Towards unravelling Wolbachia global exchange: a contribution from the Bicyclus and Mylothris butterflies in the Afrotropics
Abstract Background Phylogenetically closely related strains of maternally inherited endosymbiotic bacteria are often found in phylogenetically divergent, and geographically distant insect host species. The interspecies transfer of the symbiont Wolbachia has been thought to have occurred repeatedly,...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2020-10-01
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| Series: | BMC Microbiology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12866-020-02011-2 |
| _version_ | 1828888746907402240 |
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| author | Anne Duplouy Robin Pranter Haydon Warren-Gash Robert Tropek Niklas Wahlberg |
| author_facet | Anne Duplouy Robin Pranter Haydon Warren-Gash Robert Tropek Niklas Wahlberg |
| author_sort | Anne Duplouy |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Phylogenetically closely related strains of maternally inherited endosymbiotic bacteria are often found in phylogenetically divergent, and geographically distant insect host species. The interspecies transfer of the symbiont Wolbachia has been thought to have occurred repeatedly, facilitating its observed global pandemic. Few ecological interactions have been proposed as potential routes for the horizontal transfer of Wolbachia within natural insect communities. These routes are however likely to act only at the local scale, but how they may support the global distribution of some Wolbachia strains remains unclear. Results Here, we characterize the Wolbachia diversity in butterflies from the tropical forest regions of central Africa to discuss transfer at both local and global scales. We show that numerous species from both the Mylothris (family Pieridae) and Bicyclus (family Nymphalidae) butterfly genera are infected with similar Wolbachia strains, despite only minor interclade contacts across the life cycles of the species within their partially overlapping ecological niches. The phylogenetic distance and differences in resource use between these genera rule out the role of ancestry, hybridization, and shared host-plants in the interspecies transfer of the symbiont. Furthermore, we could not identify any shared ecological factors to explain the presence of the strains in other arthropod species from other habitats, or even ecoregions. Conclusion Only the systematic surveys of the Wolbachia strains from entire species communities may offer the material currently lacking for understanding how Wolbachia may transfer between highly different and unrelated hosts, as well as across environmental scales. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-13T12:28:03Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-466b0af70a384dff8db90b6bf58d1ace |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1471-2180 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-13T12:28:03Z |
| publishDate | 2020-10-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Microbiology |
| spelling | doaj.art-466b0af70a384dff8db90b6bf58d1ace2022-12-21T23:46:09ZengBMCBMC Microbiology1471-21802020-10-012011910.1186/s12866-020-02011-2Towards unravelling Wolbachia global exchange: a contribution from the Bicyclus and Mylothris butterflies in the AfrotropicsAnne Duplouy0Robin Pranter1Haydon Warren-Gash2Robert Tropek3Niklas Wahlberg4Department of Biology, Lund UniversityDepartment of Biology, Lund UniversityOverstrand Mansions, Prince of Wales DriveDepartment of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles UniversityDepartment of Biology, Lund UniversityAbstract Background Phylogenetically closely related strains of maternally inherited endosymbiotic bacteria are often found in phylogenetically divergent, and geographically distant insect host species. The interspecies transfer of the symbiont Wolbachia has been thought to have occurred repeatedly, facilitating its observed global pandemic. Few ecological interactions have been proposed as potential routes for the horizontal transfer of Wolbachia within natural insect communities. These routes are however likely to act only at the local scale, but how they may support the global distribution of some Wolbachia strains remains unclear. Results Here, we characterize the Wolbachia diversity in butterflies from the tropical forest regions of central Africa to discuss transfer at both local and global scales. We show that numerous species from both the Mylothris (family Pieridae) and Bicyclus (family Nymphalidae) butterfly genera are infected with similar Wolbachia strains, despite only minor interclade contacts across the life cycles of the species within their partially overlapping ecological niches. The phylogenetic distance and differences in resource use between these genera rule out the role of ancestry, hybridization, and shared host-plants in the interspecies transfer of the symbiont. Furthermore, we could not identify any shared ecological factors to explain the presence of the strains in other arthropod species from other habitats, or even ecoregions. Conclusion Only the systematic surveys of the Wolbachia strains from entire species communities may offer the material currently lacking for understanding how Wolbachia may transfer between highly different and unrelated hosts, as well as across environmental scales.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12866-020-02011-2SymbiosisVertical transmissionHorizontal transferPhylogenyLepidopteraInterspecific interactions |
| spellingShingle | Anne Duplouy Robin Pranter Haydon Warren-Gash Robert Tropek Niklas Wahlberg Towards unravelling Wolbachia global exchange: a contribution from the Bicyclus and Mylothris butterflies in the Afrotropics BMC Microbiology Symbiosis Vertical transmission Horizontal transfer Phylogeny Lepidoptera Interspecific interactions |
| title | Towards unravelling Wolbachia global exchange: a contribution from the Bicyclus and Mylothris butterflies in the Afrotropics |
| title_full | Towards unravelling Wolbachia global exchange: a contribution from the Bicyclus and Mylothris butterflies in the Afrotropics |
| title_fullStr | Towards unravelling Wolbachia global exchange: a contribution from the Bicyclus and Mylothris butterflies in the Afrotropics |
| title_full_unstemmed | Towards unravelling Wolbachia global exchange: a contribution from the Bicyclus and Mylothris butterflies in the Afrotropics |
| title_short | Towards unravelling Wolbachia global exchange: a contribution from the Bicyclus and Mylothris butterflies in the Afrotropics |
| title_sort | towards unravelling wolbachia global exchange a contribution from the bicyclus and mylothris butterflies in the afrotropics |
| topic | Symbiosis Vertical transmission Horizontal transfer Phylogeny Lepidoptera Interspecific interactions |
| url | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12866-020-02011-2 |
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