Does the thermal mismatch hypothesis predict disease outcomes in different morphs of a terrestrial salamander?
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Author(s)
Venesky, Matthew D.
DeMarchi, Joseph
Hickerson, Cari
Anthony, Carl D.
Date Issued
June 1, 2022
Abstract
Many aspects of ectotherm physiology are temperature-dependent. The immune system of temperate-dwelling ectothermic host species is no exception and their immune function is often downregulated in cold temperatures. Likewise, species of ectothermic pathogens experience temperature-mediated effects on rates of transmission and/or virulence. Although seemingly straightforward, predicting the outcomes of ectothermic host-pathogen interactions is quite challenging. A recent hypothesis termed the thermal mismatch hypothesis posits that cool-adapted host species should be most susceptible to pathogen infection during warm temperature periods whereas warm-adapted host species should be most susceptible to pathogens during periods of cool temperatures. We explore this hypothesis using two ecologically and physiologically differentiated color morphs of the Eastern Red-backed Salamander (Plethodon cinereus) and a pathogenic chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis; hereafter Bd) using a fully factorial laboratory experiment. At cool temperatures, unstriped salamanders (i.e., those that are tolerant of warm temperatures) had a significantly higher probability of Bd infection compared with cool-tolerant striped salamanders, consistent with the thermal mismatch hypothesis. However, we found no support for this hypothesis when salamanders were exposed to Bd at warm temperatures: the probability of Bd infection in the cool-tolerant striped salamanders was nearly identical in both cool and warm temperatures, opposite the predictions of the thermal mismatch hypothesis. Our results are most consistent with the fact that Bd grows poorly at warm temperatures. Alternatively, our data could indicate that the two color morphs do not differ in their tolerance to warm temperatures but that striped salamanders are more tolerant to cool temperatures than unstriped salamanders.
Journal
Journal of Experimental Zoology Part A-Ecological and Integrative Physiology
Department
Biology
Citation
Venesky, M. D., DeMarchi, J., Hickerson, C., & Anthony, C. D. (2022). Does the thermal mismatch hypothesis predict disease outcomes in different morphs of a terrestrial salamander? Journal of Experimental Zoology Part A: Ecological and Integrative Physiology, 337, 467– 476. https://doi.org/10.1002/jez.2581
Publisher
Wiley
Version of Article
Published article
DOI
10.1002/jez.2581
ISSN
2471-5638
2471-5646
Rights
© 2022 Wiley Periodicals LLC
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