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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Columbia, Missouri » Biological Control of Insects Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #410427

Research Project: Biologically-Based Products for Insect Pest Control and Emerging Needs in Agriculture

Location: Biological Control of Insects Research

Title: Motility genes are associated with the occurrence of Drosophila melanogaster-associated gut microbes

Author
item ARORA, ARINDER - University Of Florida
item Kang, David
item CHASTON, JOHN - Brigham Young University
item ROBBINS, CALEB - Baylor University
item BHANDARI, RISHI - Orise Fellow

Submitted to: ISME Communications
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 1/21/2025
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Here, we utilize a new approach combining ecological modeling and with shotgun metagenomics to determine which genes are linked to positive selection for microbes in the gut wild caught specimens of the berry pest, Drosophila suzukii (Spotted Winged Drosophila). The perturbation of the microbiome can impair these pests by impairing their immunity, causing metabolic dysfunction, reducing fertility and fecundity, extending development time, and reducing oxidative stress resistance (a major component of pesticide resistance). By understanding the community ecology of the fly-associated microbes in the wild we can determine which bacteria work together or antagonistically to help or harm the flies. Our genetic approach then allows us to understand which of these genes allow the beneficial or harmful bacteria to persist in the field. This is essential information for adapting microbiome-based pest control in the field.

Technical Abstract: Recent work has implicated motility to be important to the dispersal of fly-associated microbes to spread between hosts in laboratory settings. Here, we investigate whether the presence of bacterial genes encoding motility is associated with the occurrence of bacteria at or above levels predicted by passive dispersal in the guts of wild Drosophila melanogaster. We revisited a previously published shotgun metagenome of wild flies and correlated four genera of bacteria (Commensalibacter, Gluconobacter, Lactobacillus, and Tatumella) to have significant associations with the presence of motility genes within the microbiome. We then plotted the microbes against neutral models of ecological drift and passive dispersal and found a striking pattern in which microbes with positive correlations to motility were exclusively found at or above neutral model predictions. This suggests that motility genes are important for at least three members of the fly microbiota to spread and colonize wild flies.