Evidence for multiple origins of Wolbachia infection in springtails

Bacteria of the genus Wolbachia (Rickettsiae) are endosymbionts found in many species of invertebrates. The traditional division of Wolbachia lines into four supergroups has recently been challenged with the finding of a fifth supergroup. Until now, this E supergroup exists of a single host species...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inPedobiologia Vol. 48; no. 5; pp. 469 - 475
Main Authors Timmermans, Martijn J.T.N., Mariën, Janine, Roelofs, Dick, van Straalen, Nico M., Ellers, Jacintha
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Jena Elsevier GmbH 01.01.2004
Elsevier Science Ltd
Subjects
Collembola
Horizontal transfer
Orchesella cincta
Wolbachia phylogeny
Horizontal transfer
Collembola
Orchesella cincta
Wolbachia phylogeny
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Summary:Bacteria of the genus Wolbachia (Rickettsiae) are endosymbionts found in many species of invertebrates. The traditional division of Wolbachia lines into four supergroups has recently been challenged with the finding of a fifth supergroup. Until now, this E supergroup exists of a single host species of the order Collembola (springtails) and is hypothesized to form a ‘missing link’ between Wolbachia lines in higher arthropods and nematodes. We have sequenced the 16S rDNA, the ftsZ and the wsp genes of a Wolbachia lineage present in the sexually reproducing collembolan Orchesella cincta. We tested the hypothesis on the origin of Wolbachia in Collembola by adding this new Wolbachia lineage and a lineage found in the collembolan Mesophorura macrochaeta to the Wolbachia phylogenetic tree. The addition of these two species clearly shows that Wolbachia is not monophyletic in Collembola. We conclude that the origin of Wolbachia in Collembola is a combination of vertical and horizontal transfer between coexisting species.
ISSN:0031-4056
1873-1511
DOI:10.1016/j.pedobi.2004.07.008