Coevolution promotes the coexistence of Tasmanian devils and a fatal, transmissible cancer.

Emerging infectious diseases threaten natural populations, and data-driven modeling is critical for predicting population dynamics. Despite the importance of integrating ecology and evolution in models of host-pathogen dynamics, there are few wild populations for which long-term ecological datasets have been coupled with genome-scale data. Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii) populations have declined range wide due to devil facial tumor disease (DFTD), a fatal transmissible cancer.

Intergenomic signatures of coevolution between Tasmanian devils and an infectious cancer.

Coevolution is common and frequently governs host-pathogen interaction outcomes. Phenotypes underlying these interactions often manifest as the combined products of the genomes of interacting species, yet traditional quantitative trait mapping approaches ignore these intergenomic interactions. Devil facial tumor disease (DFTD), an infectious cancer afflicting Tasmanian devils (), has decimated devil populations due to universal host susceptibility and a fatality rate approaching 100%.