Vicariance in a generalist fish parasite driven by climate and salinity tolerance of hosts

Parasite infection but not chronic microplastic exposure reduces the feeding rate in a freshwater fish

Microplastics (plastics <5 mm) are an environmental contaminant that can negatively impact the behaviour and physiology of aquatic biota. Although parasite infection can also alter the behaviour and physiology of their hosts, few studies have investigated how microplastic and parasite exposure interact to affect hosts. Accordingly, an interaction experiment tested how exposure to environmentally relevant microplastic concentrations and the trophically transmitted parasite Pomphorhynchus tereticollis affected the parasite load, condition metrics and feeding rate of the freshwater fish final host chub Squalius cephalus. Microplastic exposure was predicted to increase infection susceptibility, resulting in increased parasite loads, whereas parasite and microplastic exposure were expected to synergistically and negatively impact condition indices and feeding rates. Following chronic (≈170 day) dietary microplastic exposure, fish were exposed to a given number of gammarids (4/8/12/16/20), with half of the fish presented with parasite infected individuals, before a comparative functional response experiment tested differences in feeding rates on different live prey densities. Contrary to predictions, dietary microplastic exposure did not affect parasite abundance at different levels of parasite exposure, specific growth rate was the only condition index that was lower for exposed but unexposed fish, with no single or interactive effects of microplastic exposure detected. However, parasite infected fish had significantly lower feeding rates than unexposed fish in the functional response experiment, with exposed but unexposed fish also showing an intermediate decrease in feeding rates. Thus, the effects of parasitism on individuals were considerably stronger than microplastic exposure, with no evidence of interactive effects. Impacts of environmentally relevant microplastic levels might thus be relatively minor versus other stressors, with their interactive effects difficult to predict based on their single effects.

piRNA-like small RNAs target transposable elements in a Clade IV parasitic nematode

The small RNA (sRNA) pathways identified in the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans are not widely conserved across nematodes. For example, the PIWI pathway and PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) are involved in regulating and silencing transposable elements (TE) in most animals but have been lost in nematodes outside of the C. elegans group (Clade V), and little is known about how nematodes regulate TEs in the absence of the PIWI pathway. Here, we investigated the role of sRNAs in the Clade IV parasitic nematode Strongyloides ratti by comparing two genetically identical adult stages (the parasitic female and free-living female). We identified putative small-interfering RNAs, microRNAs and tRNA-derived sRNA fragments that are differentially expressed between the two adult stages. Two classes of sRNAs were predicted to regulate TE activity including (i) a parasite-associated class of 21-22 nt long sRNAs with a 5' uridine (21-22Us) and a 5' monophosphate, and (ii) 27 nt long sRNAs with a 5' guanine/adenine (27GAs) and a 5' modification. The 21-22Us show striking resemblance to the 21U PIWI-interacting RNAs found in C. elegans, including an AT rich upstream sequence, overlapping loci and physical clustering in the genome. Overall, we have shown that an alternative class of sRNAs compensate for the loss of piRNAs and regulate TE activity in nematodes outside of Clade V.

Hyper- and Hypo-Osmoregulatory Performance of Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) Smolts Infected With Pomphorhynchus tereticollis (Acanthocephala)

Migratory species must cope with different parasite communities in different environments, but little is known about the ecophysiological effects of parasites on migratory performance. Some species/strains of acanthocephalan parasites in the genus Pomphorhynchus use anadromous salmonids as preferred definitive hosts, perforating the intestines, destroying mucosa and inducing inflammation–all of which might affect osmoregulatory function during transition between freshwater and marine environments. We used genetic barcoding to identify acanthocephalans in the intestines of wild Irish Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) smolts as being the recently taxonomically resurrected species Pomphorhynchus tereticollis. We then investigated whether natural infection intensities of this parasite were associated with reduced osmoregulatory performance, as measured by plasma chloride concentrations, or potentially elevated stress, as measured by blood glucose, of hosts in freshwater or saltwater environments (24 or 72 h in ∼26PPT salt water, reflecting salinities of coastal waters through which smolts migrate). Although infection prevalence was high amongst sampled smolts, no associations were found within or across treatment groups between parasite abundance and plasma chloride concentrations or blood glucose levels. We found no intestinal perforations that would indicate P. tereticollis had recently vacated the intestines of smolts in either of the saltwater groups. Exploratory sampling in the 2 years preceding the experiment indicated that parasite prevalence and abundance are consistently high and comparable to the experimental individuals. Collectively, these results indicate that naturally occurring abundances of P. tereticollis do not reduce osmoregulatory function or affect blood glucose content in fresh water or within 72 h of entering coastal waters, although delayed pathologies affecting marine survival may occur. Future consideration of ecophysiological interactions between anadromous fish hosts and their parasites across different osmotic environments should provide general insights into coevolution between migratory hosts and their parasites.