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The evolutionary and coevolutionary consequences of defensive microbes for host-parasite interactions
Kayla C King1, Michael B Bonsall2
1Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK.
BMC Evolutionary Biology
|August 16, 2017
Summary
Defensive microbes protect hosts from parasites, influencing evolution. Their costs and density critically shape host-parasite dynamics and coevolutionary outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Evolutionary Biology
- Microbiology
Background:
- Animal and plant species host microbes offering protection against natural enemies.
- These defensive microbes can supplement or replace host immunity, but may incur costs.
- Defensive microbes significantly impact host-parasite interactions and host-parasite coevolution.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore evolutionary and coevolutionary dynamics of host-parasite interactions with defensive microbes.
- To investigate the role of costs associated with defensive microbe systems.
- To understand how microbe density affects host-parasite-microbe coevolutionary interactions.
Main Methods:
- Phenotypic framework analysis.
- Exploration of evolutionary and coevolutionary dynamics.
- Partitioning of coevolutionary dynamics to generate testable predictions.
Main Results:
- Costs of host-defensive microbe systems are critical for determining optimal host protection strategies.
- Defensive microbes lessen infection's negative effects on hosts and reduce parasite infectivity.
- Microbe density influences the strength of selection in tripartite host-defensive microbe-parasite interactions.
Conclusions:
- Defensive microbes can replace host-based defenses and compete with parasites within hosts.
- These microbes play a central role in host-parasite interactions.
- Defensive microbes drive tripartite coevolutionary dynamics, shaping host-parasite relationships.
Keywords:
Defensive symbiosisFitness setHost-parasite coevolutionLife-history modellingTheoretical evolutionary biologyMore Related Videos
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