Dataset Information

Whole-genome sequence of the bovine blood fluke Schistosoma bovis supports interspecific hybridization with S. haematobium.

ABSTRACT: Mesenteric infection by the parasitic blood fluke Schistosoma bovis is a common veterinary problem in Africa and the Middle East and occasionally in the Mediterranean Region. The species also has the ability to form interspecific hybrids with the human parasite S. haematobium with natural hybridisation observed in West Africa, presenting possible zoonotic transmission. Additionally, this exchange of alleles between species may dramatically influence disease dynamics and parasite evolution. We have generated a 374 Mb assembly of the S. bovis genome using Illumina and PacBio-based technologies. Despite infecting different hosts and organs, the genome sequences of S. bovis and S. haematobium appeared strikingly similar with 97% sequence identity. The two species share 98% of protein-coding genes, with an average sequence identity of 97.3% at the amino acid level. Genome comparison identified large continuous parts of the genome (up to several 100 kb) showing almost 100% sequence identity between S. bovis and S. haematobium. It is unlikely that this is a result of genome conservation and provides further evidence of natural interspecific hybridization between S. bovis and S. haematobium. Our results suggest that foreign DNA obtained by interspecific hybridization was maintained in the population through multiple meiosis cycles and that hybrids were sexually reproductive, producing viable offspring. The S. bovis genome assembly forms a highly valuable resource for studying schistosome evolution and exploring genetic regions that are associated with species-specific phenotypic traits.

SUBMITTER: Oey H

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6361461 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Whole-genome sequence of the bovine blood fluke Schistosoma bovis supports interspecific hybridization with S. haematobium.

Oey Harald H Zakrzewski Martha M Gravermann Kerstin K Young Neil D ND Korhonen Pasi K PK Gobert Geoffrey N GN Nawaratna Sujeevi S Hasan Shihab S Martínez David M DM You Hong H Lavin Martin M Jones Malcolm K MK Ragan Mark A MA Stoye Jens J Oleaga Ana A Emery Aidan M AM Webster Bonnie L BL Rollinson David D Gasser Robin B RB McManus Donald P DP Krause Lutz L

PLoS pathogens 20190123 1

Mesenteric infection by the parasitic blood fluke Schistosoma bovis is a common veterinary problem in Africa and the Middle East and occasionally in the Mediterranean Region. The species also has the ability to form interspecific hybrids with the human parasite S. haematobium with natural hybridisation observed in West Africa, presenting possible zoonotic transmission. Additionally, this exchange of alleles between species may dramatically influence disease dynamics and parasite evolution. We ha ...[more]

PMID: 30673782

Similar Datasets

Project description:Background: Schistosomiasis is a major poverty-related disease caused by dioecious parasitic flatworms of the genus Schistosoma with a health impact on both humans and animals. Hybrids of human urogenital schistosome and bovine intestinal schistosome have been reported in humans in several of Nigeria’s neighboring West African countries. No empirical studies have been carried out on the genomic diversity of Schistosoma haematobium in Nigeria. Here, we present novel data on the presence and prevalence of hybrids and the population genetic structure of S. haematobium. Methods: 165 Schistosoma-positive urine samples were obtained from 12 sampling sites in Nigeria. Schistosoma haematobium eggs from each sample were hatched and each individual miracidium was picked and preserved in Whatman® FTA cards for genomic analysis. Approximately 1364 parasites were molecularly characterized by rapid diagnostic multiplex polymerase chain reaction (RD-PCR) for mitochondrial DNA gene (Cox1 mtDNA) and a subset of 1136 miracidia were genotyped using a panel of 18 microsatellite markers. Results: No significant difference was observed in the population genetic diversity (p > 0.05), though a significant difference was observed in the allelic richness of the sites except sites 7, 8, and 9 (p < 0.05). Moreover, we observed two clusters of populations: west (populations 1−4) and east (populations 7−12). Of the 1364 miracidia genotyped, 1212 (89%) showed an S. bovis Cox1 profile and 152 (11%) showed an S. haematobium cox1 profile. All parasites showed an S. bovis Cox1 profile except for some at sites 3 and 4. Schistosoma miracidia full genotyping showed 59.3% of the S. bovis ITS2 allele. Conclusions: This study provides novel insight into hybridization and population genetic structure of S. haematobium in Nigeria. Our findings suggest that S. haematobium x S. bovis hybrids are common in Nigeria. More genomic studies on both human- and animal-infecting parasites are needed to ascertain the role of animals in schistosome transmission.

Project description:BackgroundThe use of applications involving single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) has greatly increased since the beginning of the 2000s, with the number of associated techniques expanding rapidly in the field of molecular research. Tetra-primer amplification refractory mutation system-PCR (T-ARMS-PCR) is one such technique involving SNP genotyping. It has the advantage of amplifying multiple alleles in a single reaction with the inclusion of an internal molecular control. We report here the development of a rapid, reliable and cost-effective duplex T-ARMS-PCR assay to distinguish between three Schistosoma species, namely Schistosoma haematobium (human parasite), Schistosoma bovis and Schistosoma curassoni (animal parasites), and their hybrids. This technique will facilitate studies of population genetics and the evolution of introgression events.MethodsDuring the development of the technique we focused on one of the five inter-species internal transcribed spacer (ITS) SNPs and one of the inter-species 18S SNPs which, when combined, discriminate between all three Schistosoma species and their hybrid forms. We designed T-ARMS-PCR primers to amplify amplicons of specific lengths for each species, which in turn can then be visualized on an electrophoresis gel. This was further tested using laboratory and field-collected adult worms and field-collected larval stages (miracidia) from Spain, Egypt, Mali, Senegal and Ivory Coast. The combined duplex T-ARMS-PCR and ITS + 18S primer set was then used to differentiate the three species in a single reaction.ResultsThe T-ARMS-PCR assay was able to detect DNA from both species being analysed at the maximum and minimum levels in the DNA ratios (95/5) tested. The duplex T-ARMS-PCR assay was also able to detect all hybrids tested and was validated by sequencing the ITS and the 18S amplicons of 148 of the field samples included in the study.ConclusionsThe duplex tetra-primer ARMS-PCR assay described here can be applied to differentiate between Schistosoma species and their hybrid forms that infect humans and animals, thereby providing a method to investigate the epidemiology of these species in endemic areas. The addition of several markers in a single reaction saves considerable time and is of long-standing interest for investigating genetic populations.

Dataset Information

Whole-genome sequence of the bovine blood fluke Schistosoma bovis supports interspecific hybridization with S. haematobium.

Publications

Whole-genome sequence of the bovine blood fluke Schistosoma bovis supports interspecific hybridization with S. haematobium.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets