Three feminizing Wolbachia strains in a single host species: comparative genomics paves the way for identifying sex reversal factors.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Endosymbiotic bacteria in the genus Wolbachia have evolved numerous strategies for manipulating host reproduction in order to promote their own transmission. This includes the feminization of males into functional females, a well-studied phenotype in the isopod Armadillidium vulgare. Despite an early description of this phenotype in isopods and the development of an evolutionary model of host sex determination in the presence of Wolbachia, the underlying genetic mechanisms remain elusive.

Methods

Here we present the first complete genomes of the three feminizing Wolbachia (wVulC, wVulP, and wVulM) known to date in A. vulgare. These genomes, belonging to Wolbachia B supergroup, contain a large number

SUBMITTER: Greve P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11376236 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature