scholarly journals Drosophila melanogasterestablishes a species-specific mutualistic interaction with stable gut-colonizing bacteria

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Inês S. Pais ◽  
Rita S. Valente ◽  
Marta Sporniak ◽  
Luis Teixeira
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Bacterial Communities ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Gut Bacteria ◽  
Natural Food ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
Next Generation ◽  
Stable Association ◽  
Host Development

AbstractAnimals live together with diverse bacteria that can impact their biology. InDrosophila melanogaster, gut-associated bacterial communities are relatively simple in composition but also have a strong impact on host development and physiology. However, it is still unknown if bacteria can proliferate and stably associate with the gut ofD. melanogaster. In fact, it is generally assumed that bacteria are transient and their constant ingestion with food is required to maintain their presence in the gut. Here, we identify bacterial species from wild-caughtD. melanogasterthat stably associate with the host independently of continuous inoculation. Moreover, we show that specificAcetobacterwild isolates can proliferate in the gut. We further demonstrate that the interaction betweenD. melanogasterand the wild isolatedAcetobacter thailandicusis mutually beneficial and that the stability of the gut association is key to this mutualism. The stable population in the gut ofD. melanogasterallows continuous bacterial spreading into the environment, which is advantageous to the bacterium itself. The bacterial dissemination is in turn advantageous to the host since the next generation of flies develops in the presence of this particularly beneficial bacterium.Ac. thailandicusleads to a faster host development and higher fertility of emerging adults, when compared to other bacteria isolated from wild-caught flies. Furthermore,Ac. thailandicusis sufficient and advantageous whenD. melanogasterdevelops in axenic or freshly collected figs, respectively. This isolate ofAc. thailandicuscolonizes several genotypes ofD. melanogasterbut not of the closely relatedDrosophila simulans, indicating that the stable association is host specific. This work establishes a new conceptual model to understandD. melanogaster- gut microbiota interactions in an ecological context; stable interactions can be mutualistic through microbial farming, a common strategy in insects. Moreover, these results develop the use ofD. melanogasteras a model to study gut microbiota proliferation and colonization.Author summaryAnimals, including humans, live together with complex bacterial communities in their gut that influence their physiology and health. The fruit flyDrosophila melanogasterhas been an excellent model organism to study host-microbe interactions and harbours a relative simple gut bacterial community. However, it is not known which of these bacteria can proliferate and form stable communities in the gut, and the current hypothesis is that these bacteria are only transiently associated with the gut. Here, we show that inD. melanogastercollected from a natural population stable gut bacteria do exist. We isolated specific species that can proliferate in the gut and form a stable association. This is beneficial to the bacteria since they can be constantly spread by the flies as they move around. On the other hand, this is a form of farming as the next generation of flies benefit from the association with these particular bacteria during development. They become adults faster and are more fertile than if they develop with other bacteria encountered in nature. These advantages are also observed when flies develop in figs, a natural food source. Our findings show thatD. melanogasterhas stable colonizing bacteria in the gut and establish a new framework to study host-gut bacteria interactions.

scholarly journals Microsporidian Infection in Mosquitoes (Culicidae) Is Associated with Gut Microbiome Composition and Predicted Gut Microbiome Functional Content

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Artur Trzebny ◽  
Anna Slodkowicz-Kowalska ◽  
Johanna Björkroth ◽  
Miroslawa Dabert
Keyword(s):  
16S Rrna ◽  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Gut Microbiome ◽  
Bacterial Communities ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Rrna Gene ◽  
Microbial Composition ◽  
Microbiome Composition ◽  
Microsporidian Infection ◽  
Functional Content

