Chronic Plasmodium Brasilianum Infections In Wild Peruvian Tamarins, Gideon A. Erkenswick, Mrinalini Watsa, M. Andreína Pacheco, Ananias A. Escalante, Patricia G. Parker, Georges Snounou
Sep 2017
Chronic Plasmodium Brasilianum Infections In Wild Peruvian Tamarins, Gideon A. Erkenswick, Mrinalini Watsa, M. Andreína Pacheco, Ananias A. Escalante, Patricia G. Parker, Georges Snounou
Patricia Parker
There is an increased interest in potential zoonotic malarias. To date, Plasmodium malariae that infects humans remains indistinguishable from Plasmodium brasilianum, which is widespread among New World primates. Distributed throughout tropical Central and South America, the Callitrichidae are small arboreal primates in which detection of natural Plasmodium infection has been extremely rare. Most prior screening efforts have been limited to small samples, the use of low-probability detection methods, or both. Rarely have screening efforts implemented a longitudinal sampling design. Through an annual mark-recapture program of two sympatric callitrichids, the emperor (Saguinus imperator) and saddleback (Saguinus fuscicollis) tamarins, whole blood samples …
A Genetic Signature Of The Evolution Of Loss Of Flight In The Galapagos Cormorant, Patricia Parker, Alejandro Burga, Weiguang Wang, Eyal Ben-David, Paul C. Wolf, Andrew M. Ramey, Claudio Verdugo, Karen Lyons, Leonid Kruglyak
Jun 2017
A Genetic Signature Of The Evolution Of Loss Of Flight In The Galapagos Cormorant, Patricia Parker, Alejandro Burga, Weiguang Wang, Eyal Ben-David, Paul C. Wolf, Andrew M. Ramey, Claudio Verdugo, Karen Lyons, Leonid Kruglyak
Patricia Parker
We have a limited understanding of the genetic and molecular basis of evolutionary changes in the size and proportion of limbs. We studied wing and pectoral skeleton reduction leading to flightlessness in the Galapagos cormorant (Phalacrocorax harrisi). We sequenced and de novo assembled the genomes of four cormorant species and applied a predictive and comparative genomics approach to find candidate variants that may have contributed to the evolution of flightlessness. These analyses and cross-species experiments in Caenorhabditis elegans and in chondrogenic cell lines implicated variants in genes necessary for transcriptional regulation and function of the primary cilium. Cilia are essential …
From Galapagos Doves To Passerines: Spillover Of Haemoproteus Multipigmentatus, Maricruz Jaramillo, Sage Rohrer, Patricia G. Parker
Jan 2017
From Galapagos Doves To Passerines: Spillover Of Haemoproteus Multipigmentatus, Maricruz Jaramillo, Sage Rohrer, Patricia G. Parker
Patricia Parker
Haemoproteus (Haemoproteus) multipigmentatus, a haemosporidian parasite thought to be specific to columbiform birds, was detected in passeriform birds on Santiago Island in the Galapagos archipelago. We surveyed birds along an altitudinal gradient on the islands of Santa Cruz, Isabela and Santiago between June 2013 and July 2015. Molecular screening of 2254 individuals from 25 species of endemic and introduced birds revealed clusters of passerine birds positive for H. multipigmentatus on Santiago Island that coincide with captures of Galapagos doves at sampled sites. Of 507 individuals from 10 species of endemic passerines sampled on Santiago, 58 individuals from 6 species were …
Temporal And Demographic Blood Parasite Dynamics In Two Free-Ranging Neotropical Primates, Gideon A. Erkenswick, Mrinalini Watsa, Alfonso S. Gozalo, Nicole Dmytryk, Patricia G. Parker
Jan 2017
Temporal And Demographic Blood Parasite Dynamics In Two Free-Ranging Neotropical Primates, Gideon A. Erkenswick, Mrinalini Watsa, Alfonso S. Gozalo, Nicole Dmytryk, Patricia G. Parker
Patricia Parker
Parasite-host relationships are influenced by several factors intrinsic to hosts, such as social standing, group membership, sex, and age. However, in wild populations, temporal variation in parasite distributions and concomitant infections can alter these patterns. We used microscropy and molecular methods to screen for naturally occurring haemoparasitic infections in two Neotropical primate host populations, the saddleback (Leontocebus weddelli) and emperor (Saguinus imperator) tamarin, in the lowland tropical rainforests of southeastern Peru. Repeat sampling was conducted from known individuals over a three-year period to test for parasite-host and parasite-parasite associations. Three parasites were detected in L. weddelli including Trypanosoma minasense, Mansonella …
Host Sympatry And Body Size Influence Parasite Straggling Rate In A Highly Connected Multihost, Multiparasite System, Jose L. Rivera-Parra, Iris I. Levin, Kevin P. Johnson, Patricia G. Parker
Jan 2017
Host Sympatry And Body Size Influence Parasite Straggling Rate In A Highly Connected Multihost, Multiparasite System, Jose L. Rivera-Parra, Iris I. Levin, Kevin P. Johnson, Patricia G. Parker
Patricia Parker
Parasite lineages commonly diverge when host lineages diverge. However, when large clades of hosts and parasites are analyzed, some cases suggest host switching as another major diversification mechanism. The first step in host switching is the appearance of a parasite on an atypical host, or “straggling.” We analyze the conditions associated with straggling events. We use five species of colonially nesting seabirds from the Galapagos Archipelago and two genera of highly specific ectoparasitic lice to examine host switching. We use both genetic and morphological identification of lice, together with measurements of spatial distribution of hosts in mixed breeding colonies, to …
