Frog skin swabs reveal when and where the
deadly disease has popped up in wildlife populations around the world
Date:
September 23, 2019
Source:
University of California - Berkeley
From habitat loss to climate change,
amphibians around the world face immense threats to their survival. One
emerging and sinister threat is the chytrid fungus, a mysterious pathogen that
kills amphibians by disrupting the delicate moisture balance maintained by
their skin, and that is decimating frog populations around the world.
"Amphibians are already one of the
most imperiled groups on the planet, and this fungal disease is further
threatening their biodiversity," said Erica Bree Rosenblum, an associate
professor of environmental science, policy and management at the University of
California, Berkeley.
With the help of advanced genetic testing
and hundreds of frog skin swabs, Rosenblum, along with UC Berkeley graduate
student Allison Byrne and an international team of collaborators, has created
the most complete map to date of when and where different genetic variants of
the fungus -- analogous to different strains of viruses like the flu -- have
infected frog populations around the world.
Some of these genetic variants are deadlier
than others, so knowing their current geographic distribution is key to
preventing future spread of the disease, the researchers said. The
investigation also uncovered a whole new genetic lineage of the fungus, one
that appears to have originated in Asia and may be the oldest variant yet
discovered.
"An invisible aspect of globalization
is that when we move plants and animals around, we are moving their diseases
around, and that can have really devastating consequences," Rosenblum
said. "If we know what lineages are where, we can better predict
conservation outcomes, because some of these lineages are really deadly, and
others less so."
The study appears online the week of Sept.
23 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
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