Lott M J, Hose G C, Power M L
Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia,
Parasitol Res. 2015 Aug;114(8):2925-32. doi: 10.1007/s00436-015-4494-z. Epub 2015 Apr 29.
Captive management practices have the potential to drastically alter pre-existing host-parasite relationships. This can have profound implications for the health and productivity of threatened species in captivity, even in the absence of clinical symptoms of disease. Maximising the success of captive breeding programmes requires a detailed knowledge of anthropogenic influences on the structure of parasite assemblages in captive systems. In this study, we employed two high-throughput molecular techniques to characterise the parasitic nematode (suborder Strongylida) communities of the red kangaroo, Macropus rufus, across seven captive sites. The first was terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) analysis of a region of rDNA encompassing the internal transcribed spacers 1 (ITS1), the 5.8S rRNA gene and the internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2). The second was Illumina MiSeq next-generation sequencing of the ITS2 region. The prevalence, intensity of infection, taxonomic composition and comparative structure of strongylid nematode assemblages was assessed at each location. Prevalence (P = <0.001) and mean infection intensity (df = 6, F = 17.494, P = <0.001) differed significantly between the seven captive sites. Significant levels of parasite community structure were observed (ANOSIM, P = 0.01), with most of the variation being distributed within, rather than between, captive sites. The range of nematode taxa that occurred in captive red kangaroos appeared to differ from that of wild conspecifics, with representatives of the genus Cloacina, a dominant nematode parasite of the macropodid forestomach, being detected at only two of the seven study sites. This study also provides the first evidence for the presence of the genus Trichostrongylus in a macropodid marsupial. Our results demonstrate that contemporary species management practices may exert a profound influence on the structure of parasite communities in captive systems.
圈养管理措施有可能极大地改变先前存在的宿主 - 寄生虫关系。这可能对圈养濒危物种的健康和生产力产生深远影响，即使在没有疾病临床症状的情况下也是如此。要使圈养繁殖计划取得最大成功，需要详细了解人为因素对圈养系统中寄生虫群落结构的影响。在本研究中，我们采用了两种高通量分子技术来表征七个圈养地点的红袋鼠（Macropus rufus）的寄生线虫（圆线亚目）群落。第一种是对包含内部转录间隔区1（ITS1）、5.8S rRNA基因和内部转录间隔区2（ITS2）的rDNA区域进行末端限制性片段长度多态性（T - RFLP）分析。第二种是对ITS2区域进行Illumina MiSeq下一代测序。在每个地点评估了圆线虫组合的流行率、感染强度、分类组成和比较结构。七个圈养地点之间的流行率（P = <0.001）和平均感染强度（df = 6，F = 17.494，P = <0.001）存在显著差异。观察到寄生虫群落结构存在显著水平（ANOSIM，P = 0.01），其中大部分变异分布在圈养地点内部而非之间。圈养红袋鼠体内出现的线虫类群范围似乎与野生同类不同，作为袋鼠前胃主要线虫寄生虫的Cloacina属的代表仅在七个研究地点中的两个被检测到。本研究还首次提供了毛圆线虫属在袋鼠科有袋动物中存在的证据。我们的结果表明，当代物种管理措施可能对圈养系统中寄生虫群落的结构产生深远影响。
