Department of Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, United States.
Facultad de Ciencias Biologicas, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Santiago, Chile.
Elife. 2018 Nov 6;7:e38432. doi: 10.7554/eLife.38432.
Increases in ocean temperature are associated with changes in the distribution of fish stocks, and the foraging regimes and maternal attendance patterns of marine mammals. However, it is not well understood how these changes affect offspring health and survival. The maternal attendance patterns and immunity of South American fur seals were assessed in a rookery where hookworm disease is the main cause of pup mortality. Pups receiving higher levels of maternal attendance had a positive energy balance and a more reactive immune system. These pups were able to expel hookworms through a specific immune mediated mechanism and survived the infection. Maternal attendance was higher in years with low sea surface temperature, therefore, the mean hookworm burden and mortality increased with sea surface temperature over a 10-year period. We provide a mechanistic explanation regarding how changes in ocean temperature and maternal care affect infectious diseases dynamics in a marine mammal.
海洋温度的升高与鱼类种群分布的变化以及海洋哺乳动物的觅食方式和母性照顾模式有关。然而，人们并不清楚这些变化如何影响后代的健康和生存。在一个以钩虫病为主要幼崽死亡原因的繁殖地，评估了南美海狗的母性照顾模式和免疫力。接受更高水平母性照顾的幼崽有积极的能量平衡和更具反应性的免疫系统。这些幼崽能够通过特定的免疫介导机制排出钩虫，并在感染中存活下来。在海面温度较低的年份，母性照顾的程度更高，因此，在 10 年的时间里，随着海面温度的升高，平均钩虫负担和死亡率也随之增加。我们提供了一个关于海洋温度和母性照顾如何影响海洋哺乳动物传染病动态的机制解释。
