Dataset Information

Genetic colour polymorphism is associated with avian malarial infections.

ABSTRACT: Individual genetic diversity is predicted to influence host-parasite interactions. Together with the genes directly associated with immune responses, variation in genes regulating vertebrate melanin-based pigmentation may play an important role in these interactions, mainly through the pleiotropic effects that affect colour-specific physiology, behaviour and immunity. Here, we test the hypothesis that the prevalence of avian malarial parasites differs between phenotypes in a raptor species in which the genetic basis of colour polymorphism and its pleiotropic effects over immune functions are known. We found that dark morphs had a higher prevalence of Plasmodium parasites than pale ones but detected no such association for Haemoproteus This pattern may be associated with unequal exposure to vectors or, as suggested by our circumstantial evidence, to a differential ability to mount an immune response against blood parasites.

SUBMITTER: Gangoso L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5206593 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Genetic colour polymorphism is associated with avian malarial infections.

Gangoso Laura L Gutiérrez-López Rafael R Martínez-de la Puente Josué J Figuerola Jordi J

Biology letters 20161201 12

Individual genetic diversity is predicted to influence host-parasite interactions. Together with the genes directly associated with immune responses, variation in genes regulating vertebrate melanin-based pigmentation may play an important role in these interactions, mainly through the pleiotropic effects that affect colour-specific physiology, behaviour and immunity. Here, we test the hypothesis that the prevalence of avian malarial parasites differs between phenotypes in a raptor species in wh ...[more]

PMID: 28003524

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Project description:BACKGROUND: The exceptional diversity of coloration found in avian eggshells has long fascinated biologists and inspired a broad range of adaptive hypotheses to explain its evolution. Three main impediments to understanding the variability of eggshell appearance are: (1) the reliable quantification of the variation in eggshell colours; (2) its perception by birds themselves, and (3) its relation to avian phylogeny. Here we use an extensive museum collection to address these problems directly, and to test how diversity in eggshell coloration is distributed among different phylogenetic levels of the class Aves. METHODOLOGY AND RESULTS: Spectrophotometric data on eggshell coloration were collected from a taxonomically representative sample of 251 bird species to determine the change in reflectance across different wavelengths and the taxonomic level where the variation resides. As many hypotheses for the evolution of eggshell coloration assume that egg colours provide a communication signal for an avian receiver, we also modelled reflectance spectra of shell coloration for the avian visual system. We found that a majority of species have eggs with similar background colour (long wavelengths) but that striking differences are just as likely to occur between congeners as between members of different families. The region of greatest variability in eggshell colour among closely related species coincided with the medium-wavelength sensitive region around 500 nm. CONCLUSIONS: The majority of bird species share similar background eggshell colours, while the greatest variability among species aligns with differences along a red-brown to blue axis that most likely corresponds with variation in the presence and concentration of two tetrapyrrole pigments responsible for eggshell coloration. Additionally, our results confirm previous findings of temporal changes in museum collections, and this will be of particular concern for studies testing intraspecific hypotheses relating temporal patterns to adaptation of eggshell colour. We suggest that future studies investigating the phylogenetic association between the composition and concentration of eggshell pigments, and between the evolutionary drivers and functional impacts of eggshell colour variability will be most rewarding.

Project description:The idea that language can affect how we see the world continues to create controversy. A potentially important study in this field has shown that when an object is suppressed from visual awareness using continuous flash suppression (a form of binocular rivalry), detection of the object is differently affected by a preceding word prime depending on whether the prime matches or does not match the object. This may suggest that language can affect early stages of vision. We replicated this paradigm and further investigated whether colour terms likewise influence the detection of colours or colour-associated object images suppressed from visual awareness by continuous flash suppression. This method presents rapidly changing visual noise to one eye while the target stimulus is presented to the other. It has been shown to delay conscious perception of a target for up to several minutes. In Experiment 1 we presented greyscale photos of objects. They were either preceded by a congruent object label, an incongruent label, or white noise. Detection sensitivity (d') and hit rates were significantly poorer for suppressed objects preceded by an incongruent label compared to a congruent label or noise. In Experiment 2, targets were coloured discs preceded by a colour term. Detection sensitivity was significantly worse for suppressed colour patches preceded by an incongruent colour term as compared to a congruent term or white noise. In Experiment 3 targets were suppressed greyscale object images preceded by an auditory presentation of a colour term. On congruent trials the colour term matched the object's stereotypical colour and on incongruent trials the colour term mismatched. Detection sensitivity was significantly poorer on incongruent trials than congruent trials. Overall, these findings suggest that colour terms affect awareness of coloured stimuli and colour- associated objects, and provide new evidence for language-perception interaction in the brain.

Project description:BACKGROUND: Pregnant women remain are at an increased risk of malaria with primigravidae being at the highest risk. Genetic polymorphism of the Fc receptor IIa for immunologlobulin (Ig) G (Fc?RIIa) determines IgG subclass binding. Protection against pregnancy-associated malaria (PAM) is associated with the production of IgG specific for apical membrane antigen-1 (AMA-1). The present study was undertaken to examine the relationship between specific IgG/IgG subclasses and malaria infection. The second aim of the study is to examine the association between Fc?RIIa R/H131 polymorphism in correlation with specific anti-malarial IgG antibodies of AMA-1 distribution and asymptomatic malaria infection among Saudi women living in the southern part of Saudi Arabia. METHODS: One hundred and twenty pregnant women living in an area of meso-endemic Plasmodium falciparum malaria infection were consecutively enrolled onto the study. These pregnant women were asymptomatic and attending routine antenatal clinics. The levels of plasma antibodies (IgG and subclasses AMA-1) were measured using indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). Genotyping of Fc?RIIa-R/H131 dimorphism was performed using gene-specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification with allele-specific restriction enzyme digestion (BstU1) of the PCR product. RESULTS: A total of sixty-two (52%) pregnant women was diagnosed with asymptomatic malarial infection (ASM) compared with 58 (48%) malaria free controls (MFC). In the ASM group, there were high levels of anti-malarial IgG1 and IgG3, when compared to MFC (P value <0.001, respectively). The Fc?RIIa-R/R131 genotype and R131 were found to be statistically significantly more prevalent in the ASM group when compared to the MFC group [55% for ASM versus 12% for MFC, odds ratio (OR) 5.62, 95% confidence interval (CI)= (2.03- 15.58), P value= 0.001]. However, the H/H131 genotype showed statistically significant association with MFC [14% for ASM versus 50% for MFC, OR(0.36), 95% CI= (0.14- 0.95), P value= 0.03]. CONCLUSIONS: The study revealed that the ASM patients had higher anti-malarial IgG and IgG subclasses antibody levels when compared to the MFC. The Fc?RIIa-R/R131 genotype and R131 allele were found to be statistically prevalent in the ASM when compared to the MFC group. The individuals carrying H/H131 were consistently associated with higher levels of anti-malarial IgG subclasses.

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Genetic colour polymorphism is associated with avian malarial infections.

Publications

Genetic colour polymorphism is associated with avian malarial infections.

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