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Thakur H, Agarwal S, Buček A, Hradecký J, Sehadová H, Mathur V, Togaev U, van de Kamp T, Hamann E, Liu RH, Verma KS, Li HF, Sillam-Dussès D, Engel MS, Šobotník J. Defensive glands in Stylotermitidae (Blattodea, Isoptera). Arthropod Struct Dev 2024; 79:101346. [PMID: 38520874 DOI: 10.1016/j.asd.2024.101346] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2024] [Revised: 03/03/2024] [Accepted: 03/04/2024] [Indexed: 03/25/2024]
Abstract
The large abundance of termites is partially achieved by their defensive abilities. Stylotermitidae represented by a single extant genus, Stylotermes, is a member of a termite group Neoisoptera that encompasses 83% of termite species and 94% of termite genera and is characterized by the presence of the frontal gland. Within Neoisoptera, Stylotermitidae represents a species-poor sister lineage of all other groups. We studied the structure of the frontal, labral and labial glands in soldiers and workers of Stylotermes faveolus, and the composition of the frontal gland secretion in S. faveolus and Stylotermes halumicus. We show that the frontal gland is a small active secretory organ in soldiers and workers. It produces a cocktail of monoterpenes in soldiers, and some of these monoterpenes and unidentified proteins in workers. The labral and labial glands are developed similarly to other termite species and contribute to defensive activities (labral in both castes, labial in soldiers) or to the production of digestive enzymes (labial in workers). Our results support the importance of the frontal gland in the evolution of Neoisoptera. Toxic, irritating and detectable monoterpenes play defensive and pheromonal functions and are likely critical novelties contributing to the ecological success of these termites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Himanshu Thakur
- Department of Entomology, CSK Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya, Palampur, Himachal Pradesh, India
| | - Surbhi Agarwal
- Animal Plant Interactions Lab, Department of Zoology, Sri Venkateswara College, Benito Juarez Marg, Dhaula Kuan, New Delhi, India
| | - Aleš Buček
- Biology Centre, Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
| | - Jaromír Hradecký
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Hana Sehadová
- Biology Centre, Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, České Budějovice, Czech Republic; University of South Bohemia in Ceske Budejovice, Branišovská 31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - Vartika Mathur
- Animal Plant Interactions Lab, Department of Zoology, Sri Venkateswara College, Benito Juarez Marg, Dhaula Kuan, New Delhi, India
| | - Ulugbek Togaev
- Academy of Science of Uzbekistan, Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry and National University of Uzbekistan, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
| | - Thomas van de Kamp
- Institute for Photon Science and Synchrotron Radiation (IPS), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, 76344, Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, Germany; Laboratory for Applications of Synchrotron Radiation (LAS), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Kaiserstr. 12, 76131, Karlsruhe, Germany
| | - Elias Hamann
- Institute for Photon Science and Synchrotron Radiation (IPS), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, 76344, Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, Germany
| | - Ren-Han Liu
- Department of Entomology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, 402202, Taiwan
| | - Kuldeep S Verma
- Department of Entomology, CSK Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya, Palampur, Himachal Pradesh, India
| | - Hou-Feng Li
- Department of Entomology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, 402202, Taiwan
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- University Sorbonne Paris Nord, Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology, LEEC, UR 4443, Villetaneuse, France.
| | - Michael S Engel
- Division of Invertebrate Zoology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, 10024-5192, USA
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Biology Centre, Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, České Budějovice, Czech Republic; Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic.
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2
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Thakur H, Agarwal S, Hradecký J, Sharma G, Li HF, Yang SE, Sehadová H, Chandel RS, Hyliš M, Mathur V, Šobotník J, Sillam-Dussès D. The Trail-Following Communication in Stylotermes faveolus and S. halumicus (Blattodea, Isoptera, Stylotermitidae). J Chem Ecol 2023; 49:642-651. [PMID: 37566284 DOI: 10.1007/s10886-023-01447-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2023] [Revised: 07/31/2023] [Accepted: 08/01/2023] [Indexed: 08/12/2023]
Abstract
Stylotermitidae appear peculiar among all termites, feeding in trunks of living trees in South Asia only. The difficulty to collect them limits the ability to study them, and they thus still belong to critically unknown groups in respect to their biology. We used a combination of microscopic observations, chemical analysis and behavioural tests, to determine the source and chemical nature of the trail-following pheromone of Stylotermes faveolus from India and S. halumicus from Taiwan. The sternal gland located at the 5th abdominal segment was the exclusive source of the trail-following pheromone in both S. faveolus and S. halumicus, and it is made up of class I, II and III secretory cells. Using gas chromatography coupled mass spectrometry, (3Z)-dodec-3-en-1-ol (DOE) was identified as the trail-following pheromone which elicits strong behavioural responses in workers at a threshold around 10- 4 ng/cm and 0.1 ng/gland. Our results confirm the switch from complex aldehyde trail-following pheromones occurring in the basal groups to simpler linear alcohols in the ancestor of Kalotermitidae and Neoisoptera.
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Affiliation(s)
- Himanshu Thakur
- Department of Entomology, CSK Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya, Palampur, Himachal Pradesh, India
| | - Surbhi Agarwal
- Animal-Plant Interactions Lab, Department of Zoology, Sri Venkateswara College, Benito Juarez Marg, Dhaula Kuan, 110021, New Delhi, India
| | - Jaromír Hradecký
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Garima Sharma
- Animal-Plant Interactions Lab, Department of Zoology, Sri Venkateswara College, Benito Juarez Marg, Dhaula Kuan, 110021, New Delhi, India
| | - Hou-Feng Li
- Department of Entomology, National Chung Hsing University, 145 Xingda Rd, 402202, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Shang-En Yang
- Department of Entomology, National Chung Hsing University, 145 Xingda Rd, 402202, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Hana Sehadová
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
| | - Ravinder S Chandel
- Department of Entomology, CSK Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya, Palampur, Himachal Pradesh, India
| | - Mirek Hyliš
- Faculty of Sciences, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Vartika Mathur
- Animal-Plant Interactions Lab, Department of Zoology, Sri Venkateswara College, Benito Juarez Marg, Dhaula Kuan, 110021, New Delhi, India
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, České Budějovice, Czech Republic.
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic.
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology, LEEC, UR 4443, University Sorbonne Paris Nord, Villetaneuse, France
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Protasov E, Nonoh JO, Kästle Silva JM, Mies US, Hervé V, Dietrich C, Lang K, Mikulski L, Platt K, Poehlein A, Köhler-Ramm T, Miambi E, Boga HI, Feldewert C, Ngugi DK, Plarre R, Sillam-Dussès D, Šobotník J, Daniel R, Brune A. Diversity and taxonomic revision of methanogens and other archaea in the intestinal tract of terrestrial arthropods. Front Microbiol 2023; 14:1281628. [PMID: 38033561 PMCID: PMC10684969 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1281628] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2023] [Accepted: 10/13/2023] [Indexed: 12/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Methane emission by terrestrial invertebrates is restricted to millipedes, termites, cockroaches, and scarab beetles. The arthropod-associated archaea known to date belong to the orders Methanobacteriales, Methanomassiliicoccales, Methanomicrobiales, and Methanosarcinales, and in a few cases also to non-methanogenic Nitrososphaerales and Bathyarchaeales. However, all major host groups are severely undersampled, and the taxonomy of existing lineages is not well developed. Full-length 16S rRNA gene sequences and genomes of arthropod-associated archaea are scarce, reference databases lack resolution, and the names of many taxa are either not validly published or under-classified and require revision. Here, we investigated the diversity of archaea in a wide range of methane-emitting arthropods, combining phylogenomic analysis of isolates and metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) with amplicon sequencing of full-length 16S rRNA genes. Our results allowed us to describe numerous new species in hitherto undescribed taxa among the orders Methanobacteriales (Methanacia, Methanarmilla, Methanobaculum, Methanobinarius, Methanocatella, Methanoflexus, Methanorudis, and Methanovirga, all gen. nova), Methanomicrobiales (Methanofilum and Methanorbis, both gen. nova), Methanosarcinales (Methanofrustulum and Methanolapillus, both gen. nova), Methanomassiliicoccales (Methanomethylophilaceae fam. nov., Methanarcanum, Methanogranum, Methanomethylophilus, Methanomicula, Methanoplasma, Methanoprimaticola, all gen. nova), and the new family Bathycorpusculaceae (Bathycorpusculum gen. nov.). Reclassification of amplicon libraries from this and previous studies using this new taxonomic framework revealed that arthropods harbor only CO2 and methyl-reducing hydrogenotrophic methanogens. Numerous genus-level lineages appear to be present exclusively in arthropods, suggesting long evolutionary trajectories with their termite, cockroach, and millipede hosts, and a radiation into various microhabitats and ecological niches provided by their digestive tracts (e.g., hindgut compartments, gut wall, or anaerobic protists). The distribution patterns among the different host groups are often complex, indicating a mixed mode of transmission and a parallel evolution of invertebrate and vertebrate-associated lineages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Evgenii Protasov
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - James O. Nonoh
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Joana M. Kästle Silva
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Undine S. Mies
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Vincent Hervé
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Carsten Dietrich
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Kristina Lang
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Lena Mikulski
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Katja Platt
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Anja Poehlein
- Genomic and Applied Microbiology and Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg August University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Tim Köhler-Ramm
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Edouard Miambi
- Evolutionary Ecology Department, Institute of Ecology and Environmental Sciences of Paris (iEES-Paris), University of Paris-Est Créteil (UPEC), Créteil, France
| | - Hamadi I. Boga
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Christopher Feldewert
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - David K. Ngugi
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Rudy Plarre
- Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung, Berlin, Germany
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology (LEEC), UR 4443, Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czechia
| | - Rolf Daniel
- Genomic and Applied Microbiology and Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg August University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Andreas Brune
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
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4
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Arora J, Buček A, Hellemans S, Beránková T, Arias JR, Fisher BL, Clitheroe C, Brune A, Kinjo Y, Šobotník J, Bourguignon T. Evidence of cospeciation between termites and their gut bacteria on a geological time scale. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20230619. [PMID: 37339742 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.0619] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2023] [Accepted: 05/24/2023] [Indexed: 06/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Termites host diverse communities of gut microbes, including many bacterial lineages only found in this habitat. The bacteria endemic to termite guts are transmitted via two routes: a vertical route from parent colonies to daughter colonies and a horizontal route between colonies sometimes belonging to different termite species. The relative importance of both transmission routes in shaping the gut microbiota of termites remains unknown. Using bacterial marker genes derived from the gut metagenomes of 197 termites and one Cryptocercus cockroach, we show that bacteria endemic to termite guts are mostly transferred vertically. We identified 18 lineages of gut bacteria showing cophylogenetic patterns with termites over tens of millions of years. Horizontal transfer rates estimated for 16 bacterial lineages were within the range of those estimated for 15 mitochondrial genes, suggesting that horizontal transfers are uncommon and vertical transfers are the dominant transmission route in these lineages. Some of these associations probably date back more than 150 million years and are an order of magnitude older than the cophylogenetic patterns between mammalian hosts and their gut bacteria. Our results suggest that termites have cospeciated with their gut bacteria since first appearing in the geological record.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jigyasa Arora
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan
| | - Aleš Buček
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan
- Faculty of Tropical AgriScience, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, Suchdol, 165 00, Prague 6, Czech Republic
| | - Simon Hellemans
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan
| | - Tereza Beránková
- Faculty of Tropical AgriScience, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, Suchdol, 165 00, Prague 6, Czech Republic
| | - Johanna Romero Arias
- Faculty of Tropical AgriScience, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, Suchdol, 165 00, Prague 6, Czech Republic
| | - Brian L Fisher
- Madagascar Biodiversity Center, Parc Botanique et Zoologique de Tsimbazaza, Antananarivo 101, Madagascar
- California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Crystal Clitheroe
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan
| | - Andreas Brune
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, 35043, Germany
| | - Yukihiro Kinjo
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan
- College of Economics and Environmental Policy, Okinawa International University, 2-6-1 Ginowan, Ginowan, 901-2701, Okinawa, Japan
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Tropical AgriScience, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, Suchdol, 165 00, Prague 6, Czech Republic
- College of Economics and Environmental Policy, Okinawa International University, 2-6-1 Ginowan, Ginowan, 901-2701, Okinawa, Japan
| | - Thomas Bourguignon
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan
- Faculty of Tropical AgriScience, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, Suchdol, 165 00, Prague 6, Czech Republic
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5
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Chakraborty A, Šobotník J, Votýpková K, Hradecký J, Stiblik P, Synek J, Bourguignon T, Baldrian P, Engel MS, Novotný V, Odriozola I, Větrovský T. Impact of Wood Age on Termite Microbial Assemblages. Appl Environ Microbiol 2023; 89:e0036123. [PMID: 37067424 PMCID: PMC10231148 DOI: 10.1128/aem.00361-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2023] [Accepted: 03/25/2023] [Indexed: 04/18/2023] Open
Abstract
The decomposition of wood and detritus is challenging to most macroscopic organisms due to the recalcitrant nature of lignocellulose. Moreover, woody plants often protect themselves by synthesizing toxic or nocent compounds which infuse their tissues. Termites are essential wood decomposers in warmer terrestrial ecosystems and, as such, they have to cope with high concentrations of plant toxins in wood. In this paper, we evaluated the influence of wood age on the gut microbial (bacterial and fungal) communities associated with the termites Reticulitermes flavipes (Rhinotermitidae) (Kollar, 1837) and Microcerotermes biroi (Termitidae) (Desneux, 1905). We confirmed that the secondary metabolite concentration decreased with wood age. We identified a core microbial consortium maintained in the gut of R. flavipes and M. biroi and found that its diversity and composition were not altered by the wood age. Therefore, the concentration of secondary metabolites had no effect on the termite gut microbiome. We also found that both termite feeding activities and wood age affect the wood microbiome. Whether the increasing relative abundance of microbes with termite activities is beneficial to the termites is unknown and remains to be investigated. IMPORTANCE Termites can feed on wood thanks to their association with their gut microbes. However, the current understanding of termites as holobiont is limited. To our knowledge, no studies comprehensively reveal the influence of wood age on the termite-associated microbial assemblage. The wood of many tree species contains high concentrations of plant toxins that can vary with their age and may influence microbes. Here, we studied the impact of Norway spruce wood of varying ages and terpene concentrations on the microbial communities associated with the termites Reticulitermes flavipes (Rhinotermitidae) and Microcerotermes biroi (Termitidae). We performed a bacterial 16S rRNA and fungal ITS2 metabarcoding study to reveal the microbial communities associated with R. flavipes and M. biroi and their impact on shaping the wood microbiome. We noted that a stable core microbiome in the termites was unaltered by the feeding substrate, while termite activities influenced the wood microbiome, suggesting that plant secondary metabolites have negligible effects on the termite gut microbiome. Hence, our study shed new insights into the termite-associated microbial assemblage under the influence of varying amounts of terpene content in wood and provides a groundwork for future investigations for developing symbiont-mediated termite control measures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amrita Chakraborty
- EVA 4.0 Unit, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Kateřina Votýpková
- EVA 4.0 Unit, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jaromír Hradecký
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Stiblik
- EVA 4.0 Unit, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Synek
- EVA 4.0 Unit, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Thomas Bourguignon
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
- Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate University, Okinawa, Japan
| | - Petr Baldrian
- Institute of Microbiology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Michael S. Engel
- American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, USA
- Division of Entomology, Natural History Museum, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
| | - Vojtěch Novotný
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - Iñaki Odriozola
- Institute of Microbiology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Tomáš Větrovský
- EVA 4.0 Unit, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
- Institute of Microbiology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
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6
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Aumont C, Beránková T, McMahon DP, Radek R, Akama PD, Sillam-Dussès D, Šobotník J. The ultrastructure of the rostral gland in soldiers of Verrucositermes tuberosus (Blattodea: Termitidae: Nasutitermitinae). Arthropod Struct Dev 2023; 73:101238. [PMID: 36796136 DOI: 10.1016/j.asd.2023.101238] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2022] [Revised: 01/23/2023] [Accepted: 01/25/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
The soil-feeding habit is an evolutionary novelty found in some advanced groups of termites. The study of such groups is important to revealing interesting adaptations to this way-of-life. The genus Verrucositermes is one such example, characterized by peculiar outgrowths on the head capsule, antennae and maxillary palps, which are not found in any other termite. These structures have been hypothesized to be linked to the presence of a new exocrine organ, the rostral gland, whose structure has remained unexplored. We have thus studied the ultrastructure of the epidermal layer of the head capsule of Verrucositermes tuberosus soldiers. We describe the ultrastructure of the rostral gland, which consists of class 3 secretory cells only. The dominant secretory organelles comprise rough endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi apparatus, which provide secretions delivered to the surface of the head, likely made of peptide-derived components of unclear function. We discuss a possible role of the rostral gland of soldiers as an adaptation to the frequent encounter with soil pathogens during search for new food resources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cédric Aumont
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195, Berlin, Germany; Department for Materials and the Environment, BAM Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, 12205, Berlin, Germany
| | - Tereza Beránková
- Czech University of Life Sciences, Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, 165 00, Prague 6 Suchdol, Czech Republic
| | - Dino P McMahon
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195, Berlin, Germany; Department for Materials and the Environment, BAM Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, 12205, Berlin, Germany
| | - Renate Radek
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195, Berlin, Germany
| | - Pierre D Akama
- Département des Sciences Biologiques, Ecole Normale Supérieure, Université de Yaoundé I, Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology, LEEC, UR 4443, University Sorbonne Paris Nord, 93430, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Czech University of Life Sciences, Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, 165 00, Prague 6 Suchdol, Czech Republic.
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7
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Radek R, Platt K, Öztas D, Šobotník J, Sillam-Dussès D, Hanus R, Brune A. New insights into the coevolutionary history of termites and their gut flagellates: Description of Retractinympha glossotermitis gen. nov. sp. nov. (Retractinymphidae fam. nov.). Front Ecol Evol 2023. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2023.1111484] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Lower termites harbor diverse consortia of symbiotic gut flagellates. Despite numerous evidence for co-cladogenesis, the evolutionary history of these associations remains unclear. Here, we present Retractinymphidae fam. nov., a monogeneric lineage of Trichonymphida from Serritermitidae. Although Retractinympha glossotermitis gen. nov. sp. nov. morphologically resembles members of the genus Pseudotrichonympha, phylogenetic analysis identified it as sister group of the Teranymphidae. We compared morphology and ultrastructure of R. glossotermitis to that of Pseudotrichonympha and other Teranymphidae, including the so-far undescribed Pseudotrichonympha solitaria sp. nov. from Termitogeton planus (Rhinotermitidae). Like all Teranymphidae, R. glossotermitis is a large, elongated flagellate with a bilaterally symmetric rostrum, an anterior, flagella-free operculum, and an internal rostral tube. However, it is readily distinguished by the length of its rostral flagella, which never exceeds that of the postrostral flagella, and its retractable anterior end. Inclusion of the hitherto unstudied Stylotermes halumicus (Stylotermitidae) in our survey of trichonymphid flagellates in Neoisoptera confirmed that the combined presence of Heliconympha and Retractinympha and absence of Pseudotrichonympha is unique to Serritermitidae. The close phylogenetic relatedness of Heliconympha in Serritermitidae to the spirotrichosomid flagellates in Stolotermitidae provides strong support for their acquisition by horizontal transmission.
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8
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Sillam-Dussès D, Jandák V, Stiblik P, Delattre O, Chouvenc T, Balvín O, Cvačka J, Soulet D, Synek J, Brothánek M, Jiříček O, Engel MS, Bourguignon T, Šobotník J. Alarm communication predates eusociality in termites. Commun Biol 2023; 6:83. [PMID: 36681783 PMCID: PMC9867704 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-04438-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2022] [Accepted: 01/06/2023] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Termites (Blattodea: Isoptera) have evolved specialized defensive strategies for colony protection. Alarm communication enables workers to escape threats while soldiers are recruited to the source of disturbance. Here, we study the vibroacoustic and chemical alarm communication in the wood roach Cryptocercus and in 20 termite species including seven of the nine termite families, all life-types, and all feeding and nesting habits. Our multidisciplinary approach shows that vibratory alarm signals represent an ethological synapomorphy of termites and Cryptocercus. In contrast, chemical alarms have evolved independently in several cockroach groups and at least twice in termites. Vibroacoustic alarm signaling patterns are the most complex in Neoisoptera, in which they are often combined with chemical signals. The alarm characters correlate to phylogenetic position, food type and hardness, foraging area size, and nesting habits. Overall, species of Neoisoptera have developed the most sophisticated communication system amongst termites, potentially contributing to their ecological success.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Sillam-Dussès
- University Sorbonne Paris Nord, Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology UR4443, 93430, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Vojtěch Jandák
- Czech Technical University in Prague, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, 166 27, Prague 6, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Stiblik
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, 165 21, Prague 6 - Suchdol, Czech Republic
| | - Olivier Delattre
- University Sorbonne Paris Nord, Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology UR4443, 93430, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Thomas Chouvenc
- Entomology and Nematology Department, Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 33314, USA
| | - Ondřej Balvín
- Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, 165 21, Prague 6 - Suchdol, Czech Republic
| | - Josef Cvačka
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, 166 10, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Delphine Soulet
- University Sorbonne Paris Nord, Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology UR4443, 93430, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Jiří Synek
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, 165 21, Prague 6 - Suchdol, Czech Republic
| | - Marek Brothánek
- Czech Technical University in Prague, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, 166 27, Prague 6, Czech Republic
| | - Ondřej Jiříček
- Czech Technical University in Prague, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, 166 27, Prague 6, Czech Republic
| | - Michael S Engel
- Division of Entomology, Natural History Museum, and Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, 1501 Crestline Drive-Suite 140, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, 66045, USA.
| | - Thomas Bourguignon
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, 165 21, Prague 6 - Suchdol, Czech Republic
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Okinawa, Japan
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, 165 21, Prague 6 - Suchdol, Czech Republic.
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9
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Arora J, Kinjo Y, Šobotník J, Buček A, Clitheroe C, Stiblik P, Roisin Y, Žifčáková L, Park YC, Kim KY, Sillam-Dussès D, Hervé V, Lo N, Tokuda G, Brune A, Bourguignon T. The functional evolution of termite gut microbiota. Microbiome 2022; 10:78. [PMID: 35624491 PMCID: PMC9137090 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-022-01258-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2021] [Accepted: 03/16/2022] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Termites primarily feed on lignocellulose or soil in association with specific gut microbes. The functioning of the termite gut microbiota is partly understood in a handful of wood-feeding pest species but remains largely unknown in other taxa. We intend to fill this gap and provide a global understanding of the functional evolution of termite gut microbiota. RESULTS We sequenced the gut metagenomes of 145 samples representative of the termite diversity. We show that the prokaryotic fraction of the gut microbiota of all termites possesses similar genes for carbohydrate and nitrogen metabolisms, in proportions varying with termite phylogenetic position and diet. The presence of a conserved set of gut prokaryotic genes implies that essential nutritional functions were present in the ancestor of modern termites. Furthermore, the abundance of these genes largely correlated with the host phylogeny. Finally, we found that the adaptation to a diet of soil by some termite lineages was accompanied by a change in the stoichiometry of genes involved in important nutritional functions rather than by the acquisition of new genes and pathways. CONCLUSIONS Our results reveal that the composition and function of termite gut prokaryotic communities have been remarkably conserved since termites first appeared ~ 150 million years ago. Therefore, the "world's smallest bioreactor" has been operating as a multipartite symbiosis composed of termites, archaea, bacteria, and cellulolytic flagellates since its inception. Video Abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jigyasa Arora
- Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan.
| | - Yukihiro Kinjo
- Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Aleš Buček
- Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan
| | - Crystal Clitheroe
- Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan
| | - Petr Stiblik
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Yves Roisin
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Lucia Žifčáková
- Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan
| | - Yung Chul Park
- Division of Forest Science, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, Republic of Korea
| | - Ki Yoon Kim
- Division of Forest Science, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, Republic of Korea
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
- University Sorbonne Paris Nord, Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology, LEEC, UR 4443, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Vincent Hervé
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Nathan Lo
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia
| | - Gaku Tokuda
- Tropical Biosphere Research Center, Center of Molecular Biosciences, University of the Ryukyus, Nishihara, Okinawa, 903-0213, Japan
| | - Andreas Brune
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Thomas Bourguignon
- Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan.
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic.
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10
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Abstract
Termites feed on vegetal matter at various stages of decomposition. Lineages of wood- and soil-feeding termites are distributed across terrestrial ecosystems located between 45°N and 45°S of latitude, a distribution they acquired through many transoceanic dispersal events. While wood-feeding termites often live in the wood on which they feed and are efficient at dispersing across oceans by rafting, soil-feeders are believed to be poor dispersers. Therefore, their distribution across multiple continents requires an explanation. Here, we reconstructed the historical biogeography and the ancestral diet of termites using mitochondrial genomes and δ13C and δ15N stable isotope measurements obtained from 324 termite samples collected in five biogeographic realms. Our biogeographic models showed that wood-feeders are better at dispersing across oceans than soil-feeders, further corroborated by the presence of wood-feeders on remote islands devoid of soil-feeders. However, our ancestral range reconstructions identified 33 dispersal events among biogeographic realms, 18 of which were performed by soil-feeders. Therefore, despite their lower dispersal ability, soil-feeders performed several transoceanic dispersals that shaped the distribution of modern termites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon Hellemans
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Tropical AgriScience, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 165 00 Prague 6 Suchdol, Czech Republic
| | - Gilles Lepoint
- Laboratory of Trophic and Isotopes Ecology (LETIS), UR FOCUS, 13 allee du six aout, University of Liège, 4000 Liege, Belgium
| | - Martin Mihaljevič
- Institute of Geochemistry, Mineralogy and Mineral Resources, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Albertov 6, 128 00 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Yves Roisin
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Avenue F.D. Roosevelt 50, CP 160/12, B-1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Thomas Bourguignon
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan,Faculty of Tropical AgriScience, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 165 00 Prague 6 Suchdol, Czech Republic
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11
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Buček A, Wang M, Šobotník J, Hellemans S, Sillam-Dussès D, Mizumoto N, Stiblík P, Clitheroe C, Lu T, González Plaza JJ, Mohagan A, Rafanomezantsoa JJ, Fisher B, Engel MS, Roisin Y, Evans TA, Scheffrahn R, Bourguignon T. Molecular phylogeny reveals the past transoceanic voyages of drywood termites (Isoptera, Kalotermitidae). Mol Biol Evol 2022; 39:6577226. [PMID: 35511685 PMCID: PMC9113494 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msac093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Termites are major decomposers in terrestrial ecosystems and the second most diverse lineage of social insects. The Kalotermitidae form the second-largest termite family and are distributed across tropical and subtropical ecosystems, where they typically live in small colonies confined to single wood items inhabited by individuals with no foraging abilities. How the Kalotermitidae have acquired their global distribution patterns remains unresolved. Similarly, it is unclear whether foraging is ancestral to Kalotermitidae or was secondarily acquired in a few species. These questions can be addressed in a phylogenetic framework. We inferred time-calibrated phylogenetic trees of Kalotermitidae using mitochondrial genomes of ∼120 species, about 27% of kalotermitid diversity, including representatives of 21 of the 23 kalotermitid genera. Our mitochondrial genome phylogenetic trees were corroborated by phylogenies inferred from nuclear ultraconserved elements derived from a subset of 28 species. We found that extant kalotermitids shared a common ancestor 84 Ma (75–93 Ma 95% highest posterior density), indicating that a few disjunctions among early-diverging kalotermitid lineages may predate Gondwana breakup. However, most of the ∼40 disjunctions among biogeographic realms were dated at <50 Ma, indicating that transoceanic dispersals, and more recently human-mediated dispersals, have been the major drivers of the global distribution of Kalotermitidae. Our phylogeny also revealed that the capacity to forage is often found in early-diverging kalotermitid lineages, implying the ancestors of Kalotermitidae were able to forage among multiple wood pieces. Our phylogenetic estimates provide a platform for critical taxonomic revision and future comparative analyses of Kalotermitidae.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Buček
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan
| | - M Wang
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan
| | - J Šobotník
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - S Hellemans
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan
| | - D Sillam-Dussès
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic.,Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology, UR 4443, University Sorbonne Paris Nord, Villetaneuse, France
| | - N Mizumoto
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan
| | - P Stiblík
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - C Clitheroe
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan
| | - T Lu
- Tomer Lu, Total Hadbara Israel
| | - J J González Plaza
- International Research Centre in Critical Raw Materials-ICCRAM, University of Burgos, Plaza Misael Bañuelos s/n, 09001 Burgos, Spain
| | - A Mohagan
- Center for Biodiversity Research and Extension in Mindanao, Central Mindanao University, Musuan, Maramag, Bukidnon 8710, Philippines.,Department of Biology, College of Arts and Sciences, Central Mindanao University, Musuan, Maramag, Bukidnon 8710, Philippines
| | - J J Rafanomezantsoa
- Madagascar Biodiversity Center, Parc Botanique et Zoologique de Tsimbazaza, Antananarivo, Madagascar
| | - B Fisher
- Madagascar Biodiversity Center, Parc Botanique et Zoologique de Tsimbazaza, Antananarivo, Madagascar.,California Academy of the Sciences, San Francisco, California, USA
| | - M S Engel
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA.,Division of Entomology, Natural History Museum, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
| | - Y Roisin
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - T A Evans
- School of Animal Biology, University of Western Australia, Perth WA 6009, Australia
| | - R Scheffrahn
- Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, Institute for Food and Agricultural Sciences, 3205 College Avenue, Davie, Florida 33314, USA
| | - T Bourguignon
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan.,Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
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12
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Beránková T, Buček A, Bourguignon T, Arias JR, Akama PD, Sillam-Dussès D, Šobotník J. The ultrastructure of the intramandibular gland in soldiers of the termite Machadotermes rigidus (Blattodea: Termitidae: Apicotermitinae). Arthropod Struct Dev 2022; 67:101136. [PMID: 35152166 DOI: 10.1016/j.asd.2021.101136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2021] [Revised: 12/07/2021] [Accepted: 12/10/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Machadotermes is one of the basal Apicotermitinae genera, living in tropical West Africa. Old observations suggested the presence of a new gland, the intramandibular gland, in Machadotermes soldiers. Here, by combining micro-computed tomography, optical and electron microscopy, we showed that the gland exists in Machadotermes soldiers only as an active exocrine organ, consisting of numerous class III cells (bicellular units made of secretory and canal cells), within which the secretion is produced in rough endoplasmic reticulum, and modified and stored in Golgi apparatus. The final secretion is released out from the body through epicuticular canals running through the mandible cuticle to the exterior. We also studied three other Apicotermitinae, Indotermes, Duplidentitermes, and Jugositermes, in which this gland is absent. We speculate that the secretion of this gland may be used as a general protectant or antimicrobial agent. In addition, we observed that the frontal gland, a specific defensive organ in termites, is absent in Machadotermes soldiers while it is tiny in Indotermes soldiers and small in Duplidentitermes and Jugositermes soldiers. At last, we could also observe in all these species the labral, mandibular and labial glands, other exocrine glands present in all termite species studied so far.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tereza Beránková
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Aleš Buček
- Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate University, Okinawa, Japan
| | - Thomas Bourguignon
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic; Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate University, Okinawa, Japan
| | - Johanna Romero Arias
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Pierre D Akama
- Département des Sciences Biologiques, Ecole Normale Supérieure, Université de Yaoundé I, Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic; Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology, LEEC, UR 4443, University Sorbonne Paris Nord, Villetaneuse, France.
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic.
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13
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De Martini F, Coots NL, Jasso-Selles DE, Shevat J, Ravenscraft A, Stiblík P, Šobotník J, Sillam-Dussès D, Scheffrahn RH, Carrijo TF, Gile GH. Biogeography and Independent Diversification in the Protist Symbiont Community of Heterotermes tenuis. Front Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.640625] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The eukaryotic microbiome of “lower” termites is highly stable and host-specific. This is due to the mutually obligate nature of the symbiosis and the direct inheritance of protists by proctodeal trophallaxis. However, vertical transmission is occasionally imperfect, resulting in daughter colonies that lack one or more of the expected protist species. This phenomenon could conceivably lead to regional differences in protist community composition within a host species. Here, we have characterized the protist symbiont community of Heterotermes tenuis (Hagen) (Blattodea: Rhinotermitidae) from samples spanning South and Central America. Using light microscopy, single cell isolation, and amplicon sequencing, we report eight species-level protist phylotypes belonging to four genera in the phylum Parabasalia. The diversity and distribution of each phylotype’s 18S rRNA amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) mostly did not correlate with geographical or host genetic distances according to Mantel tests, consistent with the lack of correlation we observed between host genetic and geographical distances. However, the ASV distances of Holomastigotoides Ht3 were significantly correlated with geography while those of Holomastigotoides Ht1 were significantly correlated with host phylogeny. These results suggest mechanisms by which termite-associated protist species may diversify independently of each other and of their hosts, shedding light on the coevolutionary dynamics of this important symbiosis.
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14
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He S, Sieksmeyer T, Che Y, Mora MAE, Stiblik P, Banasiak R, Harrison MC, Šobotník J, Wang Z, Johnston PR, McMahon DP. Evidence for reduced immune gene diversity and activity during the evolution of termites. Proc Biol Sci 2021; 288:20203168. [PMID: 33593190 PMCID: PMC7934958 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2020.3168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The evolution of biological complexity is associated with the emergence of bespoke immune systems that maintain and protect organism integrity. Unlike the well-studied immune systems of cells and individuals, little is known about the origins of immunity during the transition to eusociality, a major evolutionary transition comparable to the evolution of multicellular organisms from single-celled ancestors. We aimed to tackle this by characterizing the immune gene repertoire of 18 cockroach and termite species, spanning the spectrum of solitary, subsocial and eusocial lifestyles. We find that key transitions in termite sociality are correlated with immune gene family contractions. In cross-species comparisons of immune gene expression, we find evidence for a caste-specific social defence system in termites, which appears to operate at the expense of individual immune protection. Our study indicates that a major transition in organismal complexity may have entailed a fundamental reshaping of the immune system optimized for group over individual defence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shulin He
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Schwendenerstr. 1, 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Department for Materials and Environment, BAM Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, Unter den Eichen 87, 12205 Berlin, Germany.,Faculty of Forestry and Wood Science, Czech University of Life Science Prague, Kamýcká 129, 16500 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Thorben Sieksmeyer
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Schwendenerstr. 1, 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Department for Materials and Environment, BAM Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, Unter den Eichen 87, 12205 Berlin, Germany
| | - Yanli Che
- College of Plant Protection, Southwest University, Tiansheng 2, 400715 Chongqing, People's Republic of China
| | - M Alejandra Esparza Mora
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Schwendenerstr. 1, 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Department for Materials and Environment, BAM Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, Unter den Eichen 87, 12205 Berlin, Germany
| | - Petr Stiblik
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Science, Czech University of Life Science Prague, Kamýcká 129, 16500 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Ronald Banasiak
- Department for Materials and Environment, BAM Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, Unter den Eichen 87, 12205 Berlin, Germany
| | - Mark C Harrison
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Science Prague, Kamýcká 129, 16500 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Zongqing Wang
- College of Plant Protection, Southwest University, Tiansheng 2, 400715 Chongqing, People's Republic of China
| | - Paul R Johnston
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Schwendenerstr. 1, 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Leibniz-Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Müggelseedamm 310, 12587 Berlin, Germany.,Berlin Center for Genomics in Biodiversity Research, Königin-Luise-Str. 6-8, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Dino P McMahon
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Schwendenerstr. 1, 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Department for Materials and Environment, BAM Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, Unter den Eichen 87, 12205 Berlin, Germany
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15
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Stiblik P, Akama PD, Šobotník J. Complete mitochondrial genome of the drywood termite Cryptotermes havilandi (Isoptera: Kalotermitidae). Mitochondrial DNA B Resour 2021; 6:533-535. [PMID: 33628917 PMCID: PMC7889119 DOI: 10.1080/23802359.2021.1873710] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
We report the first complete mitochondrial genome of an important pest of timber, the drywood termite Cryptotermes havilandi. The gene content and synteny of the mitochondrial genome of C. havilandi is identical to that of other termite species reported to date. It is composed 13 protein-coding genes, two ribosomal RNA genes, and 22 transfer RNA genes. Our phylogenetic tree, that includes the mitochondrial genomes of 14 species of Kalotermitidae, including C. havilandi, resolves the phylogenetic position of C. havilandi within Kalotermitidae.
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Affiliation(s)
- Petr Stiblik
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Pierre Dieudonné Akama
- Département des sciences biologiques, Ecole normale supérieure, Université de Yaoundé I, Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
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16
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Větrovský T, Soukup P, Stiblik P, Votýpková K, Chakraborty A, Larrañaga IO, Sillam-Dussès D, Lo N, Bourguignon T, Baldrian P, Šobotník J, Kolařík M. Termites host specific fungal communities that differ from those in their ambient environments. FUNGAL ECOL 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.funeco.2020.100991] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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17
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Pequeno PACL, Graça MB, Oliveira JR, Šobotník J, Acioli ANS. Can shifts in metabolic scaling predict coevolution between diet quality and body size? Evolution 2020; 75:141-148. [PMID: 33196103 DOI: 10.1111/evo.14128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2020] [Revised: 10/07/2020] [Accepted: 10/25/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Larger species tend to feed on abundant resources, which nonetheless have lower quality or degradability, the so-called Jarman-Bell principle. The "eat more" hypothesis posits that larger animals compensate for lower quality diets through higher consumption rates. If so, evolutionary shifts in metabolic scaling should affect the scope for this compensation, but whether this has happened is unknown. Here, we investigated this issue using termites, major tropical detritivores that feed along a humification gradient ranging from dead plant tissue to mineral soil. Metabolic scaling is shallower in termites with pounding mandibles adapted to soil-like substrates than in termites with grinding mandibles adapted to fibrous plant tissue. Accordingly, we predicted that only larger species of the former group should have more humified, lower quality diets, given their higher scope to compensate for such a diet. Using literature data on 65 termite species, we show that diet humification does increase with body size in termites with pounding mandibles, but is weakly related to size in termites with grinding mandibles. Our findings suggest that evolution of metabolic scaling may shape the strength of the Jarman-Bell principle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pedro A C L Pequeno
- Roraima Research Nucleus, National Institute for Amazonia Research, R. Cel. Pinto, 315, Centro, Boa Vista - RR, CEP:, 69301-150, Brazil
| | - Márlon B Graça
- Federal Institute for Education, Science and Technology of Amazonas, Estr. Coari Itapeua, s/n - Itamarati, Coari - AM, CEP:, 69460-000, Brazil
| | - João R Oliveira
- Entomology Program, National Institute for Amazonia Research, Av. André Araújo, 2.936, Petrópolis, Manaus - AM, CEP: 69067-375, Brazil
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 00 Praha 6 - Suchdol, Czech Republic
| | - Agno N S Acioli
- Faculty of Agrarian Sciences, Federal University of Amazonas, Av. General Rodrigo Octavio Jordão Ramos, 1200, Coroado I, Manaus - AM, CEP: 69067-005, Brazil
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18
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Gordon JM, Šobotník J, Chouvenc T. Colony-age-dependent variation in cuticular hydrocarbon profiles in subterranean termite colonies. Ecol Evol 2020; 10:10095-10104. [PMID: 33005366 PMCID: PMC7520186 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6669] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2020] [Revised: 07/11/2020] [Accepted: 07/20/2020] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) have, in insects, important physiological and ecological functions, such as protection against desiccation and as semiochemicals in social taxa, including termites. CHCs are, in termites, known to vary qualitatively and/or quantitatively among species, populations, castes, or seasons. Changes to hydrocarbon profile composition have been linked to varying degrees of aggression between termite colonies, although the variability of results among studies suggests that additional factors might have been involved. One source of such variability may be colony age, as termite colony demographics significantly change over time, with different caste and instar compositions throughout the life of the colony. We here hypothesize that the intracolonial chemical profile heterogeneity would be high in incipient termite colonies but would homogenize over time as a colony ages and accumulates older workers in improved homeostatic conditions. We studied caste-specific patterns of CHC profiles in Coptotermes gestroi colonies of four different age classes (6, 18, 30, and 42 months). The CHC profiles were variable among castes in the youngest colonies, but progressively converged toward a colony-wide homogenized chemical profile. Young colonies had a less-defined CHC identity, which implies a potentially high acceptance threshold for non-nestmates conspecifics in young colonies. Our results also suggest that there was no selective pressure for an early-defined colony CHC profile to evolve in termites, potentially allowing an incipient colony to merge nonagonistically with another conspecific incipient colony, with both colonies indirectly and passively avoiding mutual destruction as a result.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johnalyn M. Gordon
- Entomology and Nematology DepartmentFt. Lauderdale Research and Education CenterInstitute of Food and Agricultural SciencesUniversity of FloridaDavieFLUSA
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciencesCULSPragueCzech Republic
| | - Thomas Chouvenc
- Entomology and Nematology DepartmentFt. Lauderdale Research and Education CenterInstitute of Food and Agricultural SciencesUniversity of FloridaDavieFLUSA
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19
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Sillam-Dussès D, Šobotník J, Bourguignon T, Wen P, Sémon E, Robert A, Cancello EM, Leroy C, Lacey MJ, Bordereau C. Trail-Following Pheromones in the Termite Subfamily Syntermitinae (Blattodea, Termitoidae, Termitidae). J Chem Ecol 2020; 46:475-482. [PMID: 32529331 DOI: 10.1007/s10886-020-01180-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2020] [Revised: 03/26/2020] [Accepted: 04/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Trail-following behavior is a key to ecological success of termites, allowing them to orient themselves between the nesting and foraging sites. This behavior is controlled by specific trail-following pheromones produced by the abdominal sternal gland occurring in all termite species and developmental stages. Trail-following communication has been studied in a broad spectrum of species, but the "higher" termites (i.e. Termitidae) from the subfamily Syntermitinae remain surprisingly neglected. To fill this gap, we studied the trail-following pheromone in six genera and nine species of Syntermitinae. Our chemical and behavioral experiments showed that (3Z,6Z,8E)-dodeca-3,6,8-trien-1-ol is the single component of the pheromone of all the termite species studied, except for Silvestritermes euamignathus. This species produces both (3Z,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol and neocembrene, but only (3Z,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol elicits trail-following behavior. Our results indicate the importance of (3Z,6Z,8E)-dodeca-3,6,8-trien-1-ol, the most widespread communication compound in termites, but also the repeated switches to other common pheromones as exemplified by S. euamignathus.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Sillam-Dussès
- Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology UR 4443, University Sorbonne Paris Nord, Villetaneuse, France.
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic.
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Thomas Bourguignon
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
- Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Kunigami-gun, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan
| | - Ping Wen
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Mengla, 650223, Yunnan Province, China
| | - Etienne Sémon
- Centre des Sciences du Goût et de l'Alimentation, AgroSup Dijon, CNRS, INRAE, Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Dijon, France
| | - Alain Robert
- Institute of Ecology and Environmental Sciences of Paris, Institute of Research for Development - Sorbonne Universités, U 242, Bondy, France
| | - Eliana M Cancello
- Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo, CP 42391 CEP 04218970, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Chloé Leroy
- Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology UR 4443, University Sorbonne Paris Nord, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Michael J Lacey
- CSIRO National Collections and Marine Infrastructure, G.P.O. Box 1700, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
| | - Christian Bordereau
- Centre des Sciences du Goût et de l'Alimentation, AgroSup Dijon, CNRS, INRAE, Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Dijon, France
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20
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Hervé V, Liu P, Dietrich C, Sillam-Dussès D, Stiblik P, Šobotník J, Brune A. Phylogenomic analysis of 589 metagenome-assembled genomes encompassing all major prokaryotic lineages from the gut of higher termites. PeerJ 2020; 8:e8614. [PMID: 32095380 PMCID: PMC7024585 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.8614] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2019] [Accepted: 01/21/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
"Higher" termites have been able to colonize all tropical and subtropical regions because of their ability to digest lignocellulose with the aid of their prokaryotic gut microbiota. Over the last decade, numerous studies based on 16S rRNA gene amplicon libraries have largely described both the taxonomy and structure of the prokaryotic communities associated with termite guts. Host diet and microenvironmental conditions have emerged as the main factors structuring the microbial assemblages in the different gut compartments. Additionally, these molecular inventories have revealed the existence of termite-specific clusters that indicate coevolutionary processes in numerous prokaryotic lineages. However, for lack of representative isolates, the functional role of most lineages remains unclear. We reconstructed 589 metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) from the different gut compartments of eight higher termite species that encompass 17 prokaryotic phyla. By iteratively building genome trees for each clade, we significantly improved the initial automated assignment, frequently up to the genus level. We recovered MAGs from most of the termite-specific clusters in the radiation of, for example, Planctomycetes, Fibrobacteres, Bacteroidetes, Euryarchaeota, Bathyarchaeota, Spirochaetes, Saccharibacteria, and Firmicutes, which to date contained only few or no representative genomes. Moreover, the MAGs included abundant members of the termite gut microbiota. This dataset represents the largest genomic resource for arthropod-associated microorganisms available to date and contributes substantially to populating the tree of life. More importantly, it provides a backbone for studying the metabolic potential of the termite gut microbiota, including the key members involved in carbon and nitrogen biogeochemical cycles, and important clues that may help cultivating representatives of these understudied clades.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vincent Hervé
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Pengfei Liu
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Carsten Dietrich
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology EA 4443, Université Paris 13, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Petr Stiblik
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Andreas Brune
- Research Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
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21
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Tejnecký V, Křížová P, Penížek V, Maňourová A, Sillam-Dussès D, Šobotník J, Akama PD, Lojka B, Němeček K, Borůvka L, Drábek O. The influence of land-use on tropical soil chemical characteristics with emphasis on aluminium. J Inorg Biochem 2019; 204:110962. [PMID: 31887611 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinorgbio.2019.110962] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2019] [Revised: 11/09/2019] [Accepted: 12/10/2019] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Composition of soil vegetation cover and land management directly influences the cycling of chemical elements and is a key factor for soil biogeochemistry and also Al behaviour. Moreover, Al is an important factor limiting the growth of cultural plants. Our results are based on long-term observations of soils translocated from selected small areas of eight 1 ha plots of different land-use gradient, with identical geological, climatic and geographical conditions, located in the North of Congo Basin (near Mbalmayo, Cameroon). The plots are established in primary and secondary forests, cocoa agroforestry systems and a maize field (two plots per habitat). All soil plots were exchanged between each other in two layers; A. 0-5 cm, and B. 5-20 cm of depths. The soil was sampled at the times 0, +3, +6 months, and soil chemical parameters were determined. The most important differences between the particular habitats comprise of vegetation cover as a consequence of the land management. Particular plots differed mainly in their pH, organic C, exchangeable Al and contents of base cations. The most marked trends comprise of significant decrease of pH, increase of Al and decrease of the Ca/Al ratio in A layer after translocation to the agricultural plots. All translocations resulted into rapid loss of organic C and release of Al, which was more obvious when the forest-to-agriculture translocation took place.
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Affiliation(s)
- Václav Tejnecký
- Department of Soil Science and Soil Protection, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 00 Prague, Czech Republic.
| | - Petra Křížová
- Department of Soil Science and Soil Protection, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 00 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Vít Penížek
- Department of Soil Science and Soil Protection, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 00 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Anna Maňourová
- Department of Crop Sciences and Agroforestry, Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 00 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- Université Paris 13 - Sorbonne Paris Cité, LEEC, EA 4443, 99 avenue Jean-Baptiste Clément, 93430 Villetaneuse, France
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Department of Forest Protection and Entomology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 00 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Pierre D Akama
- Département des Sciences Biologiques, Ecole Normale Superieure, Université de Yaoundé I, BP 47 Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - Bohdan Lojka
- Department of Crop Sciences and Agroforestry, Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 00 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Karel Němeček
- Department of Soil Science and Soil Protection, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 00 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Luboš Borůvka
- Department of Soil Science and Soil Protection, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 00 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Ondřej Drábek
- Department of Soil Science and Soil Protection, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 00 Prague, Czech Republic
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22
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Bucek A, Šobotník J, He S, Shi M, McMahon DP, Holmes EC, Roisin Y, Lo N, Bourguignon T. Evolution of Termite Symbiosis Informed by Transcriptome-Based Phylogenies. Curr Biol 2019; 29:3728-3734.e4. [PMID: 31630948 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2019.08.076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2019] [Revised: 07/11/2019] [Accepted: 08/30/2019] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Termitidae comprises ∼80% of all termite species [1] that play dominant decomposer roles in tropical ecosystems [2, 3]. Two major events during termite evolution were the loss of cellulolytic gut protozoans in the ancestor of Termitidae and the subsequent gain in the termitid subfamily Macrotermitinae of fungal symbionts cultivated externally in "combs" constructed within the nest [4, 5]. How these symbiotic transitions occurred remains unresolved. Phylogenetic analyses of mitochondrial data previously suggested that Macrotermitinae is the earliest branching termitid lineage, followed soon after by Sphaerotermitinae [6], which cultivates bacterial symbionts on combs inside its nests [7]. This has led to the hypothesis that comb building was an important evolutionary step in the loss of gut protozoa in ancestral termitids [8]. We sequenced genomes and transcriptomes of 55 termite species and reconstructed phylogenetic trees from up to 4,065 orthologous genes of 68 species. We found strong support for a novel sister-group relationship between the bacterial comb-building Sphaerotermitinae and fungus comb-building Macrotermitinae. This key finding indicates that comb building is a derived trait within Termitidae and that the creation of a comb-like "external rumen" involving bacteria or fungi may not have driven the loss of protozoa from ancestral termitids, as previously hypothesized. Instead, associations with gut prokaryotic symbionts, combined with dietary shifts from wood to other plant-based substrates, may have played a more important role in this symbiotic transition. Our phylogenetic tree provides a platform for future studies of comparative termite evolution and the evolution of symbiosis in this taxon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ales Bucek
- Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan; Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamycka 129, 16521 Prague, Czech Republic; Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Flemingovo nám. 2, 166 10 Prague, Czech Repubic.
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamycka 129, 16521 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Shulin He
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamycka 129, 16521 Prague, Czech Republic; Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Königin-Luise-Strasse 1-3, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Mang Shi
- Marie Bashir Institute for Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Charles Perkins Centre, School of Life and Environmental Sciences and Sydney Medical School, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Dino P McMahon
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Königin-Luise-Strasse 1-3, 14195 Berlin, Germany; Department for Materials and Environment, BAM Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, Unter den Eichen 87, 12205 Berlin, Germany
| | - Edward C Holmes
- Marie Bashir Institute for Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Charles Perkins Centre, School of Life and Environmental Sciences and Sydney Medical School, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Yves Roisin
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, CP 160/12, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Avenue F.D. Roosevelt 50, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Nathan Lo
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Thomas Bourguignon
- Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan; Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamycka 129, 16521 Prague, Czech Republic.
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23
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Synek J, Beránková T, Stiblik P, Pflegerová J, Akama PD, Bourguignon T, Sillam-Dussès D, Šobotník J. The oral gland, a new exocrine organ of termites. Arthropod Struct Dev 2019; 51:32-36. [PMID: 31325649 DOI: 10.1016/j.asd.2019.100876] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2019] [Revised: 07/16/2019] [Accepted: 07/16/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Termites have a rich set of exocrine glands. These glands are located all over the body, appearing in the head, thorax, legs and abdomen. Here, we describe the oral gland, a new gland formed by no more than a few tens of Class I secretory cells. The gland is divided into two secretory regions located just behind the mouth, on the dorsal and ventral side of the pharynx, respectively. The dominant secretory organelle is a smooth endoplasmic reticulum. Secretion release is under direct control of axons located within basal invaginations of the secretory cells. The secretion is released through a modified porous cuticle located at the mouth opening. We confirmed the presence of the oral gland in workers and soldiers of several wood- and soil-feeding species of Rhinotermitidae and Termitidae, suggesting a broader distribution of the oral gland among termites. The oral gland is the smallest exocrine gland described in termites so far. We hypothesise that the oily secretion can either ease the passage of food or serve as a primer pheromone.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiří Synek
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Praha 6 Suchdol, Czech Republic
| | - Tereza Beránková
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Praha 6 Suchdol, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Stiblik
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Praha 6 Suchdol, Czech Republic
| | - Jitka Pflegerová
- Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
| | - Pierre D Akama
- Département des Sciences Biologiques, Ecole Normale Superieure, Université de Yaoundé I, BP 47 Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - Thomas Bourguignon
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Praha 6 Suchdol, Czech Republic; Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- Université Paris 13 - Sorbonne Paris Cité, LEEC, EA 4443, 99 Avenue Jean-Baptiste Clément, 93430 Villetaneuse, France
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Praha 6 Suchdol, Czech Republic.
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24
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Taerum SJ, Jasso‐Selles DE, Wilson M, Ware JL, Sillam‐Dussès D, Šobotník J, Gile GH. Molecular Identity of
Holomastigotes
(Spirotrichonymphea, Parabasalia) with Descriptions of
Holomastigotes flavipes
n. sp. and
Holomastigotes tibialis
n. sp. J Eukaryot Microbiol 2019; 66:882-891. [DOI: 10.1111/jeu.12739] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2018] [Revised: 03/22/2019] [Accepted: 04/18/2019] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Stephen J. Taerum
- School of Life Sciences Arizona State University 427 E Tyler Mall 85287 Tempe Arizona
| | | | - Megan Wilson
- Department of Biological Sciences Rutgers‐Newark University Boyden Hall, 195 University Ave 07102 Newark New Jersey
| | - Jessica L. Ware
- Department of Biological Sciences Rutgers‐Newark University Boyden Hall, 195 University Ave 07102 Newark New Jersey
| | - David Sillam‐Dussès
- Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology (LEEC) University of Paris 13 Sorbonne Paris Cité, 99 avenue Jean‐Baptiste Clément 93430 Villetaneuse France
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences Czech University of Life Sciences Kamýcká 129 165 21 Prague 6 Czech Republic
| | - Gillian H. Gile
- School of Life Sciences Arizona State University 427 E Tyler Mall 85287 Tempe Arizona
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25
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Wang M, Buček A, Šobotník J, Sillam-Dussès D, Evans TA, Roisin Y, Lo N, Bourguignon T. Historical biogeography of the termite clade Rhinotermitinae (Blattodea: Isoptera). Mol Phylogenet Evol 2019; 132:100-104. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2018.11.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2018] [Revised: 11/05/2018] [Accepted: 11/10/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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26
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Palma-Onetto V, Pflegerová J, Plarre R, Synek J, Cvačka J, Sillam-Dussès D, Šobotník J. The labral gland in termites: evolution and function. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2019. [DOI: 10.1093/biolinnean/bly212] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Valeria Palma-Onetto
- University Paris 13 - Sorbonne Paris Cité, Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology, Villetaneuse, France
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jitka Pflegerová
- Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
| | - Rudy Plarre
- Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung, Berlin, Germany
| | - Jiří Synek
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Josef Cvačka
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- University Paris 13 - Sorbonne Paris Cité, Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
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27
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Chouvenc T, Elliott ML, Šobotník J, Efstathion CA, Su NY. The Termite Fecal Nest: A Framework for the Opportunistic Acquisition of Beneficial Soil Streptomyces (Actinomycetales: Streptomycetaceae). Environ Entomol 2018; 47:1431-1439. [PMID: 30321327 DOI: 10.1093/ee/nvy152] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Mutualistic associations between insects and microorganisms must imply gains for both partners, and the emphasis has mostly focused on coevolved host-symbiont systems. However, some insect hosts may have evolved traits that allow for various means of association with opportunistic microbial communities, especially when the microbes are omnipresent in their environment. It was previously shown that colonies of the subterranean termite Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki (Blattodea: Rhinotermitidae) build nests out of fecal material that host a community of Streptomyces Waksman and Henrici (Actinomycetales: Streptomycetaceae). These Actinobacteria produce an array of bioactive metabolites that provides a level of protection for termites against certain entomopathogenic fungi. How C. formosanus acquires and maintains this association remains unknown. This study shows that the majority of Streptomyces isolates found in field termite fecal nest materials are identical to Streptomyces isolates from soils surrounding the nests and are not vertically inherited. A survey of Streptomyces communities from C. formosanus fecal nest materials sampled at 20 locations around the world revealed that all nests are reliably associated with a diverse Streptomyces community. The C. formosanus fecal nest material therefore provides a nutritional framework that can recruit beneficial Streptomyces from the soil environment, in the absence of long-term coevolutionary processes. A diverse Streptomyces community is reliably present in soils, and subterranean termite colonies can acquire such facultative symbionts each social cycle into their fecal nest. This association probably emerged as an exaptation from the existing termite nest structure and benefits both the termite and the opportunistic colonizing bacteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Chouvenc
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, College Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, FL
| | - Monica L Elliott
- Department of Plant Pathology, Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, College Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, FL
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Termite Research Team, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences CULS, Kamýcká, Prague Suchdol, Czechia, EU
| | - Caroline A Efstathion
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, College Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, FL
| | - Nan-Yao Su
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, College Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, FL
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28
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Scheffrahn RH, Bourguignon T, Akama PD, Sillam-Dussès D, Šobotník J. Roisinitermesebogoensis gen. & sp. n., an outstanding drywood termite with snapping soldiers from Cameroon (Isoptera, Kalotermitidae). Zookeys 2018; 787:91-105. [PMID: 30323706 PMCID: PMC6182260 DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.787.28195] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2018] [Accepted: 08/27/2018] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Termites have developed a wide array of defensive mechanisms. One of them is the mandibulate soldier caste that crushes or pierces their enemies. However, in several lineages of Termitinae, soldiers have long and slender mandibles that cannot bite but, instead, snap and deliver powerful strikes to their opponents. Here, we use morphological and molecular evidence to describe Roisinitermesebogoensis Scheffrahn, gen. & sp. n. from near Mbalmayo, Cameroon. Soldiers of R.ebogoensis are unique among all other kalotermitid soldiers in that they possess snapping mandibles. The imago of R.ebogoensis is also easily distinguished from all other Kalotermitidae by the lack of ocelli. Our study reveals a new case of parallel evolution of snapping mandibles in termites, a complex apparatus responsible of one of the fastest biological acceleration rates measured to date.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rudolf H. Scheffrahn
- Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, Institute for Food and Agricultural Sciences, 3205 College Avenue, Davie, Florida 33314, USAInstitute for Food and Agricultural SciencesDavieUnited States of America
| | - Thomas Bourguignon
- Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa 904-0495, JapanCzech University of Life SciencesPragueCzech Republic
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech RepublicOkinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate UniversityTanchaJapan
| | - Pierre Dieudonné Akama
- Département des sciences biologiques, Ecole normale supérieure, Université de Yaoundé I, BP 47 Yaoundé, CameroonUniversité de Yaoundé IYaoundéCameroon
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- University Paris 13 - Sorbonne Paris Cité, LEEC, EA4443, Villetaneuse, FranceUniversity ParisParisFrance
- IRD – Sorbonne Universités, iEES-Paris, Bondy, FranceSorbonne UniversitésParisFrance
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech RepublicOkinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate UniversityTanchaJapan
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Bourguignon T, Lo N, Dietrich C, Šobotník J, Sidek S, Roisin Y, Brune A, Evans TA. Rampant Host Switching Shaped the Termite Gut Microbiome. Curr Biol 2018; 28:649-654.e2. [PMID: 29429621 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2018.01.035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 73] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2017] [Revised: 11/21/2017] [Accepted: 01/11/2018] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
The gut microbiota of animals exert major effects on host biology [1]. Although horizontal transfer is generally considered the prevalent route for the acquisition of gut bacteria in mammals [2], some bacterial lineages have co-speciated with their hosts on timescales of several million years [3]. Termites harbor a complex gut microbiota, and their advanced social behavior provides the potential for long-term vertical symbiont transmission, and co-evolution of gut symbionts and host [4-6]. Despite clear evolutionary patterns in the gut microbiota of termites [7], a consensus on how microbial communities were assembled during termite diversification has yet to be reached. Although some studies have concluded that vertical transmission has played a major role [8, 9], others indicate that diet and gut microenvironment have been the primary determinants shaping microbial communities in termite guts [7, 10]. To address this issue, we examined the gut microbiota of 94 termite species, through 16S rRNA metabarcoding. We analyzed the phylogeny of 211 bacterial lineages obtained from termite guts, including their closest relatives from other environments, which were identified using BLAST. The results provided strong evidence for rampant horizontal transfer of gut bacteria between termite host lineages. Although the majority of termite-derived phylotypes formed large monophyletic groups, indicating high levels of niche specialization, numerous other clades were interspersed with bacterial lineages from the guts of other animals. Our results indicate that "mixed-mode" transmission, which combines colony-to-offspring vertical transmission with horizontal colony-to-colony transfer, has been the primary driving force shaping the gut microbiota of termites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Bourguignon
- Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan; School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia; Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic.
