1
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Dejoie JM, Senia N, Konova A, Smith D, Fareri D. Common and Distinct Drug Cue Reactivity Patterns Associated with Cocaine and Heroin: An fMRI Meta-Analysis. MEDRXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR HEALTH SCIENCES 2024:2023.10.19.23297268. [PMID: 37905133 PMCID: PMC10615011 DOI: 10.1101/2023.10.19.23297268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2023]
Abstract
Substance use and substance use disorders represent ongoing major public health crises. Specifically, the use of substances such as cocaine and heroin are responsible for over 50,000 drug related deaths combined annually. We used a comparative meta-analysis procedure to contrast activation patterns associated with cocaine and heroin cue reactivity, which may reflect substance use risk for these substances. PubMed and Google Scholar were searched for studies with within-subject whole brain analyses comparing drug to neutral cues for users of cocaine and heroin published between 1995 and 2022. A total of 18 studies were included, 9 in each subgroup. Voxel-based meta-analyses were performed using seed-based d mapping with permuted subject images (SDM-PSI) for subgroup mean analyses and a contrast meta-regression comparing the two substances. Results from our mean analysis indicated that users of heroin showed more widespread activation in the nucleus accumbens, right inferior and left middle temporal gyrus, right thalamus, and right cerebellum. Cocaine use was associated with recruitment of dorsolateral prefrontal cortex during cue reactivity. Direct comparison of cue reactivity studies in heroin relative to cocaine users revealed greater activation in dopaminergic targets for users of heroin compared to users of cocaine. Differential activation patterns between substances may underlie differences in the clinical characteristics observed in users of cocaine and heroin, including seeking emotional blunting in users of heroin. More consistent research methodology is needed to provide adequate studies for stringent meta-analyses examining common and distinct neural activation patterns across substances and moderation by clinically relevant factors.
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2
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Chen DY, Di X, Amaya N, Sun H, Pal S, Biswal BB. Brain activation during the N-back working memory task in individuals with spinal cord injury: a functional near-infrared spectroscopy study. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.02.09.579655. [PMID: 38405769 PMCID: PMC10888902 DOI: 10.1101/2024.02.09.579655] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/27/2024]
Abstract
Cognitive impairments have frequently been reported in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) across different domains such as working memory, attention, and executive function. The mechanism of cognitive impairment after SCI is not well understood due to the heterogeneity of SCI sample populations, and may possibly be due to factors such as cardiovascular dysfunction, concomitant traumatic brain injury (TBI), hypoxia, sleep disorders, and body temperature dysregulation. In this study, we implement the Neuropsychiatric Unit Cognitive Assessment Tool (NUCOG) to assess cognitive differences between individuals with SCI and age-matched able-bodied (AB) controls. We then use an N-back working memory task and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to elucidate the neurovascular correlates of cognitive function in individuals with SCI. We observed significant differences between the SCI and AB groups on measures of executive function on the NUCOG test. On the N-back task, across the three levels of difficulty: 0-back, 2-back, and 3-back, no significant differences were observed between the SCI and AB group; however, both groups performed worse as the level of difficulty increased. Although there were no significant differences in N-back performance scores between the two groups, functional brain hemodynamic activity differences were observed between the SCI and AB groups, with the SCI group exhibiting higher maximum oxygenated hemoglobin concentration in the right inferior parietal lobe. These findings support the use of fNIRS to study cognitive function in individuals with SCI and may provide a useful tool during rehabilitation to obtain quantitative functional brain activity metrics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Donna Y. Chen
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ, US
- Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences, Rutgers School of Graduate Studies, Newark, NJ, US
| | - Xin Di
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ, US
| | - Nayyar Amaya
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ, US
| | - Hai Sun
- Department of Neurosurgery, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, NJ, US
| | - Saikat Pal
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ, US
- Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ, US
- Spinal Cord Damage Research Center, James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, US
| | - Bharat B. Biswal
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ, US
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3
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Goerlinger A, Develay C, Balourdet A, Rigaud T, Moret Y. Infection risk by oral contamination does not induce immune priming in the mealworm beetle ( Tenebrio molitor) but triggers behavioral and physiological responses. Front Immunol 2024; 15:1354046. [PMID: 38404577 PMCID: PMC10885348 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1354046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2023] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 02/27/2024] Open
Abstract
In invertebrates, immune priming is the ability of individuals to enhance their immune response based on prior immunological experiences. This adaptive-like immunity likely evolved due to the risk of repeated infections by parasites in the host's natural habitat. The expression of immune priming varies across host and pathogen species, as well as infection routes (oral or wounds), reflecting finely tuned evolutionary adjustments. Evidence from the mealworm beetle (Tenebrio molitor) suggests that Gram-positive bacterial pathogens play a significant role in immune priming after systemic infection. Despite the likelihood of oral infections by natural bacterial pathogens in T. molitor, it remains debated whether ingestion of contaminated food leads to systemic infection, and whether oral immune priming is possible is currently unknown. We first attempted to induce immune priming in both T. molitor larvae and adults by exposing them to food contaminated with living or dead Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial pathogens. We found that oral ingestion of living bacteria did not kill them, but septic wounds caused rapid mortality. Intriguingly, the consumption of either dead or living bacteria did not protect against reinfection, contrasting with injury-induced priming. We further examined the effects of infecting food with various living bacterial pathogens on variables such as food consumption, mass gain, and feces production in larvae. We found that larvae exposed to Gram-positive bacteria in their food ingested less food, gained less mass and/or produced more feces than larvae exposed to contaminated food with Gram-negative bacteria or control food. This suggests that oral contamination with Gram-positive bacteria induced both behavioral responses and peristalsis defense mechanisms, even though no immune priming was observed here. Considering that the oral route of infection neither caused the death of the insects nor induced priming, we propose that immune priming in T. molitor may have primarily evolved as a response to the infection risk associated with wounds rather than oral ingestion.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Yannick Moret
- CNRS UMR 6282 Biogéosciences, Université de Bourgogne, Dijon, France
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4
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Länger ZM, Baur M, Korša A, Eirich J, Lindeza AS, Zanchi C, Finkemeier I, Kurtz J. Differential proteome profiling of bacterial culture supernatants reveals candidates for the induction of oral immune priming in the red flour beetle. Biol Lett 2023; 19:20230322. [PMID: 37909056 PMCID: PMC10618857 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2023.0322] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2023] [Accepted: 10/12/2023] [Indexed: 11/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Most organisms are host to symbionts and pathogens, which led to the evolution of immune strategies to prevent harm. Whilst the immune defences of vertebrates are classically divided into innate and adaptive, insects lack specialized cells involved in adaptive immunity, but have been shown to exhibit immune priming: the enhanced survival upon infection after a first exposure to the same pathogen or pathogen-derived components. An important piece of the puzzle are the pathogen-associated molecules that induce these immune priming responses. Here, we make use of the model system consisting of the red flour beetle (Tribolium castaneum) and its bacterial pathogen Bacillus thuringiensis, to compare the proteomes of culture supernatants of two closely related B. thuringiensis strains that either induce priming via the oral route, or not. Among the proteins that might be immunostimulatory to T. castaneum, we identify the Cry3Aa toxin, an important plasmid-encoded virulence factor of B. thuringiensis. In further priming-infection assays we test the relevance of Cry-carrying plasmids for immune priming. Our findings provide valuable insights for future studies to perform experiments on the mechanisms and evolution of immune priming.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zoe Marie Länger
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstraße 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Moritz Baur
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstraße 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Ana Korša
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstraße 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Jürgen Eirich
- Institute of Plant Biology and Biotechnology, University of Münster, Schlossplatz 7, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Ana Sofia Lindeza
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstraße 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Caroline Zanchi
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstraße 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Iris Finkemeier
- Institute of Plant Biology and Biotechnology, University of Münster, Schlossplatz 7, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Joachim Kurtz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstraße 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
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5
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Vommaro ML, Donato S, Lo LK, Brandmayr P, Giglio A. Anatomical study of the red flour beetle using synchrotron radiation X-ray phase-contrast micro-tomography. J Anat 2023; 242:510-524. [PMID: 36417320 PMCID: PMC9919503 DOI: 10.1111/joa.13796] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2022] [Revised: 11/07/2022] [Accepted: 11/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Synchrotron X-ray phase-contrast microtomography (SR-PhC micro-CT) is well established, fast and non-destructive imaging technique for data acquisition that is currently being used to obtain new insights into insect anatomy and function in physiological, morphological and phylogenetic studies. In this study, we described in situ the internal organs of the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum Herbst 1797, a widespread pest of cereals and stored food causing serious damage to the human economy. Two-dimensional virtual sections and volumetric reconstructions of the nervous, alimentary and reproductive systems were carried out in both sexes. The results provided a comprehensive overview of the morphological characteristics of this species, such as the different maturation stages of ovarioles and the realistic location, size and shape of internal organs. Given the great interest in this model species in experimental biology and forensic entomology, complete knowledge of the general anatomy is required for future functional applications in pest control and experimental studies. In addition, this study confirms SR-PhC micro-CT as a powerful and innovative tool in entomology, particularly suitable for small species and chitinized structures that are difficult to analyse using conventional dissection and histological methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Luigia Vommaro
- Department of Biology, Ecology and Earth Science, University of Calabria, Cosenza, Italy
| | - Sandro Donato
- Department of Physics, University of Calabria, Cosenza, Italy.,Division of Frascati, Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Rome, Italy
| | - Lai Ka Lo
- Animal Evolutionary Ecology Group, Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Pietro Brandmayr
- Department of Biology, Ecology and Earth Science, University of Calabria, Cosenza, Italy
| | - Anita Giglio
- Department of Biology, Ecology and Earth Science, University of Calabria, Cosenza, Italy
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6
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Lo LK, R R, Tewes LJ, Milutinović B, Müller C, Kurtz J. Immune Stimulation via Wounding Alters Chemical Profiles of Adult Tribolium castaneum. J Chem Ecol 2023; 49:46-58. [PMID: 36539674 PMCID: PMC9941273 DOI: 10.1007/s10886-022-01395-x] [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: 07/06/2022] [Revised: 11/20/2022] [Accepted: 11/23/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Group-living individuals experience immense risk of disease transmission and parasite infection. In social and in some non-social insects, disease control with immunomodulation arises not only via individual immune defenses, but also via infochemicals such as contact cues and (defensive) volatiles to mount a group-level immunity. However, little is known about whether activation of the immune system elicits changes in chemical phenotypes, which may mediate these responses. We here asked whether individual immune experience resulting from wounding or injection of heat-killed Bacillus thuringiensis (priming) leads to changes in the chemical profiles of female and male adult red flour beetles, Tribolium castaneum, which are non-social but gregarious. We analyzed insect extracts using GC-FID to study the chemical composition of (1) cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) as candidates for the transfer of immunity-related information between individuals via contact, and (2) stink gland secretions, with analysis of benzoquinones as main active compounds regulating 'external immunity'. Despite a pronounced sexual dimorphism in CHC profiles, wounding stimulation led to similar profile changes in males and females with increases in the proportion of methyl-branched alkanes compared to naïve beetles. While changes in the overall secretion profiles were less pronounced, absolute amounts of benzoquinones were transiently elevated in wounded compared to naïve females. Responses to priming were insignificant in CHCs and secretions. We suggest that changes in different infochemicals after wounding may mediate immune status signaling in the context of both internal and external immune responses in groups of this non-social insect, thus showing parallels to social immunity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lai Ka Lo
- grid.5949.10000 0001 2172 9288Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstr. 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Reshma R
- grid.5949.10000 0001 2172 9288Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstr. 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Lisa Johanna Tewes
- grid.7491.b0000 0001 0944 9128Department of Chemical Ecology, Bielefeld University, Universitätsstr. 25, 33615 Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Barbara Milutinović
- grid.5949.10000 0001 2172 9288Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstr. 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Caroline Müller
- grid.7491.b0000 0001 0944 9128Department of Chemical Ecology, Bielefeld University, Universitätsstr. 25, 33615 Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Joachim Kurtz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstr. 1, 48149, Münster, Germany.
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7
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Schulz NKE, Mohamed FF, Lo LK, Peuß R, de Buhr MF, Kurtz J. Paternal knockdown of tRNA(cytosine-5-)-methyltransferase (Dnmt2) increases offspring susceptibility to infection in red flour beetles. INSECT MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2022; 31:711-721. [PMID: 35790040 DOI: 10.1111/imb.12798] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2022] [Accepted: 06/30/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Intergenerational effects from fathers to offspring are increasingly reported from diverse organisms, but the underlying mechanisms remain speculative. Paternal trans-generational immune priming (TGIP) was demonstrated in the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum: non-infectious bacterial exposure of fathers protects their offspring against an infectious challenge for at least two generations. Epigenetic processes, such as cytosine methylation of nucleic acids, have been proposed to enable transfer of information from fathers to offspring. Here we studied a potential role in TGIP of the Dnmt2 gene (renamed as Trdmt1 in humans), which encodes a highly conserved enzyme that methylates different RNAs, including specific cytosines of a set of tRNAs. Dnmt2 has previously been reported to be involved in intergenerational epigenetic inheritance in mice and protection against viruses in fruit flies. We first studied gene expression and found that Dnmt2 is expressed in various life history stages and tissues of T. castaneum, with high expression in the reproductive organs. RNAi-mediated knockdown of Dnmt2 in fathers was systemic, slowed down offspring larval development and increased mortality of the adult offspring upon bacterial infection. However, these effects were independent of bacterial exposure of the fathers. In conclusion, our results point towards a role of Dnmt2 for paternal effects, while elucidation of the mechanisms behind paternal TGIP needs further studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nora K E Schulz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Fakry F Mohamed
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
- Institute of Virology Muenster, Center for Molecular Biology of Inflammation (ZMBE), University Hospital Muenster, Muenster, Germany
| | - Lai Ka Lo
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Robert Peuß
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Maike F de Buhr
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Joachim Kurtz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
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8
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Exploring Compound Eyes in Adults of Four Coleopteran Species Using Synchrotron X-ray Phase-Contrast Microtomography (SR-PhC Micro-CT). Life (Basel) 2022; 12:life12050741. [PMID: 35629408 PMCID: PMC9145526 DOI: 10.3390/life12050741] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2022] [Revised: 05/13/2022] [Accepted: 05/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Compound eyes in insects are primary visual receptors of surrounding environments. They show considerable design variations, from the apposition vision of most day-active species to the superposition vision of nocturnal insects, that sacrifice resolution to increase sensitivity and are able to overcome the challenges of vision during lightless hours or in dim habitats. In this study, Synchrotron radiation X-ray phase-contrast microtomography was used to describe the eye structure of four coleopteran species, showing species-specific habitat demands and different feeding habits, namely the saproxylic Clinidium canaliculatum (Costa, 1839) (Rhysodidae), the omnivorous Tenebrio molitor (Linnaeus, 1758) and Tribolium castaneum (Herbest, 1797) (Tenebrionidae), and the generalist predator Pterostichus melas italicus (Dejean, 1828) (Carabidae). Virtual sections and 3D volume renderings of the heads were performed to evaluate the application and limitations of this technique for studying the internal dioptrical and sensorial parts of eyes, and to avoid time-consuming methods such as ultrastructural analyses and classic histology. Morphological parameters such as the area of the corneal facet lens and cornea, interocular distance, facet density and corneal lens thickness were measured, and differences among the studied species were discussed concerning the differences in lifestyle and habitat preferences making different demands on the visual system. Our imaging results provide, for the first time, morphological descriptions of the compound eyes in these species, supplementing their ecological and behavioural traits.
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9
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Korša A, Lo LK, Gandhi S, Bang C, Kurtz J. Oral Immune Priming Treatment Alters Microbiome Composition in the Red Flour Beetle Tribolium castaneum. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:793143. [PMID: 35495655 PMCID: PMC9043903 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.793143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2021] [Accepted: 03/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
It is now well-established that the microbiome is relevant for many of an organism’s properties and that its composition reacts dynamically to various conditions. The microbiome interacts with host immunity and can play important roles in the defenses against pathogens. In invertebrates, immune priming, that is, improved survival upon secondary exposure to a previously encountered pathogen, can be dependent upon the presence of the gut microbiome. However, it is currently unknown whether the microbiome changes upon priming treatment. We here addressed this question in a well-established model for immune priming, the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum exposed to the entomopathogenic bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). After priming treatments, the microbiota composition of beetle larvae was assessed by deep sequencing of the V1-V2 region of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene. We compared the effect of two established routes of priming treatments in this system: injection priming with heat-killed Bt and oral priming via ingestion of filtered sterilized bacterial spore culture supernatants. For oral priming, we used several strains of Bt known to vary in their ability to induce priming. Our study revealed changes in microbiome composition following the oral priming treatment with two different strains of Bt, only one of which (Bt tenebrionis, Btt) is known to lead to improved survival. In contrast, injection priming treatment with the same bacterial strain did not result in microbiome changes. Combined with the previous results indicating that oral priming with Btt depends on the larval microbiome, this suggests that certain members of the microbiome could be involved in forming an oral priming response in the red flour beetle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Korša
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Lai Ka Lo
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Shrey Gandhi
- Department of Genetic Epidemiology, Institute of Human Genetics, University of Münster, Münster, Germany.,Institute of Immunology, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Corinna Bang
- Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology, Christian-Albrecht University of Kiel, Kiel, Germany
| | - Joachim Kurtz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
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10
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Armitage SA, Genersch E, McMahon DP, Rafaluk-Mohr C, Rolff J. Tripartite interactions: how immunity, microbiota and pathogens interact and affect pathogen virulence evolution. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2022; 50:100871. [PMID: 34999035 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2021.12.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2021] [Revised: 12/22/2021] [Accepted: 12/29/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The bipartite interactions between insect hosts and their bacterial gut microbiota, or their bacterial pathogens, are empirically and theoretically well-explored. However, direct, and indirect tripartite interactions will also likely occur inside a host. These interactions will almost certainly affect the trajectory of pathogen virulence evolution, an area that is currently under researched. The interactions within tripartite associations can be competitive, that is, exploitative-competition, interference-competition or apparent-competition. Competitive interactions will be significantly influenced by non-competitive effects, for example, immunopathology, immunosuppression, and microbiota-mediated tolerance. Considering a combination of these interactions and effects, will enable an increased understanding of the evolution of pathogen virulence. This new perspective allows us to identify several novel research questions, which we hope will be a useful framework for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophie Ao Armitage
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Königin-Luise-Straße 1-3, 14195 Berlin, Germany.
| | - Elke Genersch
- Institute for Bee Research, Friedrich-Engels-Straße 32, 16540 Hohen Neuendorf, Germany; Institute of Microbiology and Epizootics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Freie Universität Berlin, Robert-von-Ostertag-Straße 7-13, 14163 Berlin, Germany
| | - Dino P McMahon
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Königin-Luise-Straße 1-3, 14195 Berlin, Germany; Department for Materials and Environment, BAM Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, Unter den Eichen 87, 12205 Berlin, Germany
| | - Charlotte Rafaluk-Mohr
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Königin-Luise-Straße 1-3, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Jens Rolff
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Königin-Luise-Straße 1-3, 14195 Berlin, Germany; Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), Berlin, Germany
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11
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Ali Mohammadie Kojour M, Baliarsingh S, Jang HA, Yun K, Park KB, Lee JE, Han YS, Patnaik BB, Jo YH. Current knowledge of immune priming in invertebrates, emphasizing studies on Tenebrio molitor. DEVELOPMENTAL AND COMPARATIVE IMMUNOLOGY 2022; 127:104284. [PMID: 34619174 DOI: 10.1016/j.dci.2021.104284] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2021] [Revised: 09/16/2021] [Accepted: 10/01/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Vertebrates rely on the most sophisticated adaptive immunity to defend themselves against various pathogens. This includes immunologic memory cells, which mount a stronger and more effective immune response against an antigen after its first encounter. Unlike vertebrates, invertebrates' defense completely depends on the innate immunity mechanisms including humoral and cell-mediated immunity. Furthermore, the invertebrate equivalent of the memory cells was discovered only recently. Since the discovery of transgenerational immune priming (TGIP) in crustaceans, numerous findings have proven the IP in invertebrate classes such as insects. TGIP can be induced through maternal priming pathways such as transcriptional regulation of antimicrobial peptides, and also paternal IP including the induction of proPO system activity. We appraise the diversity and specificity of IP agents to provide sustained immunologic memory in insects, particularly T. molitor in the review. An understanding of IP (more so TGIP) response in T. molitor will deepen our knowledge of invertebrate immunity, and boost the mass-rearing industry by reducing pathogen infection rates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maryam Ali Mohammadie Kojour
- Department of Applied Biology, Institute of Environmentally-Friendly Agriculture (IEFA), College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, 61186, South Korea
| | - Snigdha Baliarsingh
- PG Department of Biosciences and Biotechnology, Fakir Mohan University, Balasore, Odisha, 756089, India
| | - Ho Am Jang
- Department of Applied Biology, Institute of Environmentally-Friendly Agriculture (IEFA), College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, 61186, South Korea
| | - Keunho Yun
- Department of Applied Biology, Institute of Environmentally-Friendly Agriculture (IEFA), College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, 61186, South Korea
| | - Ki Beom Park
- Department of Applied Biology, Institute of Environmentally-Friendly Agriculture (IEFA), College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, 61186, South Korea
| | - Jong Eun Lee
- Department of Biological Science and Biotechnology, Andong National University, Andong, 36729, South Korea
| | - Yeon Soo Han
- Department of Applied Biology, Institute of Environmentally-Friendly Agriculture (IEFA), College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, 61186, South Korea
| | - Bharat Bhusan Patnaik
- PG Department of Biosciences and Biotechnology, Fakir Mohan University, Balasore, Odisha, 756089, India.
| | - Yong Hun Jo
- Department of Applied Biology, Institute of Environmentally-Friendly Agriculture (IEFA), College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, 61186, South Korea.
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12
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Schröder NCH, Korša A, Wami H, Mantel O, Dobrindt U, Kurtz J. Serial passage in an insect host indicates genetic stability of the human probiotic Escherichia coli Nissle 1917. Evol Med Public Health 2022; 10:71-86. [PMID: 35186295 PMCID: PMC8853844 DOI: 10.1093/emph/eoac001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2021] [Accepted: 12/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Background and objectives The probiotic Escherichia coli strain Nissle 1917 (EcN) has been shown to effectively prevent and alleviate intestinal diseases. Despite the widespread medical application of EcN, we still lack basic knowledge about persistence and evolution of EcN outside the human body. Such knowledge is important also for public health aspects, as in contrast to abiotic therapeutics, probiotics are living organisms that have the potential to evolve. This study made use of experimental evolution of EcN in an insect host, the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum, and its flour environment. Methodology Using a serial passage approach, we orally introduced EcN to larvae of T.castaneum as a new host, and also propagated it in the flour environment. After eight propagation cycles, we analyzed phenotypic attributes of the passaged replicate EcN lines, their effects on the host in the context of immunity and infection with the entomopathogen Bacillus thuringiensis, and potential genomic changes using WGS of three of the evolved lines. Results We observed weak phenotypic differences between the ancestral EcN and both, beetle and flour passaged EcN lines, in motility and growth at 30°C, but neither any genetic changes, nor the expected increased persistence of the beetle-passaged lines. One of these lines displayed distinct morphological and physiological characteristics. Conclusions and implications Our findings suggest that EcN remains rather stable during serial passage in an insect. Weak phenotypic changes in growth and motility combined with a lack of genetic changes indicate a certain degree of phenotypic plasticity of EcN. Lay Summary For studying adaptation of the human probiotic Escherichia coli strain Nissle 1917, we introduced it to a novel insect host system and its environment using a serial passage approach. After passage, we observed weak phenotypic changes in growth and motility but no mutations or changes in persistence inside the host.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas C H Schröder
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Ana Korša
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Haleluya Wami
- Institute for Hygiene, UKM Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Olena Mantel
- Institute for Hygiene, UKM Münster, Münster, Germany
| | | | - Joachim Kurtz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
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13
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Collins E, Martin C, Blomquist T, Phillips K, Cantlay S, Fisher N, Horzempa J. The utilization of Blaptica dubia cockroaches as an in vivo model to test antibiotic efficacy. Sci Rep 2021; 11:24004. [PMID: 34907348 PMCID: PMC8671488 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-03486-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 12/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Insects are now well recognized as biologically relevant alternative hosts for dozens of mammalian pathogens and they are routinely used in microbial pathogenesis studies. Unfortunately, these models have yet to be incorporated into the drug development pipeline. The purpose of this work was to begin to evaluate the utility of orange spotted (Blaptica dubia) cockroaches in early antibiotic characterization. To determine whether these model hosts could exhibit mortality when infected with bacteria that are pathogenic to humans, we subjected B. dubia roaches to a range of infectious doses of Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Acinetobacter baumannii to identify the medial lethal dose. These results showed that lethal disease did not develop following infection of high doses of S. aureus, and A. baumannii. However, cockroaches infected with E. coli and K. pneumoniae succumbed to infection (LD50s of 5.82 × 106 and 2.58 × 106 respectively) suggesting that this model may have limitations based on pathogen specificity. However, because these cockroaches were susceptible to infection from E. coli and K. pneumoniae, we used these bacterial strains for subsequent antibiotic characterization studies. These studies suggested that β-lactam antibiotic persistence and dose was associated with reduction of hemolymph bacterial burden. Moreover, our data indicated that the reduction of bacterial CFU was directly due to the drug activity. Altogether, this work suggests that the orange-spotted cockroach infection model provides an alternative in vivo setting from which antibiotic efficacy can be evaluated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elliot Collins
- Department of Biological Sciences, West Liberty University, West Liberty, WV, USA
| | - Caleb Martin
- Department of Biological Sciences, West Liberty University, West Liberty, WV, USA
| | - Tyler Blomquist
- Department of Biological Sciences, West Liberty University, West Liberty, WV, USA
| | - Katherine Phillips
- Department of Biological Sciences, West Liberty University, West Liberty, WV, USA
| | - Stuart Cantlay
- Department of Biological Sciences, West Liberty University, West Liberty, WV, USA
| | | | - Joseph Horzempa
- Department of Biological Sciences, West Liberty University, West Liberty, WV, USA.
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14
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Koch EL, Sbilordo SH, Guillaume F. Genetic variance in fitness and its cross‐sex covariance predict adaptation during experimental evolution. Evolution 2020; 74:2725-2740. [DOI: 10.1111/evo.14119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2020] [Revised: 09/29/2020] [Accepted: 10/25/2020] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Eva L. Koch
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies University of Zürich Winterthurerstr. 190 Zürich 8057 Switzerland
- Department of Animal and Plant Science University of Sheffield Western Bank Sheffield S10 2TN United Kingdom
| | - Sonja H. Sbilordo
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies University of Zürich Winterthurerstr. 190 Zürich 8057 Switzerland
| | - Frédéric Guillaume
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies University of Zürich Winterthurerstr. 190 Zürich 8057 Switzerland
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15
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Koch EL, Guillaume F. Restoring ancestral phenotypes is a general pattern in gene expression evolution during adaptation to new environments in Tribolium castaneum. Mol Ecol 2020; 29:3938-3953. [PMID: 32844494 DOI: 10.1111/mec.15607] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2019] [Revised: 06/19/2020] [Accepted: 08/10/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Plasticity and evolution are two processes allowing populations to respond to environmental changes, but how both are related and impact each other remains controversial. We studied plastic and evolutionary responses in gene expression of Tribolium castaneum after exposure of the beetles to new environments that differed from ancestral conditions in temperature, humidity or both. Using experimental evolution with 10 replicated lines per condition, we were able to demonstrate adaptation after 20 generations. We measured whole-transcriptome gene expression with RNA-sequencing to infer evolutionary and plastic changes. We found more evidence for changes in mean expression (shift in the intercept of reaction norms) in adapted lines than for changes in plasticity (shifts in slopes). Plasticity was mainly preserved in selected lines and was responsible for a large part of the phenotypic divergence in expression between ancestral and new conditions. However, we found that genes with the largest evolutionary changes in expression also evolved reduced plasticity and often showed expression levels closer to the ancestral stage. Results obtained in the three different conditions were similar, suggesting that restoration of ancestral expression levels during adaptation is a general evolutionary pattern. With a larger sample in the most stressful condition, we were able to detect a positive correlation between the proportion of genes with reversion of the ancestral plastic response and mean fitness per selection line.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva L Koch
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.,Department of Animal and Plant Science, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Frédéric Guillaume
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
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16
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Koch EL, Guillaume F. Additive and mostly adaptive plastic responses of gene expression to multiple stress in Tribolium castaneum. PLoS Genet 2020; 16:e1008768. [PMID: 32379753 PMCID: PMC7238888 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1008768] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2019] [Revised: 05/19/2020] [Accepted: 04/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Gene expression is known to be highly responsive to the environment and important for adjustment of metabolism but there is also growing evidence that differences in gene regulation contribute to species divergence and differences among locally adapted populations. However, most studies so far investigated populations when divergence had already occurred. Selection acting on expression levels at the onset of adaptation to an environmental change has not been characterized. Understanding the mechanisms is further complicated by the fact that environmental change is often multivariate, meaning that organisms are exposed to multiple stressors simultaneously with potentially interactive effects. Here we use a novel approach by combining fitness and whole-transcriptome data in a large-scale experiment to investigate responses to drought, heat and their combination in Tribolium castaneum. We found that fitness was reduced by both stressors and their combined effect was almost additive. Expression data showed that stressor responses were acting independently and did not interfere physiologically. Since we measured expression and fitness within the same individuals, we were able to estimate selection on gene expression levels. We found that variation in fitness can be attributed to gene expression variation and that selection pressures were environment dependent and opposite between control and stress conditions. We could further show that plastic responses of expression were largely adaptive, i.e. in the direction that should increase fitness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva L. Koch
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University
of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
- Department of Animal and Plant Science, University of Sheffield, Western
Bank, Sheffield, United Kingdom
| | - Frédéric Guillaume
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University
of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
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17
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Zanchi C, Lindeza AS, Kurtz J. Comparative Mortality and Adaptation of a Smurf Assay in two Species of Tenebrionid Beetles Exposed to Bacillus thuringiensis. INSECTS 2020; 11:insects11040261. [PMID: 32344621 PMCID: PMC7240575 DOI: 10.3390/insects11040261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2020] [Revised: 04/20/2020] [Accepted: 04/21/2020] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Bacillus thuringiensis is a spore-forming bacterium which infects insect larvae naturally via the oral route. Its virulence factors interact with the epithelium of the digestive tract of insect larvae, disrupting its function and eventually leading to the death of susceptible hosts. The most cited B. thuringiensis killing mechanism is the extensive damage caused to the insect midgut, leading to its leakage. The mortality caused by B. thuringiensis has been shown to vary between serovars and isolates, as well as between host life stages. Moreover, whether susceptibility to B. thuringiensis-induced gut leakage is generalized to all host species and whether there is individual variation within species is unclear. In this study, we adapted a non-invasive “Smurf” assay from Drosophila melanogaster to two species of tenebrionid beetles: The mealworm beetle Tenebrio molitor and the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum, during exposure to B. thuringiensis. We highlight a differential mortality between two age/size classes of T. molitor larvae, as well as different killing dynamics between B. thuringiensis var. tenebrionis and var. tolworthi in T. castaneum. The Smurf assay did not reveal a high occurrence of extensive gut disintegration in both host species upon ingestion during B. thuringiensis exposure.
