Insect symbiosis and bacterial influences

The intracellular symbiont Wolbachia enhances recombination in a dose-dependent manner

The paper shows Wolbachia increases recombination in infected insect lineages in a dose-dependent manner, while another symbiont, Spiroplasma, does not.

Diversity of fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda and their gut bacterial community in Kenya

The paper investigates the microbiome composition and diversity of fall armyworm larvae and adults in Kenya, identifying dominant bacterial phyla and differences between life stages.

Insect-symbiont gene expression in the midgut bacteriocytes of a blood-sucking parasite

The paper analyzes gene expression in the midgut bacteriocytes of a blood-sucking louse fly to understand host-symbiont interactions and finds differences in zinc usage and immunity mechanisms compared to other insects.

Characterization of core bacterial species in the Daphnia magna microbiota using shotgun metagenomics

This study characterizes five metagenome-assembled bacterial genomes from Daphnia magna microbiota and identifies functions related to nutrient acquisition and immune evasion.

Large scale and significant expression from pseudogenes in Sodalis glossinidius - a facultative bacterial endosymbiont

This study investigates pseudogene expression in Sodalis glossinidius using multi-omic approaches, revealing significant transcriptional activity and suggesting their role in evolutionary adaptation.

Acetobacteraceae in the honey bee gut comprise two distant clades with diverging metabolism and ecological niches

The paper identifies two distinct Acetobacteraceae clades in honey bees with diverging metabolic capabilities and ecological roles.

Wolbachia infection in Argentinean populations of Anastrepha fraterculus sp1: preliminary evidence of sex ratio distortion by one of two strains

The paper detects and characterizes two Wolbachia variants in Argentinean Anastrepha fraterculus sp1, finding evidence of male-killing associated with one variant.

A LAMP assay for the rapid and robust assessment of Wolbachia infection in Aedes aegypti under field and laboratory conditions

The paper validates a modified LAMP assay for rapid, sensitive, and specific detection of wAlbB Wolbachia infection in Aedes aegypti under field and lab conditions.

Serial horizontal transfer of vitamin-biosynthetic genes enables the establishment of new nutritional symbionts in aphids’ di-symbiotic systems

The paper investigates horizontal gene transfer in aphid symbionts, showing how B-vitamin biosynthesis genes are transferred between bacteria to establish new nutritional symbioses.

Commensal bacteria act as a broad genetic buffer in Drosophila during chronic under-nutrition

This study shows that the Drosophila facultative symbiont Lactobacillus plantarum buffers genetic variation under chronic under-nutrition, reducing phenotypic and gene expression variation.

Effect of heritable symbionts on maternally-derived embryo transcripts

The paper investigates whether heritable endosymbionts affect early embryo mRNA transcriptomes and finds no consistent influence, but detects rRNA depurination consistent with Ribosome Inactivating Proteins.

The first draft genomes of the ant Formica exsecta, and its Wolbachia endosymbiont reveal extensive gene transfer from endosymbiont to host.

This study reports the first draft genomes of the ant Formica exsecta and its Wolbachia endosymbiont, revealing horizontal gene transfers from the endosymbiont to the host.

Genome Analyses of a New Mycoplasma Species From the scorpion Centruroides vittatus.

The paper reports the first complete genome of Mycoplasma from a scorpion, Mycoplasma vittatus, and describes its genomic features and phylogenetic placement.

Complete Genome Sequence of the Wolbachia wAlbB Endosymbiont of Aedes albopictus

The paper reports the complete genome sequence of Wolbachia wAlbB from Aedes albopictus using long-read sequencing, revealing new insights into its gene content and structure.

Wolbachia Infection Associated with Increased Recombination in Drosophila

This study finds Wolbachia infection increases recombination in one genomic interval but not another in Drosophila, and is associated with higher fecundity.

A Freeloader?: The Highly Eroded Yet Large Genome of the Serratia symbiotica symbiont of Cinara strobi

The paper identifies a third bacterial symbiont in Cinara strobi aphids and shows that S. symbiotica has a highly eroded genome, suggesting ongoing symbiont replacement.

Modeling trophic dependencies and exchanges among insects’ bacterial symbionts in a host-simulated environment

The paper models metabolic interactions among bacterial symbionts in whiteflies to understand their dependencies and exchanges in a host-simulated environment.

One prophage WO gene rescues cytoplasmic incompatibility in Drosophila melanogaster

The paper identifies cifA as the gene responsible for rescuing cytoplasmic incompatibility in Drosophila melanogaster, establishing a Two-by-One model for CI genetics.

Diverse laboratory colonies of Aedes aegypti harbor the same adult midgut bacterial microbiome

The paper compares the midgut bacterial microbiome of geographically diverse Aedes aegypti colonies reared in the same insectary, finding they are similar, suggesting microbiota is environmentally determined.

A genome-scale study of metabolic complementation in endosymbiotic consortia: the case of the cedar aphid

The paper presents a genome-scale metabolic network for the cedar aphid's endosymbiotic consortium, confirming known metabolic complementation and identifying new pathway sharing, while exploring evolutionary mechanisms.

A novel method for single whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) transcriptomes reveals an eleven amino acid deletion in the NusG protein in the bacterial endosymbiont Portiera aleyrodidarum

This paper develops a method to sequence single whitefly transcriptomes, revealing an eleven amino acid deletion in the NusG protein of the endosymbiont Portiera aleyrodidarum in field-collected specimens.