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Veličković M, Wu R, Gao Y, Thairu MW, Veličković D, Munoz N, Clendinen CS, Bilbao A, Chu RK, Lalli PM, Zemaitis K, Nicora CD, Kyle JE, Orton D, Williams S, Zhu Y, Zhao R, Monroe ME, Moore RJ, Webb-Robertson BJM, Bramer LM, Currie CR, Piehowski PD, Burnum-Johnson KE. Mapping microhabitats of lignocellulose decomposition by a microbial consortium. Nat Chem Biol 2024; 20:1033-1043. [PMID: 38302607 PMCID: PMC11288888 DOI: 10.1038/s41589-023-01536-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2023] [Accepted: 12/20/2023] [Indexed: 02/03/2024]
Abstract
The leaf-cutter ant fungal garden ecosystem is a naturally evolved model system for efficient plant biomass degradation. Degradation processes mediated by the symbiotic fungus Leucoagaricus gongylophorus are difficult to characterize due to dynamic metabolisms and spatial complexity of the system. Herein, we performed microscale imaging across 12-µm-thick adjacent sections of Atta cephalotes fungal gardens and applied a metabolome-informed proteome imaging approach to map lignin degradation. This approach combines two spatial multiomics mass spectrometry modalities that enabled us to visualize colocalized metabolites and proteins across and through the fungal garden. Spatially profiled metabolites revealed an accumulation of lignin-related products, outlining morphologically unique lignin microhabitats. Metaproteomic analyses of these microhabitats revealed carbohydrate-degrading enzymes, indicating a prominent fungal role in lignocellulose decomposition. Integration of metabolome-informed proteome imaging data provides a comprehensive view of underlying biological pathways to inform our understanding of metabolic fungal pathways in plant matter degradation within the micrometer-scale environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marija Veličković
- The Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Ruonan Wu
- Biological Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Yuqian Gao
- Biological Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Margaret W Thairu
- Wisconsin Institute for Discovery and Department of Plant Pathology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Dušan Veličković
- The Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Nathalie Munoz
- The Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Chaevien S Clendinen
- The Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Aivett Bilbao
- The Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Rosalie K Chu
- The Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Priscila M Lalli
- Biological Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Kevin Zemaitis
- The Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Carrie D Nicora
- Biological Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Jennifer E Kyle
- Biological Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Daniel Orton
- Biological Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Sarai Williams
- The Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Ying Zhu
- Department of Microchemistry, Proteomics, Lipidomics, and Next Generation Sequencing, Genentech, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Rui Zhao
- The Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Matthew E Monroe
- Biological Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Ronald J Moore
- Biological Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | | | - Lisa M Bramer
- Biological Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Cameron R Currie
- Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
- Department of Biochemistry & Biomedical Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
| | - Paul D Piehowski
- The Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Kristin E Burnum-Johnson
- The Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA.
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2
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da Rosa EEB, Kremer FS. The mobilome landscape of biocide-resistance in Brazilian ESKAPE isolates. Braz J Microbiol 2024:10.1007/s42770-024-01450-7. [PMID: 39028534 DOI: 10.1007/s42770-024-01450-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2024] [Accepted: 07/03/2024] [Indexed: 07/20/2024] Open
Abstract
The increasing frequency of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is a constant threat to global human health. Therefore, the pathogens of the ESKAPE group (Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, and Enterobacter spp.) are among the most relevant causes of hospital infections responsible for millions of deaths every year. However, little has been explored about the danger of microorganisms resistant to biocides such as antiseptics and disinfectants. Widely used in domestic, industrial, and hospital environments, these substances reach the environment and can cause selective pressure for resistance genes and induce cross-resistance to antibiotics, further aggravating the problem. Therefore, it is necessary to use innovative and efficient strategies to monitor the spread of genes related to resistance to biocides. Whole genome sequencing and bioinformatics analysis aiming to search for sequences encoding resistance mechanisms are essential to help monitor and combat these pathogens. Thus, this work describes the construction of a bioinformatics tool that integrates different databases to identify gene sequences that may confer some resistance advantage about biocides. Furthermore, the tool analyzed all the genomes of Brazilian ESKAPE isolates deposited at NCBI and found a series of different genes related to resistance to benzalkonium chloride, chlorhexidine, and triclosan, which were the focus of this work. As a result, the presence of resistance genes was identified in different types of biological samples, environments, and hosts. Regarding mobile genetic elements (MGEs), around 52% of isolates containing genes related to resistance to these compounds had their genes identified in plasmids, and 48.7% in prophages. These data show that resistance to biocides can be a silent, underestimated danger spreading across different environments and, therefore, requires greater attention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elias Eduardo Barbosa da Rosa
- Laboratório de Bioinformática (Omixlab), Centro de Desenvolvimento Tecnológico, Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Rio Grande Do Sul, Brazil
| | - Frederico Schmitt Kremer
- Laboratório de Bioinformática (Omixlab), Centro de Desenvolvimento Tecnológico, Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Rio Grande Do Sul, Brazil.
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Martiarena MJS, Deveau A, Montoya QV, Flórez LV, Rodrigues A. The Hyphosphere of Leaf-Cutting Ant Cultivars Is Enriched with Helper Bacteria. MICROBIAL ECOLOGY 2023; 86:1773-1788. [PMID: 36754866 DOI: 10.1007/s00248-023-02187-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2022] [Accepted: 01/29/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Bacteria can live in a variety of interkingdom communities playing key ecological roles. The microbiome of leaf-cutting attine ant colonies are a remarkable example of such communities, as they support ants' metabolic processes and the maintenance of ant-fungus gardens. Studies on this topic have explored the bacterial community of the whole fungus garden, without discerning bacterial groups associated with the nutrient storage structures (gongylidia) of ant fungal cultivars. Here we studied bacteria isolated from the surface of gongylidia in the cultivars of Atta sexdens and Acromyrmex coronatus, to assess whether the bacterial community influences the biology of the fungus. A total of 10 bacterial strains were isolated from gongylidia (Bacillus sp., Lysinibacillus sp., Niallia sp., Staphylococcus sp., Paenibacillus sp., Pantoea sp., Staphylococcus sp., and one Actinobacteria). Some bacterial isolates increased gongylidia production and fungal biomass while others had inhibitory effects. Eight bacterial strains were confirmed to form biofilm-like structures on the fungal cultivar hyphae. They also showed auxiliary metabolic functions useful for the development of the fungal garden such as phosphate solubilization, siderophore production, cellulose and chitin degradation, and antifungal activity against antagonists of the fungal cultivar. Bacteria-bacteria interaction assays revealed heterogeneous behaviors including synergism and competition, which might contribute to regulate the community structure inside the garden. Our results suggest that bacteria and the ant fungal cultivar interact directly, across a continuum of positive and negative interactions within the community. These complex relationships could ultimately contribute to the stability of the ant-fungus mutualism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Jesus Sutta Martiarena
- Department of General and Applied Biology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Avenida 24-A, 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro, SP, 13.506-900, Brazil
| | - Aurelie Deveau
- UMR IAM, Université de Lorraine, INRAE, 54280, Champenoux, France
| | - Quimi Vidaurre Montoya
- Department of General and Applied Biology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Avenida 24-A, 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro, SP, 13.506-900, Brazil
| | - Laura V Flórez
- Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Andre Rodrigues
- Department of General and Applied Biology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Avenida 24-A, 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro, SP, 13.506-900, Brazil.
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Zhao J, Liu Y, Xu S, Wang J, Zhang Z, Wang MQ, Turlings TCJ, Zhang P, Zhou A. Mealybug salivary microbes inhibit induced plant defenses. PEST MANAGEMENT SCIENCE 2023; 79:4034-4047. [PMID: 37287215 DOI: 10.1002/ps.7600] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2023] [Revised: 06/03/2023] [Accepted: 06/08/2023] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Phenacoccus solenopsis is a polyphagous invasive mealybug that caused serious damage to crops worldwide. Phloem-sucking hemipterans are known to carry symbiotic microbes in their saliva. However, the role of salivary bacteria of P. solenopsis in modulating plant defenses remains limited. Exploring the impact of salivary bacteria on plant defense responses will contribute to the development of new targets for efficient control of invasive mealybugs. RESULTS Salivary bacteria of the invasive mealybug P. solenopsis can suppress herbivore-induced plant defenses and thus enhance mealybug fitness. Mealybugs treated with an antibiotic showed decreased weight gain, fecundity and survival. Untreated mealybugs suppressed jasmonic acid (JA)-regulated defenses but activated salicylic acid (SA)-regulated defenses in cotton plants. In contrast, antibiotic-treated mealybugs triggered JA-responsive gene expression and JA accumulation, and showed shortened phloem ingestion. Reinoculating antibiotic-treated mealybugs with Enterobacteriaceae or Stenotrophomonas cultivated from mealybug saliva promoted phloem ingestion and fecundity, and restored the ability of mealybugs to suppress plant defenses. Fluorescence in situ hybridization visualization revealed that Enterobacteriaceae and Stenotrophomonas colonize salivary glands and are secreted into the mesophyll cells and phloem vessels. Exogenous application of the bacterial isolates to plant leaves inhibited JA-responsive gene expression and activated SA-responsive gene expression. CONCLUSION Our findings imply that symbiotic bacteria in the saliva of the mealybug play an important role in manipulating herbivore-induced plant defenses, enabling this important pest to evade induced plant defenses and promoting its performance and destructive effects on crops. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Zhao
- College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Yongheng Liu
- College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Shouye Xu
- College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Jialu Wang
- College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Zan Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Entomology and Pest Control Engineering, College of Plant Protection, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Man-Qun Wang
- College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Ted C J Turlings
- Laboratory of Fundamental and Applied Research in Chemical Ecology, Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Pengjun Zhang
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Aiming Zhou
- College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
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5
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Zhao P, Rensing C, Wang D. Symbiotic Bacteria Modulate Lymantria dispar Immunity by Altering Community Proportions after Infection with LdMNPV. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24119694. [PMID: 37298643 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24119694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2023] [Revised: 05/30/2023] [Accepted: 05/31/2023] [Indexed: 06/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The symbiotic bacteria-insect interaction is considered to be associated with immunity and drug resistance. However, the wide variety of insect species and habitats is thought to have a significant impact on the symbiotic community, leading to disparate results. Here, we demonstrated that symbiotic bacteria regulated the immune response by changing the proportion of the Gram-positive and the Gram-negative bacterial community in Lymantria dispar (L. dispar) after infection with its viral pathogen, L. dispar Nucleopolyhedrovirus (LdMNPV). After oral infection, the immune deficiency pathway was activated immediately, and the expression of Relish was up-regulated to promote the secretion of antimicrobial peptides. Meanwhile, the abundance of the Gram-negative bacterial community increased at the same time. Moreover, the Toll pathway was not regulated in the same way as the Imd pathway was after infection. However, the change in the Toll pathway's expression remained positively correlated to the abundance of Gram-positive bacteria. This finding implied that the ratio of Gram-negative to Gram-positive bacteria in the LdMNPV infected larvae had an effect on the immune response. Our findings revealed that the immune regulation of L. dispar was regulated by the relative abundance of its symbiotic bacteria at different infection times with LdMNPV, which provides a new way to understand symbiotic bacteria-insect interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peixu Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Plant Protection, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
| | - Christopher Rensing
- Institute of Environmental Microbiology, College of Resource and Environment, Fujian Agriculture & Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China
| | - Dun Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Plant Protection, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
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Bringhurst B, Allert M, Greenwold M, Kellner K, Seal JN. Environments and Hosts Structure the Bacterial Microbiomes of Fungus-Gardening Ants and their Symbiotic Fungus Gardens. MICROBIAL ECOLOGY 2022:10.1007/s00248-022-02138-x. [PMID: 36344828 DOI: 10.1007/s00248-022-02138-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2022] [Accepted: 10/24/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
The fungus gardening-ant system is considered a complex, multi-tiered symbiosis, as it is composed of ants, their fungus, and microorganisms associated with either ants or fungus. We examine the bacterial microbiome of Trachymyrmex septentrionalis and Mycetomoellerius turrifex ants and their symbiotic fungus gardens, using 16S rRNA Illumina sequencing, over a region spanning approximately 350 km (east and central Texas). Typically, microorganisms can be acquired from a parent colony (vertical transmission) or from the environment (horizontal transmission). Because the symbiosis is characterized by co-dispersal of the ants and fungus, elements of both ant and fungus garden microbiome could be characterized by vertical transmission. The goals of this study were to explore how both the ant and fungus garden bacterial microbiome are acquired. The main findings were that different mechanisms appear to explain the structure the microbiomes of ants and their symbiotic fungus gardens. Ant associated microbiomes had a strong host ant signature, which could be indicative of vertical inheritance of the ant associated bacterial microbiome or an unknown mechanism of active uptake or screening. On the other hand, the bacterial microbiome of the fungus garden was more complex in that some bacterial taxa appear to be structured by the ant host species, whereas others by fungal lineage or the environment (geographic region). Thus bacteria in fungus gardens appear to be acquired both horizontally and vertically.
