Abstract
Ambrosia beetles, along with termites and leafcutter ants, are the only fungus-farming lineages within the tree of life. Bacteria harbored by ambrosia beetles may play an essential role in the nutritional symbiotic interactions with their associated fungi; however, little is known about the impact of rearing conditions on the microbiota of ambrosia beetles. We have used culture-independent methods to explore the effect of rearing conditions on the microbiome associated with Xyleborus affinis, Xyleborus bispinatus, and Xyleborus volvulus, evaluating different media in laboratory-controlled conditions and comparing wild and laboratory conditions. Our results revealed that rearing conditions affected the fungal and bacterial microbiome structure and had a strong influence on bacterial metabolic capacities. We propose that the rearing conditions influence the ambrosia-associated fungal and bacterial communities. Furthermore, bacterial microbiome flexibility may help beetles adapt to different substrates.
Highlights
Every life form is intertwined with others through intimate and complex interactions; sometimes such connections are so permanent and relevant that they become symbioses
The head and abdomen of X. bispinatus reared on P. schiedeana medium shared seven of nine fungal operational taxonomic units (OTUs) identified as: Candida, M. guilliermondii, T. purpureogenus, F. oxysporum, and Penicillium chrysogenum
Wild-reared: X. volvulus volvulus reared on P. americana and X. affinis reared on B. simaruba; Lab-reared: X. affinis reared reared on P. americana and X. affinis reared on B. simaruba; Lab-reared: X. affinis reared on P. schiedeana on P. schiedeana medium (Aff.C); X. affinis reared on P. mexicana medium (Aff.H); X. bispinatus medium (Aff.C); X. affinis reared on P. mexicana medium (Aff.H); X. bispinatus reared on P. schiedeana reared on P. schiedeana medium (Bis.C); X. bispinatus reared on P. mexicana medium (Bis.H)
Summary
Every life form is intertwined with others through intimate and complex interactions; sometimes such connections are so permanent and relevant that they become symbioses. Among the most fascinating examples of insect-microbe symbioses are attine ants, termites, and ambrosia beetles, which evolved fungiculture enabling them to inhabit a wide range of niches [3,4] These fungal farmer insects belong to divergent lineages, they all raise their brood on a fungal diet and have remarkably similar fungivorous niches, as well as homologous dominant bacterial constituents (comprising primarily the genera Enterobacter, Rahnella, and Pseudomonas) [5]. Unlike most fungus-cultivating termites, which acquire spores from the environment during the nest-founding stage, leafcutter ants and ambrosia beetles gather spores or mycelium from their natal nests before dispersing to establish new colonies [4] It appears that in ambrosia beetles, independent origins of fungal farming have led to the development of distinctive mycangia (specialized pockets to protect and transport the fungal spores), which differ in structure, location, size, and shape, as well as in the ability to secrete substances among species [6,7,8,9]
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