Evolution of parasitism-related traits in nematodes.

ABSTRACT: The abundant resources provided by the host provide an evolutionary rationale for parasitism and drive the metabolic and developmental divergence of parasitic and free-living animals. Two evolutionally distant nematode genera, Steinernema and Heterorhabditis, independently evolved an entomopathogenic lifestyle, in which they invade insects and kill them with the assistance of specifically associated symbiotic pathogenic bacteria. It had been generally assumed that the worm, being a bacterivore, feeds on its symbiotic bacteria, which rapidly reproduce while consuming the insect host. The evolutionary adaptations of entomopathogenic nematodes to a parasitic lifestyle developmentally, and the symbiotic relationships of entomopathogenicity, remain largely unknown. We developed an

SUBMITTER: Tan CH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12486135 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature