Diesel exhaust particles alter gut microbiome and gene expression in the bumblebee <i>Bombus terrestris</i>

Seidenath, Dimitri; Weig, Alfons; Mittereder, Andreas; Hillenbrand, Thomas; Brüggemann, Dieter; Opel, Thorsten; Langhof, Nico; Riedl, Marcel; Feldhaar, Heike; Otti, Oliver

doi:10.1002/ece3.10180

Cited by 6 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 173 publications

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“…Previous work investigating the impact of the heavy metal selenate on B. impatiens (Rothman et al, 2019) and diesel exhaust particles on B. terrestris (Seidenath et al, 2023) also saw alterations in the abundance of core gut symbionts in bees treated with these pollutants. In comparison to control bees, both studies found a lower abundance of Snodgrassella and Lactobacillus bombicola (Lactobacillus Firm-5) in pollution treated bees, Seidenath et al, (2023) also saw changes in Lactobacillus apis (Lactobacillus Firm-5) and Bombiscardova abundance with pollution treatment. Changes in these core microbes were not observed in our data.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Air pollution modifies key colonization factors of the beneficial bee gut symbiontSnodgrassella alviand disrupts the bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) gut microbiome

Sampson¹,

Allcock²,

Mallon³

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Air pollution is the worlds largest environmental health risk. Particulate pollutants, a major component of air pollution, are detrimental to human health and a significant risk to wildlife and ecosystems globally. Black carbon, a by-product of fossil fuel and biomass burning, is a key constituent of air pollution with levels continuing to increase worldwide. Here we describe the effects of black carbon on the beneficial gut microbiome of an important global insect pollinator, the buff-tailed bumblebee (Bombus terrestris). Our data shows that exposure to black carbon particulates alters the biofilm structure, gene expression and initial adhesion of beneficial bee gut coloniser, Snodgrassella alvi in vitro. Additionally, our results show that black carbon disrupts adult Bombus terrestris gut microbiome composition, a vital component to bee health. Exposure to black carbon increased bees viable gut bacteria and significantly altered the abundance of beneficial core bacteria Gilliamella and Bombilactobacillus in the microbiome. These findings demonstrate that exposure to black carbon air pollution has direct, measurable effects on bees beneficial gut commensal bacteria and microbiome. Together these data highlight that particulate pollutants are an underexplored risk for the health of insect pollinators.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Air pollution modifies key colonization factors of the beneficial bee gut symbiontSnodgrassella alviand disrupts the bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) gut microbiome

Sampson¹,

Allcock²,

Mallon³

et al. 2023

Preprint

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“…However, the core-taxa Snodgrassella and Gilliamella show likewise a better growth rate at elevated temperatures ( Hammer et al., 2021b ), but were decreasing in relative abundance within the course of our sampling period. But even air pollution can selectively erode the microbiota of B. terrestris from important core-taxa like Snodgrassella ( Seidenath et al., 2023 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bumble bee microbiota shows temporal succession and increase of lactic acid bacteria when exposed to outdoor environments

Weinhold,

Grüner,

Keller

2024

Front. Cell. Infect. Microbiol.

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QuestionThe large earth bumble bee (Bombus terrestris) maintains a social core gut-microbiota, similar as known from the honey bee, which plays an important role for host health and resistance. Experiments under laboratory conditions with commercial hives are limited to vertically transmitted microbes and neglect influences of environmental factors or external acquisition of microbes. Various environmental and landscape-level factors may have an impact on the gut-microbiota of pollinating insects, with consequences for pollinator health and fitness in agroecosystems. Still, it is not fully clear whether access to different flower diversities will have a significant influence on the bumble bee microbiota. Here, we tested in a semi-field experiment if the bumble bee microbiota changes over time when exposed to different flower diversities within outdoor flight cages. We used commercial hives to distinguish between vertically and horizontally transmitted bacteria, respectively from the nest environment or the exposed outside environment.ResultThe sequential sampling of foraging workers over a period of 35 days indicated a temporal progression of the bumble bee microbiota when placed outside. The microbiota increased in diversity and changed in composition and variability over time. We observed a major increase in relative abundance of the families Lactobacillaceae, Bifidobacteriaceae and Weeksellaceae. In contrast, major core-taxa like Snodgrassella and Gilliamella declined in their relative abundance over time. The genus Lactobacillus showed a high diversity and strain specific turnover, so that only specific ASVs showed an increase over time, while others had a more erratic occurrence pattern. Exposure to different flower diversities had no significant influence on the progression of the bumble bee microbiota.ConclusionThe bumble bee microbiota showed a dynamic temporal succession with distinct compositional changes and diversification over time when placed outdoor. The exposure of bumble bees to environmental conditions, or environmental microbes, increases dissimilarity and changes the gut-community composition. This shows the importance of environmental influences on the temporal dynamic and progression of the bumble bee microbiota.

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“…10% w/w). More details on the characterization and sampling methods of DEP-samples can be found inHüftlein et al (2023) andSeidenath et al (2023).…”

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confidence: 99%

Do diesel exhaust particles in pollen affect colony founding in the bumblebee B. terrestris?

Seidenath,

Mittereder,

Hillenbrand

et al. 2024

Preprint

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The global insect decline threatens ecosystem functioning because insects provide many essential services, such as pollination or nutrient cycling. Pollution is one of the main drivers of insect decline besides land-use change, global warming, and invasive species. Airborne particulate matter, such as diesel exhaust particles (DEPs), is ubiquitous in the environment. Their effects on insects are still largely unknown. We provided queens and workers of the bumblebee Bombus terrestris with DEP-spiked pollen at the early colony founding stage and compared the colony development to control colonies. After ten weeks, we investigated individual and colony-level life history traits. We did not see any effects of DEP-spiked pollen on worker count, brood count, worker size and relative fat body weight. These results indicate no harmful effects of DEP on colony founding in B. terrestris in our single-stressor setup. Our novel approach adds to the understanding of the role that airborne particulate matter plays in the global insect decline and we are looking forward to seeing similar studies with other species and additional stressors, such as heat stress or food shortages.

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Diesel exhaust particles alter gut microbiome and gene expression in the bumblebee Bombus terrestris

Abstract: This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Cited by 6 publications

References 173 publications

Air pollution modifies key colonization factors of the beneficial bee gut symbiontSnodgrassella alviand disrupts the bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) gut microbiome

Air pollution modifies key colonization factors of the beneficial bee gut symbiontSnodgrassella alviand disrupts the bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) gut microbiome

Bumble bee microbiota shows temporal succession and increase of lactic acid bacteria when exposed to outdoor environments

Do diesel exhaust particles in pollen affect colony founding in the bumblebee B. terrestris?

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