Exploring climate-related gut microbiome variation in bumble bees: An experimental and observational perspective.

ABSTRACT: Rising temperatures negatively affect bumble bee fitness directly through physiological impacts and indirectly by disrupting mutualistic interactions between bees and other organisms, which are crucial in determining species-specific responses to climate change. Gut microbial symbionts, key regulators of host nutrition and health, may be the Achilles' heel of thermal responses in insects. They not only modulate biotic interactions with plants and pathogens but also exhibit varying thermal sensitivity themselves. Understanding how environmental changes disrupt microbiome communities is a crucial first step to determine potential consequences for host population responses. We analyzed gut bacterial communities of six bumble bee species inhabiting different climatic niches along an elevationa

SUBMITTER: Maihoff F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11933737 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature