ArticleCommunications biology2025
Host-parasite coevolution leads to underwater respiratory adaptations in extreme diving insects, seal lice (Lepidophthirus macrorhini).
Article in Communications biology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed.
- Adaptations of seal louse nits to underwater life: morphology, respiration and attachment.Die Naturwissenschaften · 2026Article
- Functional morphology of the leg musculature in the marine seal louse: adaptations for high-performance attachment to diving hosts.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Host-parasite coevolution leads to underwater respiratory adaptations in extreme diving insects, seal lice (Lepidophthirus macrorhini).Communications biology · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Lice are obligate ectoparasites that have co-evolved with their hosts, particularly during the transition of mammals from terrestrial to amphibious habits, as sea lions, seals and walruses, and have undergone parallel adaptations to the extreme conditions of the deep sea. By combining morphological, physiological and genomic analyses, we are shedding light on a key process for surviving prolonged submersion: respiration. Under water, lice immobilise, close their spiracles, reduce their oxygen consumption to a minimum and breathe through their tegument. The presence of haemoglobin genes in their genome also strongly suggests the ability to store oxygen during host dives. Remarkably, seal lice have no anatomical features or physiological capabilities that distinguish them from other insects. This reinforces the idea that the absence of insects in the deep sea is not due to any inherent limitations in their form or function, but rather a result of their evolutionary pathways.
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Registered trials
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