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Comparative Study
. 2015 Nov:151:156-65.
doi: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2015.05.006. Epub 2015 Jul 16.

The population genetics of Trypanosoma cruzi revisited in the light of the predominant clonal evolution model

Michel Tibayrenc  1 , Francisco J Ayala  2
Affiliations
Comparative Study

The population genetics of Trypanosoma cruzi revisited in the light of the predominant clonal evolution model

Michel Tibayrenc et al. Acta Trop. 2015 Nov.

Abstract

Comparing the population structure of Trypanosoma cruzi with that of other pathogens, including parasitic protozoa, fungi, bacteria and viruses, shows that the agent of Chagas disease shares typical traits with many other species, related to a predominant clonal evolution (PCE) pattern: statistically significant linkage disequilibrium, overrepresented multilocus genotypes, near-clades (genetic subdivisions somewhat blurred by occasional genetic exchange/hybridization) and "Russian doll" patterns (PCE is observed, not only at the level of the whole species, but also, within the near-clades). Moreover, T. cruzi population structure exhibits linkage with the diversity of several strongly selected genes, with gene expression profiles, and with some major phenotypic traits. We discuss the evolutionary significance of these results, and their implications in terms of applied research (molecular epidemiology/strain typing, analysis of genes of interest, vaccine and drug design, immunological diagnosis) and of experimental evolution. Lastly, we revisit the long-term debate of describing new species within the T. cruzi taxon.

Keywords: Discrete typing unit; Drug resistance; Near-clade; Predominant clonal evolution; Recombinational load.

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Figures

None
Graphical abstract
Fig. 1
Fig. 1
The six Trypanosoma cruzi near-clades evidenced by MLST analysis (after Lauthier et al., 2012). Left: neighbor-joining tree; right: split decomposition analysis. The two modes of analysis, which rely on different computing methods and different working hypotheses, show the same near-clading pattern. This is an indication that the clustering of the near-clades is robust, according to the congruence principle (Avise, 2004).
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Geographic distribution of the five lesser near-clades evidenced within the Trypanosoma cruzi near-clade TCI (see Fig. 1) (after Guhl and Ramírez, 2011). The lesser near-clades are widespread and occur sympatrically, which is an evidence of a “Russian doll Pattern” (Tibayrenc and Ayala, 2013).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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