between individual MHC II variants and various parasites has become a frequent finding in studies of vertebrate populations. However, although bird ectoparasites have a significant effect on their host’s fitness, and the host’s immune system can regulate ectoparasitic infections, no study has yet investigated the association between MHC II polymorphism and ectoparasite infection in the populations of free-living birds. Here, we test whether an association exists between the abundance of a chewing louse (Myrsidea nesomimi) and MHC II polymorphism of its hosts, the Galápagos mockingbirds (Mimus). We have found that the presence of two MHC II supertypes (functionally differentiated clusters) was significantly associated with louse abundance. This pattern supports the theory that a co-evolutionary interaction stands behind the maintenance of MHC polymorphism. Moreover, we have found a positive correlation between louse abundance and heterophil/lymphocyte ratio (an indicator of immunological stress) that serves as an additional piece of evidence that ectoparasite burden is affected by immunological state of Galápagos mockingbirds.
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Data availability
The dataset generated during the current study is available in the Mendeley Data repository, https://data.mendeley.com/datasets/75rn24pbvz/1
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Acknowledgements
We thank Prof. Lukas Keller and anonymous reviewers for valuable comments on the manuscript. We also thank the Galápagos National Park Service for permission to conduct this research (Permit Nos. PC-48-10 and PC-08-14) and the Charles Darwin Foundation for assistance in the field. We thank Czech Science Foundation and Grant Agency of the University of South Bohemia for funding.
Funding
The research was funded by the Czech Science Foundation (project no. P506/12/P529) and Grant Agency of the University of South Bohemia (project no. 048/2019/P).
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Vlček, J., Štefka, J. Association between louse abundance and MHC II supertypes in Galápagos mockingbirds. Parasitol Res 119, 1597–1605 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-020-06617-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-020-06617-3