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Affiliation(s)
- Blake Bringhurst
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Tyler, 3900 University Blvd, Tyler, TX, 75799, USA
| | - Mattea Allert
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Tyler, 3900 University Blvd, Tyler, TX, 75799, USA
| | - Matthew Greenwold
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Tyler, 3900 University Blvd, Tyler, TX, 75799, USA
| | - Katrin Kellner
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Tyler, 3900 University Blvd, Tyler, TX, 75799, USA
| | - Jon N Seal
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Tyler, 3900 University Blvd, Tyler, TX, 75799, USA.
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Sartaj K, Patel A, Matsakas L, Prasad R. Unravelling Metagenomics Approach for Microbial Biofuel Production. Genes (Basel) 2022; 13:1942. [PMID: 36360179 PMCID: PMC9689425 DOI: 10.3390/genes13111942] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2022] [Revised: 10/18/2022] [Accepted: 10/21/2022] [Indexed: 09/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Renewable biofuels, such as biodiesel, bioethanol, and biobutanol, serve as long-term solutions to fossil fuel depletion. A sustainable approach feedstock for their production is plant biomass, which is degraded to sugars with the aid of microbes-derived enzymes, followed by microbial conversion of those sugars to biofuels. Considering their global demand, additional efforts have been made for their large-scale production, which is ultimately leading breakthrough research in biomass energy. Metagenomics is a powerful tool allowing for functional gene analysis and new enzyme discovery. Thus, the present article summarizes the revolutionary advances of metagenomics in the biofuel industry and enlightens the importance of unexplored habitats for novel gene or enzyme mining. Moreover, it also accentuates metagenomics potentials to explore uncultivable microbiomes as well as enzymes associated with them.
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Affiliation(s)
- Km Sartaj
- Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee 247667, Uttarakhand, India
| | - Alok Patel
- Biochemical Process Engineering, Division of Chemical Engineering, Department of Civil, Environmental, and Natural Resources Engineering, Luleå University of Technology, SE-971 87 Luleå, Sweden
| | - Leonidas Matsakas
- Biochemical Process Engineering, Division of Chemical Engineering, Department of Civil, Environmental, and Natural Resources Engineering, Luleå University of Technology, SE-971 87 Luleå, Sweden
| | - Ramasare Prasad
- Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee 247667, Uttarakhand, India
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Al-Omari AW, Ramadan Matter I, Hussein Almola A. Molecular study of Enterobacteriaceae bacterium isolated from dishwashers. BIONATURA 2022. [DOI: 10.21931/rb/2022.07.03.28] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The Enterobacteriaceae family is considered one of the medically essential families in which there is a continuous change in classification, and new species are added to it. In this study, we obtained a novel strain registered in the NCBI under Enterobacteriaceae bacterium strain PRL 4-2, with the accession number MW540823, and the isolate considered unclassified Enterobacteriaceae. The isolate was obtained from dishwashers, which is a mine for many new species and strains due to the unique environmental conditions of this habitat, fluctuation in temperature, use of high temperatures, utilization of cleaning materials as well as humidity and the presence of organic materials, especially in case of neglect of cleaning. The isolate was characterized by its slow growth on culture media and its ability to form biofilms and possess some virulence factors. Its resistance to antibiotics was also studied, as it showed resistance to the antibiotics used in this study. The oddness for this strain is that it showed a different diagnosis when using VITEK (The VITEK 2 system has everything healthcare laboratories need for fast, accurate microbial identification and antibiotic susceptibility testing.) compared to diagnosis using 16S rRNA. As for the taxonomic tree, the closest species was Enterobacter sp. Strain 188. This study supplements a few other studies of this novel species, isolated from different environments. These researches can be integrated to give an itinerary for other studies on the new species and their different capabilities.
Keywords. Enterobacteriaceae bacterium, dishwasher, Enterobacteriaceae bacterium PRL-2, Enterobacter sp., biofilm.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aisha W. Al-Omari
- Department of Biology, College of Sciences, University of Mosul, Mosul, Iraq
| | | | - Alaa Hussein Almola
- Department of Biology, College of Sciences, University of Mosul, Mosul, Iraq
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Ren X, Cao S, Akami M, Mansour A, Yang Y, Jiang N, Wang H, Zhang G, Qi X, Xu P, Guo T, Niu C. Gut symbiotic bacteria are involved in nitrogen recycling in the tephritid fruit fly Bactrocera dorsalis. BMC Biol 2022; 20:201. [PMID: 36104720 PMCID: PMC9476588 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-022-01399-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2021] [Accepted: 09/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Nitrogen is considered the most limiting nutrient element for herbivorous insects. To alleviate nitrogen limitation, insects have evolved various symbiotically mediated strategies that enable them to colonize nitrogen-poor habitats or exploit nitrogen-poor diets. In frugivorous tephritid larvae developing in fruit pulp under nitrogen stress, it remains largely unknown how nitrogen is obtained and larval development is completed. Results In this study, we used metagenomics and metatranscriptomics sequencing technologies as well as in vitro verification tests to uncover the mechanism underlying the nitrogen exploitation in the larvae of Bactrocera dorsalis. Our results showed that nitrogenous waste recycling (NWR) could be successfully driven by symbiotic bacteria, including Enterobacterales, Lactobacillales, Orbales, Pseudomonadales, Flavobacteriales, and Bacteroidales. In this process, urea hydrolysis in the larval gut was mainly mediated by Morganella morganii and Klebsiella oxytoca. In addition, core bacteria mediated essential amino acid (arginine excluded) biosynthesis by ammonium assimilation and transamination. Conclusions Symbiotic bacteria contribute to nitrogen transformation in the larvae of B. dorsalis in fruit pulp. Our findings suggest that the pattern of NWR is more likely to be applied by B. dorsalis, and M. morganii, K. oxytoca, and other urease-positive strains play vital roles in hydrolysing nitrogenous waste and providing metabolizable nitrogen for B. dorsalis. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12915-022-01399-9.
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10
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Zhukova M, Sapountzis P, Schiøtt M, Boomsma JJ. Phylogenomic analysis and metabolic role reconstruction of mutualistic Rhizobiales hindgut symbionts of Acromyrmex leaf-cutting ants. FEMS Microbiol Ecol 2022; 98:6652133. [PMID: 35906195 DOI: 10.1093/femsec/fiac084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2022] [Revised: 07/03/2022] [Accepted: 07/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Rhizobiales are well-known plant-root nitrogen-fixing symbionts, but the functions of insect-associated Rhizobiales are poorly understood. We obtained genomes of three strains associated with Acromyrmex leaf-cutting ants and show that, in spite of being extracellular gut symbionts, they lost all pathways for essential amino acid biosynthesis, making them fully dependent on their hosts. Comparison with 54 Rhizobiales genomes showed that all insect-associated Rhizobiales lost the ability to fix nitrogen and that the Acromyrmex symbionts had exceptionally also lost the urease genes. However, the Acromyrmex strains share biosynthesis pathways for riboflavin vitamin, queuosine and a wide range of antioxidant enzymes likely to be beneficial for the ant fungus-farming symbiosis. We infer that the Rhizobiales symbionts catabolize excess of fungus-garden-derived arginine to urea, supplementing complementary Mollicutes symbionts that turn arginine into ammonia and infer that these combined symbiont activities stabilize the fungus-farming mutualism. Similar to the Mollicutes symbionts, the Rhizobiales species have fully functional CRISPR/Cas and R-M phage defenses, suggesting that these symbionts are important enough for the ant hosts to have precluded the evolution of metabolically cheaper defenseless strains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariya Zhukova
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, Universitetsparken 15, University of Copenhagen, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Panagiotis Sapountzis
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, Universitetsparken 15, University of Copenhagen, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Morten Schiøtt
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, Universitetsparken 15, University of Copenhagen, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Jacobus J Boomsma
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, Universitetsparken 15, University of Copenhagen, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
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11
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Barcoto MO, Rodrigues A. Lessons From Insect Fungiculture: From Microbial Ecology to Plastics Degradation. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:812143. [PMID: 35685924 PMCID: PMC9171207 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.812143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2021] [Accepted: 03/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Anthropogenic activities have extensively transformed the biosphere by extracting and disposing of resources, crossing boundaries of planetary threat while causing a global crisis of waste overload. Despite fundamental differences regarding structure and recalcitrance, lignocellulose and plastic polymers share physical-chemical properties to some extent, that include carbon skeletons with similar chemical bonds, hydrophobic properties, amorphous and crystalline regions. Microbial strategies for metabolizing recalcitrant polymers have been selected and optimized through evolution, thus understanding natural processes for lignocellulose modification could aid the challenge of dealing with the recalcitrant human-made polymers spread worldwide. We propose to look for inspiration in the charismatic fungal-growing insects to understand multipartite degradation of plant polymers. Independently evolved in diverse insect lineages, fungiculture embraces passive or active fungal cultivation for food, protection, and structural purposes. We consider there is much to learn from these symbioses, in special from the community-level degradation of recalcitrant biomass and defensive metabolites. Microbial plant-degrading systems at the core of insect fungicultures could be promising candidates for degrading synthetic plastics. Here, we first compare the degradation of lignocellulose and plastic polymers, with emphasis in the overlapping microbial players and enzymatic activities between these processes. Second, we review the literature on diverse insect fungiculture systems, focusing on features that, while supporting insects' ecology and evolution, could also be applied in biotechnological processes. Third, taking lessons from these microbial communities, we suggest multidisciplinary strategies to identify microbial degraders, degrading enzymes and pathways, as well as microbial interactions and interdependencies. Spanning from multiomics to spectroscopy, microscopy, stable isotopes probing, enrichment microcosmos, and synthetic communities, these strategies would allow for a systemic understanding of the fungiculture ecology, driving to application possibilities. Detailing how the metabolic landscape is entangled to achieve ecological success could inspire sustainable efforts for mitigating the current environmental crisis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariana O. Barcoto
- Center for the Study of Social Insects, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Rio Claro, Brazil
- Department of General and Applied Biology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Rio Claro, Brazil
| | - Andre Rodrigues
- Center for the Study of Social Insects, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Rio Claro, Brazil
- Department of General and Applied Biology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Rio Claro, Brazil
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12
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Conlon BH, O'Tuama D, Michelsen A, Crumière AJJ, Shik JZ. A fungal symbiont converts provisioned cellulose into edible yield for its leafcutter ant farmers. Biol Lett 2022; 18:20220022. [PMID: 35440234 PMCID: PMC9019514 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2022.0022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
While ants are dominant consumers in terrestrial habitats, only the leafcutters practice herbivory. Leafcutters do this by provisioning a fungal cultivar (Leucoagaricus gongylophorus) with freshly cut plant fragments and harnessing its metabolic machinery to convert plant mulch into edible fungal tissue (hyphae and swollen hyphal cells called gongylidia). The cultivar is known to degrade cellulose, but whether it assimilates this ubiquitous but recalcitrant molecule into its nutritional reward structures is unknown. We use in vitro experiments with isotopically labelled cellulose to show that fungal cultures from an Atta colombica leafcutter colony convert cellulose-derived carbon into gongylidia, even when potential bacterial symbionts are excluded. A laboratory feeding experiment showed that cellulose assimilation also occurs in vivo in A. colombica colonies. Analyses of publicly available transcriptomic data further identified a complete, constitutively expressed, cellulose-degradation pathway in the fungal cultivar. Confirming leafcutters use cellulose as a food source sheds light on the eco-evolutionary success of these important herbivores.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin H Conlon
- Section for Ecology and Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen East, Denmark
| | - David O'Tuama
- Section for Ecology and Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen East, Denmark
| | - Anders Michelsen
- Section for Terrestrial Ecology, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Antonin J J Crumière
- Section for Ecology and Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen East, Denmark
| | - Jonathan Z Shik
- Section for Ecology and Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen East, Denmark.,Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado Postal 0843-03092, Balboa, Ancon, Panama
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The Symbiotic Fungus Leucoagaricus gongylophorus (Möller) Singer (Agaricales, Agaricaceae) as a Target Organism to Control Leaf-Cutting Ants. INSECTS 2022; 13:insects13040359. [PMID: 35447801 PMCID: PMC9029082 DOI: 10.3390/insects13040359] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2021] [Revised: 03/19/2022] [Accepted: 04/01/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Simple Summary The most used approach to control leaf-cutting ants (which cause damage in agricultural areas) is the application of synthetic chemical compounds that directly affect these insects. But another approach is the use of natural substances that attack the symbiotic fungus responsible for many aspects of the survival of the nest. In this study, we discuss the natural substances already reported in the literature to have fungicidal activity and how they could be applicable as products for the control of leaf-cutting ants. Abstract Atta and Acromyrmex are the main genera of leaf-cutting ants present in North and South America, causing extensive damage to agroforestry. Control of the ants requires high handling costs with few effective methods available to decrease the losses. The symbiosis between the leaf-cutting ants and the fungus Leucoagaricus gongylophorus is essential for ant nest survival. Therefore, L. gongylophorus may be a key target in controlling leaf-cutting ants, since its reduction may cause an imbalance in the symbiosis necessary to maintain the nest. Among the options for natural fungal control, plant species are considered important sources of compounds belonging to several classes of natural products that show potential as antifungal agents. This review also presents studies that establish that the antagonist fungi from the Escovopsis and Trichoderma genera effectively reduce the development of L. gongylophorus. The development of nanostructured delivery systems, which have shown advantages over conventional formulations, is suggested for ant control; no commercial nanotechnology-based product has yet been developed, and this appears to be a new approach for future studies.
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14
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Nitrogen Acquisition Strategies Mediated by Insect Symbionts: A Review of Their Mechanisms, Methodologies, and Case Studies. INSECTS 2022; 13:insects13010084. [PMID: 35055927 PMCID: PMC8781418 DOI: 10.3390/insects13010084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2021] [Revised: 01/05/2022] [Accepted: 01/11/2022] [Indexed: 12/10/2022]
Abstract
Simple Summary Nitrogen acquisition strategies mediated by insect symbionts through biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) and nitrogenous waste recycling (NWR) were reviewed and compared in our paper, and a model for nitrogen provisioning in insects was then constructed. In our model, (1) insects acquired nitrogen nutrition from food stuffs directly, and the subprime channels (e.g., BNF or NWR) for nitrogen provisioning were accelerated when the available nitrogen in diets could not fully support the normal growth and development of insects; (2) the NWR strategy was more accessible to more insects due to its energy conservation and mild reaction conditions; (3) ammonia produced by different channels was used for essential nitrogenous metabolites synthesis via the glutamine synthetase and glutamate synthase pathways. Abstract Nitrogen is usually a restrictive nutrient that affects the growth and development of insects, especially of those living in low nitrogen nutrient niches. In response to the low nitrogen stress, insects have gradually developed symbiont-based stress response strategies—biological nitrogen fixation and nitrogenous waste recycling—to optimize dietary nitrogen intake. Based on the above two patterns, atmospheric nitrogen or nitrogenous waste (e.g., uric acid, urea) is converted into ammonia, which in turn is incorporated into the organism via the glutamine synthetase and glutamate synthase pathways. This review summarized the reaction mechanisms, conventional research methods and the various applications of biological nitrogen fixation and nitrogenous waste recycling strategies. Further, we compared the bio-reaction characteristics and conditions of two strategies, then proposed a model for nitrogen provisioning based on different strategies.
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15
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Caraballo-Rodríguez AM, Puckett SP, Kyle KE, Petras D, da Silva R, Nothias LF, Ernst M, van der Hooft JJJ, Tripathi A, Wang M, Balunas MJ, Klassen JL, Dorrestein PC. Chemical Gradients of Plant Substrates in an Atta texana Fungus Garden. mSystems 2021; 6:e0060121. [PMID: 34342533 PMCID: PMC8409729 DOI: 10.1128/msystems.00601-21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2021] [Accepted: 07/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Many ant species grow fungus gardens that predigest food as an essential step of the ants' nutrient uptake. These symbiotic fungus gardens have long been studied and feature a gradient of increasing substrate degradation from top to bottom. To further facilitate the study of fungus gardens and enable the understanding of the predigestion process in more detail than currently known, we applied recent mass spectrometry-based approaches and generated a three-dimensional (3D) molecular map of an Atta texana fungus garden to reveal chemical modifications as plant substrates pass through it. The metabolomics approach presented in this study can be applied to study similar processes in natural environments to compare with lab-maintained ecosystems. IMPORTANCE The study of complex ecosystems requires an understanding of the chemical processes involving molecules from several sources. Some of the molecules present in fungus-growing ants' symbiotic system originate from plants. To facilitate the study of fungus gardens from a chemical perspective, we provide a molecular map of an Atta texana fungus garden to reveal chemical modifications as plant substrates pass through it. The metabolomics approach presented in this study can be applied to study similar processes in natural environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrés Mauricio Caraballo-Rodríguez
- Collaborative Mass Spectrometry Innovation Center, Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Sara P. Puckett
- Division of Medicinal Chemistry, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut, USA
| | - Kathleen E. Kyle
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut, USA
| | - Daniel Petras
- Collaborative Mass Spectrometry Innovation Center, Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- CMFI Cluster of Excellence, Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Medicine, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Ricardo da Silva
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - Louis-Félix Nothias
- Collaborative Mass Spectrometry Innovation Center, Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Madeleine Ernst
- Section for Clinical Mass Spectrometry, Danish Center for Neonatal Screening, Department of Congenital Disorders, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | - Anupriya Tripathi
- Collaborative Mass Spectrometry Innovation Center, Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Mingxun Wang
- Collaborative Mass Spectrometry Innovation Center, Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Marcy J. Balunas
- Division of Medicinal Chemistry, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut, USA
| | - Jonathan L. Klassen
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut, USA
| | - Pieter C. Dorrestein
- Collaborative Mass Spectrometry Innovation Center, Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
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16
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Schapheer C, Pellens R, Scherson R. Arthropod-Microbiota Integration: Its Importance for Ecosystem Conservation. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:702763. [PMID: 34408733 PMCID: PMC8365148 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.702763] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2021] [Accepted: 07/02/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent reports indicate that the health of our planet is getting worse and that genuine transformative changes are pressing. So far, efforts to ameliorate Earth's ecosystem crises have been insufficient, as these often depart from current knowledge of the underlying ecological processes. Nowadays, biodiversity loss and the alterations in biogeochemical cycles are reaching thresholds that put the survival of our species at risk. Biological interactions are fundamental for achieving biological conservation and restoration of ecological processes, especially those that contribute to nutrient cycles. Microorganism are recognized as key players in ecological interactions and nutrient cycling, both free-living and in symbiotic associations with multicellular organisms. This latter assemblage work as a functional ecological unit called "holobiont." Here, we review the emergent ecosystem properties derived from holobionts, with special emphasis on detritivorous terrestrial arthropods and their symbiotic microorganisms. We revisit their relevance in the cycling of recalcitrant organic compounds (e.g., lignin and cellulose). Finally, based on the interconnection between biodiversity and nutrient cycling, we propose that a multicellular organism and its associates constitute an Ecosystem Holobiont (EH). This EH is the functional unit characterized by carrying out key ecosystem processes. We emphasize that in order to meet the challenge to restore the health of our planet it is critical to reduce anthropic pressures that may threaten not only individual entities (known as "bionts") but also the stability of the associations that give rise to EH and their ecological functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Constanza Schapheer
- Programa de Doctorado en Ciencias Silvoagropecuarias y Veterinarias, Campus Sur Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
- Laboratorio de Sistemática y Evolución, Departamento de Silvicultura y Conservación de la Naturaleza, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Roseli Pellens
- UMR 7205, Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Ecole Pratique de Hautes Etudes, Institut de Systématique, Évolution, Biodiversité, Sorbonne Université, Université des Antilles, Paris, France
| | - Rosa Scherson
- Laboratorio de Sistemática y Evolución, Departamento de Silvicultura y Conservación de la Naturaleza, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
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17
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Burkholderia from Fungus Gardens of Fungus-Growing Ants Produces Antifungals That Inhibit the Specialized Parasite Escovopsis. Appl Environ Microbiol 2021; 87:e0017821. [PMID: 33962985 DOI: 10.1128/aem.00178-21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Within animal-associated microbiomes, the functional roles of specific microbial taxa are often uncharacterized. Here, we use the fungus-growing ant system, a model for microbial symbiosis, to determine the potential defensive roles of key bacterial taxa present in the ants' fungus gardens. Fungus gardens serve as an external digestive system for the ants, with mutualistic fungi in the genus Leucoagaricus converting the plant substrate into energy for the ants. The fungus garden is host to specialized parasitic fungi in the genus Escovopsis. Here, we examine the potential role of Burkholderia spp. that occur within ant fungus gardens in inhibiting Escovopsis. We isolated members of the bacterial genera Burkholderia and Paraburkholderia from 50% of the 52 colonies sampled, indicating that members of the family Burkholderiaceae are common inhabitants in the fungus gardens of a diverse range of fungus-growing ant genera. Using antimicrobial inhibition bioassays, we found that 28 out of 32 isolates inhibited at least one Escovopsis strain with a zone of inhibition greater than 1 cm. Genomic assessment of fungus garden-associated Burkholderiaceae indicated that isolates with strong inhibition all belonged to the genus Burkholderia and contained biosynthetic gene clusters that encoded the production of two antifungals: burkholdine1213 and pyrrolnitrin. Organic extracts of cultured isolates confirmed that these compounds are responsible for antifungal activities that inhibit Escovopsis but, at equivalent concentrations, not Leucoagaricus spp. Overall, these new findings, combined with previous evidence, suggest that members of the fungus garden microbiome play an important role in maintaining the health and function of fungus-growing ant colonies. IMPORTANCE Many organisms partner with microbes to defend themselves against parasites and pathogens. Fungus-growing ants must protect Leucoagaricus spp., the fungal mutualist that provides sustenance for the ants, from a specialized fungal parasite, Escovopsis. The ants take multiple approaches, including weeding their fungus gardens to remove Escovopsis spores, as well as harboring Pseudonocardia spp., bacteria that produce antifungals that inhibit Escovopsis. In addition, a genus of bacteria commonly found in fungus gardens, Burkholderia, is known to produce secondary metabolites that inhibit Escovopsis spp. In this study, we isolated Burkholderia spp. from fungus-growing ants, assessed the isolates' ability to inhibit Escovopsis spp., and identified two compounds responsible for inhibition. Our findings suggest that Burkholderia spp. are often found in fungus gardens, adding another possible mechanism within the fungus-growing ant system to suppress the growth of the specialized parasite Escovopsis.
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18
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Jiménez-Gómez I, Barcoto MO, Montoya QV, Goes AC, Monteiro LSVE, Bueno OC, Rodrigues A. Host Susceptibility Modulates Escovopsis Pathogenic Potential in the Fungiculture of Higher Attine Ants. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:673444. [PMID: 34194409 PMCID: PMC8238408 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.673444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2021] [Accepted: 05/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Health and disease emerge from intricate interactions between genotypes, phenotypes, and environmental features. The outcomes of such interactions are context-dependent, existing as a dynamic continuum ranging from benefits to damage. In host-microbial interactions, both the host and environmental conditions modulate the pathogenic potential of a microorganism. Microbial interactions are the core of the agricultural systems of ants in the subtribe Attina, which cultivate basidiomycete fungi for food. The fungiculture environment harbors a diverse microbial community, including fungi in the genus Escovopsis that has been studied as damage-causing agent. Here, we consider the ant colony as a host and investigate to what extent its health impacts the dynamics and outcomes of host-Escovopsis interactions. We found that different ant fungal cultivars vary in susceptibility to the same Escovopsis strains in plate-assays interactions. In subcolony-Escovopsis interactions, while healthy subcolonies gradually recover from infection with different concentrations of Escovopsis conidia, insecticide-treated subcolonies evidenced traits of infection and died within 7 days. The opportunistic nature of Escovopsis infections indicates that diseases in attine fungiculture are a consequence of host susceptibility, rather than the effect of a single microbial agent. By addressing the host susceptibility as a major modulator of Escovopsis pathogenesis, our findings expand the understanding of disease dynamics within attine colonies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irina Jiménez-Gómez
- Department of General and Applied Biology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Rio Claro, Brazil.,Centro de Investigación en Dinámica Celular, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Cuernavaca, Mexico
| | - Mariana O Barcoto
- Department of General and Applied Biology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Rio Claro, Brazil
| | - Quimi V Montoya
- Department of General and Applied Biology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Rio Claro, Brazil
| | - Aryel C Goes
- Department of General and Applied Biology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Rio Claro, Brazil
| | - Lana S V E Monteiro
- Department of General and Applied Biology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Rio Claro, Brazil
| | - Odair C Bueno
- Department of General and Applied Biology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Rio Claro, Brazil
| | - Andre Rodrigues
- Department of General and Applied Biology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Rio Claro, Brazil
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19
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From Plants to Ants: Fungal Modification of Leaf Lipids for Nutrition and Communication in the Leaf-Cutter Ant Fungal Garden Ecosystem. mSystems 2021; 6:6/2/e01307-20. [PMID: 33758033 PMCID: PMC8547007 DOI: 10.1128/msystems.01307-20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Lipids are essential to all living organisms, as an energy source, as an important cellular structural component, and as a communication tool. In this study, we used global lipidomic methods to evaluate the lipids in leaf-cutter ant fungal gardens. Leaf-cutter ants and their coevolved fungal cultivar, Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, are a model mutualistic system. The fungus enzymatically digests fresh plant material that the ants cut and deliver, converting energy and nutrients from plants and providing them to the ants through specialized hyphal swellings called gongylidia. Using combined liquid chromatography, ion mobility spectrometry, and tandem mass spectrometry, we evaluated differences between the molecular species of lipids in the leaf-cutter ant fungal garden ecosystem. This lipidomic study characterized leaves that are fed to the gardens, gongylidia that are produced by the fungus to feed the ants, and spatially resolved regions of the fungal garden through stages of leaf degradation. Lipids containing alpha-linolenic acid (18:3) were enriched in leaves and the top of the gardens but not dominant in the middle or bottom regions. Gongylidia were dominated by lipids containing linoleic acid (18:2). To evaluate the communicative potential of the lipids in fungal gardens, we conducted a behavioral experiment that showed Atta leaf-cutter ants responded differently to 18:3 and 18:2 fatty acids, with aggression toward 18:3 and attraction for 18:2. This work demonstrates the role of lipids in both the transfer of energy and as an interkingdom communication tool in leaf-cutter ant fungal gardens. IMPORTANCE In this work, we examined the role of lipids in the mutualism between leaf-cutter ants and fungus. These ants cut fresh leaf material, which they provide to their fungal cultivar, that converts energy and nutrients from the plants and provides it to the ants in specialized hyphal swellings called gongylidia. This work constitutes the first example of a global lipidomics study of a symbiotic system and provides insights as to how the fungus modifies plant lipids into a usable source for the ants. Through a behavioral experiment, this work also demonstrates how lipids can be used as an interkingdom communication tool, in this case, as an attractant rather than as a repellant, which is more often seen. Author Video: An author video summary of this article is available.
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20
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Valencia-Giraldo SM, Niño-Castro A, López-Peña A, Trejos-Vidal D, Correa-Bueno O, Montoya-Lerma J. Immunity and survival response of Atta cephalotes (Hymenoptera: Myrmicinae) workers to Metarhizium anisopliae infection: Potential role of their associated microbiota. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0247545. [PMID: 33626077 PMCID: PMC7904218 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0247545] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2020] [Accepted: 02/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Leaf-cutting ants of the genera Atta and Acromyrmex are at constant risk of epizootics due to their dense living conditions and frequent social interactions between genetically related individuals. To help mitigate the risk of epizootics, these ants display individual and collective immune responses, including associations with symbiotic bacteria that can enhance their resistance to pathogenic infections. For example, Acromyrmex spp. harbor actinobacteria that control infection by Escovopsis in their fungal gardens. Although Atta spp. do not maintain symbiosis with protective actinobacteria, the evidence suggests that these insects are colonized by bacterial microbiota that may play a role in their defense against pathogens. The potential role of the bacterial microbiome of Atta workers in enhancing host immunity remains unexplored. We evaluated multiple parameters of the individual immunity of Atta cephalotes (Linnaeus, 1758) workers, including hemocyte count, encapsulation response, and the antimicrobial activity of the hemolymph in the presence or absence of bacterial microbiota. Experiments were performed on ants reared under standard conditions as well as on ants previously exposed to the entomopathogenic fungus Metharrizium anisopliae. Furthermore, the effects of the presence/absence of bacteria on the survival of workers exposed to M. anisopliae were evaluated. The bacterial microbiota associated with A. cephalotes workers does not modulate the number of hemocytes under control conditions or under conditions of exposure to the fungal pathogen. In addition, infection by M. anisopliae, but not microbiota, increases the encapsulation response. Similarly, the exposure of workers to this fungus led to increased hemolymph antimicrobial activity. Conversely, the removal of bacterial microbiota did not have a significant impact on the survival of workers with M. anisopliae. Our results suggest that the bacterial microbiota associated with the cuticle of A. cephalotes workers does not play a role as a modulator of innate immunity, either at baseline or after exposure to the entomopathogen M. anisopliae. Further, upon infection, workers rely on mechanisms of humoral immunity to respond to this threat. Overall, our findings indicate that the bacterial microbiota associated with A. cephalotes workers does not play a defensive role.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Andrea Niño-Castro
- Department of Biology, Universidad del Valle, Cali, Valle del Cauca, Colombia
- * E-mail: (SMVG); (ANC)
| | - Andrea López-Peña
- Department of Biology, Universidad del Valle, Cali, Valle del Cauca, Colombia
| | - Danna Trejos-Vidal
- Department of Biology, Universidad del Valle, Cali, Valle del Cauca, Colombia
| | - Odair Correa-Bueno
- Center for the Study of Social Insects (CEIS), São Paulo State University (UNESP), Campus Rio Claro, Rio Claro, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - James Montoya-Lerma
- Department of Biology, Universidad del Valle, Cali, Valle del Cauca, Colombia
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21
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Li H, Young SE, Poulsen M, Currie CR. Symbiont-Mediated Digestion of Plant Biomass in Fungus-Farming Insects. ANNUAL REVIEW OF ENTOMOLOGY 2021; 66:297-316. [PMID: 32926791 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-ento-040920-061140] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
Feeding on living or dead plant material is widespread in insects. Seminal work on termites and aphids has provided profound insights into the critical nutritional role that microbes play in plant-feeding insects. Some ants, beetles, and termites, among others, have evolved the ability to use microbes to gain indirect access to plant substrate through the farming of a fungus on which they feed. Recent genomic studies, including studies of insect hosts and fungal and bacterial symbionts, as well as metagenomics and proteomics, have provided important insights into plant biomass digestion across insect-fungal mutualisms. Not only do advances in understanding of the divergent and complementary functions of complex symbionts reveal the mechanism of how these herbivorous insects catabolize plant biomass, but these symbionts also represent a promising reservoir for novel carbohydrate-active enzyme discovery, which is of considerable biotechnological interest.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongjie Li
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-products, Key Laboratory of Biotechnology in Plant Protection of Ministry of Agriculture and Zhejiang Province, Institute of Plant Virology, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China;
- Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, USA; ,
- Department of Energy Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, Wisconsin Energy Institute, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53726, USA
| | - Soleil E Young
- Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, USA; ,
| | - Michael Poulsen
- Section for Ecology and Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, 2100 Copenhagen East, Denmark;
| | - Cameron R Currie
- Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, USA; ,
- Department of Energy Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, Wisconsin Energy Institute, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53726, USA
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22
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Tartaglia M, Bastida F, Sciarrillo R, Guarino C. Soil Metaproteomics for the Study of the Relationships Between Microorganisms and Plants: A Review of Extraction Protocols and Ecological Insights. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:ijms21228455. [PMID: 33187080 PMCID: PMC7697097 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21228455] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2020] [Revised: 11/02/2020] [Accepted: 11/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Soil is a complex matrix where biotic and abiotic components establish a still unclear network involving bacteria, fungi, archaea, protists, protozoa, and roots that are in constant communication with each other. Understanding these interactions has recently focused on metagenomics, metatranscriptomics and less on metaproteomics studies. Metaproteomic allows total extraction of intracellular and extracellular proteins from soil samples, providing a complete picture of the physiological and functional state of the “soil community”. The advancement of high-performance mass spectrometry technologies was more rapid than the development of ad hoc extraction techniques for soil proteins. The protein extraction from environmental samples is biased due to interfering substances and the lower amount of proteins in comparison to cell cultures. Soil sample preparation and extraction methodology are crucial steps to obtain high-quality resolution and yields of proteins. This review focuses on the several soil protein extraction protocols to date to highlight the methodological challenges and critical issues for the application of proteomics to soil samples. This review concludes that improvements in soil protein extraction, together with the employment of ad hoc metagenome database, may enhance the identification of proteins with low abundance or from non-dominant populations and increase our capacity to predict functional changes in soil.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Tartaglia
- Department of Science and Technology, University of Sannio, via de Sanctis snc, 82100 Benevento, Italy; (M.T.); (R.S.)
| | - Felipe Bastida
- CEBAS-CSIC, Department of Soil and Water Conservation, Campus Universitario de Espinardo, 30100 Murcia, Spain;
| | - Rosaria Sciarrillo
- Department of Science and Technology, University of Sannio, via de Sanctis snc, 82100 Benevento, Italy; (M.T.); (R.S.)
| | - Carmine Guarino
- Department of Science and Technology, University of Sannio, via de Sanctis snc, 82100 Benevento, Italy; (M.T.); (R.S.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +39-824-305145
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23
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Khadempour L, Fan H, Keefover-Ring K, Carlos-Shanley C, Nagamoto NS, Dam MA, Pupo MT, Currie CR. Metagenomics Reveals Diet-Specific Specialization of Bacterial Communities in Fungus Gardens of Grass- and Dicot-Cutter Ants. Front Microbiol 2020; 11:570770. [PMID: 33072030 PMCID: PMC7541895 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.570770] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2020] [Accepted: 08/20/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Leaf-cutter ants in the genus Atta are dominant herbivores in the Neotropics. While most species of Atta cut dicots to incorporate into their fungus gardens, some species specialize on grasses. Here we examine the bacterial community associated with the fungus gardens of grass- and dicot-cutter ants to examine how changes in substrate input affect the bacterial community. We sequenced the metagenomes of 12 Atta fungus gardens, across four species of ants, with a total of 5.316 Gbp of sequence data. We show significant differences in the fungus garden bacterial community composition between dicot- and grass-cutter ants, with grass-cutter ants having lower diversity. Reflecting this difference in community composition, the bacterial functional profiles between the fungus gardens are significantly different. Specifically, grass-cutter ant fungus garden metagenomes are particularly enriched for genes responsible for amino acid, siderophore, and terpenoid biosynthesis while dicot-cutter ant fungus gardens metagenomes are enriched in genes involved in membrane transport. Differences between community composition and functional capacity of the bacteria in the two types of fungus gardens reflect differences in the substrates that the ants incorporated. These results show that different substrate inputs matter for fungus garden bacteria and shed light on the potential role of bacteria in mediating the ants’ transition to the use of a novel substrate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lily Khadempour
- Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States.,Department of Energy Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States.,Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Rutgers University, Newark, Newark, NJ, United States
| | - Huan Fan
- Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States.,Center for Integrative Conservation, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yunnan, China
| | - Ken Keefover-Ring
- Departments of Botany and Geography, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States
| | - Camila Carlos-Shanley
- Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States.,Department of Energy Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States.,Department of Biology, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX, United States
| | - Nilson S Nagamoto
- Department of Plant Protection, São Paulo State University, Botucatu, Brazil
| | - Miranda A Dam
- Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States
| | - Monica T Pupo
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Cameron R Currie
- Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States.,Department of Energy Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States
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Francoeur CB, Khadempour L, Moreira-Soto RD, Gotting K, Book AJ, Pinto-Tomás AA, Keefover-Ring K, Currie CR. Bacteria Contribute to Plant Secondary Compound Degradation in a Generalist Herbivore System. mBio 2020; 11:e02146-20. [PMID: 32934088 PMCID: PMC7492740 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.02146-20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2020] [Accepted: 08/11/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Herbivores must overcome a variety of plant defenses, including coping with plant secondary compounds (PSCs). To help detoxify these defensive chemicals, several insect herbivores are known to harbor gut microbiota with the metabolic capacity to degrade PSCs. Leaf-cutter ants are generalist herbivores, obtaining sustenance from specialized fungus gardens that act as external digestive systems and which degrade the diverse collection of plants foraged by the ants. There is in vitro evidence that certain PSCs harm Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, the fungal cultivar of leaf-cutter ants, suggesting a role for the Proteobacteria-dominant bacterial community present within fungus gardens. In this study, we investigated the ability of symbiotic bacteria present within fungus gardens of leaf-cutter ants to degrade PSCs. We cultured fungus garden bacteria, sequenced the genomes of 42 isolates, and identified genes involved in PSC degradation, including genes encoding cytochrome P450 enzymes and genes in geraniol, cumate, cinnamate, and α-pinene/limonene degradation pathways. Using metatranscriptomic analysis, we showed that some of these degradation genes are expressed in situ Most of the bacterial isolates grew unhindered in the presence of PSCs and, using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), we determined that isolates from the genera Bacillus, Burkholderia, Enterobacter, Klebsiella, and Pseudomonas degrade α-pinene, β-caryophyllene, or linalool. Using a headspace sampler, we show that subcolonies of fungus gardens reduced α-pinene and linalool over a 36-h period, while L. gongylophorus strains alone reduced only linalool. Overall, our results reveal that the bacterial communities in fungus gardens play a pivotal role in alleviating the effect of PSCs on the leaf-cutter ant system.IMPORTANCE Leaf-cutter ants are dominant neotropical herbivores capable of deriving energy from a wide range of plant substrates. The success of leaf-cutter ants is largely due to their external gut, composed of key microbial symbionts, specifically, the fungal mutualist L. gongylophorus and a consistent bacterial community. Both symbionts are known to have critical roles in extracting energy from plant material, yet comparatively little is known about their roles in the detoxification of plant secondary compounds. In this study, we assessed if the bacterial communities associated with leaf-cutter ant fungus gardens can degrade harmful plant chemicals. We identify plant secondary compound detoxification in leaf-cutter ant gardens as a process that depends on the degradative potential of both the bacterial community and L. gongylophorus Our findings suggest that the fungus garden and its associated microbial community influence the generalist foraging abilities of the ants, underscoring the importance of microbial symbionts in plant substrate suitability for herbivores.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charlotte B Francoeur
- Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
- Department of Energy Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Lily Khadempour
- Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
- Department of Energy Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Rolando D Moreira-Soto
- Sección de Entomología Medica, Departamento de Parasitología, Facultad de Microbiología, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica
| | - Kirsten Gotting
- Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
- Laboratory of Genetics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Adam J Book
- Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
- Department of Energy Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Adrián A Pinto-Tomás
- Centro de Investigación en Estructuras Microscópicas, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica
- Departamento de Bioquímica, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica
- Centro de Investigación en Biología Celular y Molecular, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica
| | - Ken Keefover-Ring
- Departments of Botany and Geography, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Cameron R Currie
- Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
- Department of Energy Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
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Fungus-growing insects host a distinctive microbiota apparently adapted to the fungiculture environment. Sci Rep 2020; 10:12384. [PMID: 32709946 PMCID: PMC7381635 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-68448-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2019] [Accepted: 06/24/2020] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Some lineages of ants, termites, and beetles independently evolved a symbiotic association with lignocellulolytic fungi cultivated for food, in a lifestyle known as fungiculture. Fungus-growing insects' symbiosis also hosts a bacterial community thought to integrate their physiology. Similarities in taxonomic composition support the microbiota of fungus-growing insects as convergent, despite differences in fungus-rearing by these insects. Here, by comparing fungus-growing insects to several hosts ranging diverse dietary patterns, we investigate whether the microbiota taxonomic and functional profiles are characteristic of the fungiculture environment. Compared to other hosts, the microbiota associated with fungus-growing insects presents a distinctive taxonomic profile, dominated by Gammaproteobacteria at class level and by Pseudomonas at genera level. Even with a functional profile presenting similarities with the gut microbiota of herbivorous and omnivorous hosts, some differentially abundant features codified by the microbiota of fungus-growing insects suggest these communities occupying microhabitats that are characteristic of fungiculture. These features include metabolic pathways involved in lignocellulose breakdown, detoxification of plant secondary metabolites, metabolism of simple sugars, fungal cell wall deconstruction, biofilm formation, antimicrobials biosynthesis, and metabolism of diverse nutrients. Our results suggest that the microbiota could be functionally adapted to the fungiculture environment, codifying metabolic pathways potentially relevant to the fungus-growing insects' ecosystems functioning.
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Ronque MUV, Lyra ML, Migliorini GH, Bacci M, Oliveira PS. Symbiotic bacterial communities in rainforest fungus-farming ants: evidence for species and colony specificity. Sci Rep 2020; 10:10172. [PMID: 32576863 PMCID: PMC7311517 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-66772-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2019] [Accepted: 05/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals may host diverse bacterial communities that can markedly affect their behavioral physiology, ecology, and vulnerability to disease. Fungus-farming ants represent a classical example of mutualism that depends on symbiotic microorganisms. Unraveling the bacterial communities associated with fungus-farming ants is essential to understand the role of these microorganisms in the ant-fungus symbiosis. The bacterial community structure of five species of fungus-farmers (non-leaf-cutters; genera Mycocepurus, Mycetarotes, Mycetophylax, and Sericomyrmex) from three different environments in the Brazilian Atlantic rainforest (lowland forest, restinga forest, and sand dunes) was characterized with amplicon-based Illumina sequencing of 16 S ribosomal RNA gene. Possible differences in bacterial communities between ants internal to the nest (on the fungus garden) and external foragers were also investigated. Our results on the richness and diversity of associated bacteria provide novel evidence that these communities are host- and colony-specific in fungus-farming ants. Indeed, the bacterial communities associated with external foragers differ among the five species, and among colonies of the same species. Furthermore, bacterial communities from internal ants vs. foragers do not differ or differ only slightly within each ant species. This study highlights the importance of describing ant-associated bacterial communities to better understand this host-bacterial interaction in the social environment of insect colonies and provides the foundation for future studies on the ecological and evolutionary processes that drive the success of fungus-farming ants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariane U V Ronque
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia, Instituto de Biologia, C.P. 6109, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, 13083-862, Campinas, SP, Brazil.
| | - Mariana L Lyra
- Departamento de Biodiversidade, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista - Campus Rio Claro, 13506-900, Rio Claro, SP, Brazil
| | - Gustavo H Migliorini
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Animal, Universidade Estadual Paulista - Campus São José do Rio Preto, 15054-000, São José do Rio Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - Maurício Bacci
- Centro de Estudos de Insetos Sociais, Universidade Estadual Paulista - Campus Rio Claro, 13506-900, Rio Claro, SP, Brazil
| | - Paulo S Oliveira
- Departamento de Biologia Animal, C.P. 6109, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, 13083-862, Campinas, SP, Brazil
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Ramalho MDO, Martins C, Morini MSC, Bueno OC. What Can the Bacterial Community of Atta sexdens (Linnaeus, 1758) Tell Us about the Habitats in Which This Ant Species Evolves? INSECTS 2020; 11:E332. [PMID: 32481532 PMCID: PMC7349130 DOI: 10.3390/insects11060332] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2020] [Revised: 05/19/2020] [Accepted: 05/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Studies of bacterial communities can reveal the evolutionary significance of symbiotic interactions between hosts and their associated bacteria, as well as identify environmental factors that may influence host biology. Atta sexdens is an ant species native to Brazil that can act as an agricultural pest due to its intense behavior of cutting plants. Despite being extensively studied, certain aspects of the general biology of this species remain unclear, such as the evolutionary implications of the symbiotic relationships it forms with bacteria. Using high-throughput amplicon sequencing of 16S rRNA genes, we compared for the first time the bacterial community of A. sexdens (whole ant workers) populations according to the habitat (natural versus agricultural) and geographical location. Our results revealed that the bacterial community associated with A. sexdens is mainly influenced by the geographical location, and secondarily by the differences in habitat. Also, the bacterial community associated with citrus differed significantly from the other communities due to the presence of Tsukamurella. In conclusion, our study suggests that environmental shifts may influence the bacterial diversity found in A. sexdens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuela de Oliveira Ramalho
- Centro de Estudos de Insetos Sociais—CEIS, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista, UNESP, Campus Rio Claro, Avenida 24A, 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro 13506-900, SP, Brazil;
- Department of Entomology, Cornell University, 129 Garden Ave, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA
| | - Cintia Martins
- Campus Ministro Reis Velloso, Universidade Federal do Piauí, Av. São Sebastião, 2819, Parnaíba, Piauí 64202-020, Brazil;
| | - Maria Santina Castro Morini
- Núcleo de Ciências Ambientais, Universidade de Mogi das Cruzes, Av. Dr. Cândido Xavier de Almeida e Souza, 200, Centro Cívico, Mogi das Cruzes 08780-911, SP, Brazil;
| | - Odair Correa Bueno
- Centro de Estudos de Insetos Sociais—CEIS, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista, UNESP, Campus Rio Claro, Avenida 24A, 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro 13506-900, SP, Brazil;
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28
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Exploring the effect of plant substrates on bacterial community structure in termite fungus-combs. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0232329. [PMID: 32357167 PMCID: PMC7194444 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0232329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2019] [Accepted: 04/14/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Fungus-cultivating termites are successful herbivores largely rely on the external symbiotic fungus-combs to decompose plant polysaccharides. The comb harbors both fungi and bacteria. However, the complementary roles and functions of the bacteria are out of the box. To this purpose, we look into different decomposition stages of fungus-combs using high-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene to examine bacterial community structure. We also explored the bacterial response to physicochemical indexes (such as moisture, ash content and organic matter) and plant substrates (leaves or branches or mix food). Some specific families such as Lachnospiraceae, Ruminococcaceae, and Peptostreptococcaceae may be involved in lignocellulose degradation, whereas Burkholderiaceae may be associated with aromatic compounds degradation. We observed that as the comb mature there is a shift of community composition which may be an adjustment of specific bacteria to deal with different lignocellulosic material. Our results indicated that threshold amount of physicochemical indexes are beneficial for bacterial diversity but too high moisture, low organic matter and high ash content may reduce their diversity. Furthermore, the average highest bacterial diversity was recorded from the comb built by branches followed by mix food and leaves. Besides, this study could help in the use of bacteria from the comb of fungus-cultivating termites in forestry and agricultural residues making them easier to digest as fodder.
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Proteomic Characterization of Lignocellulolytic Enzymes Secreted by the Insect-Associated Fungus Daldinia decipiens oita, Isolated from a Forest in Northern Japan. Appl Environ Microbiol 2020; 86:AEM.02350-19. [PMID: 32060026 DOI: 10.1128/aem.02350-19] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2019] [Accepted: 02/11/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Wood-devastating insects utilize their symbiotic microbes with lignocellulose-degrading abilities to extract energy from recalcitrant woods. It is well known that free-living lignocellulose-degrading fungi secrete various carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes) to degrade plant cell wall components, mainly cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. However, CAZymes from insect-symbiotic fungi have not been well documented except for a few examples. In this study, an insect-associated fungus, Daldinia decipiens oita, was isolated as a potential symbiotic fungus of female Xiphydria albopicta captured from Hokkaido forest. This fungus was grown in seven different media containing a single carbon source, glucose, cellulose, xylan, mannan, pectin, poplar, or larch, and the secreted proteins were identified by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). A total of 128 CAZymes, including domains of 92 glycoside hydrolases, 15 carbohydrate esterases, 5 polysaccharide lyases, 17 auxiliary activities, and 11 carbohydrate-binding modules, were identified, and these are involved in degradation of cellulose and hemicellulose but not lignin. Together with the results of polysaccharide-degrading activity measurements, we concluded that D. decipiens oita tightly regulates the expression of these CAZymes in response to the tested plant cell wall materials. Overall, this study described the detailed proteomic approach of a woodwasp-associated fungus and revealed that the new isolate, D. decipiens oita, secretes diverse CAZymes to efficiently degrade lignocellulose in the symbiotic environment.IMPORTANCE Recent studies show the potential impacts of insect symbiont microbes on biofuel application with regard to their degradation capability of a recalcitrant plant cell wall. In this study, we describe a novel fungal isolate, D. decipiens oita, as a single symbiotic fungus from the Xiphydria woodwasp found in the northern forests of Japan. Our detailed secretome analyses of D. decipiens oita, together with activity measurements, reveal that this insect-associated fungus exhibits high and broad activities for plant cell wall material degradation, suggesting potential applications within the biomass conversion industry for plant mass degradation.
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Titus BM, Laroche R, Rodríguez E, Wirshing H, Meyer CP. Host identity and symbiotic association affects the taxonomic and functional diversity of the clownfish-hosting sea anemone microbiome. Biol Lett 2020; 16:20190738. [PMID: 32019466 PMCID: PMC7058955 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2019.0738] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2019] [Accepted: 01/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
All eukaryotic life engages in symbioses with a diverse community of bacteria that are essential for performing basic life functions. In many cases, eukaryotic organisms form additional symbioses with other macroscopic eukaryotes. The tightly linked physical interactions that characterize many macroscopic symbioses create opportunities for microbial transfer, which likely affects the diversity and function of individual microbiomes, and may ultimately lead to microbiome convergence between distantly related taxa. Here, we sequence the microbiomes of five species of clownfish-hosting sea anemones that co-occur on coral reefs in the Maldives. We test the importance of evolutionary history, clownfish symbiont association, and habitat on the taxonomic and predicted functional diversity of the microbiome, and explore signals of microbiome convergence in anemone taxa that have evolved symbioses with clownfishes independently. Our data indicate that host identity and clownfish association shapes the majority of the taxonomic diversity of the clownfish-hosting sea anemone microbiome, and predicted functional microbial diversity analyses demonstrate a convergence among host anemone microbiomes, which reflect increased functional diversity over individuals that do not host clownfishes. Further, we identify upregulated predicted microbial functions that are likely affected by clownfish presence. Taken together our study potentially reveals an even deeper metabolic coupling between clownfishes and their host anemones, and what could be a previously unknown mutualistic benefit to anemones that are symbiotic with clownfishes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin M. Titus
- Division of Invertebrate Zoology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, USA
- Sackler Institute for Comparative Genomics, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, USA
| | - Robert Laroche
- Department of BioSciences, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Estefanía Rodríguez
- Division of Invertebrate Zoology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, USA
- Sackler Institute for Comparative Genomics, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, USA
| | - Herman Wirshing
- Department of Invertebrate Zoology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC, USA
| | - Christopher P. Meyer
- Department of Invertebrate Zoology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC, USA
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Ruiz-González MX, Leroy C, Dejean A, Gryta H, Jargeat P, Armijos Carrión AD, Orivel J. Do Host Plant and Associated Ant Species Affect Microbial Communities in Myrmecophytes? INSECTS 2019; 10:insects10110391. [PMID: 31698729 PMCID: PMC6920819 DOI: 10.3390/insects10110391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2019] [Revised: 10/31/2019] [Accepted: 11/02/2019] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Ant-associated microorganisms can play crucial and often overlooked roles, and given the diversity of interactions that ants have developed, the study of the associated microbiomes is of interest. We focused here on specialist plant-ant species of the genus Allomerus that grow a fungus to build galleries on their host-plant stems. Allomerus-inhabited domatia, thus, might be a rich arena for microbes associated with the ants, the plant, and the fungus. We investigated the microbial communities present in domatia colonised by four arboreal ants: Allomerus decemarticulatus, A. octoarticulatus, A. octoarticulatus var. demerarae, and the non-fungus growing plant-ant Azteca sp. cf. depilis, inhabiting Hirtella physophora or Cordia nodosa in French Guiana. We hypothesized that the microbial community will differ among these species. We isolated microorganisms from five colonies of each species, sequenced the 16S rRNA or Internal TranscribedSpacer (ITS) regions, and described both the alpha and beta diversities. We identified 69 microbial taxa, which belong to five bacterial and two fungal phyla. The most diverse phyla were Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria. The microbial community of Azteca cf. depilis and Allomerus spp. differed in composition and richness. Geographical distance affected microbial communities and richness but plant species did not. Actinobacteria were only associated with Allomerus spp.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mario X. Ruiz-González
- Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja, San Cayetano Alto s/n, Loja 1101608, Ecuador
- Correspondence: (M.X.R.-G.); (J.O.); Tel.: +593-7-3701444 (M.X.R.-G.); +594-594-32-92-96 (J.O.)
| | - Céline Leroy
- AMAP, IRD, CIRAD, CNRS, INRA, Université de Montpellier, 34000 Montpellier, France;
- CNRS, UMR EcoFoG, Agroparistech, CIRAD, INRA, Université de Guyane, Université des Antilles, Campus Agronomique, 97379 Kourou, France
| | - Alain Dejean
- CNRS, UMR EcoFoG, Agroparistech, CIRAD, INRA, Université de Guyane, Université des Antilles, Campus Agronomique, 97379 Kourou, France
- Ecolab, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, INPT, UPS, 31062 Toulouse, France;
| | - Hervé Gryta
- Laboratoire Evolution & Diversité Biologique (EDB UMR 5174), CNRS, IRD, Université de Toulouse, 31062 Toulouse, France; (H.G.); (P.J.)
| | - Patricia Jargeat
- Laboratoire Evolution & Diversité Biologique (EDB UMR 5174), CNRS, IRD, Université de Toulouse, 31062 Toulouse, France; (H.G.); (P.J.)
| | - Angelo D. Armijos Carrión
- Biodiversity Genomics Team, Plant Ecophysiology & Evolution Group, Guangxi Key Laboratory of Forest Ecology and Conservation, College of Forestry, Daxuedonglu 100, Nanning 530005, Guangxi, China;
| | - Jérôme Orivel
- CNRS, UMR EcoFoG, Agroparistech, CIRAD, INRA, Université de Guyane, Université des Antilles, Campus Agronomique, 97379 Kourou, France
- Correspondence: (M.X.R.-G.); (J.O.); Tel.: +593-7-3701444 (M.X.R.-G.); +594-594-32-92-96 (J.O.)
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Abstract
Metaproteomics can provide critical information about biological systems, but peptides are found within a complex background of other peptides. This complex background can change across samples, in some cases drastically. Cofragmentation, the coelution of peptides with similar mass to charge ratios, is one factor that influences which peptides are identified in an LC-MS/MS experiment: it is dependent on the nature and complexity of this dynamic background. Metaproteomics applications are particularly susceptible to cofragmentation-induced bias; they have vast protein sequence diversity and the abundance of those proteins can span many orders of magnitude. We have developed a mechanistic model that determines the number of potentially cofragmenting peptides in a given sample (called cobia, https://github.com/bertrand-lab/cobia ). We then used previously published data sets to validate our model, showing that the resulting peptide-specific score reflects the cofragmentation "risk" of peptides. Using an Antarctic sea ice edge metatranscriptome case study, we found that more rare taxonomic and functional groups are associated with higher cofragmentation bias. We also demonstrate how cofragmentation scores can be used to guide the selection of protein- or peptide-based biomarkers. We illustrate potential consequences of cofragmentation for multiple metaproteomic approaches, and suggest practical paths forward to cope with cofragmentation-induced bias.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Scott P McCain
- Department of Biology , Dalhousie University , Halifax , Nova Scotia B3H 4R2 , Canada
| | - Erin M Bertrand
- Department of Biology , Dalhousie University , Halifax , Nova Scotia B3H 4R2 , Canada
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González CT, Saltonstall K, Fernández-Marín H. Garden microbiomes of Apterostigma dentigerum and Apterostigma pilosum fungus-growing ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). J Microbiol 2019; 57:842-851. [PMID: 31377982 DOI: 10.1007/s12275-019-8639-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2018] [Revised: 04/08/2019] [Accepted: 05/03/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Fungus-growing ants share a complex symbiosis with microbes, including fungal mutualists, antibiotic-producing bacteria, and fungal pathogens. The bacterial communities associated with this symbiosis are poorly understood but likely play important roles in maintaining the health and function of fungal gardens. We studied bacterial communities in gardens of two Apterostigma species, A. dentigerum, and A. pilosum, using next-generation sequencing to evaluate differences between the two ant species, their veiled and no-veiled fungal garden types, and across three collection locations. We also compared different parts of nests to test for homogeneity within nests. Enterobacteriaceae dominated gardens of both species and common OTUs were shared across both species and nest types. However, differences in community diversity were detected between ant species, and in the communities of A. dentigerum veiled and no-veiled nests within sites. Apterostigma pilosum had a higher proportion of Phyllobacteriaceae and differed from A. dentigerum in the proportions of members of the order Clostridiales. Within A. dentigerum, nests with veiled and no-veiled fungus gardens had similar taxonomic profiles but differed in the relative abundance of some groups, with veiled gardens having more Rhodospirillaceae and Hyphomicrobiaceae, and no-veiled having more Xanthomonadaceae and certain genera in the Enterobacteriaceae C. However, bacterial communities in Apterostigma fungal gardens are highly conserved and resemble those of the nests of other attine ants with dominant taxa likely playing a role in biomass degradation and defense. Further work is required to understand and explain how bacterial community composition of fungus-growing nests is maintained.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cely T González
- Centro de Biodiversidad y Descubrimiento de Drogas, Instituto de Investigaciones Científicas y Servicios de Alta Tecnología, Apartado, 0843-01103, Clayton, Republic of Panama. .,Department of Biotechnology, Acharya Nagarjuna University, Guntur, India. .,Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, P.O. Box 0843-03092, Amador, Naos, Republic of Panama.
| | - Kristin Saltonstall
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, P.O. Box 0843-03092, Amador, Naos, Republic of Panama
| | - Hermógenes Fernández-Marín
- Centro de Biodiversidad y Descubrimiento de Drogas, Instituto de Investigaciones Científicas y Servicios de Alta Tecnología, Apartado, 0843-01103, Clayton, Republic of Panama.
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Agamennone V, Le NG, van Straalen NM, Brouwer A, Roelofs D. Antimicrobial activity and carbohydrate metabolism in the bacterial metagenome of the soil-living invertebrate Folsomia candida. Sci Rep 2019; 9:7308. [PMID: 31086216 PMCID: PMC6513849 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-43828-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2018] [Accepted: 04/27/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The microbiome associated with an animal's gut and other organs is considered an integral part of its ecological functions and adaptive capacity. To better understand how microbial communities influence activities and capacities of the host, we need more information on the functions that are encoded in a microbiome. Until now, the information about soil invertebrate microbiomes is mostly based on taxonomic characterization, achieved through culturing and amplicon sequencing. Using shotgun sequencing and various bioinformatics approaches we explored functions in the bacterial metagenome associated with the soil invertebrate Folsomia candida, an established model organism in soil ecology with a fully sequenced, high-quality genome assembly. Our metagenome analysis revealed a remarkable diversity of genes associated with antimicrobial activity and carbohydrate metabolism. The microbiome also contains several homologs to F. candida genes that were previously identified as candidates for horizontal gene transfer (HGT). We suggest that the carbohydrate- and antimicrobial-related functions encoded by Folsomia's metagenome play a role in the digestion of recalcitrant soil-born polysaccharides and the defense against pathogens, thereby significantly contributing to the adaptation of these animals to life in the soil. Furthermore, the transfer of genes from the microbiome may constitute an important source of new functions for the springtail.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valeria Agamennone
- Department of Ecological Science, VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
- Department of Microbiology and Systems Biology, TNO, Zeist, The Netherlands.
| | - Ngoc Giang Le
- Department of Ecological Science, VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Institute of Biotechnology, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Nico M van Straalen
- Department of Ecological Science, VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | | | - Dick Roelofs
- Department of Ecological Science, VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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35
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Moreira AA, Forti LC, Camargo RDS, Nagamoto NS, Caldato N, Castellani MA, Ramos VM. Variation in nest morphology, queen oviposition rates, and fungal species present in incipient colonies of the leaf-cutter ant Atta sexdens. TROPICAL ZOOLOGY 2019. [DOI: 10.1080/03946975.2019.1603622] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Aldenise Alves Moreira
- Laboratory of Entomology, Department of Phytotechny and Zootechny, State University of Southwestern Bahia [Universidade Estadual do Sudoeste da Bahia] (UESB), Vitória da Conquista, Brazil
| | - Luiz Carlos Forti
- Laboratory of Social Insects-Pests, Department of Vegetal Protection, School of Agricultural Sciences, São Paulo State University [Universidade Estadual Paulista] (UNESP), Postal Code 237, Botucatu, SP 18610-034, Brazil
| | - Roberto da Silva Camargo
- Laboratory of Social Insects-Pests, Department of Vegetal Protection, School of Agricultural Sciences, São Paulo State University [Universidade Estadual Paulista] (UNESP), Postal Code 237, Botucatu, SP 18610-034, Brazil
| | - Nilson Satoru Nagamoto
- Laboratory of Social Insects-Pests, Department of Vegetal Protection, School of Agricultural Sciences, São Paulo State University [Universidade Estadual Paulista] (UNESP), Postal Code 237, Botucatu, SP 18610-034, Brazil
| | - Nadia Caldato
- Laboratory of Social Insects-Pests, Department of Vegetal Protection, School of Agricultural Sciences, São Paulo State University [Universidade Estadual Paulista] (UNESP), Postal Code 237, Botucatu, SP 18610-034, Brazil
| | - Maria Aparecida Castellani
- Laboratory of Entomology, Department of Phytotechny and Zootechny, State University of Southwestern Bahia [Universidade Estadual do Sudoeste da Bahia] (UESB), Vitória da Conquista, Brazil
| | - Vania Maria Ramos
- Laboratory of Agricultural Entomology, Agronomy Department, College of Agricultural Sciences, University of Western São Paulo [Universidade do Oeste Paulista] (UNOESTE), Presidente Prudente, São Paulo, Brazil
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36
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Swanson AC, Schwendenmann L, Allen MF, Aronson EL, Artavia‐León A, Dierick D, Fernandez‐Bou AS, Harmon TC, Murillo‐Cruz C, Oberbauer SF, Pinto‐Tomás AA, Rundel PW, Zelikova TJ. Welcome to the
Atta
world: A framework for understanding the effects of leaf‐cutter ants on ecosystem functions. Funct Ecol 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13319] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Amanda C. Swanson
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, Center for Conservation Biology University of California Riverside Riverside California
| | | | - Michael F. Allen
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, Center for Conservation Biology University of California Riverside Riverside California
| | - Emma L. Aronson
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, Center for Conservation Biology University of California Riverside Riverside California
| | - Allan Artavia‐León
- Center for Research in Cellular and Molecular Biology University of Costa Rica San José Costa Rica
| | - Diego Dierick
- Department of Biological Sciences Florida International University Miami Florida
| | - Angel S. Fernandez‐Bou
- School of Engineering and Environmental Systems Program University of California Merced Merced California
| | - Thomas C. Harmon
- School of Engineering and Environmental Systems Program University of California Merced Merced California
| | - Catalina Murillo‐Cruz
- Center for Research in Cellular and Molecular Biology University of Costa Rica San José Costa Rica
- Center for Research in Microscopic Structures, Biochemistry Department University of Costa Rica San José Costa Rica
| | - Steven F. Oberbauer
- Department of Biological Sciences Florida International University Miami Florida
| | - Adrián A. Pinto‐Tomás
- Center for Research in Cellular and Molecular Biology University of Costa Rica San José Costa Rica
- Center for Research in Microscopic Structures, Biochemistry Department University of Costa Rica San José Costa Rica
- Biochemistry Department, School of Medicine University of Costa Rica San José Costa Rica
| | - Philip W. Rundel
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of California Los Angeles Los Angeles California
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37
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Yang W, Wang L, Hu Q, Pei F, Mugambi MA. Identification of Bacterial Composition in Freeze-Dried Agaricus bisporus During Storage and the Resultant Odor Deterioration. Front Microbiol 2019; 10:349. [PMID: 30863388 PMCID: PMC6399203 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2019.00349] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2018] [Accepted: 02/11/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Moisture absorption and bacterial growth are critical factors for quality deterioration of freeze-dried Agaricus bisporus. In order to explore the bacterial composition and the resultant odor changes in freeze-dried A. bisporus during storage under three typical conditions (RT: 25°C, 55% RH; HT: 37°C, 85% RH; AT: ambient temperature), bacterial diversity and communities were analyzed using metagenomics. Moreover, volatile compounds were determined using SPME-GC-MS. The results demonstrated that the bacterial composition in freeze-dried A. bisporus was dominated by Pseudomonas, followed by Rhizobium and Pedobacter. In addition, Mucilaginibacter, Flavobacterium, and Thermus were a few other genera more dominant in HT samples, Chryseobacterium was the other genera more dominant in AT samples, while, Sphingobacterium and Chryseobacterium were a few other genera more dominant in RT samples. Furthermore, the increase of benzaldehyde content in HT samples may have been induced by the growth of Pseudomonads and the esters production in RT and AT samples might have been induced by Chryseobacterium. This study provided comprehensive information on exogenous bacterial composition and the resultant odor in freeze-dried A. bisporus. These results may be a theoretical basis for quality control and quick quality detection based on volatiles of freeze-dried A. bisporus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenjian Yang
