Characterization of the Core and Caste-Specific Microbiota in the Termite, Reticulitermes flavipes.

ABSTRACT: The hindgut of the termite Reticulitermes flavipes harbors a complex symbiotic community consisting of protists, bacteria, and archaea. These symbionts aid in the digestion of lignocellulose from the termite's wood meal. Termite hindguts were sampled and the V4 hyper-variable region of the 16S rRNA gene was sequenced and analyzed from individual termites. The core microbiota of worker termites consisted of 69 OTUs at the 97% identity level, grouped into 16 taxa, and together accounted for 67.05% of the sequences from the bacterial community. The core was dominated by Treponema, which contained 36 different OTUs and accounted for ∼32% of the sequences, which suggests Treponema sp. have an important impact on the overall physiology in the hindgut. Bray-Curtis beta diversity metrics showed th

SUBMITTER: Benjamino J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4756164 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature