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Gut bacteria mediate aggregation in the German cockroach.

Ayako Wada-Katsumata1, Ludek Zurek2, Godfrey Nalyanya3

  • 1Department of Entomology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695; W. M. Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695; coby@ncsu.edu akatsum@ncsu.edu.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
|December 9, 2015
PubMed
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German cockroaches use gut microbes to produce key scent signals (volatile carboxylic acids) that attract others. Introducing specific bacteria restored these crucial aggregation pheromones.

Keywords:
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Area of Science:

  • Entomology
  • Microbiology
  • Chemical Ecology

Background:

  • German cockroaches (Blattella germanica) aggregate using fecal pheromones, primarily volatile carboxylic acids (VCAs).
  • The origin and microbial contribution to these semiochemicals remain largely uncharacterized.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of the gut microbial community in producing fecal aggregation pheromones in German cockroaches.
  • To identify specific microbial taxa responsible for VCA production and their impact on cockroach aggregation behavior.

Main Methods:

  • Chemical analysis of feces from conventional and axenic (microbe-free) cockroaches to identify VCAs.
  • Olfactory and aggregation bioassays using fecal extracts and synthetic VCA blends.
  • Isolation, identification, and inoculation of gut bacteria into axenic cockroaches to assess rescue of aggregation response.

Main Results:

  • Axenic cockroach feces lacked 12 major VCAs and had significantly reduced levels of others compared to control feces.
  • Cockroach nymphs showed a strong preference for control feces extract over axenic feces extract.
  • Inoculation with specific gut bacteria, especially a mix of six isolates, restored the production of key VCAs and the aggregation response in axenic cockroaches.

Conclusions:

  • The gut microbiota is essential for producing volatile carboxylic acids that function as fecal aggregation pheromones in German cockroaches.
  • Cockroaches can discriminate complex odors derived from microbial communities, influencing aggregation behavior.
  • Gut bacteria mediate insect-insect communication, enabling colony-specific odors and site fidelity.