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Malaria parasite detection increases during pregnancy in wild chimpanzees.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: The diversity of malaria parasites (Plasmodium sp.) infecting chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and their close relatedness with those infecting humans is well documented. However, their biology is still largely unexplored and there is a need for baseline epidemiological data. Here, the effect of pregnancy, a well-known risk factor for malaria in humans, on the susceptibility of female chimpanzees to malaria infection was investigated. METHODS: A series of 384 faecal samples collected during 40 pregnancies and 36 post-pregnancies from three habituated groups of wild chimpanzees in the Taï National Park, Côte d'Ivoire, were tested. Samples were tested for malaria parasites by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing. Data were analysed using a generalized linear mixed model. RESULTS: Probability of malaria parasite detection significantly increased towards the end of pregnancy and decreased with the age of the mother. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides evidence that susceptibility to malaria parasite infection increases during pregnancy, and, as shown before, in younger individuals, which points towards similar dynamics of malaria parasite infection in human and chimpanzee populations and raises questions about the effects of such infections on pregnancy outcome and offspring morbidity/mortality.

SUBMITTER: De Nys HM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4210475 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Malaria parasite detection increases during pregnancy in wild chimpanzees.

De Nys Hélène M HM Calvignac-Spencer Sébastien S Boesch Christophe C Dorny Pierre P Wittig Roman M RM Mundry Roger R Leendertz Fabian H FH

Malaria journal 20141020

<h4>Background</h4>The diversity of malaria parasites (Plasmodium sp.) infecting chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and their close relatedness with those infecting humans is well documented. However, their biology is still largely unexplored and there is a need for baseline epidemiological data. Here, the effect of pregnancy, a well-known risk factor for malaria in humans, on the susceptibility of female chimpanzees to malaria infection was investigated.<h4>Methods</h4>A series of 384 faecal samples ...[more]

PMID: 25331753

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Project description:In mammals, the excretion of cortisol can provide energy toward restoring homeostasis and is a major component of the stress response. However, chronically elevated cortisol levels also have suppressive effects on immune function. As mounting an immune response is energetically costly, sick individuals may conserve energy by exhibiting certain sickness behaviors, such as declining activity levels. Due to the complex interplay between immune function and sickness behaviors, endocrinological correlates have received growing attention in the medical community, but so far, this subject was investigated rarely. Furthermore, given the complexities of studying illnesses and immunity in natural settings, correlates of sickness behaviors have yet to be studied in non-human primates in the wild. Methods: We measured urinary cortisol levels using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry in a group of wild habituated chimpanzees in Taï National Park, Côte d'Ivoire, before, during, and after a respiratory disease outbreak (main causative pathogen: human respiratory syncytial virus A, with coinfections of Streptococcus pneumoniae). Changes in cortisol levels were then related to urinary neopterin levels, a biomarker of immune system activation. Results: Urinary cortisol levels were found to be more than 10-fold higher during the outbreak in comparison with levels before and after the outbreak period. Increasing cortisol levels were also associated with increasing neopterin levels. Interestingly, rather atypical patterns in a diurnal decline of cortisol levels were found during infection periods, such that levels remained raised throughout the day. Conclusion: In conclusion, cortisol increase was related to cellular immune response. Our results suggest that cortisol is a mediator of infectious disease pathogenicity through its impact on the immune system and that wild chimpanzees may be facing energetic stress when sick. By monitoring immune challenges in wild-living animals, our study demonstrates that immune defenses have costs and that these costs are context-specific.

Dataset Information

Malaria parasite detection increases during pregnancy in wild chimpanzees.

Publications

Malaria parasite detection increases during pregnancy in wild chimpanzees.

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