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Integrating coalescent species delimitation with analysis of host specificity reveals extensive cryptic diversity despite minimal mitochondrial divergence in the malaria parasite genus Leucocytozoon.

Spencer C GalenRenato NunesPaul R SweetSusan L Perkins
Published in: BMC evolutionary biology (2018)
Integrating multi-locus genetic species delimitation methods and non-traditional ecological data types such as host specificity provide a novel view of the diversity of avian malaria parasites that has been missed previously using morphology and mtDNA barcodes. Species delimitation methods show that Leucocytozoon is highly species-rich in Alaska, and the genus is likely to harbor extraordinary species-level diversity worldwide. Integrating genetic and ecological data will be an important approach for understanding the diversity and evolutionary history of microbial symbionts moving forward.
Keyphrases
  • plasmodium falciparum
  • genome wide
  • genetic diversity
  • copy number
  • climate change
  • electronic health record
  • microbial community
  • machine learning
  • human health
  • trypanosoma cruzi
  • genome wide association study