Low Virulence of the Fungi Escovopsis and Escovopsioides to a Leaf-Cutting Ant-Fungus Symbiosis.

ABSTRACT: Eusocial insects interact with a diversity of parasites that can threaten their survival and reproduction. The amount of harm these parasites cause to their hosts (i.e., their virulence) can be influenced by numerous factors, such as the ecological context in which the parasite and its host are inserted. Leaf-cutting ants (genera Atta, Acromyrmex and Amoimyrmex, Attini: Formicidae) are an example of a eusocial insect whose colonies are constantly threatened by parasites. The fungi Escovopsis and Escovopsioides (Ascomycota: Hypocreales) are considered a highly virulent parasite and an antagonist, respectively, to the leaf-cutting ants' fungal cultivar, Leucoagaricus gongylophorus (Basidiomycota: Agaricales). Since Escovopsis and Escovopsio

SUBMITTER: de Mendonca DMF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8358438 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature