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The effects of mating probability on the population genetics of nematodes
1The Wellcome Trust Centre for Epidemiology of Infectious Disease, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK.
Abstract:
We review how constraints on the mating probability of female worms by segregation within individual host guts form a critical element in the parasite population structure of nematodes. We consider the effects of these constraints on the population genetics of nematodes under various assumptions regarding worm competition as reflected in the relationship between the abundance of a certain genotype within the gut and the probability of reproductive success. The consequences for the emergence of resistance to drugs and immunotherapy and implications for host-parasite coevolution are discussed. We also review evidence for genetic heterogeneity in parasite populations as a necessary prerequisite for the applicability of mating probability models designed to assess the population genetics of nematodes.