Journal
MALARIA JOURNAL
Volume 11, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
BMC
DOI: 10.1186/1475-2875-11-305
Keywords
Plasmodium relictum; trap; SNP; Amakihi; Diversity; Hawaiian honeycreepers; Mosquitoes
Categories
Funding
- NSF DEB [0083944]
- NSF Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) Hawaii
- NIH Research Infrastructure for Minority Institutions (RIMI)
- University of Hawaii Research Council
- NIH/NCRR IDeA Networks of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) [P20RR016467]
- National Center for Research Resources from the National Institutes of Health [5P20RR016467-11]
- National Institute of General Medical Sciences from the National Institutes of Health [8 P20 GM103466-11]
- National Park Service, Natural Resource Protection Program (NRPP)
- U.S. Geological Survey Wildlife and Terrestrial Resources Program
- Direct For Biological Sciences
- Division Of Environmental Biology [0083944] Funding Source: National Science Foundation
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Background: The avian disease system in Hawaii offers an ideal opportunity to investigate host-pathogen interactions in a natural setting. Previous studies have recognized only a single mitochondrial lineage of avian malaria (Plasmodium relictum) in the Hawaiian Islands, but cloning and sequencing of nuclear genes suggest a higher degree of genetic diversity. Methods: In order to evaluate genetic diversity of P. relictum at the population level and further understand host-parasite interactions, a modified single-base extension (SBE) method was used to explore spatial and temporal distribution patterns of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the thrombospondin-related anonymous protein (trap) gene of P. relictum infections from 121 hatch-year amakihi (Hemignathus virens) on the east side of Hawaii Island. Results: Rare alleles and mixed infections were documented at three of eight SNP loci; this is the first documentation of genetically diverse infections of P. relictum at the population level in Hawaii. Logistic regression revealed that the likelihood of infection with a rare allele increased at low-elevation, but decreased as mosquito capture rates increased. The inverse relationship between vector capture rates and probability of infection with a rare allele is unexpected given current theories of epidemiology developed in human malarias. Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that pathogen diversity in Hawaii may be driven by a complex interaction of factors including transmission rates, host immune pressures, and parasite-parasite competition.
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