Biology subjects

Rombaut, A.

Publications and source records attributed to Rombaut, A..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2020

Bacterial influence on the maintenance of symbiotic yeast through Drosophila metamorphosis

Interactions between microbial symbionts of metazoan hosts are emerging as key features of symbiotic systems. Little is known about the role of such interactions on the maintenance of symbiosis through hosts life cycle. We studied the influence of symbiotic bacteria on the maintenance of symbiotic yeast through metamorphosis of the fly Drosophila melanogaster. To this end we mimicked the development of larvae in natural fruit. In absence of bacteria yeast was never found in young adults. However, yeast could maintain through metamorphosis when larvae were inoculated with symbiotic bacteria isolated from D. melanogaster faeces. Furthermore, an Enterobacteriaceae favoured yeast transstadial maintenance. Because yeast is a critical symbiont of D. melanogaster flies, bacterial influence on host-yeast association may have consequences for the evolution of insect-yeast-bacteria tripartite symbiosis and their cooperation. Summary statementBacterial symbionts of Drosophila influence yeast maintenance through fly metamorphosis, a novel observation that may have consequences for the evolution of insect-yeast-bacteria interactions.

ecology↗

bioRxiv2019

Environmental specificity in Drosophila-bacteria symbiosis affects host developmental plasticity

Environmentally acquired microbial symbionts could contribute to host adaptation to local conditions like vertically transmitted symbionts do. This scenario necessitates symbionts to have different effects in different environments. We investigated this idea in Drosophila melanogaster, a species which communities of bacterial symbionts vary greatly among environments. We isolated four bacterial strains isolated from the feces of a D. melanogaster laboratory strain and tested their effects in two conditions: the ancestral environment (i.e. the laboratory medium) and a new environment (i.e. fresh fruit with live yeast). All bacterial effects on larval and adult traits differed among environments, ranging from very beneficial to marginally deleterious. The joint analysis of larval development speed and adult size further shows bacteria affected developmental plasticity more than resource acquisition. This effect was largely driven by the contrasted effects of the bacteria in each environment. Our study illustrates that understanding D. melanogaster symbiotic interactions in the wild will necessitate working in ecologically realistic conditions. Besides, context-dependent effects of symbionts, and their influence on host developmental plasticity, shed light on how environmentally acquired symbionts may contribute to host evolution.

evolutionary biology↗

bioRxiv2019

Environmental specificity and evolution in Drosophila-bacteria symbiosis

Environmentally acquired microbial symbionts could contribute to host adaptation to local adaptation like vertically transmitted symbionts do. This scenario necessitates symbionts to have different effects in different environments. In Drosophila melanogaster, communities of extracellular bacterial symbionts vary largely among environments, which could be due to variable effects on phenotype. We investigated this idea with four bacterial strains isolated from the feces of a D. melanogaster lab strain, and tested their effects in two environments: the environment of origin (i.e. the laboratory medium) and a new one (i.e. fresh fruit with live yeast). All bacterial effects on larval and adult traits differed among environments, ranging from very beneficial to marginally deleterious. The joint analysis of larval development speed and adult size further suggests bacteria would affect developmental plasticity more than resource acquisition in males. The context-dependent effects of bacteria we observed, and its underlying mechanisms, sheds light on how environmentally acquired symbionts may contribute to host evolution.

evolutionary biology↗