- Key Laboratory of Grains and Oils Quality Control and Processing, Collaborative Innovation Center for Modern Grain Circulation and Safety, College of Food Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Finance and Economics, Nanjing, China
| | - Liuqing Wang
- Key Laboratory of Grains and Oils Quality Control and Processing, Collaborative Innovation Center for Modern Grain Circulation and Safety, College of Food Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Finance and Economics, Nanjing, China
| | - Qiuhui Hu
- Key Laboratory of Grains and Oils Quality Control and Processing, Collaborative Innovation Center for Modern Grain Circulation and Safety, College of Food Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Finance and Economics, Nanjing, China
| | - Fei Pei
- Key Laboratory of Grains and Oils Quality Control and Processing, Collaborative Innovation Center for Modern Grain Circulation and Safety, College of Food Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Finance and Economics, Nanjing, China
| | - Mariga Alfred Mugambi
- Faculty of Agriculture and Food Science, Meru University of Science and Technology, Meru, Kenya
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38
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Lee KM, Adams M, Klassen JL. Evaluation of DESS as a storage medium for microbial community analysis. PeerJ 2019; 7:e6414. [PMID: 30740279 PMCID: PMC6368006 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.6414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2018] [Accepted: 12/24/2018] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Microbial ecology research requires sampling strategies that accurately represent the microbial community under study. These communities must typically be transported from the collection location to the laboratory and then stored until they can be processed. However, there is a lack of consensus on how best to preserve microbial communities during transport and storage. Here, we evaluated dimethyl sulfoxide, ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid, saturated salt (DESS) solution as a broadly applicable preservative for microbial ecology experiments. We stored fungus gardens grown by the ant Trachymyrmex septentrionalis in DESS, 15% glycerol, and phosphate buffered saline (PBS) to test their impact on the fungus garden microbial community. Variation in microbial community structure due to differences in preservative type was minimal when compared to variation between ant colonies. Additionally, DESS preserved the structure of a defined mock community more faithfully than either 15% glycerol or PBS. DESS is inexpensive, easy to transport, and effective in preserving microbial community structure. We therefore conclude that DESS is a valuable preservative for use in microbial ecology research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin M Lee
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Madison Adams
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Jonathan L Klassen
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
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High-Quality Draft Genome Sequences of Eight Bacteria Isolated from Fungus Gardens Grown by Trachymyrmex septentrionalis Ants. Microbiol Resour Announc 2018; 7:MRA00871-18. [PMID: 30533809 PMCID: PMC6211366 DOI: 10.1128/mra.00871-18] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2018] [Accepted: 06/25/2018] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
For their food source, Trachymyrmex septentrionalis ants raise symbiotic fungus gardens that contain bacteria whose functions are poorly understood. Here, we report the genome sequences of eight bacteria isolated from these fungus gardens to better describe the ecology of these strains and their potential to produce secondary metabolites in this niche. For their food source, Trachymyrmex septentrionalis ants raise symbiotic fungus gardens that contain bacteria whose functions are poorly understood. Here, we report the genome sequences of eight bacteria isolated from these fungus gardens to better describe the ecology of these strains and their potential to produce secondary metabolites in this niche.
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40
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Sapountzis P, Nash DR, Schiøtt M, Boomsma JJ. The evolution of abdominal microbiomes in fungus-growing ants. Mol Ecol 2018; 28:879-899. [PMID: 30411820 PMCID: PMC6446810 DOI: 10.1111/mec.14931] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2016] [Revised: 02/08/2018] [Accepted: 10/03/2018] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
The attine ants are a monophyletic lineage that switched to fungus farming ca. 55-60 MYA. They have become a model for the study of complex symbioses after additional fungal and bacterial symbionts were discovered, but their abdominal endosymbiotic bacteria remain largely unknown. Here, we present a comparative microbiome analysis of endosymbiotic bacteria spanning the entire phylogenetic tree. We show that, across 17 representative sympatric species from eight genera sampled in Panama, abdominal microbiomes are dominated by Mollicutes, α- and γ-Proteobacteria, and Actinobacteria. Bacterial abundances increase from basal to crown branches in the phylogeny reflecting a shift towards putative specialized and abundant abdominal microbiota after the ants domesticated gongylidia-bearing cultivars, but before the origin of industrial-scale farming based on leaf-cutting herbivory. This transition coincided with the ancestral single colonization event of Central/North America ca. 20 MYA, documented in a recent phylogenomic study showing that almost the entire crown group of the higher attine ants, including the leaf-cutting ants, evolved there and not in South America. Several bacterial species are located in gut tissues or abdominal organs of the evolutionarily derived, but not the basal attine ants. The composition of abdominal microbiomes appears to be affected by the presence/absence of defensive antibiotic-producing actinobacterial biofilms on the worker ants' cuticle, but the significance of this association remains unclear. The patterns of diversity, abundance and sensitivity of the abdominal microbiomes that we obtained explore novel territory in the comparative analysis of attine fungus farming symbioses and raise new questions for further in-depth research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Panagiotis Sapountzis
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, 2100, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - David R Nash
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, 2100, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Morten Schiøtt
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, 2100, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Jacobus J Boomsma
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, 2100, Copenhagen, Denmark
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41
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Osti JF, Rodrigues A. Escovopsioides as a fungal antagonist of the fungus cultivated by leafcutter ants. BMC Microbiol 2018; 18:130. [PMID: 30305028 PMCID: PMC6180628 DOI: 10.1186/s12866-018-1265-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2017] [Accepted: 09/26/2018] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Fungus gardens of fungus-growing (attine) ants harbor complex microbiomes in addition to the mutualistic fungus they cultivate for food. Fungi in the genus Escovopsioides were recently described as members of this microbiome but their role in the ant-fungus symbiosis is poorly known. In this study, we assessed the phylogenetic diversity of 21 Escovopsioides isolates obtained from fungus gardens of leafcutter ants (genera Atta and Acromyrmex) and non-leafcutter ants (genera Trachymyrmex and Apterostigma) sampled from several regions in Brazil. Results Regardless of the sample locality or ant genera, phylogenetic analysis showed low genetic diversity among the 20 Escovopsisoides isolates examined, which prompted the identification as Escovopsioides nivea (the only described species in the genus). In contrast, one Escovopsioides isolate obtained from a fungus garden of Apterostigma megacephala was considered a new phylogenetic species. Dual-culture plate assays showed that Escovopsioides isolates inhibited the mycelium growth of Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, the mutualistic fungus cultivated by somes species of leafcutter ants. In addition, Escovopsioides growth experiments in fungus gardens with and without ant workers showed this fungus is detrimental to the ant-fungus symbiosis. Conclusions Here, we provide clues for the antagonism of Escovopsioides towards the mutualistic fungus of leafcutter ants. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12866-018-1265-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julio Flavio Osti
- Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Rio Claro, Brazil
| | - Andre Rodrigues
- Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Rio Claro, Brazil. .,Center for the Studies of Social Insects, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Rio Claro, Brazil.
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42
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Alves LDF, Westmann CA, Lovate GL, de Siqueira GMV, Borelli TC, Guazzaroni ME. Metagenomic Approaches for Understanding New Concepts in Microbial Science. Int J Genomics 2018; 2018:2312987. [PMID: 30211213 PMCID: PMC6126073 DOI: 10.1155/2018/2312987] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2018] [Revised: 06/21/2018] [Accepted: 07/29/2018] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Over the past thirty years, since the dawn of metagenomic studies, a completely new (micro) universe was revealed, with the potential to have profound impacts on many aspects of the society. Remarkably, the study of human microbiome provided a new perspective on a myriad of human traits previously regarded as solely (epi-) genetically encoded, such as disease susceptibility, immunological response, and social and nutritional behaviors. In this context, metagenomics has established a powerful framework for understanding the intricate connections between human societies and microbial communities, ultimately allowing for the optimization of both human health and productivity. Thus, we have shifted from the old concept of microbes as harmful organisms to a broader panorama, in which the signal of the relationship between humans and microbes is flexible and directly dependent on our own decisions and practices. In parallel, metagenomics has also been playing a major role in the prospection of "hidden" genetic features and the development of biotechnological applications, through the discovery of novel genes, enzymes, pathways, and bioactive molecules with completely new or improved biochemical functions. Therefore, this review highlights the major milestones over the last three decades of metagenomics, providing insights into both its potentialities and current challenges.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luana de Fátima Alves
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - Cauã Antunes Westmann
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - Gabriel Lencioni Lovate
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | | | - Tiago Cabral Borelli
- Department of Biology, Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - María-Eugenia Guazzaroni
- Department of Biology, Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
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43
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Theron-De Bruin N, Dreyer LL, Ueckermann EA, Wingfield MJ, Roets F. Birds Mediate a Fungus-Mite Mutualism. MICROBIAL ECOLOGY 2018; 75:863-874. [PMID: 29071368 DOI: 10.1007/s00248-017-1093-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2017] [Accepted: 10/15/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Mutualisms between ophiostomatoid fungi and arthropods have been well documented. These fungi commonly aid arthropod nutrition and, in turn, are transported to new niches by these arthropods. The inflorescences of Protea trees provide a niche for a unique assemblage of ophiostomatoid fungi. Here, mites feed on Sporothrix fungi and vector the spores to new niches. Protea-pollinating beetles transport the spore-carrying mites between Protea trees. However, many Protea species are primarily pollinated by birds that potentially play a central role in the Protea-Sporothrix-mite system. To investigate the role of birds in the movement of mites and/or fungal spores, mites were collected from Protea inflorescences and cape sugarbirds, screened for Sporothrix fungal spores and tested for their ability to feed and reproduce on the fungal associates. Two mite species where abundant in both Protea inflorescences and on cape sugarbirds and regularly carried Sporothrix fungal spores. One of these mite species readily fed and reproduced on its transported fungal partner. For dispersal, this mite (a Glycyphagus sp.) attached to a larger mite species (Proctolaelaps vandenbergi) which, in turn, were carried by the birds to new inflorescences. The results of this study provide compelling evidence for a new mite-fungus mutualism, new mite-mite commensalisms and the first evidence of birds transporting mites with Sporothrix fungal spores to colonise new Protea trees.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalie Theron-De Bruin
- Department of Conservation Ecology and Entomology, Stellenbosch University, Matieland, Private Bag X1, Stellenbosch, 7602, South Africa
| | - Léanne L Dreyer
- Department of Botany and Zoology, Stellenbosch University, Matieland Private Bag X1, Stellenbosch, 7602, South Africa
| | - Eddie A Ueckermann
- School of Biological Sciences/Zoology, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, Private Bag X6001, Potchefstroom, 2520, South Africa
| | - Michael J Wingfield
- Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Private Bag X20, Hatfield, Pretoria, 0028, South Africa
| | - Francois Roets
- Department of Conservation Ecology and Entomology, Stellenbosch University, Matieland, Private Bag X1, Stellenbosch, 7602, South Africa.
