Common Frog Host Response to Infection

Amphibians are experiencing global declines and extinctions, and disease is a contributing causative agent. We have examined the transcriptional response of metamorphic hosts (Common frog, Rana temporaria) to the two most important amphibian pathogens: Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) and Ranavirus.

We found strong up-regulation of a gene involved in the adaptive immune response soon after exposure to both pathogens. We detected a significant transcriptional response to Bd, covering the main components of the immune response (innate and adaptive immunity, complement activation, and general inflammatory responses), but relatively little transcriptional response to Ranavirus. This may reflect the higher mortality rates found in wild common frogs infected with Ranavirus as opposed to Bd. Given the paucity of genomic data for amphibians this approach has created a valuable genomic resource for the amphibians, as well as contributing insight into gene expression changes after pathogen exposure and suggesting potential candidate genes for future host-pathogen research.