THE ORIGIN OF SPECIFICITY BY MEANS OF NATURAL SELECTION: EVOLVED AND NONHOST RESISTANCE IN HOST–PATHOGEN INTERACTIONS

Most species seem to be completely resistant to most pathogens and parasites. This resistance has been called “nonhost resistance” because it is exhibited by species that are considered not to be part of the normal host range of the pathogen. A conceptual model is presented suggesting that failure of infection on nonhosts may be an incidental by‐product of pathogen evolution leading to specialization on their source hosts. This model is contrasted with resistance that results from hosts evolving to resist challenge by their pathogens, either as a result of coevolution with a persistent pathogen or as the result of one‐sided evolution by the host against pathogens that are not self‐sustaining on those hosts. Distinguishing evolved from nonevolved resistance leads to contrasting predictions regarding the relationship between resistance and genetic distance. An analysis of cross‐inoculation experiments suggests that the resistance is often the product of pathogen specialization. Understanding the contrasting evolutionary origins of resistance is critical for studies on the genetics and evolution of host–pathogen interactions in human, agricultural, and natural populations. Research on human infectious disease using animal models may often study resistances that have quite contrasting evolutionary origins, and therefore very different underlying genetic mechanisms.     

一株蝗虫病原菌的分离和鉴定

从内地黄脊竹蝗自然病死虫尸内分离到一种病原菌,其纯培养物经KOCK病症律证明,并按《伯杰细菌鉴定手册》(第九版)的方法进行了生物学测定、生理生化实验,并测定了其DNA中G+Cmol含量为63.73％,确定该病原物为类产碱假单胞菌(Pseudomonas pseudoalcaligenes)。经生物测定,该菌对草地蝗虫和黄脊竹蝗有较强的感染力,对草地其他害虫也有一定的感染力。     

WILT OF LUCERNE CAUSED BY SPECIES OF VERTICILLIUM

A wilt disease of lucerne caused by species of Verticillium is described: at twenty-eight disease areas in England and Wales the pathogen was V. albo-atrum , while at one site it was V. dahliae . Both pathogens form superficial conidia on the basal regions of infected stems. It is shown that V. albo-atrum is introduced into a new area in contaminated plant material harvested with the seed from an infected crop. Rapid secondary spread of the disease follows the dissemination of spores from infected stems, and by contact of these and transported fragments of diseased tissues with the wounded surfaces of recently cut lucerne plants. It is recommended that seed should be collected only from healthy crops and that machinery, footwear, etc. should be disinfected before leaving a site of infection.
Manurial trials showed that the incidence of wilt induced by V. albo-atrum was very severe under all soil conditions tested, whereas V. dahliae is a virulent pathogen only to plants in soil rich in superphosphate. Generally the more vigorous the growth of the lucerne–in soils rich in potash and hoof and horn–the more rapid is both the onset of wilt and the resulting secondary spread of the disease throughout the crop.     

弗氏柠檬酸杆菌对河触致病性的研究

首次报道了弗氏柠檬酸杆菌对河蟹的病原性、并导致其病理变化,药对物该菌的敏感试验及生产中药物治疗效果。从垂死的病蟹肝胰脏中分离得到可疑病菌,经人工感染试验证实此菌导致健康蟹发病死亡。该菌可导致河触的肝胰腺、鳃等发生病理变化,最终引起败血症而死亡。通过16种药物对该菌的敏感试验,筛选出有效药物,应用于生产中取得了较好疗效。     

INFECTION,GROWTH, AND COMMUNITY-LEVEL CONSEQUENCES OF A DIATOM PATHOGEN IN A SONORAN DESERT STREAM1

We describe effect of a pathogen that spread through a dense, rapidly growing, benthic diatom community during two infection periods (February and mid-April 1991) in Sycamore Creek, Arizona. Infected areas appeared as gray rings within a matrix of healthy diatom growth and spread rapidly, eventually covering all benthic substrata and causing algal sloughing (within 2 wk in February and 1 wk in April). Examination of algal material with transmission electron microscopy revealed the presence of invasive bacteria within diatom cells from infected areas, suggesting a pathogenic bacterium as the most probable cause of this phenomenon. Infected area supported lower chlorophyll a concentrations and contained higher percentages of diatom cells with fragmented or reduced chloroplasts than uninfected areas. Spread of the pathogen appeared to be linked most strongly with diatom densities. The infection spread most rapidly in April, when cell densities were highest, and decimated all diatom species populations. The February infection was more species-specific in its action, affecting large motile and rosetteforming taxa more strongly than small, adnate diatoms. This latter group likely resided at the base of communities and may have been buffered from pathogen transfer by mucilage and/or dentrital particles. Consequently, relative abundance of small, adnate diatom taxa increased in algal communities as a result of the February infection. Pathogen-induced alteration of diatom species composition and abundance should influence primary production in this ecosystem and affect the dynamics of organisms that exploit algae as a resource.     

弗氏柠檬酸杆菌对河蟹致病性的研究

首次报道了弗氏柠檬酸杆菌对河蟹的病原性、并导致其病理变化,药物对该菌的敏感试验及生产中药物治疗效果.从垂死的病蟹肝胰脏中分离得到可疑病菌,经人工感染试验证实此菌导致健康蟹发病死亡.该菌可导致河蟹的肝胰腺、鳃等发生病理变化,最终引起败血症而死亡.通过16种药物对该菌的敏感试验,筛选出有效药物,应用于生产中取得了较好疗效.       

小麦雪霉叶枯病菌侵染过程的细胞学研究

采用电镜技术研究了小麦雪霉叶枯病菌(Gerlachia nivalis)侵染过程的细胞学特征。电镜观察发现,分生孢子萌发产生的芽管由孢子细胞壁内层延伸而成;病菌侵入寄主体内后,胞间菌丝先在寄主细胞间扩展,随后胞间菌丝侵入坏死的寄主细胞,形成胞内菌丝;胞间菌丝和胞内菌丝在形态结构上无明显差异。在病菌扩展过程中,寄主细胞发生了一系列的病理变化,并最终坏死消解,寄主细胞的变化可能与病菌分泌的毒素有关。     

中华鳖源致病性产吲哚金黄杆菌分离、鉴定及药敏特性分析

对患病中华鳖(Pelodiscus sinensis)进行病原分离、鉴定及药敏实验, 从患病中华鳖皮肤、肝肾脾重要器官分离纯化病原菌, 经理化特性测定及16S rRNA序列分析对其进行鉴定及人工感染试验, 并利用K-B及二倍稀释法进行药敏特性分析。结果表明分离株J22是为中华鳖腐皮病病原, 其对中华鳖的LD₅₀为3.30×104 CFU/g。J22株理化特性与产吲哚金黄杆菌(Chryseobacterium indologenes)一致, 16S rRNA序列与产吲哚金黄杆菌同源性为99%, 综合判定J22株是产吲哚金黄杆菌。分离株对新霉素、庆大霉素及阿莫西林等12种抗生素高度敏感, 对氟苯尼考及多西环素等抗生素耐药; 二氧化氯、漂白粉及高铁酸钾对分离株消毒效果较好。分离菌株J22是中华鳖病原菌, 养殖时可选用庆大霉素、新霉素或者阿莫西林内服, 配合使用二氧化氯、漂白粉及高铁酸钾等外用进行防控。     

稻曲病菌毒素的活性测定、抗体制备与细胞定位

稻曲病菌在PD 液体培养基中生长良好,并能产生对植物细胞具有高度生物抑制活性的毒素。生物学活性测定袁明,用100%的甲醇能提取稻曲病菌液体培养物中的粗毒素。粗毒素对小麦胚根胚芽的生长有强烈的抑制作用。把毒素主要成分Ustiloxin A 和BSA 偶联后,制备了抗血清,ELISA 检测表明用两种偶联剂偶联所制备的抗体效价分别为1∶20000和1∶6000。进一步的免疫胶体金标记分析表明,所制备的抗体能与茼丝中分泌的毒素特异性结合,说明所获得的抗体是特异性的。     

Genome sequences of Lactococcus garvieae TB25, isolated from Italian cheese, and Lactococcus garvieae LG9, isolated from Italian rainbow trout

Lactococcus garvieae is a fish pathogen and an emerging zoonotic opportunistic pathogen as well as a component of natural microbiota in dairy products. Here, we present the first report of a genome sequence of L. garvieae TB25, isolated from a dairy source, and that of L. garvieae LG9, isolated from rainbow trout.     

Colonization History,Host Distribution,Anthropogenic Influence and Landscape Features Shape Populations of White Pine Blister Rust,an Invasive Alien Tree Pathogen

White pine blister rust is caused by the fungal pathogen Cronartium ribicola J.C. Fisch (Basidiomycota, Pucciniales). This invasive alien pathogen was introduced into North America at the beginning of the 20th century on pine seedlings imported from Europe and has caused serious economic and ecological impacts. In this study, we applied a population and landscape genetics approach to understand the patterns of introduction and colonization as well as population structure and migration of C. ribicola. We characterized 1,292 samples of C. ribicola from 66 geographic locations in North America using single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and evaluated the effect of landscape features, host distribution, and colonization history on the structure of these pathogen populations. We identified eastern and western genetic populations in North America that are strongly differentiated. Genetic diversity is two to five times higher in eastern populations than in western ones, which can be explained by the repeated accidental introductions of the pathogen into northeastern North America compared with a single documented introduction into western North America. These distinct genetic populations are maintained by a barrier to gene flow that corresponds to a region where host connectivity is interrupted. Furthermore, additional cryptic spatial differentiation was identified in western populations. This differentiation corresponds to landscape features, such as mountain ranges, and also to host connectivity. We also detected genetic differentiation between the pathogen populations in natural stands and plantations, an indication that anthropogenic movement of this pathogen still takes place. These results highlight the importance of monitoring this invasive alien tree pathogen to prevent admixture of eastern and western populations where different pathogen races occur.     

致病疫霉在中国云南的马铃薯田间形成卵孢子*

由致病疫霉Phytophthora infestans (Mont.)de Bary引起的马铃薯和番茄晚疫病是世界性的作物病害,每年均造成巨大的经济损失和社会影响。致病疫霉是异宗配合的卵菌,有两个已知交配型A1和A2,两个相对交配型互作时可进行有性生殖产生卵孢子( Gallegly & Galindo,1958)。过去许多年一直认为致病疫霉在除墨西哥以外的国家中只存在A1交配型,通过产生孢子囊进行无性繁殖。近年来,由于致病疫霉新致病群体的产生以及全球范围的迁移和替代,A2交配型菌株先后在欧洲、美洲、亚洲和非洲的许多国家被发现。A1、A2两种交配型菌株的同时存在,增…     

Dioecy,hermaphrodites and pathogen load in plants

Sex‐specific investment in pathogen resistance and immunity has been widely reported in animals and to a much lesser degree in plants. Here, we investigated the incidence of fungal pathogens in dioecious versus hermaphroditic plant species. We found that direct studies on differences between males and females in disease resistance or pathogen incidence were rare or non‐existent in plants, but if we made the prediction that if such differences exist (e.g. if males are less resistant than females), dioecious species should have a higher variation in pathogen diversity than hermaphrodites. Comparative studies on paired dioecious and hermaphrodite species from multiple plant families showed that hermaphrodites had a higher average pathogen load than dioecious species, consistent with the idea that higher outcrossing is beneficial to resistance to a greater diversity of pathogens. There was however no support for dioecious species also having a greater variance in pathogen diversity. Our results are consistent with dioecy providing a benefit in terms of pathogen resistance, but the data were insufficient to resolve if the male and female plants showed sex‐specific investment in resistance.     

甘肃天水地区小麦条锈菌自然群体DNA指纹分析

对1997—1999连续三年采自甘肃省天水地区16个地点的244个小麦条锈菌分离系进行了PSR331S3/Bg1Ⅱ指纹分析,共鉴定出表现型185个,遗传多样性Shannon指数M=4.467, 加权修正值M*=0.9106,显现出高度的遗传多样性水平;其中三个主要采样点凤凰、甘谷和麦积山病菌群体M值分别为3.5720、3.0268和3.4186,加权修正值M*分别为0.9330、0.8513和0.8610。三个群体之间的遗传分化系数GST=0.03167,显示出较低的遗传分化水平。本文以多拷贝的RFLP标记为手段,揭示了小麦条锈菌作为一种活体寄生的远程气传病原真菌,其越夏栖息地关键区(天水地区)自然群体存在丰富的遗传多样性,不同海拔生境对病菌群体结构有显著的影响。但是,地区内亚群体间分化水平很低,表明区域内菌源交流十分频繁。     

Pathogen interactions, population cycles, and phase shifts

Interspecific pathogen interactions can profoundly affect pathogen population dynamics and the efficacy of control strategies. However, many pathogens exhibit cyclic abundance patterns (e.g., seasonality), and temporal asynchrony between interacting pathogens could reduce the impact of those interactions. Here we use an extension of our previously published model to investigate the effects of cycles on pathogen interaction. We demonstrate that host immune memory can maintain the impact of an interaction, even when the effector pathogen abundance is low or the pathogen is absent. Paradoxically, immune memory can result in pathogens interacting more strongly when temporally out of phase. We find that interactions between species can result in changes to the temporal pattern of the affected species. We further demonstrate that this may be observed in a natural host-pathogen system. Given the continuing debate regarding the relevance of pathogen interactions in natural systems and increasing concern about treatment strategies for coinfections, both the discovery of a shift in cycle in empirical data and the mechanism by which we identified it are important. Finally, because the model structure used here is analogous to models of a simple predator-prey system, we also consider the consequences of these findings in the context of that system.     

UNCOORDINATED PHYLOGEOGRAPHY OF BORRELIA BURGDORFERI AND ITS TICK VECTOR,IXODES SCAPULARIS

Vector‐borne microbes necessarily co‐occur with their hosts and vectors, but the degree to which they share common evolutionary or biogeographic histories remains unexplored. We examine the congruity of the evolutionary and biogeographic histories of the bacterium and vector of the Lyme disease system, the most prevalent vector‐borne disease in North America. In the eastern and midwestern US, Ixodes scapularis ticks are the primary vectors of Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacterium that causes Lyme disease. Our phylogeographic and demographic analyses of the 16S mitochondrial rDNA suggest that northern I. scapularis populations originated from very few migrants from the southeastern US that expanded rapidly in the Northeast and subsequently in the Midwest after the recession of the Pleistocene ice sheets. Despite this historical gene flow, current tick migration is restricted even between proximal sites within regions. In contrast, B. burgdorferi suffers no barriers to gene flow within the northeastern and midwestern regions but shows clear interregional migration barriers. Despite the intimate association of B. burgdorferi and I. scapularis, the population structure, evolutionary history, and historical biogeography of the pathogen are all contrary to its arthropod vector. In the case of Lyme disease, movements of infected vertebrate hosts may play a larger role in the contemporary expansion and homogenization of the pathogen than the movement of tick vectors whose populations continue to bear the historical signature of climate‐induced range shifts.     

THE JACK OF ALL TRADES IS MASTER OF NONE: A PATHOGEN'S ABILITY TO INFECT A GREATER NUMBER OF HOST GENOTYPES COMES AT A COST OF DELAYED REPRODUCTION

A trade‐off between a pathogen's ability to infect many hosts and its reproductive capacity on each host genotype is predicted to limit the evolution of an expanded host range, yet few empirical results provide evidence for the magnitude of such trade‐offs. Here, we test the hypothesis for a trade‐off between the number of host genotypes that a fungal pathogen can infect (host genotype range) and its reproductive capacity on susceptible plant hosts. We used strains of the oat crown rust fungus that carried widely varying numbers of virulence (avr) alleles known to determine host genotype range. We quantified total spore production and the expression of four pathogen life‐history stages: infection efficiency, time until reproduction, pustule size, and spore production per pustule. In support of the trade‐off hypothesis, we found that virulence level, the number of avr alleles per pathogen strain, was correlated with significant delays in the onset of reproduction and with smaller pustule sizes. Modeling from our results, we conclude that trade‐offs have the capacity to constrain the evolution of host genotype range in local populations. In contrast, long‐term trends in virulence level suggest that the continued deployment of resistant host lines over wide regions of the United States has generated selection for increased host genotype range.     

A host-host-pathogen model with free-living infective stages, applicable to microbial pest control

A model has been investigated of the dynamics of the interaction between two hosts which are both attacked by a common pathogen, where the pathogen has free-living infective stages the population size of which must itself be modelled explicitly, and where the host species do not interact with one another except through their shared pathogen. If either host interacted with the pathogen alone, three broad classes of dynamics would be possible: host regulation, pathogen persistence and pathogen extinction. Here, all possible types of combinations of hosts are examined: regulation-regulation (both hosts would be regulated if they interacted with the pathogen alone), regulation-persistence, regulation-extinction, persistence-persistence persistence-extinction and extinction-extinction. A wide range of dynamics is generated, including a number of patterns quite unlike those found in the one-host pathogen case (e.g. persistence in one host, elimination of the other host) and behaviour contingent on initial densities in the system. For clarity and pertinence, attention is focused on the case where one host is a pest, the pathogen is a potential microbial control agent, and the other host is a non-target species which it is undesirable to harm. The model suggests, broadly, that non-targets are unlikely to be seriously threatened in such cases, and also that non-targets, far from undermining pest control, are quite likely to contribute to its efficacy.     

Interactions between Fusarium verticillioides, Ustilago maydis, and Zea mays: an endophyte, a pathogen, and their shared plant host

Highly diverse communities of microbial symbionts occupy eukaryotic organisms, including plants. While many well-studied symbionts may be characterized as either parasites or as mutualists, the prevalent but cryptic endophytic fungi are less easily qualified because they do not cause observable symptoms of their presence within their host. Here, we investigate the interactions of an endophytic fungus, Fusarium verticillioides with a pathogen, Ustilago maydis, as they occur within maize (Zea mays). We used experimental inoculations to evaluate metabolic mechanisms by which these three organisms might interact. We assessed the impacts of fungal-fungal interactions on endophyte and pathogen growth within the plant, and on plant growth. We find that F. verticillioides modulates the growth of U. maydis and thus decreases the pathogen's aggressiveness toward the plant. With co-inoculation of the endophyte with the pathogen, plant growth is similar to that which would be gained without the pathogen present. However, the endophyte may also break down plant compounds that limit U. maydis growth, and obtains a growth benefit from the presence of the pathogen. Thus, an endophyte such as F. verticillioides may function as both a defensive mutualist and a parasite, and express nutritional modes that depend on ecological context.