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18
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Ali A, Abd El Halim HM. Re-thinking adaptive immunity in the beetles: Evolutionary and functional trajectories of lncRNAs. Genomics 2019; 112:1425-1436. [PMID: 31442561 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2019.08.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2019] [Revised: 06/04/2019] [Accepted: 08/16/2019] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Unlike vertebrate animals, invertebrates lack lymphocytes and therefore have historically been believed not to develop immune memory. A few studies have reported evidence of immune priming in insects; however, these studies lack the molecular mechanism and proposed it might be different among taxa. Since lncRNAs are known to regulate the immune response, we identified 10,120 lncRNAs in Tribolium castaneum genome-wide followed by transcriptome analysis of primed and unprimed larvae of different infectious status. A shift in lncRNA expression between Btt primed larvae and other treatment groups provides evidence of immune memory response. A few "priming" lncRNAs (n = 9) were uniquely regulated in Btt primed larvae. Evidence suggests these lncRNAs are likely controlling immune priming in Tribolium by regulating expression of genes involved in proteasomal machinery, Notch system, zinc metabolism, and methyltransferase activity, which are necessary to modulate phagocytosis. Our results support a conserved immune priming mechanism in a macrophage-dependent manner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ali Ali
- Department of Biology and Molecular Biosciences Program, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, TN 37132, United States of America; Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Benha University, Benha, Egypt.
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Adamski Z, Bufo SA, Chowański S, Falabella P, Lubawy J, Marciniak P, Pacholska-Bogalska J, Salvia R, Scrano L, Słocińska M, Spochacz M, Szymczak M, Urbański A, Walkowiak-Nowicka K, Rosiński G. Beetles as Model Organisms in Physiological, Biomedical and Environmental Studies - A Review. Front Physiol 2019; 10:319. [PMID: 30984018 PMCID: PMC6447812 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2019.00319] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2018] [Accepted: 03/11/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Model organisms are often used in biological, medical and environmental research. Among insects, Drosophila melanogaster, Galleria mellonella, Apis mellifera, Bombyx mori, Periplaneta americana, and Locusta migratoria are often used. However, new model organisms still appear. In recent years, an increasing number of insect species has been suggested as model organisms in life sciences research due to their worldwide distribution and environmental significance, the possibility of extrapolating research studies to vertebrates and the relatively low cost of rearing. Beetles are the largest insect order, with their representative - Tribolium castaneum - being the first species with a completely sequenced genome, and seem to be emerging as new potential candidates for model organisms in various studies. Apart from T. castaneum, additional species representing various Coleoptera families, such as Nicrophorus vespilloides, Leptinotarsa decemlineata, Coccinella septempunctata, Poecilus cupreus, Tenebrio molitor and many others, have been used. They are increasingly often included in two major research aspects: biomedical and environmental studies. Biomedical studies focus mainly on unraveling mechanisms of basic life processes, such as feeding, neurotransmission or activity of the immune system, as well as on elucidating the mechanism of different diseases (neurodegenerative, cardiovascular, metabolic, or immunological) using beetles as models. Furthermore, pharmacological bioassays for testing novel biologically active substances in beetles have also been developed. It should be emphasized that beetles are a source of compounds with potential antimicrobial and anticancer activity. Environmental-based studies focus mainly on the development and testing of new potential pesticides of both chemical and natural origin. Additionally, beetles are used as food or for their valuable supplements. Different beetle families are also used as bioindicators. Another important research area using beetles as models is behavioral ecology studies, for instance, parental care. In this paper, we review the current knowledge regarding beetles as model organisms and their practical application in various fields of life science.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zbigniew Adamski
- Department of Animal Physiology and Development, Institute of Experimental Biology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poznań, Poland
- Laboratory of Electron and Confocal Microscopy, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poznań, Poland
| | - Sabino A. Bufo
- Department of Sciences, University of Basilicata, Potenza, Italy
- Department of Geography, Environmental Management & Energy Studies, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Szymon Chowański
- Department of Animal Physiology and Development, Institute of Experimental Biology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poznań, Poland
| | | | - Jan Lubawy
- Department of Animal Physiology and Development, Institute of Experimental Biology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poznań, Poland
| | - Paweł Marciniak
- Department of Animal Physiology and Development, Institute of Experimental Biology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poznań, Poland
| | - Joanna Pacholska-Bogalska
- Department of Animal Physiology and Development, Institute of Experimental Biology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poznań, Poland
| | - Rosanna Salvia
- Department of Sciences, University of Basilicata, Potenza, Italy
| | - Laura Scrano
- Department of European and Mediterranean Cultures, University of Basilicata, Matera, Italy
| | - Małgorzata Słocińska
- Department of Animal Physiology and Development, Institute of Experimental Biology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poznań, Poland
| | - Marta Spochacz
- Department of Animal Physiology and Development, Institute of Experimental Biology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poznań, Poland
| | - Monika Szymczak
- Department of Animal Physiology and Development, Institute of Experimental Biology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poznań, Poland
| | - Arkadiusz Urbański
- Department of Animal Physiology and Development, Institute of Experimental Biology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poznań, Poland
| | - Karolina Walkowiak-Nowicka
- Department of Animal Physiology and Development, Institute of Experimental Biology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poznań, Poland
| | - Grzegorz Rosiński
- Department of Animal Physiology and Development, Institute of Experimental Biology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poznań, Poland
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20
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Schulz NKE, Sell MP, Ferro K, Kleinhölting N, Kurtz J. Transgenerational Developmental Effects of Immune Priming in the Red Flour Beetle Tribolium castaneum. Front Physiol 2019; 10:98. [PMID: 30837885 PMCID: PMC6389831 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2019.00098] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2018] [Accepted: 01/28/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Immune priming, the increased chance to survive a secondary encounter with a pathogen, has been described for many invertebrate species, which lack the classical adaptive immune system of vertebrates. Priming can be specific even for closely related bacterial strains, last up to the entire lifespan of an individual, and in some species, it can also be transferred to the offspring and is then called transgenerational immune priming (TGIP). In the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum, a pest of stored grains, TGIP has even been shown to be transferred paternally after injection of adult beetles with heat-killed Bacillus thuringiensis. Here we studied whether TGIP in T. castaneum is also transferred to the second filial generation, whether it can also occur after oral and injection priming of larvae and whether it has effects on offspring development. We found that paternal priming with B. thuringiensis does not only protect the first but also the second offspring generation. Also, fitness costs of the immune priming became apparent, when the first filial generation produced fewer offspring. Furthermore, we used two different routes of exposure to prime larvae, either by injecting them with heat-killed bacteria or orally feeding them B. thuringiensis spore culture supernatant. Neither of the parental larval priming methods led to any direct benefits regarding offspring resistance. However, the injections slowed down development of the injected individuals, while oral priming with both a pathogenic and a non-pathogenic strain of B. thuringiensis delayed offspring development. The long-lasting transgenerational nature of immune priming and its impact on offspring development indicate that potentially underlying epigenetic modifications might be stable over several generations. Therefore, this form of phenotypic plasticity might impact pest control and should be considered when using products of bacterial origin against insects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nora K E Schulz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Marie Pauline Sell
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Kevin Ferro
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Nico Kleinhölting
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Joachim Kurtz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
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21
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Khan I, Prakash A, Agashe D. Experimental evolution of insect immune memory versus pathogen resistance. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 284:rspb.2017.1583. [PMID: 29237849 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.1583] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2017] [Accepted: 11/13/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Under strong pathogen pressure, insects often evolve resistance to infection. Many insects are also protected via immune memory (immune priming), whereby sublethal exposure to a pathogen enhances survival after secondary infection. Theory predicts that immune memory should evolve when the pathogen is highly virulent, or when pathogen exposure is relatively rare. However, there are no empirical tests of these hypotheses, and the adaptive benefits of immune memory relative to direct resistance against a pathogen are poorly understood. To determine the selective pressures and ecological conditions that shape immune evolution, we imposed strong pathogen selection on flour beetle (Tribolium castaneum) populations, infecting them with Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) for 11 generations. Populations injected first with heat-killed and then live Bt evolved high basal resistance against multiple Bt strains. By contrast, populations injected only with a high dose of live Bt evolved a less effective but strain-specific priming response. Control populations injected with heat-killed Bt did not evolve priming; and in the ancestor, priming was effective only against a low Bt dose. Intriguingly, one replicate population first evolved priming and subsequently evolved basal resistance, suggesting the potential for dynamic evolution of different immune strategies. Our work is the first report showing that pathogens can select for rapid modulation of insect priming ability, allowing hosts to evolve divergent immune strategies (generalized resistance versus specific immune memory) with potentially distinct mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Imroze Khan
- National Centre for Biological Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, GKVK, Bellary Road, Bangalore 560065, India .,Ashoka University, Plot No. 2, Rajiv Gandhi Education City, National Capital Region, P.O. Rai, Sonepat, Haryana 131029, India
| | - Arun Prakash
- National Centre for Biological Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, GKVK, Bellary Road, Bangalore 560065, India
| | - Deepa Agashe
- National Centre for Biological Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, GKVK, Bellary Road, Bangalore 560065, India
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22
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Futo M, Sell MP, Kutzer MAM, Kurtz J. Specificity of oral immune priming in the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum. Biol Lett 2018; 13:rsbl.2017.0632. [PMID: 29237813 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2017.0632] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2017] [Accepted: 11/20/2017] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Immune specificity is the degree to which a host's immune system discriminates among various pathogens or antigenic variants. Vertebrate immune memory is highly specific due to antibody responses. On the other hand, some invertebrates show immune priming, i.e. improved survival after secondary exposure to a previously encountered pathogen. Until now, specificity of priming has only been demonstrated via the septic infection route or when live pathogens were used for priming. Therefore, we tested for specificity in the oral priming route in the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum For priming, we used pathogen-free supernatants derived from three different strains of the entomopathogen, Bacillus thuringiensis, which express different Cry toxin variants known for their toxicity against this beetle. Subsequent exposure to the infective spores showed that oral priming was specific for two naturally occurring strains, while a third engineered strain did not induce any priming effect. Our data demonstrate that oral immune priming with a non-infectious bacterial agent can be specific, but the priming effect is not universal across all bacterial strains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Momir Futo
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstrasse 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Marie P Sell
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstrasse 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Megan A M Kutzer
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstrasse 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Joachim Kurtz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstrasse 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
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Grau T, Vilcinskas A, Joop G. Sustainable farming of the mealworm Tenebrio molitor for the production of food and feed. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2018; 72:337-349. [PMID: 28525347 DOI: 10.1515/znc-2017-0033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2017] [Accepted: 04/11/2017] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
The farming of edible insects is an alternative strategy for the production of protein-rich food and feed with a low ecological footprint. The industrial production of insect-derived protein is more cost-effective and energy-efficient than livestock farming or aquaculture. The mealworm Tenebrio molitor is economically among the most important species used for the large-scale conversion of plant biomass into protein. Here, we review the mass rearing of this species and its conversion into food and feed, focusing on challenges such as the contamination of food/feed products with bacteria from the insect gut and the risk of rapidly spreading pathogens and parasites. We propose solutions to prevent the outbreak of infections among farmed insects without reliance on antibiotics. Transgenerational immune priming and probiotic bacteria may provide alternative strategies for sustainable insect farming.
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Lopez-Ezquerra A, Mitschke A, Bornberg-Bauer E, Joop G. Tribolium castaneum gene expression changes after Paranosema whitei infection. J Invertebr Pathol 2018; 153:92-98. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jip.2018.02.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2017] [Revised: 01/10/2018] [Accepted: 02/12/2018] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
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Cross-Resistance: A Consequence of Bi-partite Host-Parasite Coevolution. INSECTS 2018; 9:insects9010028. [PMID: 29495405 PMCID: PMC5872293 DOI: 10.3390/insects9010028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2017] [Revised: 02/02/2018] [Accepted: 02/19/2018] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Host-parasite coevolution can influence interactions of the host and parasite with the wider ecological community. One way that this may manifest is in cross-resistance towards other parasites, which has been observed to occur in some host-parasite evolution experiments. In this paper, we test for cross-resistance towards Bacillus thuringiensis and Pseudomonasentomophila in the red flour beetle Triboliumcastaneum, which was previously allowed to coevolve with the generalist entomopathogenic fungus Beauveriabassiana. We combine survival and gene expression assays upon infection to test for cross-resistance and underlying mechanisms. We show that larvae of T.castaneum that evolved with B.bassiana under coevolutionary conditions were positively cross-resistant to the bacterium B. thuringiensis, but not P.entomophila. Positive cross-resistance was mirrored at the gene expression level with markers that were representative of the oral route of infection being upregulated upon B.bassiana exposure. We find that positive cross-resistance towards B. thuringiensis evolved in T.castaneum as a consequence of its coevolutionary interactions with B.bassiana. This cross-resistance appears to be a consequence of resistance to oral toxicity. The fact that coevolution with B.bassiana results in resistance to B. thuringiensis, but not P.entomophila implies that B. thuringiensis and B.bassiana may share mechanisms of infection or toxicity not shared by P.entomophila. This supports previous suggestions that B.bassiana may possess Cry-like toxins, similar to those found in B. thuringiensis, which allow it to infect orally.
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Dhakal S, Micki Buss S, Jane Cassidy E, Vitt Meyling N, Lund Fredensborg B. Establishment Success of the Beetle Tapeworm Hymenolepis diminuta Depends on Dose and Host Body Condition. INSECTS 2018; 9:insects9010014. [PMID: 29401652 PMCID: PMC5872279 DOI: 10.3390/insects9010014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2018] [Revised: 01/30/2018] [Accepted: 01/31/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Parasite effects on host fitness and immunology are often intensity-dependent. Unfortunately, only few experimental studies on insect-parasite interactions attempt to control the level of infection, which may contribute substantial variation to the fitness or immunological parameters of interest. The tapeworm Hymenolepis diminuta—flour beetle Tenebrio molitor model—has been used extensively for ecological and evolutionary host–parasite studies. Successful establishment of H. diminuta cysticercoids in T. molitor relies on ingestion of viable eggs and penetration of the gut wall by the onchosphere. Like in other insect models, there is a lack of standardization of the infection load of cysticercoids in beetles. The aims of this study were to: (1) quantify the relationship between exposure dose and establishment success across several H. diminuta egg concentrations; and (2) test parasite establishment in beetles while experimentally manipulating host body condition and potential immune response to infection. Different egg concentrations of H. diminuta isolated from infected rat feces were fed to individual beetles 7–10 days after eclosion and beetles were exposed to starvation, wounding, or insertion of a nylon filament one hour prior to infection. We found that the establishment of cysticercoids in relation to exposure dose could be accurately predicted using a power function where establishment success was low at three lowest doses and higher at the two highest doses tested. Long-term starvation had a negative effect on cysticercoid establishment success, while insertion of a nylon filament and wounding the beetles did not have any effect compared to control treatment. Thus, our results show that parasite load may be predicted from the exposure dose within the observed range, and that the relationship between dose and parasite establishment success is able to withstand some changes in host body condition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suraj Dhakal
- Section for Organismal Biology, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 1871 Frederiksberg C, Denmark.
| | - Sebastian Micki Buss
- Section for Organismal Biology, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 1871 Frederiksberg C, Denmark.
| | - Elizabeth Jane Cassidy
- Section for Organismal Biology, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 1871 Frederiksberg C, Denmark.
| | - Nicolai Vitt Meyling
- Section for Organismal Biology, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 1871 Frederiksberg C, Denmark.
| | - Brian Lund Fredensborg
- Section for Organismal Biology, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 1871 Frederiksberg C, Denmark.
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Rafaluk-Mohr C, Wagner S, Joop G. Cryptic changes in immune response and fitness in Tribolium castaneum as a consequence of coevolution with Beauveria bassiana. J Invertebr Pathol 2017; 152:1-7. [PMID: 29273219 DOI: 10.1016/j.jip.2017.12.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2017] [Revised: 11/15/2017] [Accepted: 12/15/2017] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Immunity is a key trait in host defence against parasites and is thus likely to be under selection during host-parasite coevolution. Broadly, the immune system consists of several lines of defence including physiological innate immunity, physical barriers such as the cuticle, avoidance behaviours and in some cases antimicrobial secretions. The defence conferring the highest fitness benefit may be situation specific and depend on the taxon and infection route of the parasite. We carried out a host-parasite coevolution experiment between the red flour beetle T. castaneum, which possesses a comprehensive immune system including the ability to secrete antimicrobial compounds into its environment, and the generalist entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana. We measured levels of external immunity (benzoquinone secretion) and an internal immune trait, phenoloxidase (PO) activity throughout and in F2 to beetles at the end of the experiment. Survival (a proxy for resistance) of F2 coevolved and control beetles exposed to the fungus was also measured. No change in external immunity or survival was observed as a consequence of host-parasite coevolution, however, PO responses in evolved beetles showed increased flexibility dependent on the route of infection of the parasite. This more flexible PO response appeared to result in beetle populations being better able to cope with the parasite, buffering their fitness during the course of the coevolution experiment. This represents a subtle but significant adaptation to the presence of a parasite over evolutionary time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charlotte Rafaluk-Mohr
- Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics, Zoological Institute, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1-9, 24118 Kiel, Germany; Institute for Insect Biotechnology, Justus Liebig University of Giessen, Heinrich-Buff-Ring 26-32, 25392 Giessen, Germany.
| | - Sophia Wagner
- Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics, Zoological Institute, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1-9, 24118 Kiel, Germany
| | - Gerrit Joop
- Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics, Zoological Institute, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1-9, 24118 Kiel, Germany; Institute for Insect Biotechnology, Justus Liebig University of Giessen, Heinrich-Buff-Ring 26-32, 25392 Giessen, Germany.
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28
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Ferro K, Ferro D, Corrà F, Bakiu R, Santovito G, Kurtz J. Cu,Zn Superoxide Dismutase Genes in Tribolium castaneum: Evolution, Molecular Characterisation, and Gene Expression during Immune Priming. Front Immunol 2017; 8:1811. [PMID: 29375546 PMCID: PMC5763126 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2017.01811] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2017] [Accepted: 12/01/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) is a normal consequence of the aerobic cell metabolism. Despite their high and potentially detrimental reactivity with various biomolecules, the endogenous production of ROS is a vital part of physiological, immunological, and molecular processes that contribute to fitness. The role of ROS in host-parasite interactions is frequently defined by their contribution to innate immunity as effectors, promoting parasite death during infections. In vertebrates, ROS and antioxidant system enzymes, such as superoxide dismutase (SOD) are also involved in acquired immune memory, where they are responsible for T-cell signalling, activation, proliferation, and viability. Based on recent findings, ROS are now also assumed to play a role in immune priming, i.e., a form of memory in invertebrates. In this study, the potential involvement of Cu,Zn SODs in immunity of the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum is described for the first time, applying an approach that combines an in silico gene characterisation with an in vivo immune priming experiment using the Gram-positive entomopathogen Bacillus thuringiensis. We identified an unusually high number of three different transcripts for extracellular SOD and found that priming leads to a fine-tuned modulation of SOD expression, highlighting the potential of physiological co-adaptations for immune phenotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin Ferro
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Diana Ferro
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | | | - Rigers Bakiu
- Department of Aquaculture and Fisheries, Faculty of Agriculture and Environment, Agricultural University of Tirana, Tirana, Albania
| | | | - Joachim Kurtz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
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29
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Rafaluk C, Yang W, Mitschke A, Rosenstiel P, Schulenburg H, Joop G. Highly potent host external immunity acts as a strong selective force enhancing rapid parasite virulence evolution. Environ Microbiol 2017; 19:2090-2100. [PMID: 28345225 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.13736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2016] [Revised: 03/08/2017] [Accepted: 03/09/2017] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Virulence is often under selection during host-parasite coevolution. In order to increase fitness, parasites are predicted to circumvent and overcome host immunity. A particular challenge for pathogens are external immune systems, chemical defence systems comprised of potent antimicrobial compounds released by prospective hosts into the environment. We carried out an evolution experiment, allowing for coevolution to occur, with the entomopathogenic fungus, Beauveria bassiana, and the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum, which has a well-documented external immune system with strong inhibitory effects against B. bassiana. After just seven transfers of experimental evolution we saw a significant increase in parasite induced host mortality, a proxy for virulence, in all B. bassiana lines. This apparent virulence increase was mainly the result of the B. bassiana lines evolving resistance to the beetles' external immune defences, not due to increased production of toxins or other harmful substances. Transcriptomic analyses of evolved B. bassiana implicated the up-regulation of oxidative stress resistance genes in the observed resistance to external immunity. It was concluded that external immunity acts as a powerful selective force for virulence evolution, with an increase in virulence being achieved apparently entirely by overcoming these defences, most likely due to elevated oxidative stress resistance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charlotte Rafaluk
- Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics, Zoological Institute, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1-9, Kiel, 24118, Germany.,Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, The Tinbergen Building, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK.,Institute for Insect Biotechnology, University of Gießen, Heinrich-Buff-Ring 26-32, Gießen, D-35392, Germany
| | - Wentao Yang
- Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics, Zoological Institute, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1-9, Kiel, 24118, Germany
| | - Andreas Mitschke
- Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics, Zoological Institute, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1-9, Kiel, 24118, Germany.,Institute for Insect Biotechnology, University of Gießen, Heinrich-Buff-Ring 26-32, Gießen, D-35392, Germany
| | - Philip Rosenstiel
- Institute for Clinical Molecular Biology, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Schittenhelmstrasse 12, Kiel, 24105, Germany
| | - Hinrich Schulenburg
- Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics, Zoological Institute, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1-9, Kiel, 24118, Germany
| | - Gerrit Joop
- Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics, Zoological Institute, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1-9, Kiel, 24118, Germany.,Institute for Insect Biotechnology, University of Gießen, Heinrich-Buff-Ring 26-32, Gießen, D-35392, Germany
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30
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Genetic components in a thermal developmental plasticity of the beetle Tribolium castaneum. J Therm Biol 2017; 68:55-62. [PMID: 28689722 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtherbio.2017.01.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2016] [Revised: 11/21/2016] [Accepted: 01/04/2017] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Low developmental temperatures cause ectotherms to retard growth, postpone maturation, and emerge at either larger or smaller adult size. In this study, we explored how these thermal responses evolved, focusing on their genetic basis. We applied a full diallel breeding design on inbred lines of the flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum. To assess the proportional contributions of genetic and non-genetic effects, each genotype, a unique combination of parental haplotypes, was reared from an egg to imago at five developmental temperatures. Faster development of females vs. males was associated with comparatively larger body masses of females (pupae and imago). In contrast, the rapid development caused by warmer environments resulted in smaller beetles (pupae and imago), but there were significant differences in this trait among genotypes. Independent effects of parental haplotypes played the major role in explaining the variance of body mass, but interactive effects of parental haplotypes explained most of the variance in developmental length. Genotypes responded to the thermal environment in a markedly uniform way. Nevertheless, we found the low statistically significant variance in the slopes of thermal reaction norms for body mass and developmental, which was mainly driven by the interactive effects of parental haplotypes. Overall, the thermal plasticity of T. castaneum follows the most common pattern among ectotherms, the so-called temperature-size rule. Detection of the low genetic variance in the shape of this response supports the idea that thermal developmental plasticity remains under a strong selective pressure in ectotherms.
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31
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Grau T, Vilcinskas A, Joop G. Probiotic Enterococcus mundtii Isolate Protects the Model Insect Tribolium castaneum against Bacillus thuringiensis. Front Microbiol 2017; 8:1261. [PMID: 28736550 PMCID: PMC5500611 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.01261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2017] [Accepted: 06/23/2017] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Enterococcus mundtii strains isolated from the larval feces of the Mediterranean flour moth Ephestia kuehniella show antimicrobial activity against a broad spectrum of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The in vitro probiotic characterization of one isolate revealed a high auto-aggregation score, a hydrophilic cell surface, tolerance for low pH, no hemolytic activity, and susceptibility to all tested antibiotics. We used the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum, an established model organism, for the in vivo characterization of one probiotic E. mundtii isolate from E. kuehniella larvae. Tribolium castaneum larvae were fed orally with the probiotic isolate or the corresponding supernatant and then infected with either the entomopathogen Bacillus thuringiensis or Pseudomonas entomophila. Larvae exposed to the isolate or the supernatant showed increased survival following infection with B. thuringiensis but not P. entomophila. Heat treatment or treatment with proteinase K reduced the probiotic effect of the supernatant. However, the increased resistance attracts a fitness penalty manifested as a shorter lifespan and reduced fertility. T. castaneum has, pending on further research, the potential as an alternative model for the pre-screening of probiotics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thorben Grau
- Institute for Insect Biotechnology, Justus-Liebig-University GiessenGiessen, Germany
| | - Andreas Vilcinskas
- Institute for Insect Biotechnology, Justus-Liebig-University GiessenGiessen, Germany
- Department of Bioresources, Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied EcologyGiessen, Germany
| | - Gerrit Joop
- Institute for Insect Biotechnology, Justus-Liebig-University GiessenGiessen, Germany
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32
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Bacteria encountered in raw insect, spider, scorpion, and centipede taxa including edible species, and their significance from the food hygiene point of view. Trends Food Sci Technol 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tifs.2017.01.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
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33
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Greenwood JM, Milutinović B, Peuß R, Behrens S, Esser D, Rosenstiel P, Schulenburg H, Kurtz J. Oral immune priming with Bacillus thuringiensis induces a shift in the gene expression of Tribolium castaneum larvae. BMC Genomics 2017; 18:329. [PMID: 28446171 PMCID: PMC5405463 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-017-3705-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2016] [Accepted: 04/12/2017] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The phenomenon of immune priming, i.e. enhanced protection following a secondary exposure to a pathogen, has now been demonstrated in a wide range of invertebrate species. Despite accumulating phenotypic evidence, knowledge of its mechanistic underpinnings is currently very limited. Here we used the system of the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum and the insect pathogen Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) to further our molecular understanding of the oral immune priming phenomenon. We addressed how ingestion of bacterial cues (derived from spore supernatants) of an orally pathogenic and non-pathogenic Bt strain affects gene expression upon later challenge exposure, using a whole-transcriptome sequencing approach. Results Whereas gene expression of individuals primed with the orally non-pathogenic strain showed minor changes to controls, we found that priming with the pathogenic strain induced regulation of a large set of distinct genes, many of which are known immune candidates. Intriguingly, the immune repertoire activated upon priming and subsequent challenge qualitatively differed from the one mounted upon infection with Bt without previous priming. Moreover, a large subset of priming-specific genes showed an inverse regulation compared to their regulation upon challenge only. Conclusions Our data demonstrate that gene expression upon infection is strongly affected by previous immune priming. We hypothesise that this shift in gene expression indicates activation of a more targeted and efficient response towards a previously encountered pathogen, in anticipation of potential secondary encounter. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12864-017-3705-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jenny M Greenwood
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstrasse 1, 48149, Münster, Germany
| | - Barbara Milutinović
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstrasse 1, 48149, Münster, Germany.,Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Am Campus 1, 3400, Klosterneuburg, Austria
| | - Robert Peuß
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstrasse 1, 48149, Münster, Germany.,Current Address: Stowers Institute for Medical Research, 1000 East 50th Street, Kansas City, MO, 64110, USA
| | - Sarah Behrens
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstrasse 1, 48149, Münster, Germany
| | - Daniela Esser
- Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology, Christian-Albrechts University Kiel, Schittenhelmstr. 12, 24105, Kiel, Germany
| | - Philip Rosenstiel
- Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology, Christian-Albrechts University Kiel, Schittenhelmstr. 12, 24105, Kiel, Germany
| | - Hinrich Schulenburg
- Zoological Institute, Christian-Albrechts University Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1-9, 24118, Kiel, Germany
| | - Joachim Kurtz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstrasse 1, 48149, Münster, Germany.
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35
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Plesnar-Bielak A, Woch KR, Małszycki MA, Alkhawlany ATH, Hołysz A, Assis Correia JF, Turk N, Ugrin M, Kramarz P, Prokop ZM. Larval and adult nutrition effects on reproductive traits in the red flour beetle. J Zool (1987) 2017. [DOI: 10.1111/jzo.12440] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- A. Plesnar-Bielak
- Institute of Environmental Sciences; Jagiellonian University; Kraków Poland
| | - K. R. Woch
- Institute of Environmental Sciences; Jagiellonian University; Kraków Poland
| | - M. A. Małszycki
- Institute of Environmental Sciences; Jagiellonian University; Kraków Poland
| | | | - A. Hołysz
- Institute of Environmental Sciences; Jagiellonian University; Kraków Poland
| | | | - N. Turk
- Institute of Environmental Sciences; Jagiellonian University; Kraków Poland
| | - M. Ugrin
- Institute of Environmental Sciences; Jagiellonian University; Kraków Poland
| | - P. Kramarz
- Institute of Environmental Sciences; Jagiellonian University; Kraków Poland
| | - Z. M. Prokop
- Institute of Environmental Sciences; Jagiellonian University; Kraków Poland
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36
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Hollensteiner J, Wemheuer F, Harting R, Kolarzyk AM, Diaz Valerio SM, Poehlein A, Brzuszkiewicz EB, Nesemann K, Braus-Stromeyer SA, Braus GH, Daniel R, Liesegang H. Bacillus thuringiensis and Bacillus weihenstephanensis Inhibit the Growth of Phytopathogenic Verticillium Species. Front Microbiol 2017; 7:2171. [PMID: 28149292 PMCID: PMC5241308 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2016.02171] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2016] [Accepted: 12/23/2016] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Verticillium wilt causes severe yield losses in a broad range of economically important crops worldwide. As many soil fumigants have a severe environmental impact, new biocontrol strategies are needed. Members of the genus Bacillus are known as plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) as well as biocontrol agents of pests and diseases. In this study, we isolated 267 Bacillus strains from root-associated soil of field-grown tomato plants. We evaluated the antifungal potential of 20 phenotypically diverse strains according to their antagonistic activity against the two phytopathogenic fungi Verticillium dahliae and Verticillium longisporum. In addition, the 20 strains were sequenced and phylogenetically characterized by multi-locus sequence typing (MLST) resulting in 7 different Bacillus thuringiensis and 13 Bacillus weihenstephanensis strains. All B. thuringiensis isolates inhibited in vitro the tomato pathogen V. dahliae JR2, but had only low efficacy against the tomato-foreign pathogen V. longisporum 43. All B. weihenstephanensis isolates exhibited no fungicidal activity whereas three B. weihenstephanensis isolates showed antagonistic effects on both phytopathogens. These strains had a rhizoid colony morphology, which has not been described for B. weihenstephanensis strains previously. Genome analysis of all isolates revealed putative genes encoding fungicidal substances and resulted in identification of 304 secondary metabolite gene clusters including 101 non-ribosomal polypeptide synthetases and 203 ribosomal-synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides. All genomes encoded genes for the synthesis of the antifungal siderophore bacillibactin. In the genome of one B. thuringiensis strain, a gene cluster for zwittermicin A was detected. Isolates which either exhibited an inhibitory or an interfering effect on the growth of the phytopathogens carried one or two genes encoding putative mycolitic chitinases, which might contribute to antifungal activities. This indicates that chitinases contribute to antifungal activities. The present study identified B. thuringiensis isolates from tomato roots which exhibited in vitro antifungal activity against Verticillium species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacqueline Hollensteiner
- Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Department of Genomic and Applied Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg-August-University Gottingen, Germany
| | - Franziska Wemheuer
- Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Department of Genomic and Applied Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg-August-University Gottingen, Germany
| | - Rebekka Harting
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Genetics, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics and Göttingen Center for Molecular Biosciences, Georg-August-University Gottingen, Germany
| | - Anna M Kolarzyk
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Genetics, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics and Göttingen Center for Molecular Biosciences, Georg-August-University Gottingen, Germany
| | - Stefani M Diaz Valerio
- Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Department of Genomic and Applied Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg-August-University Gottingen, Germany
| | - Anja Poehlein
- Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Department of Genomic and Applied Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg-August-University Gottingen, Germany
| | - Elzbieta B Brzuszkiewicz
- Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Department of Genomic and Applied Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg-August-University Gottingen, Germany
| | - Kai Nesemann
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Genetics, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics and Göttingen Center for Molecular Biosciences, Georg-August-University Gottingen, Germany
| | - Susanna A Braus-Stromeyer
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Genetics, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics and Göttingen Center for Molecular Biosciences, Georg-August-University Gottingen, Germany
| | - Gerhard H Braus
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Genetics, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics and Göttingen Center for Molecular Biosciences, Georg-August-University Gottingen, Germany
| | - Rolf Daniel
- Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Department of Genomic and Applied Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg-August-University Gottingen, Germany
| | - Heiko Liesegang
- Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Department of Genomic and Applied Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg-August-University Gottingen, Germany
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Response of Development and Body Mass to Daily Temperature Fluctuations: a Study on Tribolium castaneum. Evol Biol 2016; 43:356-367. [PMID: 27512238 PMCID: PMC4960287 DOI: 10.1007/s11692-016-9375-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2015] [Accepted: 02/05/2016] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Differences in thermal regimes are of paramount importance in insect development. However, experiments that examine trait development under constant temperature conditions may yield less evolutionarily relevant results than those that take naturally occurring temperature fluctuations into account. We investigated the effect of different temperature regimes (constant 30 °C, constant 35 °C, fluctuating with a daily mean of 30 °C, or fluctuating with a daily mean of 35 °C) on sex-specific development time and body mass in Tribolium castaneum. Using a half-sib breeding design, we also examined whether there is any evidence for genotype-by-environment interactions (GEI) for the studied traits. In response to fluctuating temperature regimes, beetles demonstrated reaction norm patterns in which thermal fluctuations influenced traits negatively above the species’ thermal optimum but had little to no effect close to the thermal optimum. Estimated heritabilities of development time were in general low and non-significant. In case of body mass of pupae and adults, despite significant genetic variance, we did not find any GEI due to crossing of reaction norms, both between temperatures and between variability treatments. We have observed a weak tendency towards higher heritabilities of adult and pupa body mass in optimal fluctuating thermal conditions. Thus, we have not found any biasing effect of stable thermal conditions as compared to fluctuating temperatures on the breeding values of heritable body-size traits. Contrary to this we have observed a strong population-wide effect of thermal fluctuations, indicated by the significant temperature-fluctuations interaction in both adult and pupa mass.
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38
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Immune priming in arthropods: an update focusing on the red flour beetle. ZOOLOGY 2016; 119:254-61. [DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2016.03.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2015] [Revised: 02/11/2016] [Accepted: 03/18/2016] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
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39
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Peuß R, Wensing KU, Woestmann L, Eggert H, Milutinović B, Sroka MGU, Scharsack JP, Kurtz J, Armitage SAO. Down syndrome cell adhesion molecule 1: testing for a role in insect immunity, behaviour and reproduction. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2016; 3:160138. [PMID: 27152227 PMCID: PMC4852650 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.160138] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2016] [Accepted: 03/22/2016] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Down syndrome cell adhesion molecule 1 (Dscam1) has wide-reaching and vital neuronal functions although the role it plays in insect and crustacean immunity is less well understood. In this study, we combine different approaches to understand the roles that Dscam1 plays in fitness-related contexts in two model insect species. Contrary to our expectations, we found no short-term modulation of Dscam1 gene expression after haemocoelic or oral bacterial exposure in Tribolium castaneum, or after haemocoelic bacterial exposure in Drosophila melanogaster. Furthermore, RNAi-mediated Dscam1 knockdown and subsequent bacterial exposure did not reduce T. castaneum survival. However, Dscam1 knockdown in larvae resulted in adult locomotion defects, as well as dramatically reduced fecundity in males and females. We suggest that Dscam1 does not always play a straightforward role in immunity, but strongly influences behaviour and fecundity. This study takes a step towards understanding more about the role of this intriguing gene from different phenotypic perspectives.
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40
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Futo M, Armitage SAO, Kurtz J. Microbiota Plays a Role in Oral Immune Priming in Tribolium castaneum. Front Microbiol 2016; 6:1383. [PMID: 26779124 PMCID: PMC4701989 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2015.01383] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2015] [Accepted: 11/20/2015] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Animals are inhabited by a diverse community of microorganisms. The relevance of such microbiota is increasingly being recognized across a broad spectrum of species, ranging from sponges to primates, revealing various beneficial roles that microbes can play. The red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum represents a well-established experimental model organism for studying questions in ecology and evolution, however, the relevance of its microbial community is still largely unknown. T. castaneum larvae orally exposed to bacterial components of the entomopathogen Bacillus thuringiensis bv. tenebrionis showed increased survival upon a subsequent challenge with spores of this bacterium. To investigate whether T. castaneum microbiota plays a role in this phenomenon, we established a protocol for raising microbe-free larvae and subsequently tested whether they differ in their ability to mount such a priming response. Here we demonstrate that larvae with significantly lowered microbial loads, show decreased survival upon secondary challenge with B. thuringiensis bv. tenebrionis spores, compared to animals that were allowed to regain their microbiota before priming. Although the exact mechanism of oral immune priming is unclear, we here suggest that microbiota plays a crucial role in oral immune priming in this species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Momir Futo
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster Münster, Germany
| | - Sophie A O Armitage
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster Münster, Germany
| | - Joachim Kurtz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster Münster, Germany
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Milutinović B, Höfling C, Futo M, Scharsack JP, Kurtz J. Infection of Tribolium castaneum with Bacillus thuringiensis: quantification of bacterial replication within cadavers, transmission via cannibalism, and inhibition of spore germination. Appl Environ Microbiol 2015; 81:8135-44. [PMID: 26386058 PMCID: PMC4651099 DOI: 10.1128/aem.02051-15] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2015] [Accepted: 09/14/2015] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Reproduction within a host and transmission to the next host are crucial for the virulence and fitness of pathogens. Nevertheless, basic knowledge about such parameters is often missing from the literature, even for well-studied bacteria, such as Bacillus thuringiensis, an endospore-forming insect pathogen, which infects its hosts via the oral route. To characterize bacterial replication success, we made use of an experimental oral infection system for the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum and developed a flow cytometric assay for the quantification of both spore ingestion by the individual beetle larvae and the resulting spore load after bacterial replication and resporulation within cadavers. On average, spore numbers increased 460-fold, showing that Bacillus thuringiensis grows and replicates successfully in insect cadavers. By inoculating cadaver-derived spores and spores from bacterial stock cultures into nutrient medium, we next investigated outgrowth characteristics of vegetative cells and found that cadaver-derived bacteria showed reduced growth compared to bacteria from the stock cultures. Interestingly, this reduced growth was a consequence of inhibited spore germination, probably originating from the host and resulting in reduced host mortality in subsequent infections by cadaver-derived spores. Nevertheless, we further showed that Bacillus thuringiensis transmission was possible via larval cannibalism when no other food was offered. These results contribute to our understanding of the ecology of Bacillus thuringiensis as an insect pathogen.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Milutinović
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Christina Höfling
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Momir Futo
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Jörn P Scharsack
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Joachim Kurtz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
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Peuß R, Eggert H, Armitage SAO, Kurtz J. Downregulation of the evolutionary capacitor Hsp90 is mediated by social cues. Proc Biol Sci 2015; 282:20152041. [PMID: 26582024 PMCID: PMC4685818 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2015.2041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2015] [Accepted: 10/16/2015] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
The relationship between robustness and evolvability is a long-standing question in evolution. Heat shock protein 90 (HSP90), a molecular chaperone, has been identified as a potential capacitor for evolution, since it allows for the accumulation and release of cryptic genetic variation, and also for the regulation of novel genetic variation through transposon activity. However, to date, it is unknown whether Hsp90 expression is regulated upon demand (i.e. when the release of cryptic genetic variation is most needed). Here, we show that Hsp90 has reduced transcription under conditions where the mobilization of genetic variation could be advantageous. We designed a situation that indicates a stressful environment but avoids the direct effects of stress, by placing untreated (focal) red flour beetles, Tribolium castaneum, into groups together with wounded conspecifics, and found a consistent reduction in expression of two Hsp90 genes (Hsp83 and Hsp90) in focal beetles. We moreover observed a social transfer of immunity in this non-eusocial insect: there was increased activity of the phenoloxidase enzyme and downregulation of the immune regulator, imd. Our study poses the exciting question of whether evolvability might be regulated through the use of information derived from the social environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert Peuß
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstrasse 1, Münster 48149, Germany
| | - Hendrik Eggert
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstrasse 1, Münster 48149, Germany
| | - Sophie A O Armitage
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstrasse 1, Münster 48149, Germany
| | - Joachim Kurtz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstrasse 1, Münster 48149, Germany
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43
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Tonk M, Knorr E, Cabezas-Cruz A, Valdés JJ, Kollewe C, Vilcinskas A. Tribolium castaneum defensins are primarily active against Gram-positive bacteria. J Invertebr Pathol 2015; 132:208-215. [PMID: 26522790 DOI: 10.1016/j.jip.2015.10.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2015] [Revised: 10/27/2015] [Accepted: 10/28/2015] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum is a destructive insect pest of stored food and feed products, and a model organism for development, evolutionary biology and immunity. The insect innate immune system includes antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) with a wide spectrum of targets including viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites. Defensins are an evolutionarily-conserved class of AMPs and a potential new source of antimicrobial agents. In this context, we report the antimicrobial activity, phylogenetic and structural properties of three T. castaneum defensins (Def1, Def2 and Def3) and their relevance in the immunity of T. castaneum against bacterial pathogens. All three recombinant defensins showed bactericidal activity against Micrococcus luteus and Bacillus thuringiensis serovar tolworthi, but only Def1 and Def2 showed a bacteriostatic effect against Staphylococcus epidermidis. None of the defensins showed activity against the Gram-negative bacteria Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas entomophila or against the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. All three defensins were transcriptionally upregulated following a bacterial challenge, suggesting a key role in the immunity of T. castaneum against bacterial pathogens. Phylogenetic analysis showed that defensins from T. castaneum, mealworms, Udo longhorn beetle and houseflies cluster within a well-defined clade of insect defensins. We conclude that T. castaneum defensins are primarily active against Gram-positive bacteria and that other AMPs may play a more prominent role against Gram-negative species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miray Tonk
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology, Department of Bioresources, Winchester Strasse, D-35394 Giessen, Germany.
| | - Eileen Knorr
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology, Department of Bioresources, Winchester Strasse, D-35394 Giessen, Germany.
| | - Alejandro Cabezas-Cruz
- Center for Infection and Immunity of Lille (CIIL), INSERM U1019 - CNRS UMR 8204, Université Lille Nord de France, Institut Pasteur de Lille, Lille, France.
| | - James J Valdés
- Biology Centre of the AS CR, Institute of Parasitology, Branišovská 31, 37005 České Budějovice, Czech Republic.
| | - Christian Kollewe
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology, Department of Bioresources, Winchester Strasse, D-35394 Giessen, Germany.
| | - Andreas Vilcinskas
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology, Department of Bioresources, Winchester Strasse, D-35394 Giessen, Germany; Institute for Insect Biotechnology, Justus-Liebig-University of Giessen, Heinrich-Buff-Ring 26-32, D-35392 Giessen, Germany.
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Eggert H, Kurtz J, Diddens-de Buhr MF. Different effects of paternal trans-generational immune priming on survival and immunity in step and genetic offspring. Proc Biol Sci 2015; 281:rspb.2014.2089. [PMID: 25355479 PMCID: PMC4240996 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2014.2089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Paternal trans-generational immune priming, whereby fathers provide immune protection to offspring, has been demonstrated in the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum exposed to the insect pathogen Bacillus thuringiensis. It is currently unclear how such protection is transferred, as in contrast to mothers, fathers do not directly provide offspring with a large amount of substances. In addition to sperm, male flour beetles transfer seminal fluids in a spermatophore to females during copulation. Depending on whether paternal trans-generational immune priming is mediated by sperm or seminal fluids, it is expected to either affect only the genetic offspring of a male, or also their step offspring that are sired by another male. We therefore conducted a double-mating experiment and found that only the genetic offspring of an immune primed male show enhanced survival upon bacterial challenge, while phenoloxidase activity, an important insect immune trait, and the expression of the immune receptor PGRP were increased in all offspring. This indicates that information leading to enhanced survival upon pathogen exposure is transferred via sperm, and thus potentially constitutes an epigenetic effect, whereas substances transferred with the seminal fluid could have an additional influence on offspring immune traits and immunological alertness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hendrik Eggert
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster, Hüfferstraße 1, Münster 48149, Germany
| | - Joachim Kurtz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster, Hüfferstraße 1, Münster 48149, Germany
| | - Maike F Diddens-de Buhr
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster, Hüfferstraße 1, Münster 48149, Germany
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Rapid evolution of virulence leading to host extinction under host-parasite coevolution. BMC Evol Biol 2015; 15:112. [PMID: 26070343 PMCID: PMC4464865 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-015-0407-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2015] [Accepted: 06/02/2015] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Host-parasite coevolution is predicted to result in changes in the virulence of the parasite in order to maximise its reproductive success and transmission potential, either via direct host-to-host transfer or through the environment. The majority of coevolution experiments, however, do not allow for environmental transmission or persistence of long lived parasite stages, in spite of the fact that these may be critical for the evolutionary success of spore forming parasites under natural conditions. We carried out a coevolution experiment using the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum, and its natural microsporidian parasite, Paranosema whitei. Beetles and their environment, inclusive of spores released into it, were transferred from generation to generation. We additionally took a modelling approach to further assess the importance of transmissive parasite stages on virulence evolution. RESULTS In all parasite treatments of the experiment, coevolution resulted in extinction of the host population, with a pronounced increase in virulence being seen. Our modelling approach highlighted the presence of environmental transmissive parasite stages as being critical to the trajectory of virulence evolution in this system. CONCLUSIONS The extinction of host populations was unexpected, particularly as parasite virulence is often seen to decrease in host-parasite coevolution. This, in combination with the increase in virulence and results obtained from the model, suggest that the inclusion of transmissive parasite stages is important to improving our understanding of virulence evolution.
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Eggert H, Diddens-de Buhr MF, Kurtz J. A temperature shock can lead to trans-generational immune priming in the Red Flour Beetle, Tribolium castaneum. Ecol Evol 2015; 5:1318-26. [PMID: 25859336 PMCID: PMC4377274 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.1443] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2015] [Revised: 01/27/2015] [Accepted: 01/31/2015] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Trans-generational immune priming (TGIP) describes the transfer of immune stimulation to the next generation. As stress and immunity are closely connected, we here address the question whether trans-generational effects on immunity and resistance can also be elicited by a nonpathogen stress treatment of parents. General stressors have been shown to induce immunity to pathogens within individuals. However, to our knowledge, it is as of yet unknown whether stress can also induce trans-generational effects on immunity and resistance. We exposed a parental generation (mothers, fathers, or both parents) of the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum, a species where TGIP has been previously been demonstrated, to either a brief heat or cold shock and examined offspring survival after bacterial infection with the entomopathogen Bacillus thuringiensis. We also studied phenoloxidase activity, a key enzyme of the insect innate immune system that has previously been demonstrated to be up-regulated upon TGIP. We quantified parental fecundity and offspring developmental time to evaluate whether trans-generational priming might have costs. Offspring resistance was found to be significantly increased when both parents received a cold shock. Offspring phenoloxidase activity was also higher when mothers or both parents were cold-shocked. By contrast, parental heat shock reduced offspring phenoloxidase activity. Moreover, parental cold or heat shock delayed offspring development. In sum, we conclude that trans-generational priming for resistance could not only be elicited by pathogens or pathogen-derived components, but also by more general cues that are indicative of a stressful environment. The interaction between stress responses and the immune system might play an important role also for trans-generational effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hendrik Eggert
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster Hüfferstraße 1, Münster, DE-48149, Germany
| | - Maike F Diddens-de Buhr
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster Hüfferstraße 1, Münster, DE-48149, Germany
| | - Joachim Kurtz
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster Hüfferstraße 1, Münster, DE-48149, Germany
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Novak S, Cremer S. Fungal disease dynamics in insect societies: optimal killing rates and the ambivalent effect of high social interaction rates. J Theor Biol 2015; 372:54-64. [PMID: 25728787 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2015.02.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2014] [Revised: 01/23/2015] [Accepted: 02/14/2015] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Entomopathogenic fungi are potent biocontrol agents that are widely used against insect pests, many of which are social insects. Nevertheless, theoretical investigations of their particular life history are scarce. We develop a model that takes into account the main distinguishing features between traditionally studied diseases and obligate killing pathogens, like the (biocontrol-relevant) insect-pathogenic fungi Metarhizium and Beauveria. First, obligate killing entomopathogenic fungi produce new infectious particles (conidiospores) only after host death and not yet on the living host. Second, the killing rates of entomopathogenic fungi depend strongly on the initial exposure dosage, thus we explicitly consider the pathogen load of individual hosts. Further, we make the model applicable not only to solitary host species, but also to group living species by incorporating social interactions between hosts, like the collective disease defences of insect societies. Our results identify the optimal killing rate for the pathogen that minimises its invasion threshold. Furthermore, we find that the rate of contact between hosts has an ambivalent effect: dense interaction networks between individuals are considered to facilitate disease outbreaks because of increased pathogen transmission. In social insects, this is compensated by their collective disease defences, i.e., social immunity. For the type of pathogens considered here, we show that even without social immunity, high contact rates between live individuals dilute the pathogen in the host colony and hence can reduce individual pathogen loads below disease-causing levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Novak
- IST Austria (Institute of Science and Technology Austria), Am Campus 1, 3400 Klosterneuburg, Austria.
| | - Sylvia Cremer
- IST Austria (Institute of Science and Technology Austria), Am Campus 1, 3400 Klosterneuburg, Austria
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Jacobs CGC, Spaink HP, van der Zee M. The extraembryonic serosa is a frontier epithelium providing the insect egg with a full-range innate immune response. eLife 2014; 3:e04111. [PMID: 25487990 PMCID: PMC4358341 DOI: 10.7554/elife.04111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2014] [Accepted: 11/10/2014] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Drosophila larvae and adults possess a potent innate immune response, but the response of Drosophila eggs is poor. In contrast to Drosophila, eggs of the beetle Tribolium are protected by a serosa, an extraembryonic epithelium that is present in all insects except higher flies. In this study, we test a possible immune function of this frontier epithelium using Tc-zen1 RNAi-mediated deletion. First, we show that bacteria propagate twice as fast in serosa-less eggs. Then, we compare the complete transcriptomes of wild-type, control RNAi, and Tc-zen1 RNAi eggs before and after sterile or septic injury. Infection induces genes involved in Toll and IMD-signaling, melanisation, production of reactive oxygen species and antimicrobial peptides in wild-type eggs but not in serosa-less eggs. Finally, we demonstrate constitutive and induced immune gene expression in the serosal epithelium using in situ hybridization. We conclude that the serosa provides insect eggs with a full-range innate immune response.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Herman P Spaink
- Institute of Biology, Leiden University, Leiden, Netherlands
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Scharf I, Galkin N, Halle S. Disentangling the Consequences of Growth Temperature and Adult Acclimation Temperature on Starvation and Thermal Tolerance in the Red Flour Beetle. Evol Biol 2014. [DOI: 10.1007/s11692-014-9298-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
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50
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Behrens S, Peuß R, Milutinović B, Eggert H, Esser D, Rosenstiel P, Schulenburg H, Bornberg-Bauer E, Kurtz J. Infection routes matter in population-specific responses of the red flour beetle to the entomopathogen Bacillus thuringiensis. BMC Genomics 2014; 15:445. [PMID: 24908078 PMCID: PMC4079954 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2164-15-445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2014] [Accepted: 06/04/2014] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Pathogens can infect their hosts through different routes. For studying the consequences for host resistance, we here used the entomopathogen Bacillus thuringiensis and the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum for oral and systemic (i. e. pricking the cuticle) experimental infection. In order to characterize the molecular mechanisms underpinning the two different infection routes, the transcriptomes of beetles of two different T. castaneum populations--one recently collected population (Cro1) and a commonly used laboratory strain (SB)--were analyzed using a next generation RNA sequencing approach. RESULTS The genetically more diverse population Cro1 showed a significantly larger number of differentially expressed genes. While both populations exhibited similar reactions to pricking, their expression patterns in response to oral infection differed remarkably. In particular, the Cro1 population showed a strong response of cuticular proteins and developmental genes, which might indicate an adaptive developmental flexibility that was lost in the SB population presumably as a result of inbreeding. The immune response of SB was primarily based on antimicrobial peptides, while Cro1 relied on responses mediated by phenoloxidase and reactive oxygen species, which may explain the higher resistance of this strain against oral infection. CONCLUSIONS Our data demonstrate that immunological and physiological processes underpinning the two different routes of infection are clearly distinct, and that host populations particularly differ in responses to oral infection. Furthermore, gene expression upon pricking infection entailed a strong signal of wounding, highlighting the importance of pricking controls in future infection studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Behrens
- />Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstr. 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Robert Peuß
- />Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstr. 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Barbara Milutinović
- />Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstr. 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Hendrik Eggert
- />Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstr. 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Daniela Esser
- />Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology, Christian-Albrechts University Kiel, Schittenhelmstr. 12, 24105 Kiel, Germany
| | - Philip Rosenstiel
- />Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology, Christian-Albrechts University Kiel, Schittenhelmstr. 12, 24105 Kiel, Germany
| | - Hinrich Schulenburg
- />Zoological Institute, Christian-Albrechts University Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1-9, 24118 Kiel, Germany
| | - Erich Bornberg-Bauer
- />Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstr. 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Joachim Kurtz
- />Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Hüfferstr. 1, 48149 Münster, Germany
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