Host Species Determines the Composition of the Prokaryotic Microbiota in Phlebotomus Sandflies

Abstract

Phlebotomine sandflies are vectors of the humans’ and mammals’ parasite Leishmania spp. Although the role of gut microbiome in the biological cycle of insects is acknowledged, we still know little about the factors modulating the composition of the gut microbiota of sandflies. We tested whether host species impose a strong structural effect on the gut microbiota of Phlebotomus spp. Sandflies were collected from the island of Leros, Greece, and classified to P. papatasi, P. neglectus, P. tobbi, and P. similis, all being negative to Leishmania spp. The prokaryotic gut microbiota was determined via 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. Phlebotomus species supported distinct microbial communities (p < 0.001). P. papatasi microbiota was the most distinct over-dominated by three Spiroplasma, Wolbachia and Paenibacillus operational taxonomic units (OTUs), while another Wolbachia OTU prevailed in P. neglectus. Conversely, the microbiota of P. tobbi and P. similis was composed of several less dominant OTUs. Archaea showed low presence with the dominant OTUs belonging to methanogenic Euryarcheota, ammonia-oxidizing Thaumarcheota, and Nanoarchaeota. We provide first insights into the composition of the bacterial and archaeal community of Phlebotomus sandflies and showed that, in the absence of Leishmania, host genotype is the major modulator of Phlebotomus sandfly gut microbiota.

Phlebotomus papatasi Antimicrobial Peptides in Larvae and Females and a Gut-Specific Defensin Upregulated by Leishmania major Infection

“…During the cycle in the sand fly vector (reviewed by [4,5]), Leishmania parasites coexist with a diverse microbial community that may interfere with the parasite establishment in P. papatasi [6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13]. Concomitantly, the sand fly immune response is adjusted to the presence of commensal and other possible harmful microbes (reviewed by [14]).…”

Isolation in Natural Host Cell Lines of Wolbachia Strains wPip from the Mosquito Culex pipiens and wPap from the Sand Fly Phlebotomus papatasi

“…aegypti, providing opportunities to unravel the mechanisms of viral inhibition [73]. The present study also represents the first report of isolation and in vitro propagation of any strain of wPap, which is a common symbiont of wild P. papatasi populations [74][75][76] and laboratory colonies [77], but induces only weak or insignificant CI [78,79]. The availability of cultures of both wPip and wPap in multiple different arthropod cell lines will facilitate the genome sequencing and phenotypic characterisation of these Wolbachia strains.…”

Molecular phylogeny of heritable symbionts and microbiota diversity analysis in phlebotominae sand flies and Culex nigripalpus from Colombia

“…The infection levels of endosymbionts vary widely among populations of insects and are also influenced by the dynamics and interactions with the microbiota, justifying the inclusion of more sensitive techniques such as MiSeq Illumina for better understanding. These interactions have serious implications for the fitness, ecology, and evolution of insects [ 110 ].…”