Black soldier fly larvae (Hermetia illucens, Diptera: Stratiomyidae) are used for the bioconversion of organic side products into valuable compounds such as proteins, lipids and chitin. However, the economic competitiveness of farmed insects compared to conventional protein production systems in agriculture and aquaculture depends on the availability of large quantities of inexpensive insect feed. Cottonseed press cake (CPC) is a side-stream of cotton production that is rich in proteins and lipids but unsuitable as feed for several farmed animals, except ruminants, due to the presence of the anti-nutritional sesquiterpenoid gossypol. Here, we tested CPC as a feed for black soldier fly larvae and studied the impact of this diet on the gut microbiome. Larvae reared on CPC developed normally and even showed a shorter life-cycle, but were smaller at the end of larval development than control larvae reared on chicken feed. The adaptability of the larvae to different diets is mediated by their versatile gut microbiome, which facilitates digestion and detoxification. We therefore used amplicon sequencing to analyze the bacterial and fungal communities associated with larvae reared on each diet, revealing differences between the larval guts and frass (residual feed substrate) as well as differences between the two diet groups. For example, Actinomycetaceae and Aspergillaceae were significantly enriched in guts of the CPC diet group and may help to metabolize compounds such as gossypol. Potentially probiotic yeasts and beneficial Enterobacteriaceae, which presumably belong to the core microbiota, were detected in high relative abundance in the gut and frass, indicating a functional role of these microbes, especially the protection against pathogens. We conclude that CPC may be suitable as an inexpensive and environmentally sustainable feed for the industrial rearing of black soldier flies.

The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of the nuclear ribosomal DNA was sequenced from 21 accessions of Viguiera from South America, including 14 from Brazil. Overall there was only a small amount of sequence variation, less than 3.4% among South American samples and less than 4.5% between the South American samples and the Mexican V. flava. Phylogenetic analysis revealed little divergence among the Brazilian samples of Viguiera. The low level of ITS sequence variation was in striking contrast to the taxonomic diversity and chemical variability that have been reported for Viguiera in Brazil. The low level of sequence variation suggests that, despite its clear morphological and phytochemical adaptations to the cerrado, Viguiera is probably a relatively recent addition (less than 3 million years) to the flora of this area.

The increasing prevalence of antibiotic-resistant human pathogens is a growing public concern and there is intense pressure to identify new antibacterial compounds that can be developed into antibiotics with novel mode of action. Evolutionary theory predicts that insects that have evolved to occupy sophisticated ecological niches by feeding and reproducing on carcasses will depend on their gut microbiome to prevent colonization by invading pathogens taken up with the diet. This inspired our hypothesis that the complex interactions between the core microbiome and the more flexible microbial communities dependent on the environment may promote the outsourcing of antibiotic synthesis to beneficial microbes. We tested this hypothesis by cultivating and characterizing bacteria isolated from the gut of the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides , which feeds and reproduces on small vertebrate carcasses buried in the soil to avoid competitors such as fly maggots. The extracts of isolated bacteria were screened for activity against human pathogens such as Escherichia coli , Pseudomonas aeruginosa , Staphylococcus aureus , and Candida albicans . More than 400 strains were isolated, among which the crude extract of Serratia marcescens 2MH3-2 displayed promising activity against Staphylococcus aureus . Bioactivity-guided fractionation enabled purification of the primary antimicrobial compound of the extract. By LC-MS and NMR experiments, it was identified as serrawettin W2 (C 38 H 61 N 5 O 9 ), the antibacterial and nematostatic activity of which was corroborated in our study. We postulate that this antibiotic could contribute to the control of both bacteria and phoretic nematodes in the gut, which compete for food when transferred to the carcass. Our study shows that the gut microbiome of N. vespilloides is a promising resource for the screening of antibiotic-producing bacteria.

15The primary aim of this study was to determine antimicrobial resistance in coagulase negative staphylococci (CoNS) from healthy 16 adults in the community. Healthy adults (n=114) were swabbed on six body sites; both armpits, both knee pits and both sides of the 17 groin. Species determination was performed using MALDI-TOF and susceptibility testing for eleven relevant antimicrobials was 18 performed by the disc diffusion method and minimal inhibitory concentration gradient test. 19In total, 693 CoNS-isolates were identified. Susceptibility testing was done on 386 isolates; one CoNS from each species found on 20 each participant from the different body sites. The prevalence of antimicrobial resistance in the CoNS isolates were; erythromycin 21 (24.6%), fusidic acid (19.9%), tetracycline (11.4%),clindamycin (7.8%), gentamicin (6.2%) and cefoxitin (4.1%). Multidrug resistance 22 was observed in 5.7% of the isolates. Staphylococcus epidermidis and S. hominis were the first and second most prevalent species on 23 all three body sites. We conclude that CoNS isolates from healthy adults in the community have a much lower prevalence of 24 antimicrobial resistance than reported in nosocomial CoNS isolates. Still, we believe that levels of resistance in community CoNS 25 should be monitored as the consumption of antimicrobials in primary care in Norway is increasing. 26 27Running head: Antimicrobial susceptibility of community coagulase negative staphylococci . 28

Portions of two mitochondrial genes (12S and 16S ribosomal RNA) were sequenced to determine the phylogenetic relationships among the major clades of snakes. Thirty-six species, representing nearly all extant families, were examined and compared with sequences of a tuatara and three families of lizards. Snakes were found to constitute a monophyletic group (confidence probability [CP] = 96%), with the scolecophidians (blind snakes) as the most basal lineages (CP = 99%). This finding supports the hypothesis that snakes underwent a subterranean period early in their evolution. Caenophidians (advanced snakes), excluding Acrochordus, were found to be monophyletic (CP = 99%). Among the caenophidians, viperids were monophyletic (CP = 98%) and formed the sister group to the elapids plus colubrids (CP = 94%). Within the viperids, two monophyletic groups were identified: true vipers (CP = 98%) and pit vipers plus Azemiops (CP = 99%). The elapids plus Atractaspis formed a monophyletic clade (CP = 99%). Within the paraphyletic Colubridae, the largely Holarctic Colubrinae was found to be a monophyletic assemblage (CP = 98%), and the Xenodontinae was found to be polyphyletic (CP = 91%). Monophyly of the henophidians (primitive snakes) was neither supported nor rejected because of the weak resolution of relationships among those taxa, except for the clustering of Calabaria with a uropeltid, Rhinophis (CP = 94%).