Local hypoxia generated by live burial is effective in weed control within termite fungus farms

Katariya, Lakshya; Ramesh, P. K.; Sharma, Anil; Borges, Renée M.

doi:10.1007/s00040-018-0644-5

Cited by 10 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…A number of complementary defence mechanisms appear to contribute to keep fungus gardens free from other fungi [ 8 , 28 ]. These include termites avoiding antagonists [ 29 ], burying unwanted fungi [ 30 ], and utilising antimicrobial chemical compounds of termite [ 22 ], Termitomyces [ 8 , 31 , 32 ] and bacterial [ 8 , 20 , 33 , 34 ] origins. In addition, it has been proposed that the obligate first gut passage of all plant substrate used to manure the fungus could serve as a filtering—potentially fungicidal step—accounting for the very low prevalence of non- Termitomyces fungi within fungus combs [ 16 , 35 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

You don’t have the guts: a diverse set of fungi survive passage through Macrotermes bellicosus termite guts

et al. 2020

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Background Monoculture farming poses significant disease challenges, but fungus-farming termites are able to successfully keep their monoculture crop free from contamination by other fungi. It has been hypothesised that obligate gut passage of all plant substrate used to manure the fungal symbiont is key to accomplish this. Here we refute this hypothesis in the fungus-farming termite species Macrotermes bellicosus. Results We first used ITS amplicon sequencing to show that plant substrate foraged on by termite workers harbour diverse fungal communities, which potentially could challenge the farming symbiosis. Subsequently, we cultivated fungi from dissected sections of termite guts to show that fungal diversity does not decrease during gut passage. Therefore, we investigated if healthy combs harboured these undesirable fungal genera, and whether the presence of workers affected fungal diversity within combs. Removal of workers led to a surge in fungal diversity in combs, implying that termite defences must be responsible for the near-complete absence of other fungi in functioning termite gardens. Conclusions The rapid proliferation of some of these fungi when colonies are compromised indicates that some antagonists successfully employ a sit-and-wait strategy that allows them to remain dormant until conditions are favourable. Although this strategy requires potentially many years of waiting, it prevents these fungi from engaging in an evolutionary arms race with the termite host, which employs a series of complementary behavioural and chemical defences that may prove insurmountable.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

You don’t have the guts: a diverse set of fungi survive passage through Macrotermes bellicosus termite guts

et al. 2020

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“…To date, little research has been done to explore the defence mechanisms employed by fungus-growing termites to keep their monoculture fungal cultivars disease free [18,37,38,47,61]. We provide the first indication of a behavioural response by foraging workers toward infected and non-infected forage material, where workers reduce their activity towards a pathogen of the fungal garden.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In fungus-growing termites, the removal of workers and soldiers from fungal gardens leads to the emergence of antagonistic and weedy fungi, such as Pseudoxylaria (Ascomycota, Xylariaceae) and Trichoderma (Ascomycota, Hypocreaceae), emphasizing the importance of the termites for keeping the fungal cultivar healthy [35,37]. Termites employ a number of defences, such as burying weedy fungi to suppress their growth [18,47], and possible utilisation of symbionts such as Bacillus sp. against antagonistic fungi [38].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Foraging Macrotermes natalensis Fungus-Growing Termites Avoid a Mycopathogen but Not an Entomopathogen

Bodawatta

Poulsen

Bos

2019

Insects

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Fungus-growing termites have to defend both themselves and their monoculture fungal cultivars from antagonistic microbes. One of the ways that pathogens can enter the termite colony is on the plant substrate that is collected by termite foragers. In order to understand whether foragers avoid substrate infected with antagonists, we offered sub-colonies of Macrotermes natalensis a choice between food exposed to either a mycopathogenic or an entomopathogenic fungus, and control food. Workers did not show any preference between entomopathogen-exposed and control substrate, but significantly avoided the mycopathogen-exposed substrate. This suggests that the behaviour of foraging workers is more strongly influenced by pathogens affecting their crop than those posing risks to the termite workers themselves.

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“…In particular, species of the ascomycete genus Pseudoxylaria are known to compete with the Termitomyces cultivar [55,62,64]. Therefore, termites have developed ways to recognize pathogens and to effectively remove these from the fungal comb [55,65,66]. The process of removal of diseases and parasites is, thus, essential for the maintenance of healthy fungal monocultures and the stability of the symbiosis.…”

Section: Conflict Between Symbionts: Establishment and Maintenance Ofmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Longevity of Colonies of Fungus-Growing Termites and the Stability of the Symbiosis

Wisselink

Aanen

Padje

2020

Insects

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The agricultural mutualistic symbiosis between macrotermitine termites and Termitomyces fungi is obligate for both partners. The termites provide a protective growth environment for the fungus by cultivating it inside their colony and providing it with foraged plant material. The termites use the fungus for plant substrate degradation, and the production of asexual fruiting bodies for nourishment and re-inoculation of the fungus garden. The termite colony can reach an age of up to several decades, during which time it is believed that a single fungal monoculture is asexually propagated by the offspring of a single founding royal pair. The termite-fungus mutualism has a long evolutionary history dating back more than 30 million years. Both on the time-scale of a termite colony lifespan and that of the mutualistic symbiosis, questions arise about stability. We address the physical stability of the mound, the termite colony and the monoculture fungal garden during a colony’s lifetime. On the long-term evolutionary scale, we address the stability of the symbiosis, where horizontal transmission of the symbiotic fungus raises the question of how the mutualistic interaction between host and symbiont persists over generations.

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Local hypoxia generated by live burial is effective in weed control within termite fungus farms

Cited by 10 publications

References 43 publications

You don’t have the guts: a diverse set of fungi survive passage through Macrotermes bellicosus termite guts

You don’t have the guts: a diverse set of fungi survive passage through Macrotermes bellicosus termite guts

Foraging Macrotermes natalensis Fungus-Growing Termites Avoid a Mycopathogen but Not an Entomopathogen

The Longevity of Colonies of Fungus-Growing Termites and the Stability of the Symbiosis

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