Dynamics of symbiont-mediated antibiotic production reveal efficient long-term protection for beewolf offspring.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Insects have evolved a wide range of mechanisms to defend themselves and their offspring against antagonists. One of these strategies involves the utilization of antimicrobial compounds provided by symbiotic bacteria to protect the host or its nutritional resources from pathogens and parasites. In the symbiosis of the solitary digger wasp, Philanthus triangulum (Hymenoptera, Crabronidae), the bacterial symbiont 'Candidatus Streptomyces philanthi' defends the developing larvae against pathogens by producing a mixture of at least nine antimicrobial substances on the cocoon surface. This antibiotic cocktail inhibits the growth of a broad range of detrimental fungi and bacteria, thereby significantly enhancing the offspring's survival probability.

Results

Here we show

SUBMITTER: Koehler S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3599432 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature