Intracellular Symbiotic Bacteria of Camponotus textor, Forel (Hymenoptera, Formicidae)

This study focuses on the weaver ant, Camponotus textor, Forel which occurs in some areas of the Brazilian Cerrado and Atlantic Forest, and its symbionts: Blochmannia, an obligate symbiont of Camponotus, and Wolbachia, known for causing reproductive alterations in their hosts. The main goal of this...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Ramalho, Manuela O. [UNESP], Martins, Cintia, Silva, Larissa M. R. [UNESP], Martins, Vanderlei G. [UNESP], Bueno, Odair C. [UNESP]
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2017
País:Brasil
Institución:Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP)
Repositorio:Repositório Institucional da UNESP
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:repositorio.unesp.br:11449/174295
Acceso en línea:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00284-017-1201-6
http://hdl.handle.net/11449/174295
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Blochmannia
Camponotini
Endosymbiont
Weaver ant
Wolbachia
Descripción
Sumario:This study focuses on the weaver ant, Camponotus textor, Forel which occurs in some areas of the Brazilian Cerrado and Atlantic Forest, and its symbionts: Blochmannia, an obligate symbiont of Camponotus, and Wolbachia, known for causing reproductive alterations in their hosts. The main goal of this study was to investigate the presence, frequency of occurrence, and diversity of Wolbachia and Blochmannia strains in C. textor colonies. We found high infection rates (100%) and the occurrence of at least two distinct strains of Blochmannia (H_1 or H_7) in the same species. The observed haplotype variation within a single species may result from the high mutation rate of the symbiont. Similarly, the Wolbachia was found in all colonies with different rates of infections and a new strain (supergroup A) was deposited in the MLST database. The diversity found in the present study shows that there is still much to explore to understand about these symbiotic interactions.