Introduction of epigenetic variation contribute to resistance against the human parasite Schistosoma mansoni
Waddington-type kick-start of adaptive evolution is assumed to be possible based on epigenetic variation alone. We tested this hypothesis in the snail Biomphalaria glabrata, vector of Schistosoma mansoni, the causative agent of the human disease schistosomiasis. Epilines and epigenetic recombinant inbred lines (epiRILs) were used to propagate DNA methylation variants over 3 generations. The fecundity and susceptibility to infection by S. mansoni were measured. Average parasite prevalence has a higher variance in epiRILs than in controls and decreased from 84 ± 5% in controls to 68 ± 21% in epiRILs. The increase in fertility in epiRILs was 12%, with an average heritability of 0.55. The introduction of 1% epimutant offspring snail into resident susceptible populations was simulated by a model. If genetic assimilation of the resistance occurred in 0.3% of the introduced epimutants, susceptibility would be replaced by resistance after less than one hundred generations. Environmental management can therefore be envisaged by introducing epigenetically modified organisms to prevent parasite infections from spreading to the intermediate host and, ultimately, the human population.
Authors
- Marie Lopez (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7479-4657)
- Benoît Pujol (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9703-6760)
- Cristian Chaparro (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5162-349X)
- Paola B. Arimondo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5175-4396)
- Céline Cosseau (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0780-8980)
- Christoph Grunau (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2161-412X)
- Bart Haegeman (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2325-4727)
- Pierick Mouginot (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2967-065X)
- Nelia Luviano-Aparicio (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7929-902X)
Institutions
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- Université de Perpignan (FR)
- Ifremer (FR)
- Institut Pasteur (FR)
- École Pratique des Hautes Études (FR)
- Pierre Fabre (Germany) (DE)
- Université de Montpellier (FR)
- Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (FR)
- Sorbonne Université (FR)
- Pierre Fabre (France) (FR)
- Institut des Biomolécules Max Mousseron (FR)
- Laboratoire d'Océanographie Microbienne (FR)
- Chimie Biologique pour le Vivant (FR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Epigenetics & Chromatin
- Published
- 2025-07-14
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1186/s13072-025-00607-4
- Primary Topic
- Parasites and Host Interactions
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Wellcome Trust
- Centre Méditerranéen de l’Environnement et de la Biodiversité
- Nederlands Instituut voor Ecologie
- Agence Nationale de la Recherche
- Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen
- Région Occitanie Pyrénées-Méditerranée