Sarcoptic mange severity is associated with reduced genomic variation and evidence of selection in Yellowstone National Park wolves (Canis lupus)

In this study, we examined the role of host genomic variation in disease severity in a wild population of mammalian carnivores. Using sarcoptic mange in Yellowstone National Park gray wolves (Canis lupus) as our focal system, we found reduced genome-wide variation with increasing infection severity, identified 410 loci significantly associated with disease, and found evidence of natural selection removing harmful alleles from the population through time. Our dataset was generated using restriction-site associated DNA sequencing (RAD-sequencing).