Biotechnical Faculty of the University of Ljubljana, Jamnikarjeva 101, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
CIBIO, InBIO - Research Network in Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, Universidade do Porto, Campus de Vairão, Rua Padre Armando Quintas, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal.
Parasitology. 2022 Feb;149(2):193-202. doi: 10.1017/S0031182021001645. Epub 2021 Sep 28.
In parasite–host interactions host species may differ in their ability to fight parasitic infections, while other ecological interactions, including competition, may differentially alter their physiological state, making them even more susceptible to parasites. In this study, we analyse the haemogregarine blood parasites infecting two competing lizard species, Iberolacerta horvathi and Podarcis muralis, and explore host–parasite relationships under different host competition scenarios. Both species were infected with haemogregarine parasites belonging to the genus Karyolysus. Using the 18S rRNA gene, six new Karyolysus haplotypes were identified clustering with other Central and Eastern European samples, and widely shared between both lizard hosts. Haemogregarine infections were detected at all sampled sites with over 50% of individuals parasitized. Overall, I. horvathi was more frequently and also more intensely parasitized than P. muralis, with higher infection rates observed in syntopy. Males of both species tended to be more frequently infected and showed a higher infection intensity than conspecific females. The results suggest that parasitisation by haemogregarines may be relevant in the dynamics of the competitive relationship between these lizard species. More studies, including immunological response analysis, and the identification of the vectors are needed to better understand host–parasite relationships and competition.
在寄生虫-宿主相互作用中，宿主物种在抵御寄生虫感染的能力上可能存在差异，而其他生态相互作用，包括竞争，可能会改变它们的生理状态，使它们更容易受到寄生虫的影响。在这项研究中，我们分析了感染两种竞争蜥蜴物种——伊比利亚石龙子（Iberolacerta horvathi）和壁蜥（Podarcis muralis）的血鞭毛虫寄生虫，并探讨了不同宿主竞争情况下的宿主-寄生虫关系。这两个物种都感染了属于卡利奥利斯属（Karyolysus）的血鞭毛虫寄生虫。通过 18S rRNA 基因，我们鉴定了六个新的卡利奥利斯属单倍型，这些单倍型与其他中欧和东欧的样本聚类在一起，并且在这两个蜥蜴宿主之间广泛共享。在所有采样地点都检测到了血鞭毛虫感染，超过 50%的个体被寄生虫感染。总体而言，伊比利亚石龙子比壁蜥更容易感染，感染强度也更高，在同域地区的感染率更高。这两个物种的雄性比雌性更容易感染，感染强度也更高。研究结果表明，血鞭毛虫的寄生可能与这两种蜥蜴物种之间的竞争关系动态有关。需要更多的研究，包括免疫反应分析和媒介的鉴定，以更好地了解宿主-寄生虫关系和竞争。
