Schall J J
Science. 1982 Sep 10;217(4564):1057-9. doi: 10.1126/science.7112113.
In northern California, western fence lizards, Sceloporus occidentalis, are frequently parasitized by Plasmodium mexicanum, which causes malaria. Animals with this naturally occurring malarial infection are anemic: immature erythrocytes in peripheral blood become abundant (1 to 30 percent), and blood hemoglobin concentration decreases 25 percent. Maximal oxygen consumption decreases 15 percent and aerobic scope drops 29 percent in infected lizards; both correlate with blood hemoglobin concentration. Running stamina, but not burst running speed, is reduced in malarious lizards. There is a hierarchical relation between infection with malaria and effects on hematology, physiological function, and behavioral capacity. The results suggest that malarial infection may have significant effects on the ecology of lizard hosts.
在加利福尼亚州北部，西部围栏蜥蜴（Sceloporus occidentalis）经常受到墨西哥疟原虫（Plasmodium mexicanum）的寄生，这种疟原虫会引发疟疾。感染这种自然发生的疟疾的动物会出现贫血症状：外周血中的未成熟红细胞数量增多（占比1%至30%），血液血红蛋白浓度降低25%。受感染蜥蜴的最大耗氧量降低15%，有氧代谢范围下降29%；这两者都与血液血红蛋白浓度相关。感染疟疾的蜥蜴的耐力跑能力下降，但爆发性奔跑速度不受影响。疟疾感染与对血液学、生理功能和行为能力的影响之间存在层级关系。研究结果表明，疟疾感染可能对蜥蜴宿主的生态产生重大影响。
