Developmental plasticity enables an intestinal tapeworm to adapt to dietary stress

Result code in IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F60077344%3A_____%2F26%3A00650870" target="_blank" >RIV/60077344:_____/26:00650870 - isvavai.cz</a>

Alternative codes found

RIV/68081766:_____/26:00650870

Result on the web

<a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-69475-0" target="_blank" >https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-69475-0</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-69475-0" target="_blank" >10.1038/s41467-026-69475-0</a>

Result language

angličtina

Original language name

Developmental plasticity enables an intestinal tapeworm to adapt to dietary stress

Original language description

Diet is one of the strongest ecological forces shaping the gut environment, yet its impact on intestinal worms (helminths) remains poorly understood. The helminth Hymenolepis diminuta is a suitable model for investigating how lifestyle changes in modern societies may disrupt host-helminth relationships. Here we show that dietary fiber availability shapes the developmental trajectory and life strategies of H. diminuta in a stage-dependent manner. Fiber deprivation at the time of host colonization leads to developmental arrest, manifested by reduced growth, absence of reproduction, and transcriptional changes consistent with suppressed development. This state is accompanied by diet-dependent remodeling of the host small intestinal microbiota and metabolome: whereas fiber-rich diets support fermentative microbial communities and a chemically diverse intestinal environment, the Western diet promotes dysbiotic profiles with reduced fermentation capacity and a more pro-inflammatory immune response. In contrast, adult H. diminuta that reach maturity in hosts maintained on a fiber-rich diet exhibit a reversible, estivation-like suppression of reproduction during short-term fiber deprivation, with full restoration of egg production following dietary recovery. Together, these findings indicate that dietary transitions associated with industrialized lifestyles can redirect helminth developmental programs and host-helminth-microbiome interactions, with implications for helminth persistence and potential therapeutic applications.

Czech name

—

Czech description

—

Type

J_imp - Article in a specialist periodical, which is included in the Web of Science database

CEP classification

—

OECD FORD branch

10606 - Microbiology

Project

Result was created during the realization of more than one project. More information in the Projects tab.

Continuities

I - Institucionalni podpora na dlouhodoby koncepcni rozvoj vyzkumne organizace

Publication year

2026

Confidentiality

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Name of the periodical

Nature Communications

ISSN

2041-1723

e-ISSN

2041-1723

Volume of the periodical

17

Issue of the periodical within the volume

1

Country of publishing house

GB - UNITED KINGDOM

Number of pages

19

Pages from-to

2985

UT code for WoS article

001729876000003

EID of the result in the Scopus database

2-s2.0-105034757621