Abstract
Parasites alter many traits of their hosts. In particular, parasites known as “manipulative” may increase their probability of transmission by inducing phenotypic alterations in their intermediate hosts. Although parasitic-induced alterations can modify species’ ecological roles, the proximate factors modulating this phenomenon remain poorly known. As temperature is known to affect host–parasite associations, understanding its precise impact has become a major challenge in a context of global warming. Gammarids are ecologically important freshwater crustaceans and serve as intermediate hosts for several acanthocephalan species. These parasites induce multiple effects on gammarids, including alterations of their behavior, ultimately leading to modifications in their functional role. Here, experimental infections were used to assess the effect of two temperatures on several traits of the association between Gammarus pulex and its acanthocephalan parasite Pomphorhynchus laevis. Elevated temperature affected hosts and parasites in multiple ways (decreased host survival, increased gammarids activity, faster parasites development and proboscis eversion). However, behavioral manipulation was unaffected by temperature. These results suggest that predicted change in temperature may have little consequences on the trophic transmission of parasites through changes in manipulation, although it may modify it through increased infection success and faster parasites development.
Highlights
Parasites alter many traits of their hosts
Acanthocephalans can affect the phenotype of their amphipod hosts in many different ways, through altering their b ehavior[36,37,38], their feeding and predatory a ctivity[23,39,40], their immune system[41], their energetic r eserves[42], their fecundity[43,44], or their metabolic r ate[45,46], leading to modifications in the role of amphipods within ecosystems
Amphipods infected with acanthocephalans tend to be more vulnerable to predation, especially by final hosts of the p arasites[47,48,49,50,51]
Summary
Parasites alter many traits of their hosts. In particular, parasites known as “manipulative” may increase their probability of transmission by inducing phenotypic alterations in their intermediate hosts. Gammarids are ecologically important freshwater crustaceans and serve as intermediate hosts for several acanthocephalan species These parasites induce multiple effects on gammarids, including alterations of their behavior, leading to modifications in their functional role. Abiotic conditions, including temperature, can, for instance, affect predator–prey interactions and food-web d ynamics[4,5,6] or competition between s pecies[7,8,9,10,11] They can directly or indirectly affect host–parasite interactions[12,13,14], with cascading effects for trophic interactions and ecosystem s tability[15,16,17]. Labaude et al.[23] showed that infection with acanthocephalan parasites and temperature have additive effects on the shredding role of crustacean amphipods, whereas Guinnee and Moore[66] reported an interaction between temperature and infection with acanthocephalans on the fecundity of insect hosts
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
