Macroevolutionary Immunology: A Role for Immunity in the Diversification of Animal life.

Frontiers in Immunology
Eric S Loker

Abstract

An emerging picture of the nature of immune systems across animal phyla reveals both conservatism of some features and the appearance among and within phyla of novel, lineage-specific defense solutions. The latter collectively represent a major and underappreciated form of animal diversity. Factors influencing this macroevolutionary (above the species level) pattern of novelty are considered and include adoption of different life styles, life histories, and body plans; a general advantage of being distinctive with respect to immune defenses; and the responses required to cope with parasites, many of which afflict hosts in a lineage-specific manner. This large-scale pattern of novelty implies that immunological phenomena can affect microevolutionary processes (at the population level within species) that can eventually lead to macroevolutionary events such as speciation, radiations, or extinctions. Immunologically based phenomena play a role in favoring intraspecific diversification, specialization and host specificity of parasites, and mechanisms are discussed whereby this could lead to parasite speciation. Host switching - the acquisition of new host species by parasites - is a major mechanism that drives parasite diversity an...Continue Reading

Citations

Feb 25, 2014·The American Naturalist·Sonia KleindorferFrank J Sulloway
May 30, 2015·Journal of Invertebrate Pathology·Marta Gómez-ChiarriDina Proestou
Jul 2, 2014·Developmental and Comparative Immunology·Larry J DishawWilliam Parker
Feb 24, 2015·Fish & Shellfish Immunology·Marco Gerdol, Paola Venier
May 24, 2016·Zoology : Analysis of Complex Systems, ZACS·Franziska S Brunner, Christophe Eizaguirre
Sep 25, 2019·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Kevin FerroJoachim Kurtz
Apr 23, 2019·Evolution Letters·Sarah E BushDale H Clayton
Oct 1, 2020·International Journal of Molecular Sciences·Daniel M MrochenSilva Holtfreter

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