Collaborative Research: SGER: Microparasite-Macroparasite Interactions ?

寄生虫和传染病越来越被认为是驱动哺乳动物生态和进化的重要因素，寄生虫合并感染可以通过多种方式改变传染病对宿主的影响。在人类中，越来越多的证据表明，大型寄生虫（蠕虫）感染影响微寄生虫感染（如艾滋病毒和结核病）的易感性和严重性。然而，尽管在许多自然系统中合并感染的流行率很高，但对野生动物中的微型和大型寄生虫相互作用的了解却少得多。本研究将探讨南非Hluhluwe-iMfolozi公园非洲布法罗胃肠道线虫感染和牛结核病之间的相互作用。自由放养的TB阴性布法罗将接受长效驱虫药治疗，以（1）通过评价治疗后宿主身体状况和免疫参数的变化，检测线虫清除对宿主TB感染易感性的影响;（2）通过比较治疗和未治疗动物的TB传播率，确定治疗对TB传播的影响。通过将观察到的微寄生虫和大型寄生虫感染模式与潜在的免疫学、生理学和种群动态机制联系起来，这项工作将拓宽对寄生虫相互作用在野生动物传染病动态中所起作用的理解。

Parasites and infectious diseases are increasingly being recognized as important factors driving mammalian ecology and evolution, and parasite co-infections can modify the effects of infectious disease on hosts in several ways. In humans, increasing evidence suggests that macroparasite (helminth) infections influence the susceptibility to and severity of microparasitic infections such as HIV and TB. However, much less is known about micro- and macroparasite interactions in wildlife, despite the high prevalence of co-infections in many natural systems. This research will examine interactions between gastrointestinal nematode infections and bovine tuberculosis in African buffalo at Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park, South Africa. Free-ranging TB-negative buffalo will be treated with a long-lasting anthelmintic drug in order to (1) test the effects of nematode removal on host susceptibility to TB infection by evaluating changes in host body condition and immunological parameters in response to treatment; and (2) determine the impact of treatment on TB transmission by comparing TB transmission rates in treated and untreated animals. By linking observed micro- and macroparasite infection patterns with underlying immunological, physiological and population dynamic mechanisms, this work will broaden understanding of the role parasite interactions play in the dynamics of infectious diseases in wildlife.