Snail Juvenile Growth Rate As a Rapid Predictor of the Transmission Potential of Parasitizing Human Schistosomes

Overview

Journal Exp Parasitol

Specialty Parasitology

Date 2022 Sep 12

PMID 36096192

Authors

Naima C Starkloff

Rachel B Hartman

David J Civitello

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Host and parasite traits that are sensitive to environmental perturbations merit special attention in the mitigation of diseases. While life table experiments allow a practical evaluation of variability of these traits with environmental change, they are cost and resource intensive. Here, we use a model snail host-trematode parasite system to test the efficacy of an expeditious alternative. Rapidly changing host traits (such as juvenile growth rate) can be used as effective predictors of parasite transmission potential across a range of environmental factors. This approach can be applied to anticipate epidemiological changes under diverse environmental scenarios.

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