Mycobiome Traits Associated with Disease Tolerance Predict Many Western North American Bat Species Will Be Susceptible to White-Nose Syndrome.

ABSTRACT: White-nose syndrome (WNS), a fungal disease that has caused catastrophic population declines of bats in eastern North America, is rapidly spreading across the continent and now threatens previously unexposed bat species in western North America. The causal agent of WNS, the fungus Pseudogymnoascus destructans, can infect many species of hibernating bats, but susceptibility to WNS varies by host species. We previously reported that certain traits of the skin microbiome, particularly yeast diversity and abundance, of bat species in eastern North America are strongly associated with resistance to WNS. Using these traits, we developed models to predict WNS susceptibility of 13 species of western North American bats. Based on models derived from yeast species diversity, only one bat species, My

SUBMITTER: Vanderwolf KJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8552606 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature