Limited toxicology data are available regarding oil dispersant exposure to coral species. Corexit® EC9500A (Corexit) is a commonly applied dispersant most well known for its use after the Deepwater Horizon spill in April, 2010. There is limited evidence that Corexit can cause a bleaching response in corals. The aims of the study were: (1) to determine the extent of bleaching after acute 24 h an...

The symbiotic bacteria associated with the stomach disc, a large aggregate of bacteriocytes on the ventral side of the midgut, of human body and head lice were characterized. Molecular phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that the symbionts formed a distinct and well-defined clade in the Gammaproteobacteria. The sequences exhibited AT-biased nucleotide composition and acceler...

The bacterial symbiont Cardinium (Bacteroidetes) was previously implicated in the thelytokous reproduction of the parasitoid Plagiomerus diaspidis Crawford (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae). Horizontal transmission of the symbiont among the cactus scale Diaspis echinocacti Bouché (Homoptera: Diaspididae) and its hymenopteran parasitoids has been suggested. In this study, the bacteria associated with D....

Coral bleaching is intensifying with global climate change. Although the causes for these catastrophic events are well understood, the cellular mechanism that triggers bleaching is not well established. Our understanding of coral bleaching processes is hindered by the lack of robust methods for studying interactions between host and symbiont at the single-cell level. Here, we exposed coral expl...

BACKGROUND Symbiotic bacteria affect insect physiology and ecology. They may also mediate insecticide resistance within their hosts and thereby impact pest and vector control practices. Here, we document a novel mechanism of insecticide resistance in which a gut symbiont of the tephritid pest fruit fly Bactrocera dorsalis enhances resistance to the organophosphate insecticide trichlorphon. RE...

The discovery of bacterium-bivalve symbioses capable of utilizing methane as a carbon and energy source indicates that the endosymbionts of hydrothermal vent and cold seep bivalves are not restricted to sulfur-oxidizing chemoautotrophic bacteria but also include methanotrophic bacteria. The phylogenetic origin of methanotrophic endosymbionts and their relationship to known symbiotic and free-li...

Animals often engage in mutualistic associations with microorganisms that protect them from predation, parasitism or pathogen infection. Studies of these interactions in insects have mostly focussed on the direct effects of symbiont infection on natural enemies without studying community-wide effects. Here, we explore the effect of a defensive symbiont on population dynamics and species extinct...

The interaction between insects and gut bacterial symbionts is, nowadays, regarded as an important element in the implementation of pest management, consideration urgent need for sustainable alternatives to insecticide use. In this framework, a major tool is symbiotic control, with main ready-to-use application represented by interruption obligate symbioses. Two insect families, namely Pentatom...

BACKGROUND Reef-building corals live in symbiosis with a diverse range of dinoflagellate algae (genus Symbiodinium) that differentially influence the fitness of the coral holobiont. The comparative role of symbiont type in holobiont fitness in relation to host genotype or the environment, however, is largely unknown. We addressed this knowledge gap by manipulating host-symbiont combinations and...

Coral reefs have evolved with a crucial symbiosis between photosynthetic dinoflagellates (genus Symbiodinium) and their cnidarian hosts (Scleractinians). Most coral larvae take up Symbiodinium from their environment; however, the earliest steps in this process have been elusive. Here we demonstrate that the disaccharide trehalose may be an important signal from the symbiont to potential larval ...