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Generation of a Microsporidia Species Attribute Database and Analysis of the Extensive Ecological and Phenotypic Diversity of Microsporidia
- Source :
- mBio, Vol 12, Iss 3 (2021), mBio
- Publication Year :
- 2021
- Publisher :
- American Society for Microbiology, 2021.
-
Abstract
- Microsporidia are a large group of fungus-related obligate intracellular parasites. Though many microsporidia species have been identified over the past 160 years, depiction of the full diversity of this phylum is lacking. To systematically describe the characteristics of these parasites, we created a database of 1,440 species and their attributes, including the hosts they infect and spore characteristics. We find that microsporidia have been reported to infect 16 metazoan and 4 protozoan phyla, with smaller phyla being underrepresented. Most species are reported to infect only a single host, but those that are generalists are also more likely to infect a broader set of host tissues. Strikingly, polar tubes are threefold longer in species that infect tissues besides the intestine, suggesting that polar tube length is a determinant of tissue specificity. Phylogenetic analysis revealed four clades which each contain microsporidia that infect hosts from all major habitats. Although related species are more likely to infect similar hosts, we observe examples of changes in host specificity and convergent evolution. Taken together, our results show that microsporidia display vast diversity in their morphology and the hosts they infect, illustrating the flexibility of these parasites to evolve new traits. IMPORTANCE Microsporidia are a large group of parasites that cause death and disease in humans and many agriculturally important animal species. To fully understand the diverse properties of these parasites, we curated species reports from the last 160 years. Using these data, we describe when and where microsporidia were identified and what types of animals and host tissues these parasites infect. Microsporidia infect hosts using a conserved apparatus known as the polar tube. We observe that the length of this tube is correlated with the tissues that are being infected, suggesting that the polar tube controls where within the animals that the parasite infects. Finally, we show that microsporidia species often exist in multiple environments and are flexible in their ability to evolve new traits. Our study provides insight into the ecology and evolution of microsporidia and provides a useful resource to further understand these fascinating parasites.
- Subjects :
- 0106 biological sciences
Databases, Factual
Biology
microbial ecology
Generalist and specialist species
computer.software_genre
010603 evolutionary biology
01 natural sciences
Microbiology
Host Specificity
intracellular parasites
03 medical and health sciences
Virology
Convergent evolution
evolution
parasitic diseases
Animals
Humans
Clade
030304 developmental biology
0303 health sciences
Ecology
Phylogenetic tree
Database
Host (biology)
030306 microbiology
Phylum
fungi
Genetic Variation
biology.organism_classification
QR1-502
Phenotype
Microsporidia
Polar tube
Evolutionary ecology
computer
Research Article
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 21507511
- Volume :
- 12
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- mBio
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....6eb3db7b872b3b74adc4d61f6cf2eb4f
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1128/mbio.01490-21