| | - Nathan Lo
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.
| | - Carsten Dietrich
- Department of Biogeochemistry, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany; Strategy and Innovation Technology Center, Siemens Healthcare, Erlangen, Germany
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Sarah Sidek
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, 117543 Singapore, Singapore
| | - Yves Roisin
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Andreas Brune
- Department of Biogeochemistry, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Theodore A Evans
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, 117543 Singapore, Singapore; School of Animal Biology, University of Western Australia, Perth, WA 6009, Australia
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Palma-Onetto V, Hošková K, Křížková B, Krejčířová R, Pflegerová J, Bubeníčková F, Plarre R, Dahlsjö CAL, Synek J, Bourguignon T, Sillam-Dussès D, Šobotník J. The labral gland in termite soldiers. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2018. [DOI: 10.1093/biolinnean/blx162] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Valeria Palma-Onetto
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
- University Paris 13 - Sorbonne Paris Cité, Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Kristýna Hošková
- Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Barbora Křížková
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Romana Krejčířová
- Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jitka Pflegerová
- Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
| | - Filipa Bubeníčková
- Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Rudy Plarre
- Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung, Berlin, Germany
| | - Cecilia A L Dahlsjö
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
- Environmental Change Institute, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QY, UK
| | - Jiří Synek
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Thomas Bourguignon
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
- Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology Graduate University, Onna-son, Okinawa, Japan
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- University Paris 13 - Sorbonne Paris Cité, Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology, Villetaneuse, France
- Institute of Research for Development – Sorbonne Universités, Institute of Ecology and Environmental Sciences of Paris, Bondy, France
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
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Wen XL, Wen P, Dahlsjö CAL, Sillam-Dussès D, Šobotník J. Breaking the cipher: ant eavesdropping on the variational trail pheromone of its termite prey. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 284:rspb.2017.0121. [PMID: 28446695 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.0121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2017] [Accepted: 03/26/2017] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Predators may eavesdrop on their prey using innate signals of varying nature. In regards to social prey, most of the prey signals are derived from social communication and may therefore be highly complex. The most efficient predators select signals that provide the highest benefits. Here, we showed the use of eusocial prey signals by the termite-raiding ant Odontoponera transversaO. transversa selected the trail pheromone of termites as kairomone in several species of fungus-growing termites (Termitidae: Macrotermitinae: Odontotermes yunnanensis, Macrotermes yunnanensis, Ancistrotermes dimorphus). The most commonly predated termite, O. yunnanensis, was able to regulate the trail pheromone component ratios during its foraging activity. The ratio of the two trail pheromone compounds was correlated with the number of termites in the foraging party. (3Z)-Dodec-3-en-1-ol (DOE) was the dominant trail pheromone component in the initial foraging stages when fewer termites were present. Once a trail was established, (3Z,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol (DDE) became the major recruitment component in the trail pheromone and enabled mass recruitment of nest-mates to the food source. Although the ants could perceive both components, they revealed stronger behavioural responses to the recruitment component, DDE, than to the common major component, DOE. In other words, the ants use the trail pheromone information as an indication of suitable prey abundance, and regulate their behavioural responses based on the changing trail pheromone component. The eavesdropping behaviour in ants therefore leads to an arms race between predator and prey where the species specific production of trail pheromones in termites is targeted by predatory ant species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao-Lan Wen
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China.,Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China.,Kunming College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, 650204 Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Ping Wen
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Cecilia A L Dahlsjö
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- IRD - Sorbonne Universités, iEES-Paris, U 242, Bondy, France.,University Paris 13 - Sorbonne Paris Cité, LEEC, EA 4443, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
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Wu LW, Bourguignon T, Šobotník J, Wen P, Liang WR, Li HF. Phylogenetic position of the enigmatic termite family Stylotermitidae (Insecta : Blattodea). INVERTEBR SYST 2018. [DOI: 10.1071/is17093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Termites are eusocial insects currently classified into nine families, of which only Stylotermitidae has never been subjected to any molecular phylogenetic analysis. Stylotermitids present remarkable morphology and have the unique habit of feeding on living trees. We sequenced mitogenomes of five stylotermitid samples from China and Taiwan to reconstruct the phylogenetic position of Stylotermitidae. Our analyses placed Stylotermitidae as the sister group of all remaining Neoisoptera. The systematic position of Stylotermitidae calls for additional studies of their biology, including their developmental pathways and pheromone communication, which have the potential to change our understanding of termite evolution.
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Radek R, Meuser K, Strassert JFH, Arslan O, Teßmer A, Šobotník J, Sillam-Dussès D, Nink RA, Brune A. Exclusive Gut Flagellates of Serritermitidae Suggest a Major Transfaunation Event in Lower Termites: Description of Heliconympha glossotermitis
gen. nov. spec. nov. J Eukaryot Microbiol 2017; 65:77-92. [DOI: 10.1111/jeu.12441] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2017] [Revised: 06/28/2017] [Accepted: 06/30/2017] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Renate Radek
- Evolutionary Biology, Institute for Biology/Zoology; Freie Universität Berlin; Berlin 14195 Germany
| | - Katja Meuser
- Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis Group; Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology; Marburg 35043 Germany
| | - Jürgen F. H. Strassert
- Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis Group; Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology; Marburg 35043 Germany
- Department of Organismal Biology; Uppsala University; Uppsala 75236 Sweden
| | - Oguzhan Arslan
- Evolutionary Biology, Institute for Biology/Zoology; Freie Universität Berlin; Berlin 14195 Germany
| | - Anika Teßmer
- Evolutionary Biology, Institute for Biology/Zoology; Freie Universität Berlin; Berlin 14195 Germany
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences; Czech University of Life Sciences Prague; Prague 6 - Suchdol 16500 Czech Republic
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology EA 4443; Université Paris 13; Sorbonne Paris Cité Villetaneuse 93430 France
- Institute of Research for Development U 242; Sorbonne Universités, Institute of Ecology and Environmental Sciences of Paris; Bondy 93143 France
| | - Ricardo A. Nink
- Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis Group; Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology; Marburg 35043 Germany
| | - Andreas Brune
- Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis Group; Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology; Marburg 35043 Germany
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Bourguignon T, Lo N, Šobotník J, Ho SYW, Iqbal N, Coissac E, Lee M, Jendryka MM, Sillam-Dussès D, Krížková B, Roisin Y, Evans TA. Mitochondrial Phylogenomics Resolves the Global Spread of Higher Termites, Ecosystem Engineers of the Tropics. Mol Biol Evol 2017; 34:589-597. [PMID: 28025274 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msw253] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
The higher termites (Termitidae) are keystone species and ecosystem engineers. They have exceptional biomass and play important roles in decomposition of dead plant matter, in soil manipulation, and as the primary food for many animals, especially in the tropics. Higher termites are most diverse in rainforests, with estimated origins in the late Eocene (∼54 Ma), postdating the breakup of Pangaea and Gondwana when most continents became separated. Since termites are poor fliers, their origin and spread across the globe requires alternative explanation. Here, we show that higher termites originated 42-54 Ma in Africa and subsequently underwent at least 24 dispersal events between the continents in two main periods. Using phylogenetic analyses of mitochondrial genomes from 415 species, including all higher termite taxonomic and feeding groups, we inferred 10 dispersal events to South America and Asia 35-23 Ma, coinciding with the sharp decrease in global temperature, sea level, and rainforest cover in the Oligocene. After global temperatures increased, 23-5 Ma, there was only one more dispersal to South America but 11 to Asia and Australia, and one dispersal back to Africa. Most of these dispersal events were transoceanic and might have occurred via floating logs. The spread of higher termites across oceans was helped by the novel ecological opportunities brought about by environmental and ecosystem change, and led termites to become one of the few insect groups with specialized mammal predators. This has parallels with modern invasive species that have been able to thrive in human-impacted ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Bourguignon
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.,Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic.,School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Nathan Lo
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Simon Y W Ho
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Naeem Iqbal
- Department of Plant Protection, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Ghazi University, Dera Ghazi Khan, Pakistan
| | - Eric Coissac
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Laboratoire d'Ecologie Alpine (LECA), Grenoble, France.,Laboratoire d'Ecologie Alpine (LECA), Université Grenoble Alpes, Grenoble, France
| | - Maria Lee
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Martin M Jendryka
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Sorbonne Universités, iEES-Paris, Bondy, France.,Université Paris 13, Sorbonne Paris Cité, LEEC, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Barbora Krížková
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Yves Roisin
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Theodore A Evans
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.,School of Animal Biology, University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
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Bourguignon T, Lo N, Šobotník J, Sillam-Dussès D, Roisin Y, Evans TA. Oceanic dispersal, vicariance and human introduction shaped the modern distribution of the termites Reticulitermes, Heterotermes and Coptotermes. Proc Biol Sci 2016; 283:20160179. [PMID: 27030416 PMCID: PMC4822470 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2016.0179] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2016] [Accepted: 03/03/2016] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Reticulitermes, Heterotermes and Coptotermes form a small termite clade with partly overlapping distributions. Although native species occur across all continents, the factors influencing their distribution are poorly known. Here, we reconstructed the historical biogeography of these termites using mitochondrial genomes of species collected on six continents. Our analyses showed that Reticulitermes split from Heterotermes + Coptotermesat 59.5 Ma (49.9-69.5 Ma 95% CI), yet the oldest split within Reticulitermes(Eurasia and North America) is 16.1 Ma (13.4-19.5 Ma) and the oldest split within Heterotermes + Coptotermesis 36.0 Ma (33.9-40.5 Ma). We detected 14 disjunctions between biogeographical realms, all of which occurred within the last 34 Ma, not only after the break-up of Pangaea, but also with the continents in similar to current positions. Land dispersal over land bridges explained four disjunctions, oceanic dispersal by wood rafting explained eight disjunctions, and human introduction was the source of two recent disjunctions. These wood-eating termites, therefore, appear to have acquired their modern worldwide distribution through multiple dispersal processes, with oceanic dispersal and human introduction favoured by the ecological traits of nesting in wood and producing replacement reproductives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Bourguignon
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117543, Singapore Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia
| | - Nathan Lo
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Sorbonne Universités, iEES-Paris, Bondy U 242, France Université Paris 13, Sorbonne Paris Cité, LEEC, Villetaneuse EA 4443, France
| | - Yves Roisin
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Brussels, Belgium
| | - Theodore A Evans
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117543, Singapore School of Animal Biology, University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia 6009, Australia
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Wen P, Mo J, Lu C, Tan K, Šobotník J, Sillam-Dussès D. Sex-pairing pheromone of Ancistrotermes dimorphus (Isoptera: Macrotermitinae). J Insect Physiol 2015; 83:8-14. [PMID: 26549129 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2015.11.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2015] [Revised: 10/30/2015] [Accepted: 11/04/2015] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Ancistrotermes dimorphus is a common Macrotermitinae representative, facultative inquiline by its life-style, occurring in South-East China. Sex pheromone is used for couple formation and maintenance, and it is produced by and released from the female sternal gland and is highly attractive to males. Based on our combined behavioral, chemical and electrophysiological analyses, we identified (3Z,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol as the female sex pheromone of A. dimorphus as it evoked the tandem behavior at short distance, and the active quantities ranged from 0.01ng to 10ng. Interestingly, GC-MS analyses of SPME extracts showed another compound specific to the female sternal gland, (3Z)-dodec-3-en-1-ol, which showed a clear GC-EAD response. However, this compound has no behavioral function in natural concentrations (0.1ng), while higher amounts (1ng) inhibit the attraction achieved by (3Z,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol. The function of (3Z)-dodec-3-en-1-ol is not fully understood, but might be linked to recognition from sympatric species using the same major compound, enhancing the long-distance attraction, or informing about presence of other colonies using the compound as a trail-following pheromone. The sternal gland secretion of Ancistrotermes females contains additional candidate compounds, namely (3E,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol and (6Z)-dodec-6-en-1-ol, which are not perceived by males' antennae in biologically relevant amounts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ping Wen
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Science, Kunming, Yunnan 650223, China; Institute of Insect Sciences, College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310058, China; Jiangsu Agrochemical Laboratory, Changzhou, Jiangsu 212022, China
| | - Jianchu Mo
- Institute of Insect Sciences, College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310058, China.
| | - Chunwen Lu
- Termite Control Center of Fangchengang, Fangchengang, Guangxi 538001, China
| | - Ken Tan
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Science, Kunming, Yunnan 650223, China
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- IRD - Sorbonne Universités, iEES-Paris, U 242, Bondy, France; University Paris 13 - Sorbonne Paris Cité, LEEC, EA 4443, Villetaneuse, France
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Bourguignon T, Šobotník J, Brabcová J, Sillam-Dussès D, Buček A, Krasulová J, Vytisková B, Demianová Z, Mareš M, Roisin Y, Vogel H. Molecular Mechanism of the Two-Component Suicidal Weapon of Neocapritermes taracua Old Workers. Mol Biol Evol 2015; 33:809-19. [PMID: 26609080 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msv273] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
In termites, as in many social insects, some individuals specialize in colony defense, developing diverse weaponry. As workers of the termite Neocapritermes taracua (Termitidae: Termitinae) age, their efficiency to perform general tasks decreases, while they accumulate defensive secretions and increase their readiness to fight. This defensive mechanism involves self-sacrifice through body rupture during which an enzyme, stored as blue crystals in dorsal pouches, converts precursors produced by the labial glands into highly toxic compounds. Here, we identify both components of this activated defense system and describe the molecular basis responsible for the toxicity of N. taracua worker autothysis. The blue crystals are formed almost exclusively by a specific protein named BP76. By matching N. taracua transcriptome databases with amino acid sequences, we identified BP76 to be a laccase. Following autothysis, the series of hydroquinone precursors produced by labial glands get mixed with BP76, resulting in the conversion of relatively harmless hydroquinones into toxic benzoquinone analogues. Neocapritermes taracua workers therefore rely on a two-component activated defense system, consisting of two separately stored secretions that can react only after suicidal body rupture, which produces a sticky and toxic cocktail harmful to opponents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Bourguignon
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jana Brabcová
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- Institute of Research for Development-Sorbonne Universités, iEES-Paris, Bondy, France University Paris 13-Sorbonne Paris Cité, LEEC, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Aleš Buček
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jana Krasulová
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Blahoslava Vytisková
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Zuzana Demianová
- IMP-the Research Institute of Molecular Pathology, Vienna, Austria
| | - Michael Mareš
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Yves Roisin
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Brussels, Belgium
| | - Heiko Vogel
- Department of Entomology, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena, Germany
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Votavová A, Tomčala A, Kofroňová E, Kudzejová M, Šobotník J, Jiroš P, Komzáková O, Valterová I. Seasonal Dynamics in the Chemistry and Structure of the Fat Bodies of Bumblebee Queens. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0142261. [PMID: 26559946 PMCID: PMC4641598 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0142261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2015] [Accepted: 10/20/2015] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Insects’ fat bodies are responsible for nutrient storage and for a significant part of intermediary metabolism. Thus, it can be expected that the structure and content of the fat body will adaptively change, if an insect is going through different life stages. Bumblebee queens belong to such insects as they dramatically change their physiology several times over their lives in relation to their solitary overwintering, independent colony foundation stage, and during the colony life-cycle ending in the senescent stage. Here, we report on changes in the ultrastructure and lipid composition of the peripheral fat body of Bombus terrestris queens in relation to seasonal changes in the queens’ activity. Six life stages are defined and evaluated in particular: pharate, callow, before and after hibernation, egg-laying, and senescence. Transmission electron microscopy revealed that the fat body contained two main cell types–adipocytes and oenocytes. Only adipocytes reveal important changes related to the life phase, and mostly the ration between inclusion and cytoplasm volume varies among particular stages. Both electron microscopy and chemical analyses of lipids highlighted seasonal variability in the quantity of the stored lipids, which peaked prior to hibernation. Triacylglycerols appeared to be the main energy source during hibernation, while the amount of glycogen before and after hibernation remained unchanged. In addition, we observed that the representation of some fatty acids within the triacylglycerols change during the queen’s life. Last but not least, we show that fat body cell membranes do not undergo substantial changes concerning phospholipid composition in relation to overwintering. This finding supports the hypothesis that the cold-adaptation strategy of bumblebee queens is more likely to be based on polyol accumulation than on the restructuring of lipid membranes.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Aleš Tomčala
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague, Czech Republic
- Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre, Czech Academy of Sciences, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
| | - Edita Kofroňová
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Michaela Kudzejová
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Pavel Jiroš
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague, Czech Republic
| | | | - Irena Valterová
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague, Czech Republic
- * E-mail:
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Cristaldo PF, Jandák V, Kutalová K, Rodrigues VB, Brothánek M, Jiříček O, DeSouza O, Šobotník J. The nature of alarm communication in Constrictotermes cyphergaster (Blattodea: Termitoidea: Termitidae): the integration of chemical and vibroacoustic signals. Biol Open 2015; 4:1649-59. [PMID: 26538635 PMCID: PMC4736033 DOI: 10.1242/bio.014084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Alarm signalling is of paramount importance to communication in all social insects. In termites, vibroacoustic and chemical alarm signalling are bound to operate synergistically but have never been studied simultaneously in a single species. Here, we inspected the functional significance of both communication channels in Constrictotermes cyphergaster (Termitidae: Nasutitermitinae), confirming the hypothesis that these are not exclusive, but rather complementary processes. In natural situations, the alarm predominantly attracts soldiers, which actively search for the source of a disturbance. Laboratory testing revealed that the frontal gland of soldiers produces a rich mixture of terpenoid compounds including an alarm pheromone. Extensive testing led to identification of the alarm pheromone being composed of abundant monoterpene hydrocarbons (1S)-α-pinene and myrcene, along with a minor component, (E)-β-ocimene. The vibratory alarm signalling consists of vibratory movements evidenced as bursts; a series of beats produced predominantly by soldiers. Exposing termite groups to various mixtures containing the alarm pheromone (crushed soldier heads, frontal gland extracts, mixture of all monoterpenes, and the alarm pheromone mixture made of standards) resulted in significantly higher activity in the tested groups and also increased intensity of the vibratory alarm communication, with the responses clearly dose-dependent. Lower doses of the pheromone provoked higher numbers of vibratory signals compared to higher doses. Higher doses induced long-term running of all termites without stops necessary to perform vibratory behaviour. Surprisingly, even crushed worker heads led to low (but significant) increases in the alarm responses, suggesting that other unknown compound in the worker's head is perceived and answered by termites. Our results demonstrate the existence of different alarm levels in termites, with lower levels being communicated through vibratory signals, and higher levels causing general alarm or retreat being communicated through the alarm pheromone. Summary: We inspected the functional significance of both vibroacoustic and chemical communication channels in Constrictotermes cyphergaster (Termitidae: Nasutitermitinae), confirming the hypothesis that these are not exclusive but rather complementary processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paulo F Cristaldo
- Laboratório de Interações Ecológicas, Departamento de Ecologia, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, São Cristovão, SE 49000-000, Brazil
| | - Vojtĕch Jandák
- Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Czech Technical University in Prague, 166 27 Prague 6, Czech Republic
| | - Kateřina Kutalová
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, 165 21 Prague 6-Suchdol, Czech Republic Faculty of Science, Charles University in Prague, 128 43 Prague 2, Czech Republic Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academic of Sciences of the Czech Republic, 166 10 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Vinícius B Rodrigues
- Laboratório de Termitologia, Departamento de Entomologia, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, MG 36570-900, Brazil
| | - Marek Brothánek
- Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Czech Technical University in Prague, 166 27 Prague 6, Czech Republic
| | - Ondřej Jiříček
- Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Czech Technical University in Prague, 166 27 Prague 6, Czech Republic
| | - Og DeSouza
- Laboratório de Termitologia, Departamento de Entomologia, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, MG 36570-900, Brazil
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, 165 21 Prague 6-Suchdol, Czech Republic
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Delattre O, Sillam-Dussès D, Jandák V, Brothánek M, Rücker K, Bourguignon T, Vytisková B, Cvačka J, Jiříček O, Šobotník J. Complex alarm strategy in the most basal termite species. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-015-2007-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Affiliation(s)
- Johan Billen
- University of Leuven, Zoological Institute, Naamsestraat 59, Box 2466, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Czech University of Life Sciences, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, 165 21 Prague 6, Czech Republic.
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Šobotník J, Bourguignon T, Carrijo TF, Bordereau C, Robert A, Křížková B, Constantini JP, Cancello EM. The nasus gland: a new gland in soldiers of Angularitermes (Termitidae, Nasutitermitinae). Arthropod Struct Dev 2015; 44:401-406. [PMID: 26342422 DOI: 10.1016/j.asd.2015.08.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2015] [Revised: 08/25/2015] [Accepted: 08/25/2015] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Termites have developed many exocrine glands, generally dedicated to defence or communication. Although a few of these glands occur in all termite species, or represent synapomorphies of larger clades, others are morphological innovations of a single species, or a few related species. Here, we describe the nasus gland, a new gland occurring at the base of the nasus of Angularitermes soldiers. The nasus gland is composed of class 1, 2, and 3 secretory cells, a rare combination that is only shared by the sternal and tergal glands of some termites and cockroaches. The ultrastructural observations suggest that the secretion is produced by class 2 and 3 secretory cells, and released mostly by class 3 cells. The base of the nasus has a rough appearance due to numerous pits bearing openings of canals conducting the secretion from class 3 secretory cells to the exterior. We tentatively assign a defensive function to the nasus gland, although further research is needed to confirm this function. Although the gland is described only from species of Angularitermes, other genera of Nasutitermitinae also present a rough nasus base, suggesting the presence of a similar, possibly homologous, gland.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan Šobotník
- Czech University of Life Sciences, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic.
| | - Thomas Bourguignon
- Czech University of Life Sciences, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic; School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Tiago F Carrijo
- Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo, 04218-970, Av. Nazaré, 481, Ipiranga, São Paulo, CEP 04263-000, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Christian Bordereau
- Centre des Sciences du Goût et de l'Alimentation, UMR 6265 CNRS, UMR 1324 INRA, Université de Bourgogne, Agrosup Dijon, 6 Bvd Gabriel, 21000, Dijon, France
| | - Alain Robert
- Centre des Sciences du Goût et de l'Alimentation, UMR 6265 CNRS, UMR 1324 INRA, Université de Bourgogne, Agrosup Dijon, 6 Bvd Gabriel, 21000, Dijon, France
| | - Barbora Křížková
- Czech University of Life Sciences, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Joice P Constantini
- Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo, 04218-970, Av. Nazaré, 481, Ipiranga, São Paulo, CEP 04263-000, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Eliana M Cancello
- Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo, 04218-970, Av. Nazaré, 481, Ipiranga, São Paulo, CEP 04263-000, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
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Bourguignon T, Drouet T, Šobotník J, Hanus R, Roisin Y. Influence of Soil Properties on Soldierless Termite Distribution. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0135341. [PMID: 26270057 PMCID: PMC4536034 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0135341] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2015] [Accepted: 07/21/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
In tropical rainforests, termites constitute an important part of the soil fauna biomass, and as for other soil arthropods, variations in soil composition create opportunities for niche partitioning. The aim of this study was twofold: first, we tested whether soil-feeding termite species differ in the foraging substrate; second, we investigated whether soil-feeding termites select their foraging sites to enhance nutrients intake. To do so, we collected termites and analysed the composition and structure of their feeding substrates. Although Anoplotermes-group members are all considered soil-feeders, our results show that some species specifically feed on abandoned termite nests and very rotten wood, and that this substrate selection is correlated with previous stable isotope analyses, suggesting that one component of niche differentiation among species is substrate selection. Our results show that the composition and structure of bare soils on which different termite species foraged do not differ, suggesting that there is no species specialization for a particular type of bare soil. Finally, the bare soil on which termites forage does not differ from random soil samples. Overall, our results suggest that few species of the Anoplotermes-group are specialized toward substrates rich in organic matter, but that the vast majority forage on soil independently of its structural and chemical composition, being ecologically equivalent for this factor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Bourguignon
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, 117543, Singapore, Singapore
- Czech University of Life Sciences, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 165 21, Praha 6 –Suchdol, Czech Republic
| | - Thomas Drouet
- Plant Ecology and Biogeochemistry, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Czech University of Life Sciences, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 165 21, Praha 6 –Suchdol, Czech Republic
| | - Robert Hanus
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Flemingovo nám. 2, 166 10, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Yves Roisin
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, CP 160/12, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Avenue F.D. Roosevelt 50, 1050, Brussels, Belgium
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Bourguignon T, Lo N, Cameron SL, Šobotník J, Hayashi Y, Shigenobu S, Watanabe D, Roisin Y, Miura T, Evans TA. The evolutionary history of termites as inferred from 66 mitochondrial genomes. Mol Biol Evol 2014; 32:406-21. [PMID: 25389205 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msu308] [Citation(s) in RCA: 163] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Termites have colonized many habitats and are among the most abundant animals in tropical ecosystems, which they modify considerably through their actions. The timing of their rise in abundance and of the dispersal events that gave rise to modern termite lineages is not well understood. To shed light on termite origins and diversification, we sequenced the mitochondrial genome of 48 termite species and combined them with 18 previously sequenced termite mitochondrial genomes for phylogenetic and molecular clock analyses using multiple fossil calibrations. The 66 genomes represent most major clades of termites. Unlike previous phylogenetic studies based on fewer molecular data, our phylogenetic tree is fully resolved for the lower termites. The phylogenetic positions of Macrotermitinae and Apicotermitinae are also resolved as the basal groups in the higher termites, but in the crown termitid groups, including Termitinae + Syntermitinae + Nasutitermitinae + Cubitermitinae, the position of some nodes remains uncertain. Our molecular clock tree indicates that the lineages leading to termites and Cryptocercus roaches diverged 170 Ma (153-196 Ma 95% confidence interval [CI]), that modern Termitidae arose 54 Ma (46-66 Ma 95% CI), and that the crown termitid group arose 40 Ma (35-49 Ma 95% CI). This indicates that the distribution of basal termite clades was influenced by the final stages of the breakup of Pangaea. Our inference of ancestral geographic ranges shows that the Termitidae, which includes more than 75% of extant termite species, most likely originated in Africa or Asia, and acquired their pantropical distribution after a series of dispersal and subsequent diversification events.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Bourguignon
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore Graduate School of Environmental Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan Czech University of Life Sciences, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Nathan Lo
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Stephen L Cameron
- Earth, Environmental and Biological Sciences, Science and Engineering Faculty, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Czech University of Life Sciences, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Yoshinobu Hayashi
- Graduate School of Environmental Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Shuji Shigenobu
- Okazaki Institute for Integrative Bioscience, National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Okazaki, Japan
| | - Dai Watanabe
- Graduate School of Environmental Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan
| | - Yves Roisin
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Toru Miura
- Graduate School of Environmental Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan
| | - Theodore A Evans
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
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Jirošová A, Majer P, Jančařík A, Dolejšová K, Tykva R, Šobotník J, Jiroš P, Hanus R. Sphinganine-Like Biogenesis of (E)-1-Nitropentadec-1-ene in Termite Soldiers of the GenusProrhinotermes. Chembiochem 2014; 15:533-6. [DOI: 10.1002/cbic.201300665] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2013] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Bourguignon T, Šobotník J, Hanus R, Krasulová J, Vrkoslav V, Cvačka J, Roisin Y. Delineating species boundaries using an iterative taxonomic approach: the case of soldierless termites (Isoptera, Termitidae, Apicotermitinae). Mol Phylogenet Evol 2013; 69:694-703. [PMID: 23891950 DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2013.07.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2013] [Revised: 07/01/2013] [Accepted: 07/09/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Species boundaries are traditionally inferred using morphological characters, although morphology sometimes fails to correctly delineate species. To overcome this limitation, researchers have widely taken advantage of alternative methods such as DNA barcoding or analysis of cuticular hydrocarbons (CHs) profiles, but rarely use them simultaneously in an iterative taxonomic approach. Here, we follow such an approach using morphology, DNA barcoding and CHs profiles to precisely discriminate species of soldierless termites, a diversified clade constituting about one-third of the Neotropical termite species richness, but poorly resolved taxonomically due to the paucity of useful characters. We sampled soldierless termites in various forest types of the Nouragues Nature Reserve, French Guiana. Our results show that morphological species determination generally matches DNA barcoding, which only suggests the existence of three cryptic species in the 31 morphological species. Among them, Longustitermes manni is the only species whose splitting is corroborated by ecological data, other widely distributed species being supported by DNA barcoding. On the contrary, although CHs profiles provide a certain taxonomic signal, they often suggest inconsistent groupings which are not supported by other methods. Overall, our data support DNA barcoding and morphology as two efficient methods to distinguish soldierless termite species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Bourguignon
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, CP 160/12, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Avenue F.D. Roosevelt 50, 1050 Brussels, Belgium; Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, 117543 Singapore, Singapore
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Lagoutte R, Šebesta P, Jiroš P, Kalinová B, Jirošová A, Straka J, Černá K, Šobotník J, Cvačka J, Jahn U. Total synthesis, proof of absolute configuration, and biosynthetic origin of stylopsal, the first isolated sex pheromone of strepsiptera. Chemistry 2013; 19:8515-24. [PMID: 23630024 DOI: 10.1002/chem.201204196] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2012] [Revised: 03/15/2013] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
The asymmetric total synthesis of the diastereomers of stylopsal establishes the absolute configuration of the first reported sex pheromone of the twisted-wing parasite Stylops muelleri as (3R,5R,9R)-trimethyldodecanal. The key steps for the diastereo- and enantiodivergent introduction of the methyl groups are two different types of asymmetric conjugate addition reactions of organocopper reagents to α,β-unsaturated esters, whereas the dodecanal skeleton is assembled by Wittig reactions. The structure of the natural product was confirmed by chiral gas chromatography (GC) techniques, GC/MS and GC/electroantennography (EAD) as well as field tests. An investigation into the biosynthesis of the pheromone revealed that it is likely to be produced by decarboxylation of a 4,6,10-trimethyltridecanoic acid derivative, which was found in substantial amounts in the fat body of the female, but not in the host bee Andrena vaga. This triple-branched fatty acid precursor thus seems to be biosynthesized de novo through a polyketide pathway with two consecutive propionate-propionate-acetate assemblies to form the complete skeleton. The simplified, motionless and fully host-dependent female exploits a remarkable strategy to maximize its reproductive success by employing a relatively complex and potent sex pheromone.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roman Lagoutte
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Flemingovo náměstí 2, 166 10 Prague 6, Czech Republic
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Cvačka J, Jiroš P, Kalinová B, Straka J, Černá K, Šebesta P, Tomčala A, Vašíčková S, Jahn U, Šobotník J. Stylopsal: The First Identified Female-produced Sex Pheromone of Strepsiptera. J Chem Ecol 2012; 38:1483-91. [DOI: 10.1007/s10886-012-0214-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2012] [Revised: 10/23/2012] [Accepted: 10/27/2012] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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Jarau S, Žáček P, Šobotník J, Vrkoslav V, Hadravová R, Coppée A, Vašíčková S, Jiroš P, Valterová I. Leg tendon glands in male bumblebees (Bombus terrestris): structure, secretion chemistry, and possible functions. Naturwissenschaften 2012; 99:1039-49. [DOI: 10.1007/s00114-012-0986-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2012] [Revised: 10/18/2012] [Accepted: 10/18/2012] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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Bourguignon T, Šobotník J, Sillam-Dussès D, Jiroš P, Hanus R, Roisin Y, Miura T. Developmental pathways of Psammotermes hybostoma (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae): old pseudergates make up a new sterile caste. PLoS One 2012; 7:e44527. [PMID: 23028554 PMCID: PMC3444481 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0044527] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2012] [Accepted: 08/03/2012] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Ergonomic efficiency is in termites maximized by task partitioning among specialized castes. The isopteran caste systems can be classified as either (i) linear, when tasks are performed by pluripotent immatures (pseudergates), retaining the ability to develop into winged imagoes or (ii) bifurcated, with the presence of a true worker caste, which diverges early and permanently from the sexual (nymph/alate) line. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Here, we report on the ontogenetic potentialities of the highly polymorphic sand termite Psammotermes hybostoma. Beside numerous pluripotent pseudergates, constituting the main work force, some larger non-feeding apterous immatures, also occur. These individuals are unable to proceed to the winged imago stage, but store large amounts of fat and also give rise to large soldiers. Soldiers therefore originate from a wide range of apterous instars, consequently being highly polymorphic. CONCLUSIONS The caste system of P. hybostoma is essentially linear, as in other basal Rhinotermitidae, but is distinguished by the late bifurcation leading to large apterous immatures. Because these large worker-like individuals deviate late and do not perform worker tasks, they cannot be considered homologous to the true workers of Termitidae and advanced Rhinotermitidae, but they provide a novel example of the evolution of sterile immatures in termites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Bourguignon
- Graduate School of Environmental Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Jan Šobotník
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Prague, Czech Republic
- Czech University of Life Sciences, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - David Sillam-Dussès
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Prague, Czech Republic
- Laboratoire Écologie et Évolution, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, France
- IRD, UMR 211 BIOEMCO, IBIOS, Bondy, France
- Laboratoire d’Ethologie Expérimentale et Comparée, Université Paris 13, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Pavel Jiroš
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Robert Hanus
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Yves Roisin
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Toru Miura
- Graduate School of Environmental Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
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