Endemic Hantavirus Infection Impairs the Winter Survival of Its Rodent Host

Kallio, Eva R.; Voutilainen, Liina; Vapalahti, Olli; Vaheri, Antti; Henttonen, Heikki; Koskela, Esa; Mappes, Johanna

doi:10.1890/06-1620.1

Cited by 112 publications

(110 citation statements)

References 37 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

104

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…While this still occurs, it is now accepted that evolution towards intermediate, or in rare cases, severe host damage can enhance parasite fitness (Ewald 1994, Nunn andAltizer 2006). In support, a growing body of research has revealed subtle effects of endemic parasites on both the reproduction and survival of wildlife species (Hudson et al 1998, Tompkins and Begon 1999, Bize et al 2004, Hakkarainen et al 2007, Kallio et al 2007. Nevertheless, experimental evidence of parasite effects on wildlife populations remains rare and valuable (Begon et al 2006).…”

Section: Effects Of Parasites On Host Populationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Food resources and intestinal parasites as limiting factors for boreal vole populations during winter

Forbes

Stuart

Mappes

et al. 2014

Ecology

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Processes limiting the growth of cyclic vole populations have stimulated considerable research and debate over several decades. In Fennoscandia, the peak density of cyclic vole populations occurs in fall, and is followed by a severe winter decline. Food availability and intestinal parasites have been demonstrated to independently and synergistically limit wildlife populations. The purpose of this study was to directly compare competing food and parasite hypotheses on the limitation of overwintering high‐density vole populations. Moreover, we evaluated the ability of food limitation and nematode infection to interact and thereby intensify population declines. A two‐factor experiment with food supplementation and antihelminthic medication was conducted on replicated, enclosed field vole (Microtus agrestis) populations in central Finland over one full boreal winter. Population abundance, survival, and demographic attributes were monitored through live trapping. Vole feces were concurrently examined for the eggs of Heligmosomidae nemadotes and oocysts of eimerian coccidians. We found that vole density declined in all treatment groups throughout winter. However, food supplementation mitigated this decline through positive effects on reproduction, and voles in food‐supplemented populations were generally in better physiological condition than non‐supplemented voles. Food supplementation and antihelminthic treatment reduced the prevalence of Heligmosomidae nematodes, while neither food nor medication affected the prevalence of eimerians, or infection intensity of either parasite group. Although food supplementation and antihelminthic medication aided in the clearance of Heligmosomidae nematodes, their prevalence did not influence vole population growth, and this parasite group is therefore unlikely to contribute to the cyclic winter decline of boreal vole populations. Instead food resources acting alone were the primary factor limiting vole population growth.

show abstract

Section: Effects Of Parasites On Host Populationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Food resources and intestinal parasites as limiting factors for boreal vole populations during winter

Forbes

Stuart

Mappes

et al. 2014

Ecology

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In the most extreme cases, epizootic outbreaks may cause large-scale, stochastic population die-offs [1,2]. A small but growing body of research has identified more subtle effects of pathogens on host reproduction and survival [3][4][5][6]. However, experimental evidence for pathogen-induced population limitation in natural settings is rare (but see [3,7]).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Food provisioning alters infection dynamics in populations of a wild rodent

et al. 2015

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

While pathogens are often assumed to limit the growth of wildlife populations, experimental evidence for their effects is rare. A lack of food resources has been suggested to enhance the negative effects of pathogen infection on host populations, but this theory has received little investigation. We conducted a replicated two-factor enclosure experiment, with introduction of the bacterium Bordetella bronchiseptica and food supplementation, to evaluate the individual and interactive effects of pathogen infection and food availability on vole populations during a boreal winter. We show that prior to bacteria introduction, vole populations were limited by food availability. Bordetella bronchiseptica introduction then reduced population growth and abundance, but contrary to predictions, primarily in food supplemented populations. Infection prevalence and pathological changes in vole lungs were most common in food supplemented populations, and are likely to have resulted from increased congregation and bacteria transmission around feeding stations. Bordetella bronchisepticainfected lungs often showed protozoan co-infection (consistent with Hepatozoon erhardovae), together with more severe inflammatory changes. Using a multidisciplinary approach, this study demonstrates a complex picture of interactions and underlying mechanisms, leading to population-level effects. Our results highlight the potential for food provisioning to markedly influence disease processes in wildlife mammal populations.

show abstract

“…However, some recent studies no longer support this view. Besides negative effects at the cellular level (Netski et al, 1999) and on body weight (Douglass et al, 2007), indications of lowered host survival due to hantavirus infection have been reported (Douglass et al, 2001;Calisher et al, 2005;Kallio et al, 2007). Furthermore, because of the chronic infection that hantaviruses induce in their host, they are likely to impose a high resource cost throughout their host's lifetime by triggering specific immune responses (Lehmer et al, 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of Puumala Virus Infection on Maturation and Survival in Bank Voles: A Capture-Mark-Recapture Analysis

Tersago

Crespin

Verhagen

et al. 2012

Journal of Wildlife Diseases

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

ABSTRACT:Many zoonotic diseases are caused by rodent-borne viruses. Major fluctuations in the transmission of these viruses have been related to large changes in reservoir host population numbers due to external factors. However, the impact of the pathogen itself on the demography of its reservoir host is often overlooked. We investigated the impact of Puumala virus (PUUV) on survival and reproductive maturation probability of its reservoir host, the bank vole (Myodes glareolus). Three years (2004-06) of data from nine independent sites in southern Belgium were collected and analyzed with a capture-mark-recapture (CMR) method that includes statistical correction for the variation in capture probability of voles. A multistate model based on four states of reproductive activity and PUUV immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibody status was used to estimate survival and probability of transition from one reproductive or infection state to another. Although survival estimates for reproductively active voles were similar between infected and noninfected individuals, PUUV infection in reproductively inactive voles decreased mean monthly survival by 14%. PUUV infection was associated with a threefold increase in the probability of reproductive maturation in bank voles. Moreover, the probability of PUUV IgG seroconversion was three times higher for reproductively active voles compared to reproductively inactive voles. Our model indicates that PUUV infection may alter bank vole population dynamics by affecting both survival and maturation in its host. Additional studies, using CMR methodology with shorter time intervals between trapping sessions and possibly a longer duration, are needed to confirm these findings.

show abstract

Endemic Hantavirus Infection Impairs the Winter Survival of Its Rodent Host

Cited by 112 publications

References 37 publications

Food resources and intestinal parasites as limiting factors for boreal vole populations during winter

Food resources and intestinal parasites as limiting factors for boreal vole populations during winter

Food provisioning alters infection dynamics in populations of a wild rodent

Impact of Puumala Virus Infection on Maturation and Survival in Bank Voles: A Capture-Mark-Recapture Analysis

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About