Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 15, 2025
06:27
Assaying Predatory Feeding Behaviors in Pristionchus and Other Nematodes
Published on: September 4, 2016
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Predation, evo-devo, and historical contingency: A nematode predator drives evolution of aggregative multicellularity
Kaitlin A Schaal1,2, Marco La Fortezza2, Gregory J Velicer2
1Department of Evolution, Ecology & Behaviour, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK.
Biorxiv : the Preprint Server for Biology
|July 14, 2025
Summary
Predation shapes the evolution of aggregative multicellularity (AM) in bacteria. The presence of predators alters the development of bacterial fruiting bodies, demonstrating complex ecological interactions and evolutionary responses.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary biology
- Microbial ecology
- Behavioral ecology
Background:
- Aggregative multicellularity (AM) is a complex evolutionary strategy with diverse behaviors and social structures.
- Predation is a significant driver of evolution, but its role in shaping AM is less understood than clonal multicellularity.
- A three-species food web was used to investigate predator-prey dynamics influencing AM evolution.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how predation influences the evolution of aggregative multicellularity (AM).
- To examine the evolutionary responses of *Myxococcus xanthus* to predation in a multi-trophic food web.
- To understand the interplay between predation and resource availability in shaping AM.
Main Methods:
- Experimental evolution of *Myxococcus xanthus* in controlled three-species communities.
- Manipulating the presence and absence of predators (*Pristionchus pacificus*) and prey (*Escherichia coli*).
- Analyzing changes in the number and morphology of *M. xanthus* fruiting bodies and spore production.
Main Results:
- *Myxococcus xanthus* evolved altered fruiting body number and morphology in response to nematodes, irrespective of prey presence.
- *E. coli* alone reduced fruiting body formation and spore production, but nematodes negated these effects.
- An ancestral antibiotic-resistance mutation in *M. xanthus* led to reduced overall evolution, indicating historical contingency and potential trade-offs.
Conclusions:
- Predation, both by and on mesopredators, is a key factor in the evolution of aggregative multicellularity.
- Complex inter-trophic evolutionary interactions can occur even in simple food webs.
- Historical contingency, such as antibiotic resistance, can influence evolutionary trajectories in response to biotic pressures.
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