Daily fluctuating temperatures decrease growth and reproduction rate of a lethal amphibian fungal pathogen in culture
Abstract
Emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) are contributing to species die-offs worldwide. We can better understand EIDs by using ecological approaches to study pathogen biology. For example, pathogens are exposed to variable temperatures across daily, seasonal, and annual scales. Exposure to temperature fluctuations may reduce pathogen growth and reproduction, which could affect pathogen virulence, transmission, and environmental persistence with implications for disease. We examined the effect of a variable thermal environment on reproductive life history traits of the fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd). Bd causes chytridiomycosis, an emerging infectious disease of amphibians. As a pathogen of ectothermic hosts, Bd can be exposed to large temperature fluctuations in nature. To determine the effect of fluctuating temperatures on Bd growth and reproduction, we collected temperature data from breeding pools of the Yosemite toad (Anaxyrus canorus), a federally threatened species that is susceptible to chytridiomycosis. We cultured Bd under a daily fluctuating temperature regime that simulated Yosemite toad breeding pool temperatures and measured Bd growth, reproduction, fecundity, and viability.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Apr 03, 2020
- Source ID
- 10.1186/s12898-020-00286-7
Entities
People
- Alexa L. Lindauer
- Jamie Voyles
- Paul A. Maier
Organizations
- National Science Foundation
- Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program