Estimating Bacterial Diversity in Scirtothrips dorsalis (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) Via Next Generation Sequencing

Authors

  • Aaron M. Dickey Mid-Florida Research & Education Center, University of Florida, 2725 Binion Rd., Apopka, FL 32703
  • Andrew J. Trease Biology Department, University of Nebraska Omaha, 6001 Dodge St., Omaha, NE 68182
  • Antonella Jara-Cavieres Indian River Research & Education Center, University of Florida, 2199 South Rock Rd, Fort Pierce, FL 34945
  • Vivek Kumar Mid-Florida Research & Education Center, University of Florida, 2725 Binion Rd., Apopka, FL 32703
  • Matthew K. Christenson Biology Department, University of Nebraska Omaha, 6001 Dodge St., Omaha, NE 68182
  • Lakshmi-Prasad Potluri Biology Department, University of Nebraska Omaha, 6001 Dodge St., Omaha, NE 68182
  • J. Kent Morgan USDA-ARS, U.S. Horticultural Research Laboratory, 2001 South Rock Rd., Fort Pierce, FL 34945
  • Robert G. Shatters, Jr. USDA-ARS, U.S. Horticultural Research Laboratory, 2001 South Rock Rd., Fort Pierce, FL 34945
  • Cindy L. McKenzie USDA-ARS, U.S. Horticultural Research Laboratory, 2001 South Rock Rd., Fort Pierce, FL 34945
  • Paul H. Davis Biology Department, University of Nebraska Omaha, 6001 Dodge St., Omaha, NE 68182
  • Lance S. Osborne Mid-Florida Research & Education Center, University of Florida, 2725 Binion Rd., Apopka, FL 32703

Keywords:

next generation sequencing, metagenomics, chilli thrips

Abstract

Summarized from a presentation and discussions at the “Thrips: small players with big damage” Symposium at the Annual Meeting of the Florida Entomological Society, 16 July 2013, Naples, Florida.

 

The last 2 decades have produced a better understanding of insect-microbial associations and yielded some important opportunities for insect control. However, most of our knowledge comes from model systems. Thrips (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) have been understudied despite their global importance as invasive species, plant pests and disease vectors. Using a culture and primer independent next-generation sequencing and metagenomics pipeline, we surveyed the bacteria of the globally important pest, Scirtothrips dorsalis Hood. The most abundant bacterial phyla identified were Actinobacteria and Proteobacteria and the most abundant genera were Propionibacterium, Stenotrophomonas, and Pseudomonas. A total of 189 genera of bacteria were identified. The absence of any vertically transferred symbiont taxa commonly found in insects is consistent with other studies suggesting that thrips primarilly acquire resident microbes from their environment. This does not preclude a possible beneficial/intimate association between S. dorsalis and the dominant taxa identified and future work should determine the nature of these associations.

 

Durante las últimas dos decadas se ha alcanzado una mejor comprensión acerca de la asociación insecto-microbio, lo cual ha entregado importantes oportunidades para el control de insectos. Sin embargo, la mayor parte de nuestro conocimiento proviene de sistemas modelo, en que los Trips (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) no han sido estudiados en profundidad, a pesar de su importancia como especie invasiva, plaga de plantas y vector de enfermedades. Utilizando métodos de sequenciación de última generación sin necesidad de primers o cultivos, asi como metagenómica, hemos sondeado la bacteria Scirtothrips dorsalis Hood, una plaga de importancia mundial. Las phyla bacteriales mas abundantes identificadas fueron Actinobacteria and Proteobacteria, mientras que los géneros fueron Propionibacterium, Stenotrophomonas y Pseudomonas. Un total de 189 géneros de bacteria fueron identificados. La ausencia de cualquier tipo de taxa simbionte transferida verticalmente, como aquella encontrada frecuentemente en insectos, es consistente con otros estudios que sugieren que los microbios residentes en trips provienen principalmente del medio ambiente. Ésto no excluye una posible asociación íntima/beneficiaria entre S. dorsalis y la taxa domimante identificada. La naturaleza de estas asociaciones deberá ser determinada en futuros estudios.

 

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Published

2014-06-20

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Section

Research Papers