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Refugia, climatic conditions and farm management factors as drivers of adaptation in Nematodirus battus populations.
Melville, Lynsey A; Innocent, Giles; Dijk, Jan Van; Mitchell, Sian; Bartley, David J.
Afiliación
  • Melville LA; Department of Disease Control, Moredun Research Institute, Pentlands Science Parks, Bush Loan, EH26 0PZ, UK. Electronic address: lynsey.melville@moredun.ac.uk.
  • Innocent G; Biomathematics and Statistics Scotland, JCMB, King's Buildings, Peter Guthrie Tait Road, Edinburgh EH9 3FD, UK.
  • Dijk JV; Zoetis UK Ltd, Birchwood Building, Springfield Drive, Leatherhead KT22 7LP, UK.
  • Mitchell S; Animal and Plant Health Agency, Job's Well Road, Johnstown, Carmarthen SA31 3EZ, UK.
  • Bartley DJ; Department of Disease Control, Moredun Research Institute, Pentlands Science Parks, Bush Loan, EH26 0PZ, UK.
Vet Parasitol ; 327: 110120, 2024 Apr.
Article en En | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38266372
ABSTRACT
Parasites are known for their ability to rapidly adapt to changing conditions. For parasitic helminths, changes in climate, along with farming and management practices associated with the intensification of livestock farming, provide novel challenges which can impact on their epidemiology and control. The sustainability of livestock production partially relies on effective control of helminth infection. Therefore, understanding changes in parasite behaviour, and what drives these, is of great importance. Nematodirus battus is an economically important helminth in the UK and temperate regions. Its infective larvae typically overwinter in eggs on pasture and hatch synchronously in spring, causing acute disease in lambs. Attempts to control disease typically rely on whole-flock benzimidazole (BZ) treatments. In recent years, the emergence of BZ-resistance, alongside the hatching of eggs without the classical over-winter 'chill stimulus', have made N. battus more difficult to control. In three previous studies, after collecting a large number of N. battus populations alongside farm management data from commercial farms, we explored the prevalence of genetic mutations associated with BZ-resistance (n = 253 farms), the ability of eggs to hatch with and without a chill stimulus (n = 90 farms) and how farm management practices varied throughout the UK (n = 187 farms). In the present study, we identify factors which may be acting as drivers, or barriers, to either the development of resistance or the variable hatching behaviour of N. battus eggs. Generalised linear mixed effect models were applied to regress experimental hatching and genotyping data on farm management and additional environmental data. Both variable hatching and resistance development appeared associated with the maintenance of parasite refugia as well as grazing management, particularly reseeding of pasture routinely grazed by young lambs each spring and the practice of set-stocked grazing. Effective quarantine measures were identified as the main protective factor for the development of BZ-resistance whereas set stocked grazing and population bottlenecks, resulting from reseeding heavily contaminated pastures, were risk factors. Spring maximum temperature and other climatic factors were associated with 'typical' hatching of eggs following a chill stimulus whilst several management factors were linked with hatching without prior chilling. For example, practices which reduce parasite numbers on pasture (e.g. re-seeding) or restrict availability of hosts (e.g. resting fields), were found to increase the odds of non-chill hatching. Retention of the timing of lambing and infection level of the host within the fitted model indicated that requirement for a chill stimulus prior to hatching may be plastic, perhaps subject to change throughout the grazing season, in response to immune development or parasite density-dependence within the host. Further investigation of the influence of the factors retained within the fitted models, particularly the theme of parasite refugia which was highlighted in relation to both the presence of BZ-resistance alleles and alternative hatching, is required to establish robust, sustainable parasite control and farm management strategies.
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Texto completo: 1 Colección: 01-internacional Base de datos: MEDLINE Asunto principal: Enfermedades de las Ovejas / Infecciones por Strongylida / Nematodirus Tipo de estudio: Prognostic_studies / Risk_factors_studies Límite: Animals Idioma: En Revista: Vet Parasitol Año: 2024 Tipo del documento: Article Pais de publicación: Países Bajos

Texto completo: 1 Colección: 01-internacional Base de datos: MEDLINE Asunto principal: Enfermedades de las Ovejas / Infecciones por Strongylida / Nematodirus Tipo de estudio: Prognostic_studies / Risk_factors_studies Límite: Animals Idioma: En Revista: Vet Parasitol Año: 2024 Tipo del documento: Article Pais de publicación: Países Bajos