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Published on: January 12, 2017
What makes a host profitable? Parasites balance host nutritive resources against immunity
Pierre Bize1, Caroline Jeanneret, Aurélie Klopfenstein
11. Division of Environmental and Evolutionary Biology, Graham Kerr Building, Glasgow University, Glasgow G12 8QQ, United Kingdom. p.bize@bio.gla.ac.uk
The American Naturalist
|January 4, 2008
Summary
Parasites like the louse fly Crataerina melbae may avoid nutritionally poor hosts, even if immunocompetent. Optimal host condition balances resources and immunity for parasite survival.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Parasitology
- Animal Physiology
Background:
- Host nutritional status and immune defenses significantly influence parasite fitness.
- Parasites must balance resource acquisition with immune evasion for optimal survival.
- The interplay between host condition, nutrition, and immunity in host-parasite dynamics remains complex.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how host body condition and immune response affect the fitness of the louse fly Crataerina melbae.
- To determine optimal host traits for ectoparasite blood meal size and survival.
Main Methods:
- Experimental food deprivation of Alpine swift (Apus melba) nestlings.
- Modulation of nestling cutaneous immune response using methionine.
- Measurement of louse fly blood meal size and survival rates on hosts with varying conditions.
Main Results:
- Louse flies obtained smaller blood meals and had reduced survival on food-deprived or immune-boosted nestlings.
- Parasite survival was highest on non-experimental nestlings in intermediate body condition.
- Poor host condition, despite reduced immunity, was avoided due to inadequate nutritional resources.
Conclusions:
- Host nutritional resources are critical for parasite fitness, potentially overriding immune status.
- Parasite host selection is a complex balancing act between resource availability and immune challenge.
- Evaluating host-parasite interactions requires considering both nutritional and immunological factors simultaneously.
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