@article{fdi:010066155,
  title = {{P}opulation genomics reveals the origin and asexual evolution of human infective trypanosomes},
  author = {{W}eir, {W}. and {C}apewell, {P}. and {F}oth, {B}. and {C}lucas, {C}. and {P}ountain, {A}. and {S}teketee, {P}. and {V}eitch, {N}. and {K}offi, {M}. and {D}e {M}eeûs, {T}hierry and {K}abore, {J}. and {C}amara, {M}. and {C}ooper, {A}. and {T}ait, {A}. and {J}amonneau, {V}incent and {B}ucheton, {B}runo and {B}erriman, {M}. and {M}ac{L}eod, {A}.},
  editor = {},
  language = {{ENG}},
  abstract = {{E}volutionary theory predicts that the lack of recombination and chromosomal re assortment in strictly asexual organisms results in homologous chromosomes irreversibly accumulating mutations and thus evolving independently of each other, a phenomenon termed the {M}eselson effect. {W}e apply a population genomics approach to examine this effect in an important human pathogen, {T}rypanosoma brucei gambiense. {W}e determine that {T}.b. gambiense is evolving strictly asexually and is derived from a single progenitor, which emerged within the last 10,000 years. {W}e demonstrate the {M}eselson effect for the first time at the genome-wide level in any organism and show large regions of loss of heterozygosity, which we hypothesise to be a short-term compensatory mechanism for counteracting deleterious mutations. {O}ur study sheds new light on the genomic and evolutionary consequences of strict asexuality, which this pathogen uses as it exploits a new biological niche, the human population.},
  keywords = {{AFRIQUE} {DE} {L}'{OUEST} ; {CAMEROUN} ; {GUINEE} ; {COTE} {D}'{IVOIRE}},
  booktitle = {},
  journal = {{E}life},
  volume = {5},
  numero = {},
  pages = {e11473 [14 p.]},
  ISSN = {2050-084{X}},
  year = {2016},
  DOI = {10.7554/e{L}ife.11473},
  URL = {https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010066155},
}