Ileum of the Cephalotes ants: A specialized structure to harbor symbionts microorganisms

Bution, Murillo Lino; Caetano, Flávio Henrique

doi:10.1016/j.micron.2007.11.008

Cited by 33 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…Previous findings have similarly hinted at the presence of a specialized, core gut flora from other herbivorous Cephalotes , Pseudomyrmex and Tetraponera species (Billen & Buschinger 2000; Stoll et al. 2007; Bution & Caetano 2008; Eilmus & Heil 2009; Russell et al. 2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 85%

“…The compendium of microscopy data from Cephalotes suggests that the adult symbiotic microbial community is primarily adapted to life in the distal mid‐gut and hind‐gut (Caetano & da Cruz‐Landim 1985; Roche & Wheeler 1997). Some members of the bacterial communities reported here may play a role in nitrogen recycling, occurring in a specialized hindgut structure (Bution & Caetano 2008, 2010a; Russell et al. 2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

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Highly similar microbial communities are shared among related and trophically similar ant species

et al. 2012

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Ants dominate many terrestrial ecosystems, yet we know little about their nutritional physiology and ecology. While traditionally viewed as predators and scavengers, recent isotopic studies revealed that many dominant ant species are functional herbivores. As with other insects with nitrogen-poor diets, it is hypothesized that these ants rely on symbiotic bacteria for nutritional supplementation. In this study, we used cloning and 16S sequencing to further characterize the bacterial flora of several herbivorous ants, while also examining the beta diversity of bacterial communities within and between ant species from different trophic levels. Through estimating phylogenetic overlap between these communities, we tested the hypothesis that ecologically or phylogenetically similar groups of ants harbor similar microbial flora. Our findings reveal: (i) clear differences in bacterial communities harbored by predatory and herbivorous ants; (ii) notable similarities among communities from distantly related herbivorous ants and (iii) similar communities shared by different predatory army ant species. Focusing on one herbivorous ant tribe, the Cephalotini, we detected five major bacterial taxa that likely represent the core microbiota. Metabolic functions of bacterial relatives suggest that these microbes may play roles in fixing, recycling, or upgrading nitrogen. Overall, our findings reveal that similar microbial communities are harbored by ants from similar trophic niches and, to a greater extent, by related ants from the same colonies, species, genera, and tribes. These trends hint at coevolved histories between ants and microbes, suggesting new possibilities for roles of bacteria in the evolution of both herbivores and carnivores from the ant family Formicidae.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 85%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Highly similar microbial communities are shared among related and trophically similar ant species

et al. 2012

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“…Camponotus ants host an intracellular bacterial symbiont ( Blochmania ) which upgrades their diet by contributing essential amino acids and recycling urea into protein (Feldhaar et al ., ; Stoll et al ., ). Other ants dedicate a specialized section of their hindgut for accommodating large masses of extracellular bacteria ( Tetraponera : Billen & Buschinger, ; Cephalotes : Bution & Caetano, ). The functional roles of these bacteria seem to involve the fixing or recycling of nitrogen in the gut in ways that contribute to the nitrogen budget of the host (van Borm et al ., ; Cook & Davidson, ; Russell et al ., ) and suggest an essential contribution of bacteria to host nutrition (Jaffe et al ., ; Russell et al ., ; Anderson et al ., ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Symbiotic bacteria enable olive flies (Bactrocera oleae) to exploit intractable sources of nitrogen

Ben-Yosef

Pasternak

Jurkevitch

et al. 2014

J of Evolutionary Biology

139

176

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Insects are often associated with symbiotic micro-organisms, which allow them to utilize nutritionally marginal diets. Adult fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) associate with extracellular bacteria (Enterobacteriaceae) that inhabit their digestive tract. These flies obtain nutrients by foraging for plant exudates, honeydew and bird droppings scattered on leaves and fruit -a nutritional niche which offers ample amounts of carbohydrates, but low quantities of available nitrogen. We identified the bacteria resident in the gut of the olive fly (Bactrocera oleae) -a worldwide pest of olives and examined their contribution to nitrogen metabolism in the adult insect. By suppressing bacteria in the gut and monitoring female fecundity, we demonstrate that bacteria contribute essential amino acids and metabolize urea into an available nitrogen source for the fly, thus significantly elevating egg production. In an ecological context, bacteria were found to be beneficial to females subsisting on bird droppings, but not on honeydew -two natural food sources. We suggest that a main gut bacterium (Candidatus Erwinia dacicola) forms an inseparable, essential part of this fly's nutritional ecology. The evolution of this symbiosis has allowed adult flies to utilize food substrates which are low or imbalanced in assimilable nitrogen and thereby to overcome the nitrogen limitations of their natural diet.

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“…(57). The ileum-the anterior region of the hindgut-possesses structural adaptations harboring microbial symbionts (58,59), while bacteria are also found in association with microvilli in the midgut (60,61). In Tetraponera (subfamily Pseudomyrmecinae), a pouch in the ileum harbors symbiotic bacteria (62,63).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Surveying the Microbiome of Ants: Comparing 454 Pyrosequencing with Traditional Methods To Uncover Bacterial Diversity

Kautz

Rubin

Russell

et al. 2013

Appl Environ Microbiol

112

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We are only beginning to understand the depth and breadth of microbial associations across the eukaryotic tree of life. Reliably assessing bacterial diversity is a key challenge, and next-generation sequencing approaches are facilitating this endeavor. In this study, we used 16S rRNA amplicon pyrosequencing to survey microbial diversity in ants. We compared 454 libraries with Sanger-sequenced clone libraries as well as cultivation of live bacteria. Pyrosequencing yielded 95,656 bacterial 16S rRNA reads from 19 samples derived from four colonies of one ant species. The most dominant bacterial orders in the microbiome of the turtle ant Cephalotes varians were Rhizobiales, Burkholderiales, Opitutales, Xanthomonadales, and Campylobacterales, as revealed through both 454 sequencing and cloning. Even after stringent quality filtering, pyrosequencing recovered 445 microbe operational taxonomic units (OTUs) not detected with traditional techniques. In comparing bacterial communities associated with specific tissues, we found that gut tissues had significantly higher diversity than nongut tissues, and many of the OTUs identified from these groups clustered within ant-specific lineages, indicating a deep coevolutionary history of Cephalotes ants and their associated microbes. These lineages likely function as nutritional symbionts. One of four ant colonies investigated was infected with a Spiroplasma sp. (order Entomoplasmatales), a potential ant pathogen. Our work shows that the microbiome associated with Cephalotes varians is dominated by a few dozen bacterial lineages and that 454 sequencing is a cost-efficient tool to screen ant symbiont diversity.

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Ileum of the Cephalotes ants: A specialized structure to harbor symbionts microorganisms

Cited by 33 publications

References 11 publications

Highly similar microbial communities are shared among related and trophically similar ant species

Highly similar microbial communities are shared among related and trophically similar ant species

Symbiotic bacteria enable olive flies (Bactrocera oleae) to exploit intractable sources of nitrogen

Surveying the Microbiome of Ants: Comparing 454 Pyrosequencing with Traditional Methods To Uncover Bacterial Diversity

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