A reduction in ecological niche for Trypanosoma cruzi-infected triatomine bugs

Parasites & Vectors

Angela Nava-Bolaños¹  Alex Córdoba-Aguilar¹  Carlos N. Ibarra-Cerdeña²  Ana E. Gutiérrez-Cabrera³  Herón Huerta⁴  Juan Luis Téllez-Rendón⁴  Maya Rocha-Ortega⁵  Fernando Martínez-Hernández⁵  Guiehdani Villalobos⁶  José A. De Fuentes-Vicente⁷ 

[1] 0000 0001 2159 0001, grid.9486.3, Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva, Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico;0000 0001 2165 8782, grid.418275.d, Departamento de Ecología Humana, Centro de Investigación y Estudios Avanzados del IPN (Cinvestav), Unidad Mérida, 97310, Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico;0000 0004 1773 4764, grid.415771.1, CONACyT-Centro de Investigación sobre Enfermedades Infecciosas, Instituto Nacional de Salud Pública, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico;0000 0004 1791 0836, grid.415745.6, Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos, Secretaría de Salud, Mexico City, Mexico;grid.414754.7, Hospital General “Dr. Manuel Gea González”, Secretaría de Salud, Mexico City, Mexico;grid.414754.7, Hospital General “Dr. Manuel Gea González”, Secretaría de Salud, Mexico City, Mexico;0000 0001 2159 0001, grid.9486.3, Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva, Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico;grid.441051.5, Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Ciencias y Artes de Chiapas, Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Chiapas, Mexico;

关键词: Chagas disease;    Niche;    Niche centroids;    Triatomine bugs;    Trypanosoma cruzi;    Co-evolution;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s13071-019-3489-5

来源: publisher

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundTheory predicts that parasites can affect and thus drive their hosts’ niche. Testing this prediction is key, especially for vector-borne diseases including Chagas disease. Here, we examined the niche use of seven triatomine species that occur in Mexico, based on whether they are infected or not with Trypanosoma cruzi, the vectors and causative parasites of Chagas disease, respectively. Presence data for seven species of triatomines (Triatoma barberi, T. dimidiata, T. longipennis, T. mazzottii, T. pallidipennis, T. phyllosoma and T. picturata) were used and divided into populations infected and not infected by T. cruzi. Species distribution models were generated with Maxent 3.3.3k. Using distribution models, niche analysis tests of amplitude and distance to centroids were carried out for infected vs non-infected populations within species.ResultsInfected populations of bugs of six out of the seven triatomine species showed a reduced ecological space compared to non-infected populations. In all but one case (T. pallidipennis), the niche used by infected populations was close to the niche centroid of its insect host.ConclusionsTrypanosoma cruzi may have selected for a restricted niche amplitude in triatomines, although we are unaware of the underlying reasons. Possibly the fact that T. cruzi infection bears a fitness cost for triatomines is what narrows the niche breadth of the insects. Our results imply that Chagas control programmes should consider whether bugs are infected in models of triatomine distribution.

【 授权许可】

CC BY