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Abstract
With a million described species and more than half a billion preserved specimens, the large scale of insect collections is unequaled by those of any other group. Advances in genomics, collection digitization, and imaging have begun to more fully harness the power that such large data stores can provide. These new approaches and technologies have transformed how entomological collections are managed and utilized. While genomic research has fundamentally changed the way many specimens are collected and curated, advances in technology have shown promise for extracting sequence data from the vast holdings already in museums. Efforts to mainstream specimen digitization have taken root and have accelerated traditional taxonomic studies as well as distribution modeling and global change research. Emerging imaging technologies such as microcomputed tomography and confocal laser scanning microscopy are changing how morphology can be investigated. This review provides an overview of how the realization of big data has transformed our field and what may lie in store.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Edward Z Short
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology; and Division of Entomology, Biodiversity Institute, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas 66045, USA;
| | - Torsten Dikow
- Department of Entomology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20013, USA;
| | - Corrie S Moreau
- Department of Science and Education, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, Illinois 60605, USA;
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45
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Joynson R, Pritchard L, Osemwekha E, Ferry N. Metagenomic Analysis of the Gut Microbiome of the Common Black Slug Arion ater in Search of Novel Lignocellulose Degrading Enzymes. Front Microbiol 2017; 8:2181. [PMID: 29167663 PMCID: PMC5682323 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.02181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2017] [Accepted: 10/24/2017] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Some eukaryotes are able to gain access to well-protected carbon sources in plant biomass by exploiting microorganisms in the environment or harbored in their digestive system. One is the land pulmonate Arion ater, which takes advantage of a gut microbial consortium that can break down the widely available, but difficult to digest, carbohydrate polymers in lignocellulose, enabling them to digest a broad range of fresh and partially degraded plant material efficiently. This ability is considered one of the major factors that have enabled A. ater to become one of the most widespread plant pest species in Western Europe and North America. Using metagenomic techniques we have characterized the bacterial diversity and functional capability of the gut microbiome of this notorious agricultural pest. Analysis of gut metagenomic community sequences identified abundant populations of known lignocellulose-degrading bacteria, along with well-characterized bacterial plant pathogens. This also revealed a repertoire of more than 3,383 carbohydrate active enzymes (CAZymes) including multiple enzymes associated with lignin degradation, demonstrating a microbial consortium capable of degradation of all components of lignocellulose. This would allow A. ater to make extensive use of plant biomass as a source of nutrients through exploitation of the enzymatic capabilities of the gut microbial consortia. From this metagenome assembly we also demonstrate the successful amplification of multiple predicted gene sequences from metagenomic DNA subjected to whole genome amplification and expression of functional proteins, facilitating the low cost acquisition and biochemical testing of the many thousands of novel genes identified in metagenomics studies. These findings demonstrate the importance of studying Gastropod microbial communities. Firstly, with respect to understanding links between feeding and evolutionary success and, secondly, as sources of novel enzymes with biotechnological potential, such as, CAZYmes that could be used in the production of biofuel.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan Joynson
- School of Environment and Life Science, University of Salford, Greater Manchester, United Kingdom.,Earlham Institute, Norwich, United Kingdom
| | - Leighton Pritchard
- Information and Computational Sciences, James Hutton Institute, Dundee, United Kingdom
| | - Ekenakema Osemwekha
- School of Environment and Life Science, University of Salford, Greater Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Natalie Ferry
- School of Environment and Life Science, University of Salford, Greater Manchester, United Kingdom
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46
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Moreira-Soto RD, Sanchez E, Currie CR, Pinto-Tomás AA. Ultrastructural and microbial analyses of cellulose degradation in leaf-cutter ant colonies. MICROBIOLOGY-SGM 2017; 163:1578-1589. [PMID: 29034862 DOI: 10.1099/mic.0.000546] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
Leaf-cutter ants (Atta and Acromyrmex) use fresh leaves to cultivate a mutualistic fungus (Leucoagaricus gongylophorus) for food in underground gardens. A new ant queen propagates the cultivar by taking a small fragment of fungus from her parent colony on her nuptial flight and uses it to begin her own colony. Recent research has shown that the ants' fungus gardens are colonized by symbiotic bacteria that perform important functions related to nitrogen fixation and have been implicated in contributing to plant biomass degradation. Here, we combine bacterial culturing in several media for counts and identification using the 16S rRNA gene with electron microscopy to investigate the process of cellulose degradation in the fungus garden and refuse dumps, and to assess the potential role of symbiotic bacteria. We show through electron microscopy that plant cell walls are visibly degraded in the bottom section of fungus gardens and refuse dumps, and that bacteria are more abundant in these sections. We also consistently isolated cellulolytic bacteria from all sections of fungus gardens. Finally, we show by culture-dependent and electron microscopy analysis that the fungus garden pellets carried by recently mated queens are colonized by fungus garden-associated bacteria. Taken together, our results indicate that cellulose is degraded in fungus gardens, and that fungus garden bacteria that may contribute to this deconstruction are vertically transmitted by new queens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rolando Daniel Moreira-Soto
- Centro de Investigación en Estructuras Microscópicas, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica.,Centro de Investigación en Enfermedades Tropicales, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica
| | - Ethel Sanchez
- Centro de Investigación en Estructuras Microscópicas, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica
| | - Cameron R Currie
- Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, Wisconsin, USA.,Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Adrian A Pinto-Tomás
- Centro de Investigación en Estructuras Microscópicas, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica.,Departamento de Bioquímica, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Costa Rica, Costa Rica.,Centro de Investigación en Biología Celular y Molecular, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica
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47
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Zhukova M, Sapountzis P, Schiøtt M, Boomsma JJ. Diversity and Transmission of Gut Bacteria in Atta and Acromyrmex Leaf-Cutting Ants during Development. Front Microbiol 2017; 8:1942. [PMID: 29067008 PMCID: PMC5641371 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.01942] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2017] [Accepted: 09/21/2017] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
The social Hymenoptera have distinct larval and adult stages separated by metamorphosis, which implies striking remodeling of external and internal body structures during the pupal stage. This imposes challenges to gut symbionts as existing cultures are lost and may or may not need to be replaced. To elucidate the extent to which metamorphosis interrupts associations between bacteria and hosts, we analyzed changes in gut microbiota during development and traced the transmission routes of dominant symbionts from the egg to adult stage in the leaf-cutting ants Acromyrmex echinatior and Atta cephalotes, which are both important functional herbivores in the New World tropics. Bacterial density remained similar across the developmental stages of Acromyrmex, but Atta brood had very low bacterial prevalences suggesting that bacterial gut symbionts are not actively maintained. We found that Wolbachia was the absolute dominant bacterial species across developmental stages in Acromyrmex and we confirmed that Atta lacks Wolbachia also in the immature stages, and had mostly Mollicutes bacteria in the adult worker guts. Wolbachia in Acromyrmex appeared to be transovarially transmitted similar to transmission in solitary insects. In contrast, Mollicutes were socially transmitted from old workers to newly emerged callows. We found that larval and pupal guts of both ant species contained Pseudomonas and Enterobacter bacteria that are also found in fungus gardens, but hardly or not in adult workers, suggesting they are beneficial only for larval growth and development. Our results reveal that transmission pathways for bacterial symbionts may be very different both between developmental stages and between sister genera and that identifying the mechanisms of bacterial acquisition and loss will be important to clarify their putative mutualistic functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariya Zhukova
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Panagiotis Sapountzis
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Morten Schiøtt
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Jacobus J Boomsma
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
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48
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Huang Y, Yi Z, Jin Y, Huang M, He K, Liu D, Luo H, Zhao D, He H, Fang Y, Zhao H. Metatranscriptomics Reveals the Functions and Enzyme Profiles of the Microbial Community in Chinese Nong-Flavor Liquor Starter. Front Microbiol 2017; 8:1747. [PMID: 28955318 PMCID: PMC5600954 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.01747] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2017] [Accepted: 08/28/2017] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Chinese liquor is one of the world's best-known distilled spirits and is the largest spirit category by sales. The unique and traditional solid-state fermentation technology used to produce Chinese liquor has been in continuous use for several thousand years. The diverse and dynamic microbial community in a liquor starter is the main contributor to liquor brewing. However, little is known about the ecological distribution and functional importance of these community members. In this study, metatranscriptomics was used to comprehensively explore the active microbial community members and key transcripts with significant functions in the liquor starter production process. Fungi were found to be the most abundant and active community members. A total of 932 carbohydrate-active enzymes, including highly expressed auxiliary activity family 9 and 10 proteins, were identified at 62°C under aerobic conditions. Some potential thermostable enzymes were identified at 50, 62, and 25°C (mature stage). Increased content and overexpressed key enzymes involved in glycolysis and starch, pyruvate and ethanol metabolism were detected at 50 and 62°C. The key enzymes of the citrate cycle were up-regulated at 62°C, and their abundant derivatives are crucial for flavor generation. Here, the metabolism and functional enzymes of the active microbial communities in NF liquor starter were studied, which could pave the way to initiate improvements in liquor quality and to discover microbes that produce novel enzymes or high-value added products.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuhong Huang
- Meat-Processing Application Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, College of Pharmacy and Biological Engineering, Chengdu UniversityChengdu, China.,Environmental Microbiology Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengdu, China.,Key Laboratory of Environmental and Applied Microbiology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengdu, China
| | - Zhuolin Yi
- Environmental Microbiology Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengdu, China.,Key Laboratory of Environmental and Applied Microbiology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengdu, China
| | - Yanling Jin
- Environmental Microbiology Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengdu, China.,Key Laboratory of Environmental and Applied Microbiology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengdu, China
| | - Mengjun Huang
- Environmental Microbiology Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengdu, China.,Key Laboratory of Environmental and Applied Microbiology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengdu, China
| | - Kaize He
- Environmental Microbiology Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengdu, China.,Key Laboratory of Environmental and Applied Microbiology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengdu, China
| | - Dayu Liu
- Meat-Processing Application Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, College of Pharmacy and Biological Engineering, Chengdu UniversityChengdu, China
| | - Huibo Luo
- Liquor Making Bio-Technology and Application of Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Bioengineering College, Sichuan University of Science and EngineeringZigong, China
| | | | - Hui He
- Department of Liquor Making Engineering, Moutai CollegeRenhuai, China
| | - Yang Fang
- Environmental Microbiology Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengdu, China.,Key Laboratory of Environmental and Applied Microbiology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengdu, China
| | - Hai Zhao
- Meat-Processing Application Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, College of Pharmacy and Biological Engineering, Chengdu UniversityChengdu, China.,Environmental Microbiology Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengdu, China.,Key Laboratory of Environmental and Applied Microbiology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengdu, China
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49
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Major changes in microbial diversity and community composition across gut sections of a juvenile Panchlora cockroach. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0177189. [PMID: 28545131 PMCID: PMC5436645 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0177189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2016] [Accepted: 04/24/2017] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Investigations of gut microbiomes have shed light on the diversity and genetic content of these communities, and helped shape our understanding of how host-associated microorganisms influence host physiology, behavior, and health. Despite the importance of gut microbes to metazoans, our understanding of the changes in diversity and composition across the alimentary tract, and the source of the resident community are limited. Here, using community metagenomics and 16S rRNA gene sequencing, we assess microbial community diversity and coding potential in the foregut, midgut, and hindgut of a juvenile Panchlora cockroach, which resides in the refuse piles of the leaf-cutter ant species Atta colombica. We found a significant shift in the microbial community structure and coding potential throughout the three gut sections of Panchlora sp., and through comparison with previously generated metagenomes of the cockroach’s food source and niche, we reveal that this shift in microbial community composition is influenced by the ecosystems in which Panchlora sp. occurs. While the foregut is composed of microbes that likely originate from the symbiotic fungus gardens of the ants, the midgut and hindgut are composed of a microbial community that is likely cockroach-specific. Analogous to mammalian systems, the midgut and hindgut appear to be dominated by Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes with the capacity for polysaccharide degradation, suggesting they may assist in the degradation of dietary plant material. Our work underscores the prominence of community changes throughout gut microbiomes and highlights ecological factors that underpin the structure and function of the symbiotic microbial communities of metazoans.
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50
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Degli Esposti M, Martinez Romero E. The functional microbiome of arthropods. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0176573. [PMID: 28475624 PMCID: PMC5419562 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0176573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2016] [Accepted: 04/12/2017] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Many studies on the microbiome of animals have been reported but a comprehensive analysis is lacking. Here we present a meta-analysis on the microbiomes of arthropods and their terrestrial habitat, focusing on the functional profile of bacterial communities derived from metabolic traits that are essential for microbial life. We report a detailed analysis of probably the largest set of biochemically defined functional traits ever examined in microbiome studies. This work deals with the phylum proteobacteria, which is usually dominant in marine and terrestrial environments and covers all functions associated with microbiomes. The considerable variation in the distribution and abundance of proteobacteria in microbiomes has remained fundamentally unexplained. This analysis reveals discrete functional groups characteristic for adaptation to anaerobic conditions, which appear to be defined by environmental filtering of taxonomically related taxa. The biochemical diversification of the functional groups suggests an evolutionary trajectory in the structure of arthropods' microbiome, from metabolically versatile to specialized proteobacterial organisms that are adapted to complex environments such as the gut of social insects. Bacterial distribution in arthropods' microbiomes also shows taxonomic clusters that do not correspond to functional groups and may derive from other factors, including common contaminants of soil and reagents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mauro Degli Esposti
- Italian Institute of Technology, Genoa, Italy
- Center for Genomic Sciences, UNAM Campus of Cuernavaca, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico
- * E-mail:
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