Skip to main content

Research Repository

Advanced Search

Gregarines - an aquatic symbiosis model system

People Involved

Project Description

Apicomplexans are widely distributed, single-celled organisms that are always described as obligate parasitic. Despite their importance for human health (malaria, toxoplasmosis) and vast literature on their virulence in animals, there is substantial evidence for mutualistic attributes of some apicomplexans (Rueckert et al. 2019; Paight et al., 2018). So far, the majority of research has been focused on the crown apicomplexans, but early diverging gregarines span the whole range of symbiosis from mutualism to parasitism (Rueckert et al. 2019) and thus are critical links in the evolution of symbiosis in the apicomplexans.

Gregarines are endosymbionts that inhabit the intestines, coeloms and reproductive vesicles of invertebrates and have been shown to be highly abundant in most ecosystem (de Vargas et al. 2015; Clearly & Durbin 2016; Mahé et al. 2017; Lentendu et al. 2018). Because gregarines infect almost all invertebrates, they are important players in structuring host populations, communities and ecosystems. However, their impacts are poorly described from only a few, mostly terrestrial, host species.

Mathur et al. (2019) revealed that the parasitic lifestyle has evolved at least three times within the larger clade encompassing Apicomplexa using first omics-data from only six gregarines. This study illustrates how little we know about gregarines, their diversity and evolution, and what opportunities for discovery remain. A focus on gregarines as model systems will enable us to advance the fundamental knowledge on the evolutionary steps of symbiosis in the Apicomplexa, identifying key cellular and molecular transitions in the evolution from free-living relatives to intracellular parasites.

This research is funded in part by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.

Type of Project P04 - Research Charities and Trusts
Status Project Complete
Funder(s) Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
Value £266,914.00
Project Dates Jun 1, 2020 - Sep 1, 2024


You might also like

Parasites in the deep Nov 1, 2014 - Jan 31, 2016
Parasites collected from different fish species (e.g. Barathrites iris) from the New Hebrides trench and the Kermadec trench will be identified on a morphological and molecular level.

Oral Infestation Challenge Jun 20, 2016 - Aug 5, 2016
Live Atlantic salmon will be experimentally infested with live anisakis simplex. The experiment will run for 35 days, and at certain sampling points, salmon will be euthanised and blood will be taken. This will then be used for cytometric analyses of... Read More about Oral Infestation Challenge.

Exploring the causes of Red Vent Syndrome in wild Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) from coastal waters around Scotland Jul 1, 2016 - Jun 30, 2017
This research will make direct comparisons of ?13C and ?15N isotope values from muscle tissue between populations of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) returning to the North, East and West coasts of Scotland. This work will investigate whether returning... Read More about Exploring the causes of Red Vent Syndrome in wild Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) from coastal waters around Scotland.

The juvenile fish fauna of a Kenyan mangrove forest: exploring new tools to understand growth and condition. Aug 1, 2016 - Dec 31, 2019
The project will work with a new PhD student who is collecting regular samples of juvenile fish from the Vanga mangrove forest in southern Kenya. The work will focus on two areas:
1) Describing the metazoan parasite fauna of the mangrove fish commun... Read More about The juvenile fish fauna of a Kenyan mangrove forest: exploring new tools to understand growth and condition..