RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Population genomics of bank vole populations reveals associations between immune related genes and the epidemiology of Puumala hantavirus in Sweden
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 148163
DO 10.1101/148163
A1 Audrey Rohfritsch
A1 Maxime Galan
A1 Mathieu Gautier
A1 Karim Gharbi
A1 Gert Olsson
A1 Bernhard Gschloessl
A1 Caroline Zeimes
A1 Sophie VanWambeke
A1 Renaud Vitalis
A1 Nathalie Charbonnel
YR 2017
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2017/06/09/148163.abstract
AB Infectious pathogens are major selective forces acting on individuals. The recent advent of high-throughput sequencing technologies now enables to investigate the genetic bases of resistance/susceptibility to infections in non-model organisms. From an evolutionary perspective, the analysis of the genetic diversity observed at these genes in natural populations provides insight into the mechanisms maintaining polymorphism and their epidemiological consequences. We explored these questions in the context of the interactions between Puumala hantavirus (PUUV) and its reservoir host, the bank vole Myodes glareolus. Despite the continuous spatial distribution of M. glareolus in Europe, PUUV distribution is strongly heterogeneous. Different defence strategies might have evolved in bank voles as a result of co-adaptation with PUUV, which may in turn reinforce spatial heterogeneity in PUUV distribution. We performed a genome scan study of six bank vole populations sampled along a North/South transect in Sweden, including PUUV endemic and non-endemic areas. We combined candidate gene analyses (Tlr4, Tlr7, Mx2 genes) and high throughput sequencing of RAD (Restriction-site Associated DNA) markers. We found evidence for outlier loci showing high levels of genetic differentiation. Ten outliers among the 52 that matched to mouse protein-coding genes corresponded to immune related genes and were detected using ecological associations with variations in PUUV prevalence. One third of the enriched pathways concerned immune processes, including platelet activation and TLR pathway. In the future, functional experimentations should enable to confirm the role of these these immune related genes with regard to the interactions between M. glareolus and PUUV.