<i>Wolbachia</i> springs eternal: symbiosis in Collembola is associated with host ecology

Rodrigues, Jules, Lefoulon, Emilie, Gavotte, Laurent, Perillat-Sanguinet, Marco, Makepeace, Benjamin ORCID: 0000-0002-6100-6727, Martin, Coralie and D'Haese, Cyrille A (2023) <i>Wolbachia</i> springs eternal: symbiosis in Collembola is associated with host ecology. Royal Society Open Science, 10 (5). 230288-.

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.230288

Abstract

<jats:p> <jats:italic>Wolbachia</jats:italic> are endosymbiotic alpha-proteobacteria infecting a wide range of arthropods and nematode hosts with diverse interactions, from reproductive parasites to obligate mutualists. Their taxonomy is defined by lineages called supergroups (labelled by letters of the alphabet), while their evolutionary history is complex, with multiple horizontal transfers and secondary losses. One of the least recently derived, supergroup E, infects springtails (Collembola), widely distributed hexapods, with sexual and/or parthenogenetic populations depending on species. To better characterize the diversity of <jats:italic>Wolbachia</jats:italic> infecting springtails, the presence of <jats:italic>Wolbachia</jats:italic> was screened in 58 species. Eleven (20%) species were found to be positive, with three <jats:italic>Wolbachia</jats:italic> genotypes identified for the first time in supergroup A. The novel genotypes infect springtails ecologically and biologically different from those infected by supergroup E. To root the <jats:italic>Wolbachia</jats:italic> phylogeny, rather than distant other Rickettsiales, supergroup L infecting plant-parasitic nematodes was used here. We hypothesize that the ancestor of <jats:italic>Wolbachia</jats:italic> was consumed by soil-dwelling nematodes, and was transferred horizontally via plants into aphids, which then infected edaphic arthropods (e.g. springtails and oribatid mites) before expanding into most clades of terrestrial arthropods and filarial nematodes. </jats:p>

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Wolbachia, evolution, springtails, symbiosis
Divisions:	Faculty of Health and Life Sciences Faculty of Health and Life Sciences > Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	20 Jun 2023 07:13
Last Modified:	14 Mar 2024 21:13
DOI:	10.1098/rsos.230288
Related URLs:	Author Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3171085