Diversity in growth patterns among strains of the lethal fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis across extended thermal optima.

ABSTRACT: The thermal sensitivities of organisms regulate a wide range of ecological interactions, including host-parasite dynamics. The effect of temperature on disease ecology can be remarkably complex in disease systems where the hosts are ectothermic and where thermal conditions constrain pathogen reproductive rates. Amphibian chytridiomycosis, caused by the pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), is a lethal fungal disease that is influenced by temperature. However, recent temperature studies have produced contradictory findings, suggesting that our current understanding of thermal effects on Bd may be incomplete. We investigated how temperature affects three different Bd strains to evaluate diversity in thermal responses. We quantified growth across the entire thermal range of Bd, and be

SUBMITTER: Voyles J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5487841 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature