Patterns of interaction specificity of fungus-growing termites and <it>Termitomyces </it>symbionts in South Africa
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Termites of the subfamily Macrotermitinae live in a mutualistic symbiosis with basidiomycete fungi of the genus <it>Termitomyces</it>. Here, we explored interaction specificity in fungus-growing termites using samples fro...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2007-07-01
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| Series: | BMC Evolutionary Biology |
| Online Access: | http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2148/7/115 |
| _version_ | 1818977697566556160 |
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| author | de Beer Z Wilhelm Mitchell Jannette de Fine Licht Henrik H Ros Vera ID Aanen Duur K Slippers Bernard Rouland-LeFèvre Corinne Boomsma Jacobus J |
| author_facet | de Beer Z Wilhelm Mitchell Jannette de Fine Licht Henrik H Ros Vera ID Aanen Duur K Slippers Bernard Rouland-LeFèvre Corinne Boomsma Jacobus J |
| author_sort | de Beer Z Wilhelm |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Termites of the subfamily Macrotermitinae live in a mutualistic symbiosis with basidiomycete fungi of the genus <it>Termitomyces</it>. Here, we explored interaction specificity in fungus-growing termites using samples from 101 colonies in South-Africa and Senegal, belonging to eight species divided over three genera. Knowledge of interaction specificity is important to test the hypothesis that inhabitants (symbionts) are taxonomically less diverse than 'exhabitants' (hosts) and to test the hypothesis that transmission mode is an important determinant for interaction specificity.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Analysis of Molecular Variance among symbiont ITS sequences across termite hosts at three hierarchical levels showed that 47 % of the variation occurred between genera, 18 % between species, and the remaining 35 % between colonies within species. Different patterns of specificity were evident. High mutual specificity was found for the single <it>Macrotermes </it>species studied, as <it>M. natalensis </it>was associated with a single unique fungal haplotype. The three species of the genus <it>Odontotermes </it>showed low symbiont specificity: they were all associated with a genetically diverse set of fungal symbionts, but their fungal symbionts showed some host specificity, as none of the fungal haplotypes were shared between the studied <it>Odontotermes </it>species. Finally, bilaterally low specificity was found for the four tentatively recognized species of the genus <it>Microtermes</it>, which shared and apparently freely exchanged a common pool of divergent fungal symbionts.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Interaction specificity was high at the genus level and generally much lower at the species level. A comparison of the observed diversity among fungal symbionts with the diversity among termite hosts, indicated that the fungal symbiont does not follow the general pattern of an endosymbiont, as we found either similar diversity at both sides or higher diversity in the symbiont. Our results further challenge the hypothesis that transmission-mode is a general key-determinant of interaction specificity in fungus-growing termites.</p> |
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| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-14dd0133687f48e89b906f63b3ec62ad |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1471-2148 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-20T16:31:52Z |
| publishDate | 2007-07-01 |
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| series | BMC Evolutionary Biology |
| spelling | doaj.art-14dd0133687f48e89b906f63b3ec62ad2022-12-21T19:33:14ZengBMCBMC Evolutionary Biology1471-21482007-07-017111510.1186/1471-2148-7-115Patterns of interaction specificity of fungus-growing termites and <it>Termitomyces </it>symbionts in South Africade Beer Z WilhelmMitchell Jannettede Fine Licht Henrik HRos Vera IDAanen Duur KSlippers BernardRouland-LeFèvre CorinneBoomsma Jacobus J<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Termites of the subfamily Macrotermitinae live in a mutualistic symbiosis with basidiomycete fungi of the genus <it>Termitomyces</it>. Here, we explored interaction specificity in fungus-growing termites using samples from 101 colonies in South-Africa and Senegal, belonging to eight species divided over three genera. Knowledge of interaction specificity is important to test the hypothesis that inhabitants (symbionts) are taxonomically less diverse than 'exhabitants' (hosts) and to test the hypothesis that transmission mode is an important determinant for interaction specificity.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Analysis of Molecular Variance among symbiont ITS sequences across termite hosts at three hierarchical levels showed that 47 % of the variation occurred between genera, 18 % between species, and the remaining 35 % between colonies within species. Different patterns of specificity were evident. High mutual specificity was found for the single <it>Macrotermes </it>species studied, as <it>M. natalensis </it>was associated with a single unique fungal haplotype. The three species of the genus <it>Odontotermes </it>showed low symbiont specificity: they were all associated with a genetically diverse set of fungal symbionts, but their fungal symbionts showed some host specificity, as none of the fungal haplotypes were shared between the studied <it>Odontotermes </it>species. Finally, bilaterally low specificity was found for the four tentatively recognized species of the genus <it>Microtermes</it>, which shared and apparently freely exchanged a common pool of divergent fungal symbionts.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Interaction specificity was high at the genus level and generally much lower at the species level. A comparison of the observed diversity among fungal symbionts with the diversity among termite hosts, indicated that the fungal symbiont does not follow the general pattern of an endosymbiont, as we found either similar diversity at both sides or higher diversity in the symbiont. Our results further challenge the hypothesis that transmission-mode is a general key-determinant of interaction specificity in fungus-growing termites.</p>http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2148/7/115 |
| spellingShingle | de Beer Z Wilhelm Mitchell Jannette de Fine Licht Henrik H Ros Vera ID Aanen Duur K Slippers Bernard Rouland-LeFèvre Corinne Boomsma Jacobus J Patterns of interaction specificity of fungus-growing termites and <it>Termitomyces </it>symbionts in South Africa BMC Evolutionary Biology |
| title | Patterns of interaction specificity of fungus-growing termites and <it>Termitomyces </it>symbionts in South Africa |
| title_full | Patterns of interaction specificity of fungus-growing termites and <it>Termitomyces </it>symbionts in South Africa |
| title_fullStr | Patterns of interaction specificity of fungus-growing termites and <it>Termitomyces </it>symbionts in South Africa |
| title_full_unstemmed | Patterns of interaction specificity of fungus-growing termites and <it>Termitomyces </it>symbionts in South Africa |
| title_short | Patterns of interaction specificity of fungus-growing termites and <it>Termitomyces </it>symbionts in South Africa |
| title_sort | patterns of interaction specificity of fungus growing termites and it termitomyces it symbionts in south africa |
| url | http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2148/7/115 |
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