Invasion history shapes host transcriptomic response to a body-snatching parasite
Zachary J C Tobias1,2,3, Amy E Fowler4, April M H Blakeslee5
1MIT-WHOI Joint Program in Oceanography/Applied Ocean Science and Engineering, Cambridge and Woods Hole, MA, USA.
Molecular Ecology
|June 23, 2021
Summary
Biological invasions alter host-parasite dynamics. Mud crabs (Rhithropanopeus harrisii) show varied transcriptomic responses to the parasitic barnacle (Loxothylacus panopaei) based on invasion history, revealing molecular evidence of host manipulation.
Area of Science:
- Ecology and evolutionary biology
- Marine biology
- Parasitology
Background:
- Biological invasions disrupt established host-parasite interactions, creating natural experiments to study their evolution.
- The parasitic barnacle Loxothylacus panopaei (Rhizocephala) infects the mud crab Rhithropanopeus harrisii, manipulating its physiology and behavior.
- L. panopaei introduced to Chesapeake Bay in the 1960s has spread, while northeastern host populations remain unexposed.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the transcriptomic response of R. harrisii to L. panopaei infection.
- To determine how this response varies with the parasite's invasion history (long-term sympatry, recent invasion, naive hosts).
- To provide molecular evidence for parasitic manipulation and gene regulation in host-parasite interactions.
Main Methods:
- Comparative transcriptomics of parasitized and control R. harrisii populations.
- Analysis of host populations with varying exposure histories to L. panopaei.
- Assessment of gene expression patterns related to immunity and molting.
Main Results:
- A core transcriptomic response to parasitism was observed, characterized by downregulation of immunity and molting genes.
- Transcriptional responses differed significantly between hosts from the parasite's native range and naive populations.
- Hosts from the invaded range, with high parasite prevalence, showed the most distinct transcriptomic response, suggesting immune priming.
Conclusions:
- Parasitic barnacles molecularly manipulate host phenotypes, impacting gene regulation.
- Host populations exhibit varied transcriptomic adaptations to parasitic invasion based on prior exposure.
- Gene expression patterns are crucial in mediating host-parasite interactions during biological invasions.
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