TY - JOUR
T1 - Reconstructing colonization dynamics of the human parasite Schistosoma mansoni following anthropogenic environmental changes in Northwest Senegal
AU - Van den Broeck, Frederik
AU - Maes, Gregory E
AU - Larmuseau, Maarten H D
AU - Rollinson, David
AU - Sy, Ibrahima
AU - Faye, Djibril
AU - Volckaert, Filip A M
AU - Polman, Katja
AU - Huyse, Tine
N1 - Van den Broeck F, Maes GE, Larmuseau MH, Rollinson D, Sy I, Faye D, Volckaert
FA, Polman K, Huyse T. Correction: Reconstructing Colonization Dynamics of the
Human Parasite Schistosoma mansoni following Anthropogenic Environmental Changes
in Northwest Senegal. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2015 Sep 25;9(9):e0004090. doi:
10.1371/journal.pntd.0004090. PubMed PMID: 26406990; PubMed Central PMCID:
PMC4583503.
FTX
PY - 2015
Y1 - 2015
N2 - BACKGROUND: Anthropogenic environmental changes may lead to ecosystem destabilization and the unintentional colonization of new habitats by parasite populations. A remarkable example is the outbreak of intestinal schistosomiasis in Northwest Senegal following the construction of two dams in the '80s. While many studies have investigated the epidemiological, immunological and geographical patterns of Schistosoma mansoni infections in this region, little is known about its colonization history.METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Parasites were collected at several time points after the disease outbreak and genotyped using a 420 bp fragment of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 gene (cox1) and nine nuclear DNA microsatellite markers. Phylogeographic and population genetic analyses revealed the presence of (i) many genetically different haplotypes at the non-recombining mitochondrial marker and (ii) one homogenous S. mansoni genetic group at the recombining microsatellite markers. These results suggest that the S. mansoni population in Northwest Senegal was triggered by intraspecific hybridization (i.e. admixture) between parasites that were introduced from different regions. This would comply with the extensive immigration of infected seasonal agricultural workers from neighboring regions in Senegal, Mauritania and Mali. The spatial and temporal stability of the established S. mansoni population suggests a swift local adaptation of the parasite to the local intermediate snail host Biomphalaria pfeifferi at the onset of the epidemic.CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our results show that S. mansoni parasites are very successful in colonizing new areas without significant loss of genetic diversity. Maintaining high levels of diversity guarantees the adaptive potential of these parasites to cope with selective pressures such as drug treatment, which might complicate efforts to control the disease.
AB - BACKGROUND: Anthropogenic environmental changes may lead to ecosystem destabilization and the unintentional colonization of new habitats by parasite populations. A remarkable example is the outbreak of intestinal schistosomiasis in Northwest Senegal following the construction of two dams in the '80s. While many studies have investigated the epidemiological, immunological and geographical patterns of Schistosoma mansoni infections in this region, little is known about its colonization history.METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Parasites were collected at several time points after the disease outbreak and genotyped using a 420 bp fragment of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 gene (cox1) and nine nuclear DNA microsatellite markers. Phylogeographic and population genetic analyses revealed the presence of (i) many genetically different haplotypes at the non-recombining mitochondrial marker and (ii) one homogenous S. mansoni genetic group at the recombining microsatellite markers. These results suggest that the S. mansoni population in Northwest Senegal was triggered by intraspecific hybridization (i.e. admixture) between parasites that were introduced from different regions. This would comply with the extensive immigration of infected seasonal agricultural workers from neighboring regions in Senegal, Mauritania and Mali. The spatial and temporal stability of the established S. mansoni population suggests a swift local adaptation of the parasite to the local intermediate snail host Biomphalaria pfeifferi at the onset of the epidemic.CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our results show that S. mansoni parasites are very successful in colonizing new areas without significant loss of genetic diversity. Maintaining high levels of diversity guarantees the adaptive potential of these parasites to cope with selective pressures such as drug treatment, which might complicate efforts to control the disease.
U2 - 10.1371/journal.pntd.0003998
DO - 10.1371/journal.pntd.0003998
M3 - A1: Web of Science-article
C2 - 26275049
SN - 1935-2727
VL - 9
SP - e0003998
JO - PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases
JF - PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases
IS - 8
ER -