AbstractThe animal gut microbiota consist of many different microorganisms, mainly bacteria, but archaea, fungi, protozoans, and viruses may also be present. This complex and dynamic community of microorganisms may change during parasitic infection. In the present study, we investigated the effect of the presence of microsporidians on the composition of the mosquito gut microbiota and linked some microbiome taxa and functionalities to infections caused by these parasites. We characterised bacterial communities of 188 mosquito females, of which 108 were positive for microsporidian DNA. To assess how bacterial communities change during microsporidian infection, microbiome structures were identified using 16S rRNA microbial profiling. In total, we identified 46 families and four higher taxa, of which Comamonadaceae, Enterobacteriaceae, Flavobacteriaceae and Pseudomonadaceae were the most abundant mosquito-associated bacterial families. Our data suggest that the mosquito gut microbial composition varies among host species. In addition, we found a correlation between the microbiome composition and the presence of microsporidians. The prediction of metagenome functional content from the 16S rRNA gene sequencing suggests that microsporidian infection is characterised by some bacterial species capable of specific metabolic functions, especially the biosynthesis of ansamycins and vancomycin antibiotics and the pentose phosphate pathway. Moreover, we detected a positive correlation between the presence of microsporidian DNA and bacteria belonging to Spiroplasmataceae and Leuconostocaceae, each represented by a single species, Spiroplasma sp. PL03 and Weissella cf. viridescens, respectively. Additionally, W. cf. viridescens was observed only in microsporidian-infected mosquitoes. More extensive research, including intensive and varied host sampling, as well as determination of metabolic activities based on quantitative methods, should be carried out to confirm our results.

scholarly journals Permanent residents or temporary lodgers: characterizing intracellular bacterial communities in the siphonous green alga Bryopsis

2013 ◽  
Vol 280 (1754) ◽  
pp. 20122659 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joke Hollants ◽  
Frederik Leliaert ◽  
Heroen Verbruggen ◽  
Anne Willems ◽  
Olivier De Clerck
Keyword(s):  
Bacterial Communities ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis ◽  
Variation Partitioning ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Bacterial Flora ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Species Variation ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
Intracellular Bacterial Communities

The ecological success of giant celled, siphonous green algae in coastal habitats has repeatedly been linked to endophytic bacteria living within the cytoplasm of the hosts. Yet, very little is known about the relative importance of evolutionary and ecological factors controlling the intracellular bacterial flora of these seaweeds. Using the marine alga Bryopsis (Bryopsidales, Chlorophyta) as a model, we explore the diversity of the intracellular bacterial communities and investigate whether their composition is controlled by ecological and biogeographic factors rather than the evolutionary history of the host. Using a combination of 16S rDNA clone libraries and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis analyses, we show that Bryopsis harbours a mixture of relatively few but phylogenetically diverse bacterial species. Variation partitioning analyses show a strong impact of local environmental factors on the presence of Rickettsia and Mycoplasma in their association with Bryopsis . The presence of Flavobacteriaceae and Bacteroidetes, on the other hand, reflects a predominant imprint of host evolutionary history, suggesting that these bacteria are more specialized in their association. The results highlight the importance of interpreting the presence of individual bacterial phylotypes in the light of ecological and evolutionary principles such as phylogenetic niche conservatism to understand complex endobiotic communities and the parameters shaping them.

scholarly journals Dissecting the collateral damage of antibiotics on gut microbes

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa Maier ◽  
Camille V. Goemans ◽  
Mihaela Pruteanu ◽  
Jakob Wirbel ◽  
Michael Kuhn ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Gut Bacteria ◽  
Commensal Bacteria ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
Collateral Damage ◽  
Microbiota Composition ◽  
Human Gut ◽  
Gut Microbes ◽  
Species Specific ◽  
Gut Microbiota Composition

AbstractAntibiotics are used for fighting pathogens, but also target our commensal bacteria as a side effect, disturbing the gut microbiota composition and causing dysbiosis and disease1-3. Despite this well-known collateral damage, the activity spectrum of the different antibiotic classes on gut bacteria remains poorly characterized. Having monitored the activities of >1,000 marketed drugs on 38 representative species of the healthy human gut microbiome4, we here characterize further the 144 antibiotics therein, representing all major classes. We determined >800 Minimal Inhibitory Concentrations (MICs) and extended the antibiotic profiling to 10 additional species to validate these results and link to available data on antibiotic breakpoints for gut microbes. Antibiotic classes exhibited distinct inhibition spectra, including generation-dependent effects by quinolones and phylogeny-independence by β-lactams. Macrolides and tetracyclines, two prototypic classes of bacteriostatic protein synthesis inhibitors, inhibited almost all commensals tested. We established that both kill different subsets of prevalent commensal bacteria, and cause cell lysis in specific cases. This species-specific activity challenges the long-standing divide of antibiotics into bactericidal and bacteriostatic, and provides a possible explanation for the strong impact of macrolides on the gut microbiota composition in animals5-8 and humans9-11. To mitigate the collateral damage of macrolides and tetracyclines on gut commensals, we exploited the fact that drug combinations have species-specific outcomes in bacteria12 and sought marketed drugs, which could antagonize the activity of these antibiotics in abundant gut commensal species. By screening >1,000 drugs, we identified several such antidotes capable of protecting gut species from these antibiotics without compromising their activity against relevant pathogens. Altogether, this study broadens our understanding of antibiotic action on gut commensals, uncovers a previously unappreciated and broad bactericidal effect of prototypical bacteriostatic antibiotics on gut bacteria, and opens avenues for preventing the collateral damage caused by antibiotics on human gut commensals.

scholarly journals Bacterial Atlas of Mouse Gut Microbiota

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mengqi Chu ◽  
Xiaobo Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Complex System ◽  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Bacterial Communities ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Gut Bacteria ◽  
Human Gut ◽  
The Core ◽  
Human Gut Microbiota ◽  
Human Immunity ◽  
Mouse Gut Microbiota

Abstract Background: Mouse model is one of of the most widely used animal models for exploring the roles of human gut microbiota, a complex system involving in human immunity and metabolism. However, the structure of mouse gut bacterial community has not been explored at a large scale. To address this concern, the diversity and composition of the gut bacteria of 600 mice was characterized in this study. Results: The results showed that the bacteria belonging to 8 genera were found in the gut microbiota of all mouse individuals, indicating that the 8 bacteria were the core bacteria of mouse gut microbiota. The dominant genera of the mouse gut bacteria contained 15 bacterial genera. It was found that the bacteria in the gut microbiota were mainly involved in host’s metabolisms via the collaborations between the gut bacteria. The further analysis demonstrated that the composition of mouse gut microbiota was similar to that of human gut microbiota. Conclusion: Our study presented a bacterial atlas of mouse gut microbiota, providing a solid basis for investing the bacterial communities of mouse gut microbiota.

scholarly journals Glyphosate perturbs the gut microbiota of honey bees

2018 ◽  
Vol 115 (41) ◽  
pp. 10305-10310 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erick V. S. Motta ◽  
Kasie Raymann ◽  
Nancy A. Moran
Keyword(s):  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Shikimate Pathway ◽  
Opportunistic Pathogen ◽  
Gut Bacteria ◽  
Class I ◽  
Experimental Result ◽  
Alternative Mechanism ◽  
Epsps Gene

Glyphosate, the primary herbicide used globally for weed control, targets the 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase (EPSPS) enzyme in the shikimate pathway found in plants and some microorganisms. Thus, glyphosate may affect bacterial symbionts of animals living near agricultural sites, including pollinators such as bees. The honey bee gut microbiota is dominated by eight bacterial species that promote weight gain and reduce pathogen susceptibility. The gene encoding EPSPS is present in almost all sequenced genomes of bee gut bacteria, indicating that they are potentially susceptible to glyphosate. We demonstrated that the relative and absolute abundances of dominant gut microbiota species are decreased in bees exposed to glyphosate at concentrations documented in the environment. Glyphosate exposure of young workers increased mortality of bees subsequently exposed to the opportunistic pathogen Serratia marcescens. Members of the bee gut microbiota varied in susceptibility to glyphosate, largely corresponding to whether they possessed an EPSPS of class I (sensitive to glyphosate) or class II (insensitive to glyphosate). This basis for differences in sensitivity was confirmed using in vitro experiments in which the EPSPS gene from bee gut bacteria was cloned into Escherichia coli. All strains of the core bee gut species, Snodgrassella alvi, encode a sensitive class I EPSPS, and reduction in S. alvi levels was a consistent experimental result. However, some S. alvi strains appear to possess an alternative mechanism of glyphosate resistance. Thus, exposure of bees to glyphosate can perturb their beneficial gut microbiota, potentially affecting bee health and their effectiveness as pollinators.

scholarly journals Predaceous Toxorhynchites mosquitoes require a living gut microbiota to develop

2020 ◽  
Vol 287 (1919) ◽  
pp. 20192705 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerri L. Coon ◽  
Luca Valzania ◽  
Mark R. Brown ◽  
Michael R. Strand
Keyword(s):  
Aedes Aegypti ◽  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Bacterial Communities ◽  
Aquatic Environment ◽  
Mosquito Species ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Feeding Strategies ◽  
Functional Assays ◽  
First Instar ◽  
Low Diversity

Most species of mosquitoes are detritivores that feed on decaying plant and animal materials in their aquatic environment. Studies of several detritivorous mosquito species indicate that they host relatively low diversity communities of microbes that are acquired from the environment while feeding. Our recent results also indicate that detritivorous species normally require a living gut microbiota to grow beyond the first instar. Less well known is that some mosquitoes, including those belonging to the genus Toxorhynchites , are predators that feed on other species of mosquitoes and nektonic prey. In this study, we asked whether predaceous Toxorhynchites amboinensis larvae still require living microbes in their gut in order to develop. Using the detritivorous mosquito Aedes aegypti as prey, we found that T. amboinensis larvae harbour bacterial communities that are highly similar to that of their prey. Functional assays showed that T. amboinensis first instars provided axenic (i.e. bacteria-free) prey failed to develop, while two bacterial species present in gnotobiotic (i.e. colonized by one or more known bacterial species) prey successfully colonized the T. amboinensis gut and rescued development. Axenic T. amboinensis larvae also displayed defects in growth consistent with previously identified roles for microbe-mediated gut hypoxia in nutrient acquisition and assimilation in A. aegypti. Collectively, these results support a conserved role for gut microbes in regulating the development of mosquitoes with different feeding strategies.

scholarly journals Direct and trans-generational effects of male and female gut microbiota in Drosophila melanogaster

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 20160966 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliano Morimoto ◽  
Stephen J. Simpson ◽  
Fleur Ponton
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Male Fertility ◽  
Gut Bacteria ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Offspring Production ◽  
Generational Effects ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
All Treatment

There is increasing evidence of the far-reaching effects of gut bacteria on physiological and behavioural traits, yet the fitness-related consequences of changes in the gut bacteria composition of sexually interacting individuals remain unknown. To address this question, we manipulated the gut microbiota of fruit flies, Drosophila melanogaster , by monoinfecting flies with either Acetobacter pomorum ( AP ) or Lactobacillus plantarum ( LP ) . Re-inoculated individuals were paired in all treatment combinations. LP- infected males had longer mating duration and induced higher short-term offspring production in females compared with AP -infected males. Furthermore, females of either re-inoculation state mated with AP- infected males were more likely to have zero offspring after mating, suggesting a negative effect of AP on male fertility . Finally, we found that the effects of male and female gut bacteria interacted to modulate their daughters', but not sons' body mass, revealing a new trans-generational effect of parental gut microbiota. In conclusion, this study shows direct and trans-generational effects of the gut microbiota on mating and reproduction.

scholarly journals Antibiotics increase aggression behavior and aggression-related pheromones and receptors in Drosophila melanogaster

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michal Grinberg ◽  
Hadar Neuman ◽  
Oren Ziv ◽  
Sondra Turjeman ◽  
Rita Nosenko ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Social Behavior ◽  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Aggressive Behavior ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Environmental Cues ◽  
Aggressive Behaviors ◽  
Aggression Behavior

AbstractAggression is a behavior common in most species; it is controlled by internal and external drivers, including hormones, environmental cues, and social interactions, and underlying pathways are understood in a broad range of species. To date, though, effects of gut microbiota on aggression in the context of gut-brain communication and social behavior have not been elucidated. We examine how manipulation of Drosophila melanogaster microbiota affect aggression as well as the pathways that underly the behavior in this species. Flies treated with antibiotics exhibited significantly more aggressive behaviors. Furthermore, they had higher levels of vCA and (Z)-9 Tricosene, pheromones associated with aggression in flies, as well as higher expression of the relevant pheromone receptors and transporters OR67d, OR83b, GR32a, and LUSH. These findings suggest that aggressive behavior is, at least in part, mediated by bacterial species in flies.

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