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Updated: Jun 12, 2025
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Leveraging Micro-CT Scanning to Analyze Parasitic Plant-Host Interactions
Published on: January 12, 2022
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Landscape structure as a driver of eco-evolution in host-parasite systems
Jhelam N Deshpande1, Vasilis Dakos1, Oliver Kaltz1
1Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution - Montpellier (ISEM), Université de Montpellier, CNRS, IRD, Montpellier 34095, France.
Evolution Letters
|June 9, 2025
Summary
Parasite virulence evolves differently in river and land ecosystems. Kin selection drives this evolution, influenced by spatial network structures and host-parasite interactions.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Evolutionary Biology
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Biological systems' spatial networks influence ecology and evolution.
- Previous host-parasite models used simplified spatial structures, limiting real-world applicability.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop an eco-evolutionary metapopulation model for host-parasite dynamics using complex spatial networks.
- To predict how parasite virulence is affected by dispersal in different network types (river-like vs. terrestrial-like).
Main Methods:
- Utilized a metapopulation model incorporating host and parasite dispersal.
- Modeled complex spatial networks representing riverine and terrestrial biomes.
- Investigated the role of kin selection in virulence evolution.
Main Results:
- Parasite virulence peaks at intermediate dispersal in river networks and increases with dispersal in terrestrial networks.
- Virulence values are generally higher in riverine systems.
- Kin selection was identified as the primary driver of virulence evolution.
Conclusions:
- Spatial network structure significantly impacts host-parasite eco-evolutionary dynamics.
- Network topology influences parasite relatedness, driving virulence evolution.
- Incorporating virulence evolution aids in predicting epidemiological variables within spatial networks.
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