scholarly journals Cotesia congregata Bracovirus Circles Encoding PTP and Ankyrin Genes Integrate into the DNA of Parasitized Manduca sexta Hemocytes

2018 ◽  
Vol 92 (15) ◽  
Author(s):  
Germain Chevignon ◽  
Georges Periquet ◽  
Gabor Gyapay ◽  
Nathalie Vega-Czarny ◽  
Karine Musset ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Manduca Sexta ◽  
High Throughput Sequencing ◽  
Particle Production ◽  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Gene Families ◽  
Parasitoid Wasps ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Virulence Proteins ◽  
Cotesia Congregata ◽  
Dividing Cells

ABSTRACT Polydnaviruses (PDVs) are essential for the parasitism success of tens of thousands of species of parasitoid wasps. PDVs are present in wasp genomes as proviruses, which serve as the template for the production of double-stranded circular viral DNA carrying virulence genes that are injected into lepidopteran hosts. PDV circles do not contain genes coding for particle production, thereby impeding viral replication in caterpillar hosts during parasitism. Here, we investigated the fate of PDV circles of Cotesia congregata bracovirus during parasitism of the tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta, by the wasp Cotesia congregata. Sequences sharing similarities with host integration motifs (HIMs) of Microplitis demolitor bracovirus (MdBV) circles involved in integration into DNA could be identified in 12 CcBV circles, which encode PTP and VANK gene families involved in host immune disruption. A PCR approach performed on a subset of these circles indicated that they persisted in parasitized M. sexta hemocytes as linear forms, possibly integrated in host DNA. Furthermore, by using a primer extension capture method based on these HIMs and high-throughput sequencing, we could show that 8 out of 9 circles tested were integrated in M. sexta hemocyte genomic DNA and that integration had occurred specifically using the HIM, indicating that an HIM-mediated specific mechanism was involved in their integration. Investigation of BV circle insertion sites at the genome scale revealed that certain genomic regions appeared to be enriched in BV insertions, but no specific M. sexta target site could be identified. IMPORTANCE The identification of a specific and efficient integration mechanism shared by several bracovirus species opens the question of its role in braconid parasitoid wasp parasitism success. Indeed, results obtained here show massive integration of bracovirus DNA in somatic immune cells at each parasitism event of a caterpillar host. Given that bracoviruses do not replicate in infected cells, integration of viral sequences in host DNA might allow the production of PTP and VANK virulence proteins within newly dividing cells of caterpillar hosts that continue to develop during parasitism. Furthermore, this integration process could serve as a basis to understand how PDVs mediate the recently identified gene flux between parasitoid wasps and Lepidoptera and the frequency of these horizontal transfer events in nature.

Parasitization of Manduca sexta larvae by the parasitoid wasp Cotesia congregata induces an impaired host immune response

2005 ◽  
Vol 51 (5) ◽  
pp. 505-512 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin E. Amaya ◽  
Sassan Asgari ◽  
Richard Jung ◽  
Melissa Hongskula ◽  
Nancy E. Beckage
Keyword(s):  
Immune Response ◽  
Manduca Sexta ◽  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Host Immune Response ◽  
Cotesia Congregata ◽  
Manduca Sexta Larvae

scholarly journals Chromosomal resolution reveals symbiotic virus colonization of parasitic wasp genomes

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jérémy Gauthier ◽  
Hélène Boulain ◽  
Joke J.F.A. van Vugt ◽  
Lyam Baudry ◽  
Emma Persyn ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Particle Production ◽  
Parasitic Wasp ◽  
Viral Gene Expression ◽  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Viral Gene ◽  
Parasitoid Wasps ◽  
Genomic Comparison ◽  
Immune Genes ◽  
Endogenous Viruses ◽  
First Time

AbstractMost endogenous viruses, an important proportion of eukaryote genomes, are doomed to slowly decay. Little is known, however, on how they evolve when they confer a benefit to their host. Bracoviruses are essential for the parasitism success of parasitoid wasps, whose genomes they integrated ~103 million years ago. Here we show, from the assembly of a parasitoid wasp genome, for the first time at a chromosomal scale, that symbiotic bracovirus genes spread to and colonized all the chromosomes. Moreover, large viral clusters are stably maintained suggesting strong evolutionary constraints. Genomic comparison with another wasps revealed that this organization was already established ~53 mya. Transcriptomic analyses highlight temporal synchronization of viral gene expression, leading to particle production. Immune genes are not induced, however, indicating the virus is not perceived as foreign by the wasp. This recognition suggests that no conflicts remain between symbiotic partners when benefits to them converge.

scholarly journals Strong selective pressure by parasitoids mitigates the costs of consuming chemically defended plants

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deidra J. Jacobsen
Keyword(s):  
Manduca Sexta ◽  
Natural Enemies ◽  
Developmental Stages ◽  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
Secondary Compounds ◽  
List Type ◽  
Plant Secondary Compounds ◽  
Defensive Compounds ◽  
Cotesia Congregata

AbstractCo-evolutionary interactions between plants and herbivores have led to a range of plant defenses that minimize insect damage and a suite of counter-adaptations that allow herbivores to feed on defended plants. Consumption of plant secondary compounds results in herbivore growth and developmental costs but can be beneficial if eating these secondary compounds results in deterrence or harm to natural enemies.To test the role of secondary compounds on herbivore fitness in the context of natural enemies, I combined field measurements of the prevalence of a parasitoid wasp (Cotesia congregata) with detailed measurements of the costs of plant secondary compounds on growth, immune, and fitness traits across developmental stages in the herbivore Manduca sexta. When M. sexta larvae consume defended plants, Cotesia congregata are known to have reduced success. However, this anti-enemy benefit to the M. sexta host must be considered in relationship to parasitoid abundance and the type and strength of the fitness costs M. sexta incurs feeding on plant secondary compounds.I found that Cotesia congregata parasitoids exert large negative selective pressures, killing 31-57% of M. sexta larvae in the field. Manduca sexta developed fastest during the instars most at risk for parasitoid oviposition but growth was slowed by consumption of plant secondary compounds (nicotine and rutin). These negative size effects at the larval stage carried over to influence adult traits associated with flight and mating but there were no immune, survival, or fecundity costs of consuming plant defensive compounds as larvae.Synthesis. These results suggest that the developmental costs experienced by M. sexta herbivores consuming defensive compounds may be outweighed by a survival benefit in the face of abundant enemy pressures.

Correlation between changes in host behaviour and octopamine levels in the tobacco hornworm Manduca sexta parasitized by the gregarious braconid parasitoid wasp Cotesia congregata

1997 ◽  
Vol 200 (1) ◽  
pp. 117-127 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Adamo ◽  
C Linn ◽  
N Beckage
Keyword(s):  
High Performance Liquid Chromatography ◽  
Manduca Sexta ◽  
High Performance ◽  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Tobacco Hornworm ◽  
The Body ◽  
Larval Form ◽  
Cotesia Congregata ◽  
Host Behaviour ◽  
Increased Activity

The parasitoid wasp Cotesia congregata lays its eggs within the body of its host, the larval form of the tobacco hornworm Manduca sexta. Host behaviour appeared normal until approximately 8 h prior to the emergence of the parasitoids from their host at which time M. sexta feeding and locomotion declined irreversibly. This change in host behaviour may be to the advantage of the wasp since unparasitized M. sexta presented with wasp pupae ate them. Despite the decline in feeding and locomotion, hosts with emerged parasitoids had normal reflexes and showed no other signs of debilitation. Concomitant with the change in host behaviour, octopamine concentration measured using high-performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection (HPLC-ED) increased from 22.2±2.1 pg µl-1 to 143.7±7.8 pg µl-1 in the haemolymph of the host. In unparasitized M. sexta, however, increased octopamine levels were correlated with increased activity. We discuss possible explanations for the co-occurrence of high haemolymph octopamine levels and low behavioural arousal in parasitized M. sexta.

scholarly journals Polydnavirus replication: the EP1 segment of the parasitoid wasp Cotesia congregata is amplified within a larger precursor molecule

2002 ◽  
Vol 83 (8) ◽  
pp. 2035-2045 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Pasquier-Barre ◽  
C. Dupuy ◽  
E. Huguet ◽  
F. Monteiro ◽  
A. Moreau ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Adult Development ◽  
Genomic Dna ◽  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Parasitoid Wasps ◽  
Precursor Molecule ◽  
Molecular Analyses ◽  
Virus Particles ◽  
Cotesia Congregata ◽  
Virus Sequence ◽  
Shed Light

Polydnaviruses are unique viruses: they are essential for successful parasitism by tens of thousands of species of parasitoid wasps. These viruses are obligatorily associated with the wasps and are injected into the host during oviposition. Molecular analyses have shown that each virus sequence in the segmented polydnavirus genome is present in the wasp DNA in two forms: a circular form found in the virus particles and an integrated form found in the wasp chromosomes. Recent studies performed on polydnaviruses from braconid wasps suggested that the circular forms were excised from the chromosome. The different forms of the EP1 circle of Cotesia congregata polydnavirus during the pupal–adult development of the parasitoid wasp were analysed. Unexpectedly, an off-size fragment formerly used to diagnose the integration of the EP1 sequence into wasp genomic DNA was found to be amplified in female wasps undergoing virus replication. The EP1 sequence is amplified within a larger molecule comprising at least two virus segments. The amplified molecule is different from the EP1 chromosomally integrated form and is not encapsidated into virus particles. These findings shed light on a new step towards EP1 circle production: the amplification of virus sequences preceding individual circle excision.

scholarly journals Sight of parasitoid wasps accelerates sexual behavior and upregulates a micropeptide gene in Drosophila

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shimaa A. M. Ebrahim ◽  
Gaëlle J. S. Talross ◽  
John R. Carlson
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Nervous System ◽  
Sexual Behavior ◽  
Behavioral Response ◽  
Mutational Analysis ◽  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Parasitoid Wasps ◽  
Wasp Species ◽  
Defensive Responses ◽  
Vast Range

AbstractParasitoid wasps inflict widespread death upon the insect world. Hundreds of thousands of parasitoid wasp species kill a vast range of insect species. Insects have evolved defensive responses to the threat of wasps, some cellular and some behavioral. Here we find an unexpected response of adult Drosophila to the presence of certain parasitoid wasps: accelerated mating behavior. Flies exposed to certain wasp species begin mating more quickly. The effect is mediated via changes in the behavior of the female fly and depends on visual perception. The sight of wasps induces the dramatic upregulation in the fly nervous system of a gene that encodes a 41-amino acid micropeptide. Mutational analysis reveals that the gene is essential to the behavioral response of the fly. Our work provides a foundation for further exploration of how the activation of visual circuits by the sight of a wasp alters both sexual behavior and gene expression.

scholarly journals Apomictic parthenogenesis in a parasitoid waspMeteorus pulchricornis, uncommon in the haplodiploid order Hymenoptera

2014 ◽  
Vol 104 (3) ◽  
pp. 307-313 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. Tsutsui ◽  
K. Maeto ◽  
K. Hamaguchi ◽  
Y. Isaki ◽  
Y. Takami ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Parasitoid Wasps ◽  
Genetic Studies ◽  
Insect Order ◽  
Egg Maturation ◽  
Polar Bodies ◽  
Lepidopteran Larvae ◽  
Apomictic Parthenogenesis ◽  
Meteorus Pulchricornis ◽  
New Type

AbstractAlthough apomixis is the most common form of parthenogenesis in diplodiploid arthropods, it is uncommon in the haplodiploid insect order Hymenoptera. We found a new type of spontaneous apomixis in the Hymenoptera, completely lacking meiosis and the expulsion of polar bodies in egg maturation division, on the thelytokous strain of a parasitoid waspMeteorus pulchricornis(Wesmael) (Braconidae, Euphorinae) on pest lepidopteran larvaeSpodoptera litura(Fabricius) (Noctuidae). The absence of the meiotic process was consistent with a non-segregation pattern in the offspring of heterozygous females, and no positive evidence was obtained for the induction of thelytoky by any bacterial symbionts. We discuss the conditions that enable the occurrence of such rare cases of apomictic thelytoky in the Hymenoptera, suggesting the significance of fixed heterosis caused by hybridization or polyploidization, symbiosis with bacterial agents, and occasional sex. Our finding will encourage further genetic studies on parasitoid wasps to use asexual lines more wisely for biological control.

scholarly journals A Novel Gene Involved in the Survival of Streptococcus mutans under Stress Conditions

2013 ◽  
Vol 80 (1) ◽  
pp. 97-103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan Li ◽  
Yukie Shibata ◽  
Toru Takeshita ◽  
Yoshihisa Yamashita
Keyword(s):  
Streptococcus Mutans ◽  
Streptococcus Pyogenes ◽  
Biofilm Formation ◽  
Acid Tolerance ◽  
Stress Conditions ◽  
Insertion Mutagenesis ◽  
Trna Modification ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Virulence Proteins ◽  
Random Insertion

ABSTRACTAStreptococcus mutansmutant defective in aciduricity was constructed by random-insertion mutagenesis. Sequence analysis of the mutant revealed a mutation ingidA, which is known to be involved in tRNA modification inStreptococcus pyogenes. Complementation ofgidAbyS. pyogenesgidArecovered the acid tolerance ofS. mutans. Although thegidA-inactivatedS. pyogenesmutant exhibited significantly reduced expression of multiple extracellular virulence proteins, theS. mutansmutant did not. On the other hand, thegidAmutant ofS. mutansshowed reduced ability to withstand exposure to other stress conditions (high osmotic pressure, high temperature, and bacitracin stress) besides an acidic environment. In addition, loss of GidA decreased the capacity for glucose-dependent biofilm formation by over 50%. This study revealed thatgidAplays critical roles in the survival ofS. mutansunder stress conditions, including lower pH.

scholarly journals Identifying the Active Microbiome Associated with Roots and Rhizosphere Soil of Oilseed Rape

2017 ◽  
Vol 83 (22) ◽  
Author(s):  
Konstantia Gkarmiri ◽  
Shahid Mahmood ◽  
Alf Ekblad ◽  
Sadhna Alström ◽  
Nils Högberg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Brassica Napus ◽  
Stable Isotope ◽  
Oilseed Rape ◽  
High Throughput ◽  
High Throughput Sequencing ◽  
Rhizosphere Soil ◽  
Stable Isotope Probing ◽  
Biofuel Production ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Bacteria And Fungi

ABSTRACT RNA stable isotope probing and high-throughput sequencing were used to characterize the active microbiomes of bacteria and fungi colonizing the roots and rhizosphere soil of oilseed rape to identify taxa assimilating plant-derived carbon following 13CO2 labeling. Root- and rhizosphere soil-associated communities of both bacteria and fungi differed from each other, and there were highly significant differences between their DNA- and RNA-based community profiles. Verrucomicrobia, Proteobacteria, Planctomycetes, Acidobacteria, Gemmatimonadetes, Actinobacteria, and Chloroflexi were the most active bacterial phyla in the rhizosphere soil. Bacteroidetes were more active in roots. The most abundant bacterial genera were well represented in both the 13C- and 12C-RNA fractions, while the fungal taxa were more differentiated. Streptomyces, Rhizobium, and Flavobacterium were dominant in roots, whereas Rhodoplanes and Sphingomonas (Kaistobacter) were dominant in rhizosphere soil. “Candidatus Nitrososphaera” was enriched in 13C in rhizosphere soil. Olpidium and Dendryphion were abundant in the 12C-RNA fraction of roots; Clonostachys was abundant in both roots and rhizosphere soil and heavily 13C enriched. Cryptococcus was dominant in rhizosphere soil and less abundant, but was 13C enriched in roots. The patterns of colonization and C acquisition revealed in this study assist in identifying microbial taxa that may be superior competitors for plant-derived carbon in the rhizosphere of Brassica napus. IMPORTANCE This microbiome study characterizes the active bacteria and fungi colonizing the roots and rhizosphere soil of Brassica napus using high-throughput sequencing and RNA-stable isotope probing. It identifies taxa assimilating plant-derived carbon following 13CO2 labeling and compares these with other less active groups not incorporating a plant assimilate. Brassica napus is an economically and globally important oilseed crop, cultivated for edible oil, biofuel production, and phytoextraction of heavy metals; however, it is susceptible to several diseases. The identification of the fungal and bacterial species successfully competing for plant-derived carbon, enabling them to colonize the roots and rhizosphere soil of this plant, should enable the identification of microorganisms that can be evaluated in more detailed functional studies and ultimately be used to improve plant health and productivity in sustainable agriculture.

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