Symbiotic bacteria on the cuticle of the leaf-cutting ant Acromyrmex subterraneus subterraneus protect workers from attack by entomopathogenic fungi
- 30 November 2011
- journal article
- Published by The Royal Society in Biology Letters
- Vol. 8 (3), 461-464
- https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2011.0963
Abstract
Although only discovered in 1999, the symbiotic filamentous actinobacteria present on the integument of certain species of leaf-cutting ants have been the subject of intense research. These bacteria have been shown to specifically suppress fungal garden parasites by secretion of antibiotics. However, more recently, a wider role for these bacteria has been suggested from research revealing their generalist anti-fungal activity. Here we show, for the first time, evidence for a role of these bacteria in the defence of young worker ants against a fungal entomopathogen. Experimental removal of the bacterial bio-film using an antibiotic resulted in a significant increase in susceptibility of worker ants to infection by the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae . This is the first direct evidence for the advantage of maintaining a bacterial bio-film on the cuticle as a defensive strategy of the ants themselves and not exclusively for protection of the fungus garden.This publication has 22 references indexed in Scilit:
- The effects of age and social interactions on innate immunity in a leaf-cutting antJournal of Insect Physiology, 2010
- Symbiont Interactions in a Tripartite Mutualism: Exploring the Presence and Impact of Antagonism between Two Fungus-Growing Ant MutualistsPLOS ONE, 2010
- Generalized antifungal activity and 454-screening of Pseudonocardia and Amycolatopsis bacteria in nests of fungus-growing antsProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2009
- Candicidin-producing Streptomyces support leaf-cutting ants to protect their fungus garden against the pathogenic fungus EscovopsisProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2009
- Reduced biological control and enhanced chemical pest management in the evolution of fungus farming in antsProceedings. Biological sciences, 2009
- Novel fungal disease in complex leaf‐cutting ant societiesEcological Entomology, 2009
- Major evolutionary transitions in ant agricultureProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2008
- Active use of the metapleural glands by ants in controlling fungal infectionProceedings. Biological sciences, 2006
- Defending against parasites: fungus-growing ants combine specialized behaviours and microbial symbionts to protect their fungus gardensBiology Letters, 2005
- Prevalence and impact of a virulent parasite on a tripartite mutualismOecologia, 2001