Biology subjects

Duhayon, M.

Publications and source records attributed to Duhayon, M..

5 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Microbial communities in Ornithodoros phacochoerus ticks: spatial structure and influence of African swine fever virus infectious status

AO_SCPLOWBSTRACTC_SCPLOWOrnithodoros phacochoerus are nidicolous soft ticks of the Ornithodoros moubata complex of species known to be vectors of the African swine fever (ASF) virus. These Ornithodoros ticks depend on endosymbionts to produce essential nutrients necessary for their development. However, endosymbionts are only a part of the complex microbiota hosted by the tick. This microbiota often includes primary or secondary endosymbionts, commensal species from the environment, and, most of the time, some pathogens. The present study was performed to understand the organization and spatial distribution of the microbiota of O. phacochoerus. One of the objectives was to investigate if the pathogen of interest (ASF virus) is involved in the organization of the microbiota through pathogen-induced dysbiosis or other interactions. For this purpose, 704 O. phacochoerus ticks were collected from two conservation areas in Mozambique. Sequencing was performed targeting the V3-V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene, and the resulting dataset was processed using FROGS to characterize the bacterial microbiota hosted by the ticks. The results indicate that the microbiota of Ornithodoros phacochoerus contains very low bacterial diversity, with one primary endosymbiont (Francisella-like endosymbiont), one potential secondary endosymbiont (Rickettsiella), and very few environmental or pathogenic bacterial species. We found a clear spatial structure of the microbiota, with ticks from the same sampling site showing similar patterns. On the contrary, no association with the infectious status for African swine fever virus was detected, suggesting that this pathogen does not shape Ornithodoros microbial communities. Our results on tick - microbiota - pathogen - environment interactions in nidicolous soft ticks, showed patterns that differ from most hard tick studies.

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2025

Population genetics of the nidicolous soft tick Ornithodoros phacochoerus in the context of African swine fever sylvatic cycle

Ticks of the species Ornithodoros phacochoerus are endophilic soft ticks which infest warthog burrows. Like other Ornithodoros of the O. moubata species complex, O. phacochoerus is a vector of the African swine fever virus and participates in the maintenance of the virus among warthogs in the sylvatic cycle in Southern and Eastern African countries. In this study, the population genetic structure of O. phacochoerus was investigated using sixteen microsatellite markers. After sampling campaigns that took place between 2020 and 2022, we analyzed 684 ticks from 21 warthog burrows and resting sites from Coutada 9 Game Reserve, Macossa District, Mozambique, and 138 ticks from 3 warthog burrows and resting sites from Gorongosa National Park, Gorongosa District, Mozambique. Burrows and resting sites are regularly used by the common warthog Phacochoerus africanus which is thought to be responsible for the movements of O. phacochoerus between sites. After genotyping, the observed genetic variation followed a model of isolation by distance with a structure at the level of the sampling sites (burrows and resting sites). Gorongosa National Park and Coutada 9 Game Reserve appeared to be completely isolated from each other in terms of gene flow, and Coutada 9 Game Reserve showed a clear signature of a bottleneck effect. Effective population sizes within sampling sites were quite low (4.1 individuals), with an estimated migration rate of 35% and a mean dispersal distance of 209 meters per tick generation. These results suggested frequent tick movements between burrows at a small geographic scale, due to warthog movements between the burrows. As both wildlife conservation areas are positive for African swine fever virus, these results reinforce the suspected role of the ticks in the sylvatic cycle of the virus, as infected ticks could be moved from one burrow to another, maintaining the presence of the virus in several sites of the conservation areas. This confirms the importance of maintaining buffer zones around conservation areas, buffer zones that should remain free of any domestic pigs to prevent vector spillover from the sylvatic cycle to the domestic cycle.

ecology↗

bioRxiv2025

Contrasting temporal patterns and associations in Hyalomma marginatum microbial communities: key insights for the development of novel tick and tick-borne diseases control tools

BackgroundHyalomma marginatum is an invasive tick species in southern mainland France that can carry several pathogens of human and animal interest. Because the tick microbiota represents a major factor that can potentially modulate the pathogen acquisition and transmission and might become a new control tool against ticks and tick-borne diseases, it is more than essential to identify the composition of the H. marginatum microbiota, its temporal dynamics and interactions (statistical association) between members of the tick microbiota. MethodsFrom monthly tick samplings performed in the same site between February to September 2022, 281 adult ticks H. marginatum were collected from horses. The microbiota composition was characterised using a high throughput sequencing approach. Different statistical analyses allowed us to assess the influence of several factors (month, season, tick sex) on the H. marginatum microbial communities and reveal potential interactions among members of these communities. ResultsApart of known obligate endosymbionts Francisella and Midichloria, and the hypothesised facultative endosymbiont (Rickettsia) that dominated the microbiota of H. marginatum, we detected Staphylococcus, Corynebacterium, Williamsia and Mycobacterium, usually described as commensal and/or environmental bacteria. The microbiota composition and bacterial networks differed between males and females, with males being more diverse and composed of more environmental bacteria. We reported several temporal shifts for both males and females into the microbiota composition and bacterial networks. The temporal shifts observed for females were more chaotic in terms of movements among nodes, compared to the male microbial communities that exhibited a more organised and stable dynamics. ConclusionsThe influence of tick sex and time on the holobiont H. marginatum underlines the importance of the scale at which the study is conducted. HighlightsO_LIObligate endosymbionts dominate the Hyalomma marginatum microbiota C_LIO_LIEnvironnemental bacteria are abundant in Hyalomma marginatum microbiota C_LIO_LIBoth the bacterial composition and associations differed according to the tick sex C_LIO_LIBoth the bacterial composition and associations were marked by many temporal shifts for both males and females C_LIO_LIKeystone taxa in tick microbiota were highly variable from one month to another C_LI

