The Role of Lipid Competition for Endosymbiont-Mediated Protection against Parasitoid Wasps in Drosophila.

ABSTRACT: Insects commonly harbor facultative bacterial endosymbionts, such as Wolbachia and Spiroplasma species, that are vertically transmitted from mothers to their offspring. These endosymbiontic bacteria increase their propagation by manipulating host reproduction or by protecting their hosts against natural enemies. While an increasing number of studies have reported endosymbiont-mediated protection, little is known about the mechanisms underlying this protection. Here, we analyze the mechanisms underlying protection from parasitoid wasps in Drosophila melanogaster mediated by its facultative endosymbiont Spiroplasma poulsonii Our results indicate that S. poulsonii exerts protection against two distantly related wasp species, Leptopilina boulardi and Asobara tabida S. poulsonii-mediated protec

SUBMITTER: Paredes JC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4958261 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature