Ancient horizontal transfers of retrotransposons between birds and ancestors of human pathogenic nematodes

• DOI: 10.1038/ncomms11396
• Publication Date: 2016-04-21T10:24:51Z
• Authors: Alexander Suh; Christopher C. Witt; Juliana Menger; Keren R. Sadanandan; Lars Podsiadlowski; Michael Gerth; Anne Weigert; Jimmy A. McGuire; Joann Mudge; Scott V. Edwards; Frank E. Rheindt
• Keywords: Retrotransposon; Horizontal Gene Transfer

Abstract Parasite host switches may trigger disease emergence, but prehistoric ranges are often unknowable. Lymphatic filariasis and loiasis major human diseases caused by the insect-borne filarial nematodes Brugia , Wuchereria Loa . Here we show that genomes of these seven tropical bird lineages exclusively share a novel retrotransposon, AviRTE, resulting from horizontal transfer (HT). AviRTE subfamilies exhibit 83–99% nucleotide identity between genomes, their phylogenetic distribution, paleobiogeography invasion times suggest HTs involved nematodes. The nematode took place in two pantropical waves, >25–22 million years ago (Myr ago) involving / lineage >20–17 Myr lineage. Contrary to expectation mammal-dominated range nematodes, hypothesize pathogens have independently evolved endoparasites formerly infected global breadth avian biodiversity.