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Isolation and characterization of mollicute symbionts from a fungus-growing ant reveals high niche overlap leading to co-exclusion
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Isolation and characterization of mollicute symbionts from a fungus-growing ant reveals high niche overlap leading to co-exclusion
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Journal Article
Isolation and characterization of mollicute symbionts from a fungus-growing ant reveals high niche overlap leading to co-exclusion
2025
Overview
Fungus-growing ants partner with multiple microbial symbionts to obtain food and remain free from disease. Of these symbionts, those inhabiting the ant gut remain the least understood and are known only from environmental surveys. Such surveys can infer potential functions of gut symbionts, but cultures are required to experimentally validate these hypotheses. Here, we describe the first cultures of the ant gut symbionts of the fungus-growing ant Trachymyrmex septentrionalis , using comparative genomics and phenotypic experiments to describe them as two novel species: Mesoplasma whartonense sp. nov. and Spiroplasma attinicola sp. nov. This genomic analysis suggests that these species are highly specialized to T. septentrionalis and are distinct from related environmental data generated from the related ant species Acromyrmex echinatior , implying substantial host specificity. Our phenotypic experiments and genomic reconstructions highlight the highly overlapping niches and likely costs and benefits of these symbionts to their ant host, setting the stage for further experimentation.
Publisher
American Society for Microbiology
