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The toxins of vertically transmitted
Logan D Moore1, Matthew J Ballinger1
1Department of Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS, United States.
Frontiers in Microbiology
|June 5, 2023
Summary
Certain microbial symbiont genes, including ribosome-inactivating proteins (RIPs) and OTU-like cysteine proteases (OTUs), are crucial for the long-term stability of vertically transmitted symbionts in insects. These domains are key to symbiont evolution and persistence.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Evolutionary Biology
- Genomics
Background:
- Vertically transmitted (VT) microbial symbionts are essential for insect host evolution.
- Understanding the genetic basis of symbiont persistence is a key research question.
- Specific toxin and virulence domains in Spiroplasma are linked to symbiont phenotypes but their distribution is poorly understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the distribution of toxin and virulence domains across the Spiroplasma genus.
- To identify genetic elements contributing to the long-term stability of vertically transmitted symbionts.
- To analyze the genome of a non-manipulating Spiroplasma symbiont from Drosophila atripex.
Main Methods:
- Genome sequencing of Spiroplasma symbiont from Drosophila atripex.
- Comparative genomic analysis of 12 VT and 31 non-VT Spiroplasma genomes.
- Bioinformatic search for specific domains (RIPs, OTUs, ankyrins, ETX/MTX2) in Spiroplasma and insect genomes.
Main Results:
- Ribosome-inactivating proteins (RIPs), OTU-like cysteine proteases (OTUs), ankyrins, and ETX/MTX2 domains are more prevalent in VT Spiroplasma than non-VT strains.
- OTU and ankyrin domains were exclusively found in VT-Spiroplasma.
- RIP domains were present in all VT Spiroplasma and three non-VT strains, often associated with plasmids.
Conclusions:
- A conserved set of symbiont domains, including RIPs, OTUs, and ankyrins, likely contributes to the evolution and persistence of vertically transmitted Spiroplasma in insects.
- These domains, frequently found on plasmids, may facilitate dispersal and maintenance of symbionts.
- The findings suggest functional interactions between these domain types in symbiont-insect associations.
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