Parallel metatranscriptome analyses of host and symbiont gene expression in the gut of the termite Reticulitermes flavipes.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Termite lignocellulose digestion is achieved through a collaboration of host plus prokaryotic and eukaryotic symbionts. In the present work, we took a combined host and symbiont metatranscriptomic approach for investigating the digestive contributions of host and symbiont in the lower termite Reticulitermes flavipes. Our approach consisted of parallel high-throughput sequencing from (i) a host gut cDNA library and (ii) a hindgut symbiont cDNA library. Subsequently, we undertook functional analyses of newly identified phenoloxidases with potential importance as pretreatment enzymes in industrial lignocellulose processing.

Results

Over 10,000 expressed sequence tags (ESTs) were sequenced from the 2 libraries that aligned into 6,555 putative transcripts, including 17

SUBMITTER: Tartar A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2768689 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature