A5020348864- Plant and animal studies
- Insect and Arachnid Ecology and Behavior
- Insect and Pesticide Research
- Plant Parasitism and Resistance
- Insect symbiosis and bacterial influences
- Legume Nitrogen Fixing Symbiosis
- Animal Behavior and Reproduction
- Plant-Microbe Interactions and Immunity
- Evolutionary Game Theory and Cooperation
- Plant Reproductive Biology
- Evolution and Genetic Dynamics
- Gut microbiota and health
The University of Texas at Austin
2003-2025
Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute
1998-2003
Smithsonian Institution
1998
National Museum of Natural History
1998
University of Maryland, College Park
1998
Cultivation of fungi for food by fungus-growing ants (Attini: Formicidae) originated about 50 million years ago. The subsequent evolutionary history this agricultural symbiosis was inferred from phylogenetic and population-genetic patterns 553 cultivars isolated gardens “primitive” ants. These indicate that succeeded at domesticating multiple cultivars, the are capable switching to novel single ant species farm a diversity shared occasionally between distantly related species, probably...
The symbiosis between fungus-growing ants and the fungi they cultivate for food has been shaped by 50 million years of coevolution. Phylogenetic analyses indicate that this long coevolutionary history includes a third symbiont lineage: specialized microfungal parasites ants' fungus gardens. At ancient levels, phylogenies three symbionts are perfectly congruent, revealing ant-microbe is product tripartite coevolution farming ants, their cultivars, garden parasites. recent phylogenetic...
To elucidate fungicultural specializations contributing to ecological dominance of leafcutter ants, we estimate the phylogeny fungi cultivated by fungus-growing (attine) including fungal cultivars from (i) entire range southern South America North America, (ii) all higher-attine ant lineages (leafcutting genera Atta, Acromyrmex; nonleafcutting Trachymyrmex, Sericomyrmex) and (iii) lower-attine lineages. Higher-attine form two clades, Clade-A (Leucocoprinus gongylophorus, formerly Attamyces)...
Leafcutter ants propagate co-evolving fungi for food. The nearly 50 species of leafcutter (Atta, Acromyrmex) range from Argentina to the United States, with greatest diversity in southern South America. We elucidate biogeography cultivated by using DNA sequence and microsatellite-marker analyses 474 cultivars collected across range. Fungal belong two clades (Clade-A Clade-B). dominant widespread Clade-A form three genotype clusters, their relative prevalence corresponding America, northern...
The mutualistic symbiosis between fungus‐gardening ants and their cultivars has made fundamental contributions to our understanding of the coevolution complex species interactions. Reciprocal specialization vertical symbiont cotransmission are thought promote a pattern largely synchronous coevolutionary diversification in attines. Here we test this hypothesis by inferring first time‐calibrated multigene phylogeny lepiotaceous attine comparing it with recently published fossil‐anchored ants....
Abstract We develop a method to artificially select for rhizosphere microbiomes that confer salt-tolerance the model grass Brachypodium distachyon . differentially propagate within background of non-evolving, highly-inbred plant population, and therefore only evolve in our experiment, but not plants. To optimize methods, we conceptualize artificial microbiome-selection as special case indirect selection : do measure microbiome properties directly, use host performance (e.g., biomass; seed...
Microbiome breeding by host-mediated selection is a technique to artificially select for microbiomes conferring benefits plants. Here, we describe leaf ionomics, microbial community composition, and network analyses of microbiome-breeding experiment generate salt tolerance Brachypodium distachyon, model cereal crops. Plants receiving selected confer either sodium- or aluminium-stress produced 69-198% higher total seed weight than plants control microbiomes. Sodium-selected reduced...
Cleaning symbioses represent classic models of mutualism, and some bee mites are thought to perform cleaning services for their hosts in exchange suitable environments reproduction dispersal. These mutual benefits, however, have not been rigorously demonstrated. We tested the sanitary role by correlating mite loads with fungal contamination natural nests Megalopta genalis ecuadoria experimentally manipulating artificial cells developing brood. Field observations revealed significant...
To explore landscape genomics at the range limit of an obligate mutualism, we use genotyping-by-sequencing (ddRADseq) to quantify population structure and effect host-symbiont interactions between northernmost fungus-farming leafcutter ant Atta texana its two main types cultivated fungus. Genome-wide differentiation ants associated with either fungal is same order magnitude as temperature precipitation across ant's entire range, suggesting that specific ant-fungus genome-genome combinations...
We dekaryotized the multinucleate fungus Leucocoprinus gongylophorus, a symbiotic cultivated vegetatively by leafcutter ants as their food. To track genetic changes resulting from dekaryotization (elimination of some nuclei multinuclear population), we developed two multiplex microsatellite fingerprinting panels (15 loci total), then characterized allele profiles 129 accessions generated treatment. Genotype confirmed loss expected fungus. found no evidence for haploid and single-nucleus...
Mycetosoritis hartmanni is a rarely collected fungus-farming ant of North America. We describe life history and nest architecture for M . population in central Texas, USA. Colonies are monogynous with typically less than 100 workers (average 47.6 workers, maximum 148 workers). Nests occur always sand have uniform 1–3 underground garden chambers arranged along vertical tunnel, the deepest gardens 50–70 cm deep. Foragers active primarily between April October. After reduced activity November...
ABSTRACT Ants exhibit complex social organization, morphologically distinct castes with division of labor, and the exploitation diverse ecological niches. The extent to which these features have influenced embryonic development relative other insects remains unclear. Insect embryogenesis has been classified into one three modes: long, short, intermediate germ-band. In long germ-band development, exemplified by fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster , segments along entire anterior-posterior axis...