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- Title
Interspecific and Postmetamorphic Variation in Susceptibility of Three North American Anurans to Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis.
- Authors
ORTIZ-SANTALIESTRA, MANUEL E.; RITTENHOUSE, TRACY A. G.; CARY, TAWNYA L.; KARAS, WILLIAM H.
- Abstract
Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), the fungus responsible for chytridiomycosis, grows on the keratinized parts of the body (i.e., the entire skin of juveniles and adults, and the oral disk of tadpoles).The fungus affects epidermal structures, generating an imbalance of the osmotic equilibrium through the skin that ultimately leads to death. Therefore, larvae are likely to be much more resistant compared with juveniles and adults, which may suffer high mortality. However, nothing is known about how susceptibility varies during the juvenile life stages (from the end of metamorphosis to sexual maturity). The coexistence of tolerant hosts (either tolerant species or unaffected developmental stages) with susceptible hosts is a major reason why chytridiomycosis has become an epidemic disease. The aim of this study was to analyze the interspecific and developmental variation in susceptibility to Bd in juveniles of three North American anurans. Leopard Frog (Lithobates pipiens) incurred no lethal effects at 104 Bd zoospores ml-1, regardless of the age at which they were exposed to the fungus. On the contrary, Bd infection was more severe for newly metamorphosed juveniles of American toads (Anaxyrus americanus) than for 4-week-old juveniles. When exposed to 104 Bd zoospores ml-1, newly metamorphosed juveniles of this species experienced mortality rates above 70%, whereas 4-week-old juveniles had mortality rates below 30%. Variations in structural characteristics of the skin or the antifungal efficiency of skin peptides are proposed as potential reasons to explain the observed developmental differences in susceptibility to Bd.
- Subjects
BATRACHOCHYTRIUM dendrobatidis; FROG diseases; NORTHERN leopard frog; AMERICAN toad; FROG mortality; PEPTIDES; DEVELOPMENTAL biology
- Publication
Journal of Herpetology, 2013, Vol 47, Issue 2, p286
- ISSN
0022-1511
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1670/11-134