Population genetic structure of the schistosome-vector snail Bulinus globosus: examining the role of genetic drift, migration and human activities.

Abstract

Bulinus globosus, one of the intermediate hosts of the genus Schistosoma, is an hermaphrodite freshwater snail species. This species occupies different kinds of environments in Africa, which are generally subjected to large variations in water availability. The mating system of this species is outcrossing, although selfing has been suggested for one population. Here we investigate the genetic structure of populations of B. globosus in natural and human-modified environments from Niger and Ivory Coast using protein electrophoresis. Our goal is to analyse the respective role of the environment (genetic drift and gene flow), the mating system and human activities. Our results indicate a low intrapopulation polymorphism. A large differentiation among populations occurs on the scale of the whole study area whereas neighbouring populations can show little differentiation. These results point to the role of genetic drift and gene flow as the main factors shaping the genetic structure, with human activities playing a role occasionally.