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Chen S, Zhou A, Xu Y. Symbiotic Bacteria Regulating Insect-Insect/Fungus/Virus Mutualism. INSECTS 2023; 14:741. [PMID: 37754709 PMCID: PMC10531535 DOI: 10.3390/insects14090741] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2023] [Revised: 07/25/2023] [Accepted: 09/02/2023] [Indexed: 09/28/2023]
Abstract
Bacteria associated with insects potentially provide many beneficial services and have been well documented. Mutualism that relates to insects is widespread in ecosystems. However, the interrelation between "symbiotic bacteria" and "mutualism" has rarely been studied. We introduce three systems of mutualism that relate to insects (ants and honeydew-producing Hemiptera, fungus-growing insects and fungi, and plant persistent viruses and vector insects) and review the species of symbiotic bacteria in host insects, as well as their functions in host insects and the mechanisms underlying mutualism regulation. A deeper understanding of the molecular mechanisms and role of symbiotic bacteria, based on metagenomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and microbiology, will be required for describing the entire interaction network.
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Affiliation(s)
- Siqi Chen
- Red Imported Fire Ant Research Center, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China;
| | - Aiming Zhou
- Hubei Insect Resources Utilization and Sustainable Pest Management, Key Laboratory, College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China
| | - Yijuan Xu
- Red Imported Fire Ant Research Center, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China;
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2
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Investigating the Diversity of Wolbachia across the Spiny Ants (Polyrhachis). DIVERSITY 2023. [DOI: 10.3390/d15030348] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/05/2023]
Abstract
Among insects, Wolbachia is an exceedingly common bacterial endosymbiont with a range of consequences of infection. Despite the frequency of Wolbachia infection, very little is known about this bacteria’s diversity and role within hosts, especially within ant hosts. In this study, we analyze the occurrence and diversity of Wolbachia across the spiny ants (Polyrhachis), a large and geographically diverse genus. Polyrhachis samples from throughout the host genus’ phylogenetic and biogeographical range were first screened for single infections of Wolbachia using the wsp gene and Sanger sequencing. The multilocus sequence typing (MLST) scheme was then used on these singly infected samples to identify the Wolbachia strains. A Wolbachia phylogeny was inferred from the Polyrhachis samples analyzed in this study as well as other Formicidae MLST profiles from the MLST online database. We hypothesized that three key host factors were impacting Wolbachia diversity within the Polyrhachis genus: biogeography, phylogeny, and species level. The results suggest that the phylogeny and biogeography of Polyrhachis hosts have no impact on Wolbachia diversity; however, species level may have some limited influence. Additionally, Wolbachia strains appear to group according to being either Old World or New World strains. Among the taxa able to form complete MLST allelic profiles, all twenty are seemingly new strains.
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3
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Ramalho MO, Moreau CS. Untangling the complex interactions between turtle ants and their microbial partners. Anim Microbiome 2023; 5:1. [PMID: 36597141 PMCID: PMC9809061 DOI: 10.1186/s42523-022-00223-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2022] [Accepted: 12/20/2022] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND To understand the patterns of biodiversity it is important to consider symbiotic interactions as they can shape animal evolution. In several ant genera symbiotic interactions with microbial communities have been shown to have profound impacts for the host. For example, we know that for Camponotini the gut community can upgrade the host's diet and is shaped by development and colony interactions. However, what is true for one ant group may not be true for another. For the microbial communities that have been examined across ants we see variation in the diversity, host factors that structure these communities, and the function these microbes provide for the host. In the herbivorous turtle ants (Cephalotes) their stable symbiotic interactions with gut bacteria have persisted for 50 million years with the gut bacteria synthesizing essential amino acids that are used by the host. Although we know the function for some of these turtle ant-associated bacteria there are still many open questions. RESULTS In the present study we examined microbial community diversity (16S rRNA and 18S rRNA amplicons) of more than 75 species of turtle ants across different geographic locations and in the context of the host's phylogenetic history. Our results show (1) that belonging to a certain species and biogeographic regions are relevant to structuring the microbial community of turtle ants; (2) both bacterial and eukaryotic communities demonstrated correlations and cooccurrence within the ant host; (3) within the core bacterial community, Burkholderiaceae bacterial lineage were the only group that showed strong patterns of codiversification with the host, which is remarkable since the core bacterial community is stable and persistent. CONCLUSIONS We concluded that for the turtle ants there is a diverse and evolutionarily stable core bacterial community, which leads to interesting questions about what microbial or host factors influence when these partner histories become evolutionarily intertwined.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuela O. Ramalho
- grid.268132.c0000 0001 0701 2416Department of Biology, West Chester University, 750 South Church Street, West Chester, PA 19383 USA
| | - Corrie S. Moreau
- grid.5386.8000000041936877XDepartment of Entomology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 USA ,grid.5386.8000000041936877XDepartment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 USA
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4
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Alarcón ME, Polo PG, Akyüz SN, Rafiqi AM. Evolution and ontogeny of bacteriocytes in insects. Front Physiol 2022; 13:1034066. [PMID: 36505058 PMCID: PMC9732443 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2022.1034066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2022] [Accepted: 11/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The ontogenetic origins of the bacteriocytes, which are cells that harbour bacterial intracellular endosymbionts in multicellular animals, are unknown. During embryonic development, a series of morphological and transcriptional changes determine the fate of distinct cell types. The ontogeny of bacteriocytes is intimately linked with the evolutionary transition of endosymbionts from an extracellular to an intracellular environment, which in turn is linked to the diet of the host insect. Here we review the evolution and development of bacteriocytes in insects. We first classify the endosymbiotic occupants of bacteriocytes, highlighting the complex challenges they pose to the host. Then, we recall the historical account of the discovery of bacteriocytes. We then summarize the molecular interactions between the endosymbiont and the host. In addition, we illustrate the genetic contexts in which the bacteriocytes develop, with examples of the genetic changes in the hosts and endosymbionts, during specific endosymbiotic associations. We finally address the evolutionary origin as well as the putative ontogenetic or developmental source of bacteriocytes in insects.
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5
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Manthey JD, Girón JC, Hruska JP. Impact of host demography and evolutionary history on endosymbiont molecular evolution: A test in carpenter ants (genus Camponotus) and their Blochmannia endosymbionts. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e9026. [PMID: 35795355 PMCID: PMC9251289 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2022] [Revised: 05/25/2022] [Accepted: 05/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Obligate endosymbioses are tight associations between symbionts and the hosts they live inside. Hosts and their associated obligate endosymbionts generally exhibit codiversification, which has been documented in taxonomically diverse insect lineages. Host demography (e.g., effective population sizes) may impact the demography of endosymbionts, which may lead to an association between host demography and the patterns and processes of endosymbiont molecular evolution. Here, we used whole-genome sequencing data for carpenter ants (Genus Camponotus; subgenera Camponotus and Tanaemyrmex) and their Blochmannia endosymbionts as our study system to address whether Camponotus demography shapes Blochmannia molecular evolution. Using whole-genome phylogenomics, we confirmed previous work identifying codiversification between carpenter ants and their Blochmannia endosymbionts. We found that Blochmannia genes have evolved at a pace ~30× faster than that of their hosts' molecular evolution and that these rates are positively associated with host rates of molecular evolution. Using multiple tests for selection in Blochmannia genes, we found signatures of positive selection and shifts in selection strength across the phylogeny. Host demography was associated with Blochmannia shifts toward increased selection strengths, but not associated with Blochmannia selection relaxation, positive selection, genetic drift rates, or genome size evolution. Mixed support for relationships between host effective population sizes and Blochmannia molecular evolution suggests weak or uncoupled relationships between host demography and Blochmannia population genomic processes. Finally, we found that Blochmannia genome size evolution was associated with genome-wide estimates of genetic drift and number of genes with relaxed selection pressures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph D. Manthey
- Department of Biological SciencesTexas Tech UniversityLubbockTexasUSA
| | - Jennifer C. Girón
- Department of EntomologyPurdue UniversityWest LafayetteIndianaUSA
- Natural Science Research LaboratoryMuseum of Texas Tech UniversityLubbockTexasUSA
| | - Jack P. Hruska
- Department of Biological SciencesTexas Tech UniversityLubbockTexasUSA
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Rafiqi AM, Polo PG, Milat NS, Durmuş ZÖ, Çolak-Al B, Alarcón ME, Çağıl FZ, Rajakumar A. Developmental Integration of Endosymbionts in Insects. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.846586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
In endosymbiosis, two independently existing entities are inextricably intertwined such that they behave as a single unit. For multicellular hosts, the endosymbiont must be integrated within the host developmental genetic network to maintain the relationship. Developmental integration requires innovations in cell type, gene function, gene regulation, and metabolism. These innovations are contingent upon the existing ecological interactions and may evolve mutual interdependence. Recent studies have taken significant steps toward characterizing the proximate mechanisms underlying interdependence. However, the study of developmental integration is only in its early stages of investigation. Here, we review the literature on mutualistic endosymbiosis to explore how unicellular endosymbionts developmentally integrate into their multicellular hosts with emphasis on insects as a model. Exploration of this process will help gain a more complete understanding of endosymbiosis. This will pave the way for a better understanding of the endosymbiotic theory of evolution in the future.
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Carpenter M, Peng L, Smith AH, Joffe J, O’Connor M, Oliver KM, Russell JA. Frequent Drivers, Occasional Passengers: Signals of Symbiont-Driven Seasonal Adaptation and Hitchhiking in the Pea Aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum. INSECTS 2021; 12:805. [PMID: 34564245 PMCID: PMC8466206 DOI: 10.3390/insects12090805] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2021] [Revised: 09/02/2021] [Accepted: 09/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Insects harbor a variety of maternally inherited bacterial symbionts. As such, variation in symbiont presence/absence, in the combinations of harbored symbionts, and in the genotypes of harbored symbiont species provide heritable genetic variation of potential use in the insects' adaptive repertoires. Understanding the natural importance of symbionts is challenging but studying their dynamics over time can help to elucidate the potential for such symbiont-driven insect adaptation. Toward this end, we studied the seasonal dynamics of six maternally transferred bacterial symbiont species in the multivoltine pea aphid (Acyrthosiphon pisum). Our sampling focused on six alfalfa fields in southeastern Pennsylvania, and spanned 14 timepoints within the 2012 growing season, in addition to two overwintering periods. To test and generate hypotheses on the natural relevance of these non-essential symbionts, we examined whether symbiont dynamics correlated with any of ten measured environmental variables from the 2012 growing season, including some of known importance in the lab. We found that five symbionts changed prevalence across one or both overwintering periods, and that the same five species underwent such frequency shifts across the 2012 growing season. Intriguingly, the frequencies of these dynamic symbionts showed robust correlations with a subset of our measured environmental variables. Several of these trends supported the natural relevance of lab-discovered symbiont roles, including anti-pathogen defense. For a seventh symbiont-Hamiltonella defensa-studied previously across the same study periods, we tested whether a reported correlation between prevalence and temperature stemmed not from thermally varying host-level fitness effects, but from selection on co-infecting symbionts or on aphid-encoded alleles associated with this bacterium. In general, such "hitchhiking" effects were not evident during times with strongly correlated Hamiltonella and temperature shifts. However, we did identify at least one time period in which Hamiltonella spread was likely driven by selection on a co-infecting symbiont-Rickettsiella viridis. Recognizing the broader potential for such hitchhiking, we explored selection on co-infecting symbionts as a possible driver behind the dynamics of the remaining six species. Out of twelve examined instances of symbiont dynamics unfolding across 2-week periods or overwintering spans, we found eight in which the focal symbiont underwent parallel frequency shifts under single infection and one or more co-infection contexts. This supported the idea that phenotypic variation created by the presence/absence of individual symbionts is a direct target for selection, and that symbiont effects can be robust under co-habitation with other symbionts. Contrastingly, in two cases, we found that selection may target phenotypes emerging from symbiont co-infections, with specific species combinations driving overall trends for the focal dynamic symbionts, without correlated change under single infection. Finally, in three cases-including the one described above for Hamiltonella-our data suggested that incidental co-infection with a (dis)favored symbiont could lead to large frequency shifts for "passenger" symbionts, conferring no apparent cost or benefit. Such hitchhiking has rarely been studied in heritable symbiont systems. We propose that it is more common than appreciated, given the widespread nature of maternally inherited bacteria, and the frequency of multi-species symbiotic communities across insects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa Carpenter
- Department of Biodiversity, Earth, and Environmental Science, Drexel University, 3250 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; (M.C.); (A.H.S.); (M.O.)
| | - Linyao Peng
- Department of Biology, Drexel University, 3245 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; (L.P.); (J.J.)
| | - Andrew H. Smith
- Department of Biodiversity, Earth, and Environmental Science, Drexel University, 3250 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; (M.C.); (A.H.S.); (M.O.)
- Department of Biology, Drexel University, 3245 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; (L.P.); (J.J.)
| | - Jonah Joffe
- Department of Biology, Drexel University, 3245 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; (L.P.); (J.J.)
| | - Michael O’Connor
- Department of Biodiversity, Earth, and Environmental Science, Drexel University, 3250 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; (M.C.); (A.H.S.); (M.O.)
| | - Kerry M. Oliver
- Department of Entomology, University of Georgia, 120 Cedar St., Athens, GA 30602, USA;
| | - Jacob A. Russell
- Department of Biodiversity, Earth, and Environmental Science, Drexel University, 3250 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; (M.C.); (A.H.S.); (M.O.)
- Department of Biology, Drexel University, 3245 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; (L.P.); (J.J.)
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8
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Petit S, Weyland JJ, Brumley C, Kehoe MA, Wang C. First record of
Aphis lugentis
in Australia, tended by native ants on
Senecio odoratus. AUSTRAL ECOL 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/aec.13056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sophie Petit
- ScaRCE Research Centre University of South Australia Mawson Lakes South Australia 5095 Australia
- Kangaroo Island Research Station, Dudley West Penneshaw South Australia Australia
| | - John J. Weyland
- ScaRCE Research Centre University of South Australia Mawson Lakes South Australia 5095 Australia
| | - Cameron Brumley
- Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, 3 Baron‐Hay Court South Perth Western Australia Australia
| | - Monica A. Kehoe
- Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, 3 Baron‐Hay Court South Perth Western Australia Australia
| | - Cuiping Wang
- Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, 3 Baron‐Hay Court South Perth Western Australia Australia
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9
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Flynn PJ, D'Amelio CL, Sanders JG, Russell JA, Moreau CS. Localization of bacterial communities within gut compartments across Cephalotes turtle ants. Appl Environ Microbiol 2021; 87:AEM.02803-20. [PMID: 33579688 PMCID: PMC8091110 DOI: 10.1128/aem.02803-20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2020] [Accepted: 02/05/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Microbial communities within the animal digestive tract often provide important functions for their hosts. The composition of eukaryotes' gut bacteria can be shaped by host diet, vertical bacterial transmission, and physiological variation within the digestive tract. In several ant taxa, recent findings have demonstrated that nitrogen provisioning by symbiotic bacteria makes up for deficiencies in herbivorous diets. Using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing and qPCR, this study examined bacterial communities at a fine scale across one such animal group, the turtle ant genus Cephalotes We analyzed the composition and colonization density across four portions of the digestive tract to understand how bacterial diversity is structured across gut compartments, potentially allowing for specific metabolic functions of benefit to the host. In addition, we aimed to understand if caste differentiation or host relatedness influences the gut bacterial communities of Cephalotes ants. Microbial communities were found to vary strongly across Cephalotes gut compartments in ways that transcend both caste and host phylogeny. Despite this, caste and host phylogeny still have detectable effects. We demonstrated microbial community divergence across gut compartments, possibly due to the varying function of each gut compartment for digestion.IMPORTANCE Gut compartments play an important role in structuring the microbial community within individual ants. The gut chambers of the turtle ant digestive tract differ remarkably in symbiont abundance and diversity. Furthermore, caste type explains some variation in the microbiome composition. Finally, the evolutionary history of the Cephalotes species structures the microbiome in our study, which elucidates a trend in which related ants maintain related microbiomes, conceivably owing to co-speciation. Amazingly, gut compartment-specific signatures of microbial diversity, relative abundance, composition, and abundance have been conserved over Cephalotes evolutionary history, signifying that this symbiosis has been largely stable for over 50 million years.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter J Flynn
- University of Chicago, Committee on Evolutionary Biology, Chicago, IL, 60605 USA
| | - Catherine L D'Amelio
- Drexel University, Department of Biodiversity, Earth and Environmental Science, Philadelphia, PA, 19104 USA
| | - Jon G Sanders
- Cornell University, Department Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Ithaca, NY, 14850 USA
| | - Jacob A Russell
- Drexel University, Department of Biodiversity, Earth and Environmental Science, Philadelphia, PA, 19104 USA
| | - Corrie S Moreau
- Cornell University, Department Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Ithaca, NY, 14850 USA
- Cornell University, Department of Entomology, Ithaca, NY, 14850 USA
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10
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Gram-negative bacteria associated with a dominant arboreal ant species outcompete phyllosphere-associated bacteria species in a tropical canopy. Oecologia 2021; 195:959-970. [PMID: 33630170 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-021-04878-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2020] [Accepted: 02/10/2021] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Ants have efficient and well-studied social immunity mechanisms, which prevent the colony contamination. Little is known about how workers keep their outside territory clear of diseases. We investigated the interactions between Azteca chartifex ants, their associated bacteria and bacteria on the phyllosphere of Byrsonima sericea trees, comparing plants patrolled and not by the ants. The hypothesis is that bacteria associated with the worker's exoskeleton may outcompete the leaf bacteria. Culturable bacteria were isolated from ants, from the main and satellite nests, and from phyllosphere of B. sericea taken from trees that had A. chartifex nests and from trees without nests. The isolates were grouped by Gram guilds and identified at the genus level. There was a higher percentage of Gram-negative isolates in the ants and on the leaves patrolled by them. There was a higher growth rate of ant bacteria from the main nest compared to those found in ants from the satellite nests. The most representative genus among ant isolates was Enterobacter, also found on leaves patrolled by ants. Under favourable in vitro conditions, A. chartifex Gram-negative bacteria outcompete leaf bacteria by overgrowth, showing a greater competition capacity over the Gram-positive bacteria from leaves with no previous interaction with ants in the field. It was demonstrated that ants carry bacteria capable of outcompeting exogenous bacteria associated with their outside territory. The leaf microbiota of a patrolled tree could be shaped by the ant microbiota, suggesting that large ant colonies may have a key role in structuring canopy plant-microbe interactions.
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11
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Gonçalves WG, Fernandes KM, Silva APA, Gonçalves DG, Fiaz M, Serrão JE. Ultrastructure of the Bacteriocytes in the Midgut of the Carpenter ant Camponotus rufipes: Endosymbiont Control by Autophagy. MICROSCOPY AND MICROANALYSIS : THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF MICROSCOPY SOCIETY OF AMERICA, MICROBEAM ANALYSIS SOCIETY, MICROSCOPICAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 2020; 26:1236-1244. [PMID: 32924896 DOI: 10.1017/s1431927620024484] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
The carpenter ant Camponotus rufipes has intracellular bacteria in bacteriocytes scattered in the midgut epithelium, which have different amounts of endosymbionts, according to the developmental stages. However, there are no detailed data about the midgut cells in adult workers. The present work aimed to evaluate the morphology and cellular events that coordinate the abundance of endosymbionts in the midgut cells in C. rufipes workers. The midgut epithelium has digestive cells, bacteriocytes, and cells with intermediate morphology. The latter is similar to bacteriocytes, due to the abundance of endosymbionts, and similar to digestive cells, due to their microvilli. The digestive and intermediate cells are rich in autophagosomes and autolysosomes, both with bacteria debris in the lumen. These findings suggest that midgut cells of C. rufipes control the endosymbiont level by the autophagy pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wagner G Gonçalves
- Department of General Biology, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Brazil
| | - Kenner M Fernandes
- Department of General Biology, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Brazil
| | - Ana Paula A Silva
- Department of Entomology, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Brazil
| | - Danilo G Gonçalves
- Department of Basic and Life Sciences, Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora, Governador Valadares, Brazil
| | - Muhammad Fiaz
- Department of Entomology, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Brazil
| | - José Eduardo Serrão
- Department of General Biology, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Brazil
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12
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Origin and elaboration of a major evolutionary transition in individuality. Nature 2020; 585:239-244. [DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2653-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2018] [Accepted: 06/03/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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13
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Moreau CS. Symbioses among ants and microbes. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2020; 39:1-5. [PMID: 32078984 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2020.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2019] [Revised: 12/30/2019] [Accepted: 01/01/2020] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Ants have been shown to engage in symbiosis across the tree of life, although our knowledge is far from complete. These interactions range from mutualistic to parasitic with several instances of manipulation of host behavior. Nutrient contributions in these symbioses include both farming for food and nitrogen recycling by gut-associated microbes. Interestingly, the ants that are mostly likely to host diverse and likely functional gut microbial communities are those that feed on extreme diets. Although we do see many instances of symbiosis between ants and microbes, there are also examples of species without a functional gut microbiome. Symbiosis among microbes and eukaryotic hosts is common and often considered a hallmark of multicellular evolution [1]. This is true among many of the over 13000 species of ants, although symbiosis between ants and microbes are not ubiquitous. These microbial-ant symbiotic interactions span the tree of life and include microbial eukaryotes, fungi, viruses, and bacteria. These interactions range from pathogenic to mutualistic, with many relationships still not well understood. Although our knowledge of the diversity of these microbes in ants is growing rapidly, and in some cases we know the function and interaction with the host, we still have much to learn about - the little things that run the little things that run the world!
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Affiliation(s)
- Corrie S Moreau
- Cornell University, Departments of Entomology and Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, 129 Garden Avenue, Ithaca, NY, 14850, USA.
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14
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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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15
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Development but not diet alters microbial communities in the Neotropical arboreal trap jaw ant Daceton armigerum: an exploratory study. Sci Rep 2020; 10:7350. [PMID: 32355187 PMCID: PMC7192945 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-64393-7] [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: 10/21/2019] [Accepted: 03/31/2020] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
To better understand the evolutionary significance of symbiotic interactions in nature, microbiome studies can help to identify the ecological factors that may shape host-associated microbial communities. In this study we explored both 16S and 18S rRNA microbial communities of D. armigerum from both wild caught individuals collected in the Amazon and individuals kept in the laboratory and fed on controlled diets. We also investigated the role of colony, sample type, development and caste on structuring microbial communities. Our bacterial results (16S rRNA) reveal that (1) there are colony level differences between bacterial communities; (2) castes do not structure communities; (3) immature stages (brood) have different bacterial communities than adults; and 4) individuals kept in the laboratory with a restricted diet showed no differences in their bacterial communities from their wild caught nest mates, which could indicate the presence of a stable and persistent resident bacterial community in this host species. The same categories were also tested for microbial eukaryote communities (18S rRNA), and (5) developmental stage has an influence on the diversity recovered; (6) the diversity of taxa recovered has shown this can be an important tool to understand additional aspects of host biology and species interactions.
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Rogy P, Hammill E, Smith MA, Rost-Komiya B, Srivastava DS. Bromeliads affect the interactions and composition of invertebrates on their support tree. Oecologia 2020; 192:879-891. [PMID: 32067120 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-020-04616-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2019] [Accepted: 02/05/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Individual species can have profound effects on ecological communities, but, in hyperdiverse systems, it can be challenging to determine the underlying ecological mechanisms. Simplifying species' responses by trophic level or functional group may be useful, but characterizing the trait structure of communities may be better related to niche processes. A largely overlooked trait in such community-level analyses is behaviour. In the Neotropics, epiphytic tank bromeliads (Bromeliaceae) harbour a distinct fauna of terrestrial invertebrates that is mainly composed of predators, such as ants and spiders. As these bromeliad-associated predators tend to forage on the bromeliads' support tree, they may influence the arboreal invertebrate fauna. We examined how, by increasing associated predator habitat, bromeliads may affect arboreal invertebrates. Specifically, we observed the trophic and functional group composition, and the behaviour and interspecific interactions of arboreal invertebrates in trees with and without bromeliads. Bromeliads modified the functional composition of arboreal invertebrates, but not the overall abundance of predators and herbivores. Bromeliads did not alter the overall behavioural profile of arboreal invertebrates, but did lead to more positive interactions in the day than at night, with a reverse pattern on trees without bromeliads. In particular, tending behaviours were influenced by bromeliad-associated predators. These results indicate that detailed examination of the functional affiliations and behaviour of organisms can reveal complex effects of habitat-forming species like bromeliads, even when total densities of trophic groups are insensitive.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pierre Rogy
- Department of Zoology and Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, 6270 University Boulevard, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada.
| | - Edd Hammill
- Department of Watershed Sciences, Utah State University, 5210 Old Main Hill, NR 210, Logan, UT, 84322-5210, USA
| | - M Alex Smith
- Department of Integrative Biology, Summerlee Science Complex, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Beatrice Rost-Komiya
- Department of Zoology and Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, 6270 University Boulevard, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Diane S Srivastava
- Department of Zoology and Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, 6270 University Boulevard, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada
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Reeves DD, Price SL, Ramalho MO, Moreau CS. The Diversity and Distribution of Wolbachia, Rhizobiales, and Ophiocordyceps Within the Widespread Neotropical Turtle Ant, Cephalotes atratus (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). NEOTROPICAL ENTOMOLOGY 2020; 49:52-60. [PMID: 31912447 DOI: 10.1007/s13744-019-00735-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2019] [Accepted: 10/24/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Ants are an ecologically and evolutionarily diverse group, and they harbor a wide range of symbiotic microbial communities that often greatly affect their biology. Turtle ants (genus Cephalotes) engage in mutualistic relationships with gut bacteria and are exploited by microbial parasites. Studies have shown that associations among these microbial lineages and the turtle ant hosts vary geographically. However, these studies have been limited, and thorough within-species analyses of the variation and structure of these microbial communities have yet to be conducted. The giant turtle ant, Cephalotes atratus (Linnaeus 1758), is a geographically widespread, genetically diverse Neotropical species that has been sampled extensively across its geographic range, making it ideal for analysis of microbial associations. In this study, we verified the presence, genetic variation, and geographic patterns at the individual, colony, and population level of three microbial groups associated with the giant turtle ant: Wolbachia, a genus of facultative bacteria which are often parasitic, affecting host reproduction; Rhizobiales, a mutualistic order of bacteria hypothesized to be an obligate nutritional symbiont in turtle ants; and Ophiocordyceps, a genus of endoparasitic fungi infecting many arthropod species by manipulating their behavior for fungal reproduction. In this study, we found varying degrees of prevalence for two distantly related genotypes (haplogroups) of Wolbachia and high degree of prevalence of Rhizobiales across colonies with little genetic variation. In addition, we found low occurrence of Ophiocordyceps. This study highlights a key first step in understanding the diversity, distribution, and prevalence of the microbial community of C. atratus.
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Affiliation(s)
- D D Reeves
- Department of Science and Education, Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - S L Price
- Department of Science and Education, Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - M O Ramalho
- Department of Science and Education, Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, USA.
- Department of Entomology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.
| | - C S Moreau
- Department of Science and Education, Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, USA
- Department of Entomology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
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Kaczmarczyk-Ziemba A, Zagaja M, Wagner GK, Pietrykowska-Tudruj E, Staniec B. The microbiota of the Lasius fuliginosus – Pella laticollis myrmecophilous interaction. THE EUROPEAN ZOOLOGICAL JOURNAL 2020. [DOI: 10.1080/24750263.2020.1844322] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- A. Kaczmarczyk-Ziemba
- Department of Genetics and Biosystematics, Faculty of Biology, University of Gdansk, Gdansk, Poland
| | - M. Zagaja
- Isobolographic Analysis Laboratory, Institute of Rural Health, Lublin, Poland
| | - G. K. Wagner
- Department of Zoology and Nature Protection, Maria Curie-Sklodowska University, Lublin, Poland
| | - E. Pietrykowska-Tudruj
- Department of Zoology and Nature Protection, Maria Curie-Sklodowska University, Lublin, Poland
| | - B. Staniec
- Department of Zoology and Nature Protection, Maria Curie-Sklodowska University, Lublin, Poland
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Sinotte VM, Freedman SN, Ugelvig LV, Seid MA. Camponotusfloridanus Ants Incur a Trade-Off between Phenotypic Development and Pathogen Susceptibility from Their Mutualistic Endosymbiont Blochmannia. INSECTS 2018; 9:E58. [PMID: 29857577 PMCID: PMC6023366 DOI: 10.3390/insects9020058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2018] [Revised: 05/23/2018] [Accepted: 05/30/2018] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Various insects engage in microbial mutualisms in which the reciprocal benefits exceed the costs. Ants of the genus Camponotus benefit from nutrient supplementation by their mutualistic endosymbiotic bacteria, Blochmannia, but suffer a cost in tolerating and regulating the symbiont. This cost suggests that the ants face secondary consequences such as susceptibility to pathogenic infection and transmission. In order to elucidate the symbiont's effects on development and disease defence, Blochmannia floridanus was reduced in colonies of Camponotus floridanus using antibiotics. Colonies with reduced symbiont levels exhibited workers of smaller body size, smaller colony size, and a lower major-to-minor worker caste ratio, indicating the symbiont's crucial role in development. Moreover, these ants had decreased cuticular melanisation, yet higher resistance to the entomopathogen Metarhizium brunneum, suggesting that the symbiont reduces the ants' ability to fight infection, despite the availability of melanin to aid in mounting an immune response. While the benefits of improved growth and development likely drive the mutualism, the symbiont imposes a critical trade-off. The ants' increased susceptibility to infection exacerbates the danger of pathogen transmission, a significant risk given ants' social lifestyle. Thus, the results warrant research into potential adaptations of the ants and pathogens that remedy and exploit the described disease vulnerability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronica M Sinotte
- Department of Biology, Program of Neuroscience, University of Scranton, Loyola Science Center, Scranton, PA 1851-4699, USA.
- Centre for Social Evolution, Section for Ecology and Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark.
| | - Samantha N Freedman
- Department of Biology, Program of Neuroscience, University of Scranton, Loyola Science Center, Scranton, PA 1851-4699, USA.
- Department of Pathology, University of Iowa, 1080 Medical Laboratories, 500 Newton Road, Iowa City, IA 52242-8205, USA.
| | - Line V Ugelvig
- Centre for Social Evolution, Section for Ecology and Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark.
| | - Marc A Seid
- Department of Biology, Program of Neuroscience, University of Scranton, Loyola Science Center, Scranton, PA 1851-4699, USA.
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Ramalho MO, Vieira AS, Pereira MC, Moreau CS, Bueno OC. Transovarian Transmission of Blochmannia and Wolbachia Endosymbionts in the Neotropical Weaver Ant Camponotus textor (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Curr Microbiol 2018; 75:866-873. [PMID: 29468305 DOI: 10.1007/s00284-018-1459-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2017] [Accepted: 02/19/2018] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Camponotus is a hyper-diverse ant genus that is associated with the obligate endosymbiont Blochmannia, and often also with Wolbachia, but morphological studies on the location of these bacteria in the queen's ovaries during oogenesis remain limited. In the present study, we used the Neotropical weaver ant Camponotus textor to characterize the ovary using histology (HE) techniques, and to document the location of Blochmannia and Wolbachia during oogenesis through fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). This is the first morphological report of these two bacteria in the same host with polytrophic meroistic ovaries and reveals that Blochmannia is found inside late-stage oocytes and Wolbachia is associated with the nuclei of the nurse cells. Our results provide insights into the developmental sequence of when these bacteria reach the egg, with Blochmannia establishing itself in the egg first, and Wolbachia only reaching the egg shortly before completing egg development. Studies such as this provide understanding about the mechanisms and timing of the establishment of these endosymbionts in the host.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuela Oliveira Ramalho
- Departament of Biology e Center for Studies on Social Insects, Biosciense Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Campus Rio Claro, Avenida 24A, 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro, SP, 13506-900, Brazil. .,Field Museum of Natural History, Department of Science and Education, Integrative Research Center, 1400 South Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL, 60605, USA.
| | - Alexsandro Santana Vieira
- Departament of Biology e Center for Studies on Social Insects, Biosciense Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Campus Rio Claro, Avenida 24A, 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro, SP, 13506-900, Brazil
| | - Mayara Cristina Pereira
- Departament of Biology e Center for Studies on Social Insects, Biosciense Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Campus Rio Claro, Avenida 24A, 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro, SP, 13506-900, Brazil
| | - Corrie Saux Moreau
- Field Museum of Natural History, Department of Science and Education, Integrative Research Center, 1400 South Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL, 60605, USA
| | - Odair Correa Bueno
- Departament of Biology e Center for Studies on Social Insects, Biosciense Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Campus Rio Claro, Avenida 24A, 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro, SP, 13506-900, Brazil
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Ramalho MO, Bueno OC, Moreau CS. Species-specific signatures of the microbiome from Camponotus and Colobopsis ants across developmental stages. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0187461. [PMID: 29166404 PMCID: PMC5699820 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0187461] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2017] [Accepted: 10/22/2017] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Symbiotic relationships between hosts and bacteria are common in nature, and these may be responsible for the evolutionary success of various groups of animals. Among ants, these associations have been well studied in some genera of the Camponotini, but several questions remain regarding the generality of the previous findings across all the members of this ant tribe and if bacterial communities change across development in these hosts. This study is the first to characterize the bacterial community associated with a colony of the recently recognized genus Colobopsis and three colonies of Camponotus (two distinct species) and show how different the composition of the bacterial community is when compared across the different genera. Our data reveal that Colobopsis (species: Co. riehlii) and Camponotus (species: Ca. floridanus and Ca. planatus) have distinct microbiota, and we were able to verify that the identity of the species contributes more to the bacterial diversity. We also demonstrated that there were no significant differences between colonies of the same species (Camponotus planatus), and between stages of development from different colonies. We did find that some developmental stages have distinct bacteria, confirming that each stage of development could have a specific microbiota. Our results show species are one of the factors that shape the bacterial community in these Camponotini ants. Additional studies of the intra-colonial microbiome of other hosts and across development may reveal additional clues about the function and importance of bacteria in colony recognition, individual and colony health, and nutritional upgrading.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuela Oliveira Ramalho
- Universidade Estadual Paulista “Júlio de Mesquita Filho” UNESP–Instituto de Biociências—Campus Rio Claro, Departamento de Biologia e Centro de Estudos de Insetos Sociais, Bela Vista, Rio Claro-SP, Brasil
- Field Museum of Natural History, Department of Science and Education, Integrative Research Center, Chicago, IL, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Odair Correa Bueno
- Universidade Estadual Paulista “Júlio de Mesquita Filho” UNESP–Instituto de Biociências—Campus Rio Claro, Departamento de Biologia e Centro de Estudos de Insetos Sociais, Bela Vista, Rio Claro-SP, Brasil
| | - Corrie Saux Moreau
- Field Museum of Natural History, Department of Science and Education, Integrative Research Center, Chicago, IL, United States of America
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Wernegreen JJ. Ancient bacterial endosymbionts of insects: Genomes as sources of insight and springboards for inquiry. Exp Cell Res 2017; 358:427-432. [DOI: 10.1016/j.yexcr.2017.04.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2016] [Revised: 04/24/2017] [Accepted: 04/25/2017] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
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Sanders JG, Łukasik P, Frederickson ME, Russell JA, Koga R, Knight R, Pierce NE. Dramatic Differences in Gut Bacterial Densities Correlate with Diet and Habitat in Rainforest Ants. Integr Comp Biol 2017; 57:705-722. [DOI: 10.1093/icb/icx088] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
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Łukasik P, Newton JA, Sanders JG, Hu Y, Moreau CS, Kronauer DJC, O'Donnell S, Koga R, Russell JA. The structured diversity of specialized gut symbionts of the New World army ants. Mol Ecol 2017; 26:3808-3825. [PMID: 28393425 DOI: 10.1111/mec.14140] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2016] [Revised: 03/13/2017] [Accepted: 04/03/2017] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Symbiotic bacteria play important roles in the biology of their arthropod hosts. Yet the microbiota of many diverse and influential groups remain understudied, resulting in a paucity of information on the fidelities and histories of these associations. Motivated by prior findings from a smaller scale, 16S rRNA-based study, we conducted a broad phylogenetic and geographic survey of microbial communities in the ecologically dominant New World army ants (Formicidae: Dorylinae). Amplicon sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene across 28 species spanning the five New World genera showed that the microbial communities of army ants consist of very few common and abundant bacterial species. The two most abundant microbes, referred to as Unclassified Firmicutes and Unclassified Entomoplasmatales, appear to be specialized army ant associates that dominate microbial communities in the gut lumen of three host genera, Eciton, Labidus and Nomamyrmex. Both are present in other army ant genera, including those from the Old World, suggesting that army ant symbioses date back to the Cretaceous. Extensive sequencing of bacterial protein-coding genes revealed multiple strains of these symbionts coexisting within colonies, but seldom within the same individual ant. Bacterial strains formed multiple host species-specific lineages on phylogenies, which often grouped strains from distant geographic locations. These patterns deviate from those seen in other social insects and raise intriguing questions about the influence of army ant colony swarm-founding and within-colony genetic diversity on strain coexistence, and the effects of hosting a diverse suite of symbiont strains on colony ecology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Piotr Łukasik
- Department of Biology, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Justin A Newton
- Department of Biology, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Jon G Sanders
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Yi Hu
- Department of Biology, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Corrie S Moreau
- Department of Science and Education, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Daniel J C Kronauer
- Laboratory of Social Evolution and Behavior, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Sean O'Donnell
- Department of Biology, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Ryuichi Koga
- Bioproduction Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Jacob A Russell
- Department of Biology, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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Ramalho MO, Bueno OC, Moreau CS. Microbial composition of spiny ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Polyrhachis) across their geographic range. BMC Evol Biol 2017; 17:96. [PMID: 28381207 PMCID: PMC5382451 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-017-0945-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2016] [Accepted: 03/23/2017] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Symbiotic relationships between insects and bacteria are found across almost all insect orders, including Hymenoptera. However there are still many remaining questions about these associations including what factors drive host-associated bacterial composition. To better understand the evolutionary significance of this association in nature, further studies addressing a diversity of hosts across locations and evolutionary history are necessary. Ants of the genus Polyrhachis (spiny ants) are distributed across the Old World and exhibit generalist diets and habits. Using Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) and bioinformatics tools, this study explores the microbial community of >80 species of Polyrhachis distributed across the Old World and compares the microbiota of samples and related hosts across different biogeographic locations and in the context of their phylogenetic history. Results The predominant bacteria across samples were Enterobacteriaceae (Blochmannia - with likely many new strains), followed by Wolbachia (with multiple strains), Lactobacillus, Thiotrichaceae, Acinetobacter, Nocardia, Sodalis, and others. We recovered some exclusive strains of Enterobacteriaceae as specific to some subgenera of Polyrhachis, corroborating the idea of coevolution between host and bacteria for this bacterial group. Our correlation results (partial mantel and mantel tests) found that host phylogeny can influence the overall bacterial community, but that geographic location had no effect. Conclusions Our work is revealing important aspects of the biology of hosts in structuring the diversity and abundance of these host-associated bacterial communities including the role of host phylogeny and shared evolutionary history. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12862-017-0945-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuela Oliveira Ramalho
- Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho" UNESP - Campus Rio Claro, Biologia, CEIS. Av. 24A, 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro, SP, 13506-900, Brazil. .,Field Museum of Natural History, Department of Science and Education, Integrative Research Center, 1400 South Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL, 60605, USA.
| | - Odair Correa Bueno
- Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho" UNESP - Campus Rio Claro, Biologia, CEIS. Av. 24A, 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro, SP, 13506-900, Brazil
| | - Corrie Saux Moreau
- Field Museum of Natural History, Department of Science and Education, Integrative Research Center, 1400 South Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL, 60605, USA
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Ramalho MO, Martins C, Silva LMR, Martins VG, Bueno OC. Intracellular Symbiotic Bacteria of Camponotus textor, Forel (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Curr Microbiol 2017; 74:589-597. [PMID: 28261755 DOI: 10.1007/s00284-017-1201-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2016] [Accepted: 01/19/2017] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
This study focuses on the weaver ant, Camponotus textor, Forel which occurs in some areas of the Brazilian Cerrado and Atlantic Forest, and its symbionts: Blochmannia, an obligate symbiont of Camponotus, and Wolbachia, known for causing reproductive alterations in their hosts. The main goal of this study was to investigate the presence, frequency of occurrence, and diversity of Wolbachia and Blochmannia strains in C. textor colonies. We found high infection rates (100%) and the occurrence of at least two distinct strains of Blochmannia (H_1 or H_7) in the same species. The observed haplotype variation within a single species may result from the high mutation rate of the symbiont. Similarly, the Wolbachia was found in all colonies with different rates of infections and a new strain (supergroup A) was deposited in the MLST database. The diversity found in the present study shows that there is still much to explore to understand about these symbiotic interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuela O Ramalho
- Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho" UNESP - Campus Rio Claro, Biologia, CEIS, Av. 24A, 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro, SP, 13506-900, Brazil.
| | - Cintia Martins
- Universidade Federal do Piauí - Campus Ministro Reis Velloso, Av. São Sebastião, 2819, 64.202-020, Parnaíba, Piauí, Brazil
| | - Larissa M R Silva
- Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho" UNESP - Campus Rio Claro, Biologia, CEIS, Av. 24A, 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro, SP, 13506-900, Brazil
| | - Vanderlei G Martins
- Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho" UNESP - Campus Rio Claro, Biologia, CEIS, Av. 24A, 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro, SP, 13506-900, Brazil
| | - Odair C Bueno
- Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho" UNESP - Campus Rio Claro, Biologia, CEIS, Av. 24A, 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro, SP, 13506-900, Brazil
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Blaimer BB, Brady SG, Schultz TR, Lloyd MW, Fisher BL, Ward PS. Phylogenomic methods outperform traditional multi-locus approaches in resolving deep evolutionary history: a case study of formicine ants. BMC Evol Biol 2015; 15:271. [PMID: 26637372 PMCID: PMC4670518 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-015-0552-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 103] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2015] [Accepted: 11/26/2015] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Ultraconserved elements (UCEs) have been successfully used in phylogenomics for a variety of taxa, but their power in phylogenetic inference has yet to be extensively compared with that of traditional Sanger sequencing data sets. Moreover, UCE data on invertebrates, including insects, are sparse. We compared the phylogenetic informativeness of 959 UCE loci with a multi-locus data set of ten nuclear markers obtained via Sanger sequencing, testing the ability of these two types of data to resolve and date the evolutionary history of the second most species-rich subfamily of ants in the world, the Formicinae. RESULTS Phylogenetic analyses show that UCEs are superior in resolving ancient and shallow relationships in formicine ants, demonstrated by increased node support and a more resolved phylogeny. Phylogenetic informativeness metrics indicate a twofold improvement relative to the 10-gene data matrix generated from the identical set of taxa. We were able to significantly improve formicine classification based on our comprehensive UCE phylogeny. Our divergence age estimations, using both UCE and Sanger data, indicate that crown-group Formicinae are older (104-117 Ma) than previously suggested. Biogeographic analyses infer that the diversification of the subfamily has occurred on all continents with no particular hub of cladogenesis. CONCLUSIONS We found UCEs to be far superior to the multi-locus data set in estimating formicine relationships. The early history of the clade remains uncertain due to ancient rapid divergence events that are unresolvable even with our genomic-scale data, although this might be largely an effect of several problematic taxa subtended by long branches. Our comparison of divergence ages from both Sanger and UCE data demonstrates the effectiveness of UCEs for dating analyses. This comparative study highlights both the promise and limitations of UCEs for insect phylogenomics, and will prove useful to the growing number of evolutionary biologists considering the transition from Sanger to next-generation sequencing approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bonnie B Blaimer
- Department of Entomology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, 20560, USA.
| | - Seán G Brady
- Department of Entomology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, 20560, USA.
| | - Ted R Schultz
- Department of Entomology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, 20560, USA.
| | - Michael W Lloyd
- Department of Entomology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, 20560, USA.
| | - Brian L Fisher
- Department of Entomology, California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, CA, 94118, USA.
| | - Philip S Ward
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA, 95616, USA.
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Wernegreen JJ. Endosymbiont evolution: predictions from theory and surprises from genomes. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2015; 1360:16-35. [PMID: 25866055 DOI: 10.1111/nyas.12740] [Citation(s) in RCA: 82] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2014] [Revised: 01/27/2015] [Accepted: 02/11/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Genome data have created new opportunities to untangle evolutionary processes shaping microbial variation. Among bacteria, long-term mutualists of insects represent the smallest and (typically) most AT-rich genomes. Evolutionary theory provides a context to predict how an endosymbiotic lifestyle may alter fundamental evolutionary processes--mutation, selection, genetic drift, and recombination--and thus contribute to extreme genomic outcomes. These predictions can then be explored by comparing evolutionary rates, genome size and stability, and base compositional biases across endosymbiotic and free-living bacteria. Recent surprises from such comparisons include genome reduction among uncultured, free-living species. Some studies suggest that selection generally drives this streamlining, while drift drives genome reduction in endosymbionts; however, this remains an hypothesis requiring additional data. Unexpected evidence of selection acting on endosymbiont GC content hints that even weak selection may be effective in some long-term mutualists. Moving forward, intraspecific analysis offers a promising approach to distinguish underlying mechanisms, by testing the null hypothesis of neutrality and by quantifying mutational spectra. Such analyses may clarify whether endosymbionts and free-living bacteria occupy distinct evolutionary trajectories or, alternatively, represent varied outcomes of similar underlying forces.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer J Wernegreen
- Nicholas School of the Environment and Center for Genomic and Computational Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
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Williams LE, Wernegreen JJ. Genome evolution in an ancient bacteria-ant symbiosis: parallel gene loss among Blochmannia spanning the origin of the ant tribe Camponotini. PeerJ 2015; 3:e881. [PMID: 25861561 PMCID: PMC4389277 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.881] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2014] [Accepted: 03/18/2015] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Stable associations between bacterial endosymbionts and insect hosts provide opportunities to explore genome evolution in the context of established mutualisms and assess the roles of selection and genetic drift across host lineages and habitats. Blochmannia, obligate endosymbionts of ants of the tribe Camponotini, have coevolved with their ant hosts for ∼40 MY. To investigate early events in Blochmannia genome evolution across this ant host tribe, we sequenced Blochmannia from two divergent host lineages, Colobopsis obliquus and Polyrhachis turneri, and compared them with four published genomes from Blochmannia of Camponotus sensu stricto. Reconstructed gene content of the last common ancestor (LCA) of these six Blochmannia genomes is reduced (690 protein coding genes), consistent with rapid gene loss soon after establishment of the symbiosis. Differential gene loss among Blochmannia lineages has affected cellular functions and metabolic pathways, including DNA replication and repair, vitamin biosynthesis and membrane proteins. Blochmannia of P. turneri (i.e., B. turneri) encodes an intact DnaA chromosomal replication initiation protein, demonstrating that loss of dnaA was not essential for establishment of the symbiosis. Based on gene content, B. obliquus and B. turneri are unable to provision hosts with riboflavin. Of the six sequenced Blochmannia, B. obliquus is the earliest diverging lineage (i.e., the sister group of other Blochmannia sampled) and encodes the fewest protein-coding genes and the most pseudogenes. We identified 55 genes involved in parallel gene loss, including glutamine synthetase, which may participate in nitrogen recycling. Pathways for biosynthesis of coenzyme A, terpenoids and riboflavin were lost in multiple lineages, suggesting relaxed selection on the pathway after inactivation of one component. Analysis of Illumina read datasets did not detect evidence of plasmids encoding missing functions, nor the presence of coresident symbionts other than Wolbachia. Although gene order is strictly conserved in four Blochmannia of Camponotus sensu stricto, comparisons with deeply divergent lineages revealed inversions in eight genomic regions, indicating ongoing recombination despite ancestral loss of recA. In sum, the addition of two Blochmannia genomes of divergent host lineages enables reconstruction of early events in evolution of this symbiosis and suggests that Blochmannia lineages may experience distinct, host-associated selective pressures. Understanding how evolutionary forces shape genome reduction in this system may help to clarify forces driving gene loss in other bacteria, including intracellular pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura E Williams
- Duke Center for Genomic and Computational Biology, Duke University , Durham, NC , USA
| | - Jennifer J Wernegreen
- Duke Center for Genomic and Computational Biology, Duke University , Durham, NC , USA ; Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University , Durham, NC , USA
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Affiliation(s)
- Philip S. Ward
- Department of Entomology & Nematology, and Center for Population Biology, University of California, Davis, California 95616;
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Douglas AE. Molecular dissection of nutrient exchange at the insect-microbial interface. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2014; 4:23-28. [PMID: 28043404 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2014.08.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2014] [Revised: 07/27/2014] [Accepted: 08/11/2014] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Genome research is transforming our understanding of nutrient exchange between insects and intracellular bacteria. A key characteristic of these bacteria is their small genome size and gene content. Their fastidious and inflexible nutritional requirements are met by multiple metabolites from the insect host cell. Although the bacteria have generally retained genes coding the synthesis of nutrients required by the insect, some apparently critical genes have been lost, and compensated for by shared metabolic pathways with the insect host or supplementary bacteria with complementary metabolic capabilities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angela E Douglas
- Department of Entomology, Cornell University, 5134 Comstock Hall, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA; Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, 5134 Comstock Hall, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA.
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Mankowski ME, Morrell JJ. Effects of B vitamin deletion in chemically defined diets on brood development in Camponotus vicinus (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY 2014; 107:1299-1306. [PMID: 25195415 DOI: 10.1603/ec13562] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
The potential contributions of B vitamins by a yeast associate to the nutrition of the carpenter ant Camponotus vicinus Mayr was examined as part of an effort to develop a chemically defined diet. This diet was used to test the effects of individual B vitamin and other nutrient deletions on larval development. The chemically defined diet contained amino acids, vitamins, minerals, and other growth factors in a liquid sucrose matrix. C. vicinus worker colonies with third- and fourth-instar larvae were fed a complete artificial diet or that diet with a component deleted for a 12-wk period. There was a significant effect of diet on larval growth and number of adult worker ants produced in the overall nutrient deletion test, but ant development was often better on incomplete diets with one B vitamin deleted compared with the complete holidic basal diet. Thiamine deletion resulted in significantly higher brood weights compared with the complete diet. Diets of sugar water plus all B vitamins, sugar water only, or a diet minus all B vitamins and cholesterol were associated with significantly lower brood weights. Significantly more adult worker ants were produced by worker colonies fed diets minus cholesterol, choline, thiamine, or riboflavin compared with the complete basal diet. The results suggest that the diet, while suitable for rearing, could benefit from further study to better define component levels. The potential relationship of C. vicinus with yeast associates is discussed in relation to further studies.
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Fan Y, Wernegreen JJ. Can't take the heat: high temperature depletes bacterial endosymbionts of ants. MICROBIAL ECOLOGY 2013; 66:727-33. [PMID: 23872930 PMCID: PMC3905736 DOI: 10.1007/s00248-013-0264-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2013] [Accepted: 07/01/2013] [Indexed: 05/22/2023]
Abstract
Members of the ant tribe Camponotini have coevolved with Blochmannia, an obligate intracellular bacterial mutualist. This endosymbiont lives within host bacteriocyte cells that line the ant midgut, undergoes maternal transmission from host queens to offspring, and contributes to host nutrition via nitrogen recycling and nutrient biosynthesis. While elevated temperature has been shown to disrupt obligate bacterial mutualists of some insects, its impact on the ant-Blochmannia partnership is less clear. Here, we test the effect of heat on the density of Blochmannia in two related Camponotus species in the lab. Transcriptionally active Blochmannia were quantified using RT-qPCR as the ratio of Blochmannia 16S rRNA to ant host elongation factor 1-α transcripts. Our results showed that 4 weeks of heat treatment depleted active Blochmannia by >99 % in minor workers and unmated queens. However, complete elimination of Blochmannia transcripts rarely occurred, even after 16 weeks of heat treatment. Possible mechanisms of observed thermal sensitivity may include extreme AT-richness and related features of Blochmannia genomes, as well as host stress responses. Broadly, the observed depletion of an essential microbial mutualist in heat-treated ants is analogous to the loss of zooanthellae during coral bleaching. While the ecological relevance of Blochmannia's thermal sensitivity is uncertain, our results argue that symbiont dynamics should be part of models predicting how ants and other animals will respond and adapt to a warming climate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yongliang Fan
- Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
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Williams LE, Wernegreen JJ. Sequence context of indel mutations and their effect on protein evolution in a bacterial endosymbiont. Genome Biol Evol 2013; 5:599-605. [PMID: 23475937 PMCID: PMC3622351 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evt033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Indel mutations play key roles in genome and protein evolution, yet we lack a comprehensive understanding of how indels impact evolutionary processes. Genome-wide analyses enabled by next-generation sequencing can clarify the context and effect of indels, thereby integrating a more detailed consideration of indels with our knowledge of nucleotide substitutions. To this end, we sequenced Blochmannia chromaiodes, an obligate bacterial endosymbiont of carpenter ants, and compared it with the close relative, B. pennsylvanicus. The genetic distance between these species is small enough for accurate whole genome alignment but large enough to provide a meaningful spectrum of indel mutations. We found that indels are subjected to purifying selection in coding regions and even intergenic regions, which show a reduced rate of indel base pairs per kilobase compared with nonfunctional pseudogenes. Indels occur almost exclusively in repeat regions composed of homopolymers and multimeric simple sequence repeats, demonstrating the importance of sequence context for indel mutations. Despite purifying selection, some indels occur in protein-coding genes. Most are multiples of three, indicating selective pressure to maintain the reading frame. The deleterious effect of frameshift-inducing indels is minimized by either compensation from a nearby indel to restore reading frame or the indel's location near the 3'-end of the gene. We observed amino acid divergence exceeding nucleotide divergence in regions affected by frameshift-inducing indels, suggesting that these indels may either drive adaptive protein evolution or initiate gene degradation. Our results shed light on how indel mutations impact processes of molecular evolution underlying endosymbiont genome evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura E Williams
- Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy, Duke University, NC, USA
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Li X, Nan X, Wei C, He H. The gut bacteria associated with Camponotus japonicus Mayr with culture-dependent and DGGE methods. Curr Microbiol 2012; 65:610-6. [PMID: 22878556 DOI: 10.1007/s00284-012-0197-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2012] [Accepted: 07/07/2012] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
The bacterial composition and distribution in the different gut regions of Camponotus japonicus were investigated using both culture-dependent method and culture-independent method of polymerase chain reaction and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE). Five different bacterial strains were isolated using culture-dependent method, and they all belong to the phylum Firmicutes, including three genera of bacteria Bacillus, Paenibacillus, and Enterococcus. Bacillus cereus and Enterococcus mundtii were found in the midgut; Paenibacillus sp. was isolated from the hindgut; and the other two Bacillus spp. were isolated from the crop. Twelve distinct DGGE bands were found using PCR-DGGE method, and their sequences blasting analysis shows that they are members of the Proteobacteria and the Firmicutes, respectively, including three genera (Pseudomonas, Candidatus Blochmannia, Fructobacillus) and one uncultured bacterium, in which Pseudomonas was the most dominant bacteria group in all the three gut regions. According to the DGGE profile, the three gut regions had very similar gut communities, and all the DGGE bands were presented in the midgut and hindgut, while just two bands representing Blochmannia were not present in the crop. The results of our study indicate that the gut of C. japonicus harbors several other bacteria besides the obligate endosymbionts Blochmannia, and more work should be carried on to verify if they are common in the guts of other Camponotus ants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoping Li
- College of Forestry, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Xianyang, Shaanxi, China
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Ratzka C, Förster F, Liang C, Kupper M, Dandekar T, Feldhaar H, Gross R. Molecular characterization of antimicrobial peptide genes of the carpenter ant Camponotus floridanus. PLoS One 2012; 7:e43036. [PMID: 22912782 PMCID: PMC3415428 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0043036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2012] [Accepted: 07/16/2012] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The production of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) is a major defense mechanism against pathogen infestation and of particular importance for insects relying exclusively on an innate immune system. Here, we report on the characterization of three AMPs from the carpenter ant Camponotus floridanus. Due to sequence similarities and amino acid composition these peptides can be classified into the cysteine-rich (e.g. defensin) and glycine-rich (e.g. hymenoptaecin) AMP groups, respectively. The gene and cDNA sequences of these AMPs were established and their expression was shown to be induced by microbial challenge. We characterized two different defensin genes. The defensin-2 gene has a single intron, whereas the defensin-1 gene has two introns. The deduced amino acid sequence of the C. floridanus defensins is very similar to other known ant defensins with the exception of a short C-terminal extension of defensin-1. The hymenoptaecin gene has a single intron and a very peculiar domain structure. The corresponding precursor protein consists of a signal- and a pro-sequence followed by a hymenoptaecin-like domain and six directly repeated hymenoptaecin domains. Each of the hymenoptaecin domains is flanked by an EAEP-spacer sequence and a RR-site known to be a proteolytic processing site. Thus, proteolytic processing of the multipeptide precursor may generate several mature AMPs leading to an amplification of the immune response. Bioinformatical analyses revealed the presence of hymenoptaecin genes with similar multipeptide precursor structure in genomes of other ant species suggesting an evolutionary conserved important role of this gene in ant immunity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolin Ratzka
- Department of Microbiology, Biocentre, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany.
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Wernegreen JJ. Strategies of genomic integration within insect-bacterial mutualisms. THE BIOLOGICAL BULLETIN 2012; 223:112-22. [PMID: 22983037 PMCID: PMC3609409 DOI: 10.1086/bblv223n1p112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Insects, the most diverse group of macroorganisms with 900,000 known species, have been a rich playground for the evolution of symbiotic associations. Symbionts of this enormous animal group include a range of microbial partners. Insects are prone to establishing relationships with intracellular bacteria, which include the most intimate, highly integrated mutualisms known in the biological world. In recent years, an explosion of genomic studies has offered new insights into the molecular, functional, and evolutionary consequences of these insect-bacterial partnerships. In this review, I highlight some insights from genome sequences of bacterial endosymbionts and select insect hosts. Notably, comparisons between facultative and obligate bacterial mutualists have revealed distinct genome features representing different stages along a shared trajectory of genome reduction. Bacteria associated with the cedar aphid offer a snapshot of a transition from facultative to obligate mutualism, illustrating the genomic basis of this key step along the symbiotic spectrum. In addition, genomes of stable, dual bacterial symbionts reflect independent instances of astonishing metabolic integration. In these systems, synthesis of key nutrients, and perhaps basic cellular processes, require collaboration among co-residing bacteria and their insect host. These findings provide a launching point for a new era of genomic explorations of bacterial-animal symbioses. Future studies promise to reveal symbiotic strategies across a broad ecological and phylogenetic range, to clarify key transitions along a spectrum of interaction types, and to fuel new experimental approaches to dissect the mechanistic basis of intimate host-symbiont associations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer J Wernegreen
- Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708, USA.
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Hirsch J, Strohmeier S, Pfannkuchen M, Reineke A. Assessment of bacterial endosymbiont diversity in Otiorhynchus spp. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) larvae using a multitag 454 pyrosequencing approach. BMC Microbiol 2012; 12 Suppl 1:S6. [PMID: 22376125 PMCID: PMC3287517 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2180-12-s1-s6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Weevils of the genus Otiorhynchus are regarded as devastating pests in a wide variety of horticultural crops worldwide. So far, little is known on the presence of endosymbionts in Otiorhynchus spp.. Investigation of endosymbiosis in this genus may help to understand the evolution of different reproductive strategies in these weevils (parthenogenesis or sexual reproduction), host-symbiont interactions, and may provide a future basis for novel pest management strategy development. Here, we used a multitag 454 pyrosequencing approach to assess the bacterial endosymbiont diversity in larvae of four economically important Otiorhynchus species. Results High-throughput tag-encoded FLX amplicon pyrosequencing of a bacterial 16S rDNA fragment was used to characterise bacterial communities associated with different Otiorhynchus spp. larvae. By sequencing a total of ~48,000 PCR amplicons, we identified 49 different operational taxonomic units (OTUs) as bacterial endosymbionts in the four studied Otiorhynchus species. More than 90% of all sequence reads belonged either to the genus Rickettsia or showed homology to the phylogenetic group of “Candidatus Blochmannia” and to endosymbionts of the lice Pedicinus obtusus and P. badii. By using specific primers for the genera Rickettsia and “Candidatus Blochmannia”, we identified a new phylogenetic clade of Rickettsia as well as “Candidatus Nardonella” endosymbionts in Otiorhynchus spp. which are closely related to “Candidatus Blochmannia” bacteria. Conclusions Here, we used multitag 454 pyrosequencing for assessment of insect endosymbiotic communities in weevils. As 454 pyrosequencing generates only quite short sequences, results of such studies can be regarded as a first step towards identifying respective endosymbiotic species in insects. In the second step of our study, we analysed sequences of specific gene regions for a more detailed phylogeny of selected endosymbiont genera. As a result we identified the presence of Rickettsia and “Candidatus Nardonella” endosymbionts in Otiorhynchus spp.. This knowledge is an important step in exploring bacteria-insect associations for potential use in insect pest control.
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Husník F, Chrudimský T, Hypša V. Multiple origins of endosymbiosis within the Enterobacteriaceae (γ-Proteobacteria): convergence of complex phylogenetic approaches. BMC Biol 2011; 9:87. [PMID: 22201529 PMCID: PMC3271043 DOI: 10.1186/1741-7007-9-87] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2011] [Accepted: 12/28/2011] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The bacterial family Enterobacteriaceae gave rise to a variety of symbiotic forms, from the loosely associated commensals, often designated as secondary (S) symbionts, to obligate mutualists, called primary (P) symbionts. Determination of the evolutionary processes behind this phenomenon has long been hampered by the unreliability of phylogenetic reconstructions within this group of bacteria. The main reasons have been the absence of sufficient data, the highly derived nature of the symbiont genomes and lack of appropriate phylogenetic methods. Due to the extremely aberrant nature of their DNA, the symbiotic lineages within Enterobacteriaceae form long branches and tend to cluster as a monophyletic group. This state of phylogenetic uncertainty is now improving with an increasing number of complete bacterial genomes and development of new methods. In this study, we address the monophyly versus polyphyly of enterobacterial symbionts by exploring a multigene matrix within a complex phylogenetic framework. RESULTS We assembled the richest taxon sampling of Enterobacteriaceae to date (50 taxa, 69 orthologous genes with no missing data) and analyzed both nucleic and amino acid data sets using several probabilistic methods. We particularly focused on the long-branch attraction-reducing methods, such as a nucleotide and amino acid data recoding and exclusion (including our new approach and slow-fast analysis), taxa exclusion and usage of complex evolutionary models, such as nonhomogeneous model and models accounting for site-specific features of protein evolution (CAT and CAT+GTR). Our data strongly suggest independent origins of four symbiotic clusters; the first is formed by Hamiltonella and Regiella (S-symbionts) placed as a sister clade to Yersinia, the second comprises Arsenophonus and Riesia (S- and P-symbionts) as a sister clade to Proteus, the third Sodalis, Baumannia, Blochmannia and Wigglesworthia (S- and P-symbionts) as a sister or paraphyletic clade to the Pectobacterium and Dickeya clade and, finally, Buchnera species and Ishikawaella (P-symbionts) clustering with the Erwinia and Pantoea clade. CONCLUSIONS The results of this study confirm the efficiency of several artifact-reducing methods and strongly point towards the polyphyly of P-symbionts within Enterobacteriaceae. Interestingly, the model species of symbiotic bacteria research, Buchnera and Wigglesworthia, originated from closely related, but different, ancestors. The possible origins of intracellular symbiotic bacteria from gut-associated or pathogenic bacteria are suggested, as well as the role of facultative secondary symbionts as a source of bacteria that can gradually become obligate maternally transferred symbionts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Filip Husník
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branišovská 31, České Budějovice 37005, Czech Republic
| | - Tomáš Chrudimský
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branišovská 31, České Budějovice 37005, Czech Republic
| | - Václav Hypša
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branišovská 31, České Budějovice 37005, Czech Republic
- Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre of ASCR, Branišovská 31, České Budějovice 37005, Czech Republic
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He H, Chen Y, Zhang Y, Wei C. Bacteria associated with gut lumen of Camponotus japonicus Mayr. ENVIRONMENTAL ENTOMOLOGY 2011; 40:1405-1409. [PMID: 22217755 DOI: 10.1603/en11157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
Camponotus ants harbor the obligate intracellular endosymbiont Blochmannia in their midgut bacteriocytes, but little is known about intestinal bacteria living in the gut lumen. In this paper we reported the results of a survey of the intestinal microflora of Camponotus japonicus Mayr based on small-subunit rRNA genes (16S rRNAs) polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-restriction fragment-length polymorphism analysis of worker guts. From 107 clones, 11 different restriction fragment-length polymorphism profiles were identified, and sequences blasting analysis found these represent four types of bacteria. Most (91.6%) of the clones were "Candidatus Blochmannia", the obligate endosymbionts of Camponotus ants, and 6.5% of the clones were "Candidatus Serratia symbiotica", a secondary endosymbiont of aphids; the remaining 2% clones were Fructobacillus fructosus and uncultured Burkholderiales bacterium, respectively. These results show that the diversity of gut bacteria in C. japonicus was low. "Candidatus Serratia symbiotica" was identified from Camponotus ants for the first time, an interesting result because Blochmannia's closest bacterial relative is also in the genus Serratia. This discovery supports the scenario that consumption of aphid honeydew or tissue provides an initial step in the evolution of an advanced symbiosis, and suggests that Camponotus ant could acquire other secondary endosymbionts from Hemiptera host through their diet. In addition, Burkholderiales bacterium also was identified from the gut of C. japonicus for the first time, and whether it is a nitrogen-recycling endosymbiont in Camponotus ants needs to be investigated further.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hong He
- Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, China
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Ratzka C, Liang C, Dandekar T, Gross R, Feldhaar H. Immune response of the ant Camponotus floridanus against pathogens and its obligate mutualistic endosymbiont. INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2011; 41:529-536. [PMID: 21440063 DOI: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2011.03.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2011] [Revised: 03/01/2011] [Accepted: 03/11/2011] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
Numerous insect species harbor mutualistic endosymbionts that play a role in nutrient cycling or confer other fitness benefits to their hosts. Insect hosts face the problem of having to maintain such mutualistic bacteria while staging an immune response towards pathogens upon infection. In addition, hosts may regulate the number of endosymbionts present in their tissues via the innate immune system. Camponotus floridanus ants harbor the obligate endosymbiont Blochmannia floridanus in specialized midgut cells and ovaries. We identified genes transcriptionally induced in response to septic injury by suppression subtractive hybridization (SSH). Among these were genes involved in pathogen recognition (e.g. GNBP), signal transduction (e.g. MAPK-kinase), antimicrobial activity (e.g. defensin and hymenoptaecin), or general stress response (e.g. heat shock protein). A quantitative analysis of immune-gene expression revealed different expression kinetics of individual factors and also characteristic expression profiles after injection of gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria. Likewise, B. floridanus injected into the hemocoel elicited a comparable immune response of its host C. floridanus. Thus, the host immune system may contribute to controlling the endosymbiont population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolin Ratzka
- Lehrstuhl für Mikrobiologie, Biozentrum, Universität Würzburg, Germany
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Williams LE, Wernegreen JJ. Unprecedented loss of ammonia assimilation capability in a urease-encoding bacterial mutualist. BMC Genomics 2010; 11:687. [PMID: 21126349 PMCID: PMC3017870 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2164-11-687] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2010] [Accepted: 12/02/2010] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Blochmannia are obligately intracellular bacterial mutualists of ants of the tribe Camponotini. Blochmannia perform key nutritional functions for the host, including synthesis of several essential amino acids. We used Illumina technology to sequence the genome of Blochmannia associated with Camponotus vafer. Results Although Blochmannia vafer retains many nutritional functions, it is missing glutamine synthetase (glnA), a component of the nitrogen recycling pathway encoded by the previously sequenced B. floridanus and B. pennsylvanicus. With the exception of Ureaplasma, B. vafer is the only sequenced bacterium to date that encodes urease but lacks the ability to assimilate ammonia into glutamine or glutamate. Loss of glnA occurred in a deletion hotspot near the putative replication origin. Overall, compared to the likely gene set of their common ancestor, 31 genes are missing or eroded in B. vafer, compared to 28 in B. floridanus and four in B. pennsylvanicus. Three genes (queA, visC and yggS) show convergent loss or erosion, suggesting relaxed selection for their functions. Eight B. vafer genes contain frameshifts in homopolymeric tracts that may be corrected by transcriptional slippage. Two of these encode DNA replication proteins: dnaX, which we infer is also frameshifted in B. floridanus, and dnaG. Conclusions Comparing the B. vafer genome with B. pennsylvanicus and B. floridanus refines the core genes shared within the mutualist group, thereby clarifying functions required across ant host species. This third genome also allows us to track gene loss and erosion in a phylogenetic context to more fully understand processes of genome reduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura E Williams
- The Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
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Stoll S, Feldhaar H, Fraunholz MJ, Gross R. Bacteriocyte dynamics during development of a holometabolous insect, the carpenter ant Camponotus floridanus. BMC Microbiol 2010; 10:308. [PMID: 21122115 PMCID: PMC3009655 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2180-10-308] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2010] [Accepted: 12/01/2010] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The carpenter ant Camponotus floridanus harbors obligate intracellular mutualistic bacteria (Blochmannia floridanus) in specialized cells, the bacteriocytes, intercalated in their midgut tissue. The diffuse distribution of bacteriocytes over the midgut tissue is in contrast to many other insects carrying endosymbionts in specialized tissues which are often connected to the midgut but form a distinct organ, the bacteriome. C. floridanus is a holometabolous insect which undergoes a complete metamorphosis. During pupal stages a complete restructuring of the inner organs including the digestive tract takes place. So far, nothing was known about maintenance of endosymbionts during this life stage of a holometabolous insect. It was shown previously that the number of Blochmannia increases strongly during metamorphosis. This implicates an important function of Blochmannia in this developmental phase during which the animals are metabolically very active but do not have access to external food resources. Previous experiments have shown a nutritional contribution of the bacteria to host metabolism by production of essential amino acids and urease-mediated nitrogen recycling. In adult hosts the symbiosis appears to degenerate with increasing age of the animals. Results We investigated the distribution and dynamics of endosymbiotic bacteria and bacteriocytes at different stages during development of the animals from larva to imago by confocal laser scanning microscopy. The number of bacteriocytes in relation to symbiont-free midgut cells varied strongly over different developmental stages. Especially during metamorphosis the relative number of bacteria-filled bacteriocytes increased strongly when the larval midgut epithelium is shed. During this developmental stage the midgut itself became a huge symbiotic organ consisting almost exclusively of cells harboring bacteria. In fact, during this phase some bacteria were also found in midgut cells other than bacteriocytes indicating a cell-invasive capacity of Blochmannia. In adult animals the number of bacteriocytes generally decreased. Conclusions During the life cycle of the animals the distribution of bacteriocytes and of Blochmannia endosymbionts is remarkably dynamic. Our data show how the endosymbiont is retained within the midgut tissue during metamorphosis thereby ensuring the maintenance of the intracellular endosymbiosis despite a massive reorganization of the midgut tissue. The transformation of the entire midgut into a symbiotic organ during pupal stages underscores the important role of Blochmannia for its host in particular during metamorphosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sascha Stoll
- Lehrstuhl für Mikrobiologie, Biozentrum, Universität Würzburg, D-97074 Würzburg, Germany
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Ryder Wilkie KT, Mertl AL, Traniello JFA. Species diversity and distribution patterns of the ants of Amazonian Ecuador. PLoS One 2010; 5:e13146. [PMID: 20957208 PMCID: PMC2948521 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0013146] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2010] [Accepted: 08/30/2010] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Ants are among the most diverse, abundant and ecologically significant organisms on earth. Although their species richness appears to be greatest in the New World tropics, global patterns of ant diversity and distribution are not well understood. We comprehensively surveyed ant diversity in a lowland primary rainforest in Western Amazonia, Ecuador using canopy fogging, pitfall traps, baits, hand collecting, mini-Winkler devices and subterranean probes to sample ants. A total of 489 ant species comprising 64 genera in nine subfamilies were identified from samples collected in only 0.16 square kilometers. The most species-rich genera were Camponotus, Pheidole, Pseudomyrmex, Pachycondyla, Brachymyrmex, and Crematogaster. Camponotus and Pseudomyrmex were most diverse in the canopy, while Pheidole was most diverse on the ground. The three most abundant ground-dwelling ant genera were Pheidole, Solenopsis and Pyramica. Crematogaster carinata was the most abundant ant species in the canopy; Wasmannia auropunctata was most abundant on the ground, and the army ant Labidus coecus was the most abundant subterranean species. Ant species composition among strata was significantly different: 80% of species were found in only one stratum, 17% in two strata, and 3% in all three strata. Elevation and the number of logs and twigs available as nest sites were significant predictors of ground-dwelling ant species richness. Canopy species richness was not correlated with any ecological variable measured. Subterranean species richness was negatively correlated with depth in the soil. When ant species were categorized using a functional group matrix based on diet, nest-site preference and foraging ecology, the greatest diversity was found in Omnivorous Canopy Nesters. Our study indicates ant species richness is exceptionally high at Tiputini. We project 647-736 ant species in this global hotspot of biodiversity. Considering the relatively small area surveyed, this region of western Amazonia appears to support the most diverse ant fauna yet recorded.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kari T Ryder Wilkie
- Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America.
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