Centro de Ciencias Genómicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Cuernavaca, Mexico.
Institute for Integrative Systems Biology, University of València and Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, València, Spain.
Microb Ecol. 2020 May;79(4):960-970. doi: 10.1007/s00248-019-01460-1. Epub 2019 Dec 3.
Lepidoptera is a highly diverse insect order with major importance in agriculture as many species are considered pests. The role of the gut microbiota in insect physiology is still poorly understood, despite the research undertaken in recent years. Furthermore, Lepidoptera are holometabolous insects and few studies have addressed the influence of the changes taking place on the gut microbiome composition and diversity during metamorphosis, especially in monophagous species. The V3-V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene was sequenced to investigate the microbiota composition and diversity of the monophagous moth Brithys crini during three different life stages: egg, larvae (midgut and hindgut), and adult (gut). Our results showed that the microbiota composition of B. crini was stage specific, indicating that the developmental stage is a main factor affecting the gut microbiome in composition and potential functions. Moreover, the diversity of the gut microbiome reflected the developmental process, since a drop in diversity occurred between the larval and the adult phase, when the intestine is completely renewed. In spite of the changes in the gut microbiota during metamorphosis, 29 genera were conserved throughout the three developmental stages, mainly belonging to the Proteobacteria phylum, which define the core microbiome of B. crini. These genera seem to contribute to host physiology by participating in food digestion, nutrition, and detoxification mechanisms.
鳞翅目是昆虫纲中高度多样化的一个目，由于许多物种被认为是害虫，因此在农业中具有重要意义。尽管近年来进行了研究，但肠道微生物群在昆虫生理学中的作用仍知之甚少。此外，鳞翅目是完全变态的昆虫，很少有研究涉及到在变态过程中肠道微生物组组成和多样性的变化，特别是在单食性物种中。通过测序 16S rRNA 基因的 V3-V4 区，研究了单食性飞蛾 Brithys crini 在三个不同生命阶段（卵、幼虫（中肠和后肠）和成虫（肠道））的微生物群落组成和多样性。我们的研究结果表明，B. crini 的微生物群落组成具有阶段特异性，表明发育阶段是影响肠道微生物群落组成和潜在功能的主要因素。此外，肠道微生物组的多样性反映了发育过程，因为在幼虫期和成虫期之间多样性下降，此时肠道完全更新。尽管在变态过程中肠道微生物群发生了变化，但在三个发育阶段中仍有 29 个属保持不变，主要属于变形菌门，这一定义了 B. crini 的核心微生物组。这些属似乎通过参与食物消化、营养和解毒机制来促进宿主的生理机能。
