Social communication between microbes colonizing the social honey bee <i>Apis mellifera</i>

Miller, Kayla I; Franklin, Christine; Hr, Mattila; Newton, Irene L. G.

doi:10.1101/287995

Cited by 2 publications

(2 citation statements)

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“…Although B. apis does not contain any AI-2 synthesis genes, the presence of an AI-2 E family transporter indicates that it may be responding to exogenous AI-2 produced by other bacteria, possibly in a competitive interaction. Indeed, honey bee microbes are known to produce AI-2 ( Miller et al. 2018 ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Genes involved in the interaction with other microbes and/or the host that we identified include: an AI-2 family transporter, fusaric acid resistance genes, and ogt . Given that B. apis does not encode any of the canonical genes for the production of quorum-sensing molecules, it seems likely that B. apis is responding to exogenous AI-2 (and/or fusaric acid and its analogs) produced by other members of the bee microbiome ( Miller et al 2018 ). The ogt genes provide routes for interaction with the host, as ogt is known to modify thousands of eukaryotic proteins ( Love and Hanover 2005 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Genomic Signatures of Honey Bee Association in an Acetic Acid Symbiont

Smith

Newton

2020

Genome Biology and Evolution

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Recent declines in the health of the honey bee have startled researchers and lay people alike as honey bees are agriculture’s most important pollinator. Honey bees are important pollinators of many major crops and add billions of dollars annually to the US economy through their services. One factor that may influence colony health is the microbial community. Indeed, the honey bee worker digestive tract harbors a characteristic community of bee-specific microbes, and the composition of this community is known to impact honey bee health. However, the honey bee is a superorganism, a colony of eusocial insects with overlapping generations where nestmates cooperate, building a hive, gathering and storing food, and raising brood. In contrast to what is known regarding the honey bee worker gut microbiome, less is known of the microbes associated with developing brood, with food stores, and with the rest of the built hive environment. More recently, the microbe Bombella apis was identified as associated with nectar, with developing larvae, and with honey bee queens. This bacterium is related to flower-associated microbes such as Saccharibacter floricola and other species in the genus Saccharibacter, and initial phylogenetic analyses placed it as sister to these environmental bacteria. Here, we used comparative genomics of multiple honey bee-associated strains and the nectar-associated Saccharibacter to identify genomic changes that may be associated with the ecological transition to honey bee association. We identified several genomic differences in the honey bee-associated strains, including a complete CRISPR/Cas system. Many of the changes we note here are predicted to confer upon Bombella the ability to survive in royal jelly and defend themselves against mobile elements, including phages. Our results are a first step towards identifying potential function of this microbe in the honey bee superorganism.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%