Agriculture affects pathogen-driven evolution of immunogenetic diversity

What is it about?

MHC genes play a crucial role in immune response. They occur in dozens to hundreds of variants (alleles) in populations, but the number of variants in a genome of a single individual may also be high, varying from one to dozens among species (there is also some variation within species). We show that the risk of infection selects for a higher number of MHC variants in a genome. However, habitat fragmentation due to agriculture limits parasite transmission, and thus changes selection for high MHC diversity.

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Why is it important?

Our study helps to understand evolution of MHC diversity. In terms of biodiversity conservation, our results imply that human-caused habitat fragmentation may alter evolution of immune systems, potentially making species more vulnerable to emergent diseases.