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2024

Temporal variability of the Hyalomma marginatum-borne pathogens in a sentinel site of the Occitanie region (France), a focus on the intriguing dynamics of Rickettsia aeschlimannii

Spatio-temporal scales have a clear influence on microbial community distribution and diversity and are thus essential to consider to identify and study the dynamics of microorganisms. The invasive tick species Hyalomma marginatum has recently become established in southern France. It carries pathogens of medical and veterinary interest including the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus, Rickettsia aeschlimannii, Theileria equi and Anaplasma phagocytophilum among others. While the pathogenic communities of H. marginatum were identified and their spatial distribution characterised, their temporal dynamics are still unknown. We performed a monthly H. marginatum tick collection from February to September 2022 in a sentinel site in southern France in order to study their presence and temporal dynamics. On the 281 ticks analysed, we detected pathogens included R. aeschlimannii, A. phagocytophilum and T. equi with infection rates reaching 47.0%, 4.6% and 11.0% respectively. Overall, 14.6% of ticks were infected with at least Theileria or Anaplasma, with monthly fluctuations ranging from 2.9% to 28.6%. Strong temporal patterns were observed for each of the detected pathogens, particularly for R. aeschlimannii whose infection rates drastically increased at the beginning of summer, correlated with the monthly mean temperatures in the sentinel site. Based on these results, we hypothesized that R. aeschlimannii might be a secondary symbiont of H. marginatum that could play a role into stress response to temperature. The analysis of monthly and seasonal fluctuations in H. marginatum-borne pathogens allowed us to conclude that the risk of infection is present throughout H. marginatum activity period, but particularly in summer. HighlightsO_LIStrong monthly fluctuations of pathogen infection rates were observed especially for Rickettsia aeschlimannii, currently identified as a human pathogen whose pathogenic status in humans and its symbiotic status in H. marginatum are both questioned. C_LIO_LIThe increase in temperature is correlated with the increase in Rickettsia aeschlimannii infection rates, providing clues about its potential function as a symbiont in H. marginatum. C_LIO_LITicks are recurrently infected with at least one other pathogen belonging to Theileria or Anaplasma genera with monthly fluctuations ranging from 2.9% to 28.6%. C_LIO_LIThe monthly dynamics of H. marginatum-borne pathogens are important to consider to assess the risk posed by this tick. C_LI Graphical abstract O_FIG O_LINKSMALLFIG WIDTH=200 HEIGHT=81 SRC="FIGDIR/small/589770v1_ufig1.gif" ALT="Figure 1"> View larger version (24K): org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@b703d5org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@15cc273org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@e238d4org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@ebe1_HPS_FORMAT_FIGEXP M_FIG C_FIG

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2023

New insights into the role of the microbiota in Ornithodoros moubata: Influence of endosymbionts on the reproductive fitness of the tick

AO_SCPLOWBSTRACTC_SCPLOWOver the past decade, many studies have demonstrated the crucial role of the tick microbiome in tick biology. The soft tick Ornithodoros moubata is a hematophagous ectoparasite of Suidae, best known for transmitting the African swine fever virus. Its bacterial microbiota is characterized by a high prevalence of Francisella-like and Rickettsia endosymbionts. The present study aims to better understand the potential influence of these two major members of the tick microbiota on the reproductive fitness of O. moubata. A total of 132 adult female ticks were treated with antibiotics using gentamycin or rifampicin added to the blood meal. Half of the ticks were also supplemented with B vitamins to address the nutritional role of endosymbionts. Over two periods of 50 days, several traits related to the reproductive fitness were monitored to investigate the importance of Francisella and Rickettsia for these traits. It appeared that most of the reproductive parameters considered were not affected. However, antibiotic treatments induced an increase in the tick survival, indicating a potential fitness cost of harboring endosymbionts during the tick reproductive cycle. Similarly, 366 first stage nymphs of Ornithodoros moubata were exposed to the same treatments for molecular quantification of both endosymbionts. Results from qPCR suggested that the treatments had a bacteriostatic effect on endosymbionts without completely eliminating neither Francisella-like endosymbiont nor Rickettsia.

ecology↗