Environmentally induced epigenetic plasticity in the human parasite Schistosoma mansoni

Schistosoma mansoni is a platyhelminth parasite that uses the mollusc Biomphalaria as intermediate host and rodents or human as definitive host. We exposed S. mansoni populations to a stressful but ecological realistic environment: the interaction with an allopatric B. glabrata host in which the parasite develops into human-infecting cercaria. We then studied phenotypic traits, epigenetic and transcriptionnal changes that the parasite engages in response to this stressful environment