| phylogenetic placement of trichonympha. | flagellated protists of the class hypermastigida have previously been classified on morphology alone, since no molecular sequences have been available. we have isolated dna from 350 cells of the hypermastigote trichonympha, manually collected from the hindgut of zootermopsis angusticollis, and used this dna as template for polymerase chain reaction amplification of the small-subunit ribosomal rna gene. the dna sequence of the amplified fragment is closely related to that of a previously-unidenti ... | 1998 | 9703681 |
| pathogen alarm behavior in a termite: a new form of communication in social insects | dampwood termites, zootermopsis angusticollis, show an alarm response after detecting the presence of spores of the pathogenic fungus metarhizium anisopliae. termites in direct contact with a high concentration of spores (10(7) spores/ml) show a striking vibratory display which appears to convey information about the presence of pathogens to nearby unexposed nestmates through substrate vibration. nestmates not directly in contact with spores that perceive the vibrational signal increase signific ... | 1999 | 10551951 |
| phylogenetic diversity of termite gut spirochaetes. | a molecular phylogenetic analysis was done of not-yet-cultured spirochaetes inhabiting the gut of the termite, reticulitermes flavipes (kollar). ninety-eight clones of near-full-length spirochaetal 16s rdna genes were classified by ardra pattern and by partial sequencing. all clones grouped within the genus treponema, and at least 21 new species of treponema were recognized within r. flavipes alone. analysis of 190 additional clones from guts of coptotermes formosanus shiraki and zootermopsis an ... | 1999 | 11207751 |
| endospore-forming filamentous bacteria symbiotic in termites: ultrastructure and growth in culture of arthromitus. | many morphologically distinguishable filamentous spore-forming bacteria symbiotic in the paunch (hypertrophied hindguts) of wood-eating insects have been seen since arthromitus was first described and named as a plant by leidy in 1850. previous descriptions were inadequate for acceptance of the group in modern bacteriological literature. twenty-two distinguishable arthromitids in nine different arthropod hosts are recorded on the basis of microscopic studies. five are named, including two who ... | 1990 | 11539024 |
| aerobic and facultatively anaerobic cellulolytic bacteria from the gut of the termite zootermopsis angusticollis. | to demonstrate the occurrence of cellulolytic bacteria in the termite zootermopsis angusticollis. | 2002 | 11849325 |
| the development of immunity in a social insect: evidence for the group facilitation of disease resistance. | the extraordinary diversity and ecological success of the social insects has been attributed to their ability to cope with the rich and often infectious microbial community inhabiting their nests and feeding sites. mechanisms of disease control used by eusocial species include antibiotic glandular secretions, mutual grooming, removal of diseased individuals from the nest, and the innate and adaptive immune responses of colony members. here we demonstrate that after a challenge exposure to the en ... | 2002 | 12011442 |
| analysis of genes of tetrahydrofolate-dependent metabolism from cultivated spirochaetes and the gut community of the termite zootermopsis angusticollis. | the hindguts of wood-feeding termites are the sites of intense, co2-reductive acetogenesis. this activity profoundly influences host nutrition and methane emissions. homoacetogens previously isolated from diverse termites comprised novel taxa belonging to two distinct bacterial phyla, firmicutes and spirochates. little else is known about either the diversity or abundance of homoacetogenic species present in any given termite or the genetic details underlying co2-reductive acetogenesis by spiroc ... | 2003 | 12949177 |
| folate cross-feeding supports symbiotic homoacetogenic spirochetes. | treponema primitia, an h2-consuming co2-reducing homoacetogenic spirochete in termite hindguts, requires an exogenous source of folate for growth. tetrahydrofolate (thf) acts as a c1 carrier in co2-reductive acetogenesis, a microbially mediated process important to the carbon and energy requirements of termites. to examine the hypothesis that other termite gut microbes probably supply some form of folate to t. primitia in situ, we used a bioassay to screen for and isolate folate-secreting bacter ... | 2005 | 15812016 |
| nesting ecology and cuticular microbial loads in dampwood (zootermopsis angusticollis) and drywood termites (incisitermes minor, i. schwarzi, cryptotermes cavifrons). | termites form one-piece nests in wood that can vary in their moisture content and degree of decomposition, and thus microbial richness. to estimate the microbial load of nests and the potential risk they pose for colony members, we quantified the number of microbes in the nest and on the cuticle of the dampwood termite, zootermopsis angusticollis, and three drywood termites, incisitermes minor, i. schwarzi, and cryptotermes cavifrons. the number of colony forming units (cfus) cultured from nest ... | 2003 | 15841247 |
| disease and colony foundation in the dampwood termite zootermopsis angusticollis: the survival advantage of nestmate pairs. | to determine the impact of inbreeding and outbreeding on disease resistance and survival during colony foundation, nestmate (nm) and non-nestmate (non) primary reproductives of the dampwood termite zootermopsis angusticollis were exposed to a single or double dose of conidia of the entomopathogenic fungus metarhizium anisopliae. male and female primary reproductive pairs originating from the same parent colony had higher survivorship than non pairs in control and conidia-exposure treatments. the ... | 2005 | 15864512 |
| discovery of a novel wolbachia super group in isoptera. | wolbachia are one of the most abundant groups of bacterial endosymbionts in the biosphere. interest in these heritable microbes has expanded with the discovery of wider genetic diversity in under-sampled host species. here, we report on the putative discovery of a new genetic lineage, denoted super group h, which infects the isopteran species zootermopsis angusticollis and z. nevadensis. evidence for this novel super group is based on portions of new wolbachia gene sequences from each species sp ... | 2005 | 16252129 |
| volatile fatty acid production by the hindgut microbiota of xylophagous termites. | acetate dominated the extracellular pool of volatile fatty acids (vfas) in the hindgut fluid of reticulitermes flavipes, zootermopsis angusticollis, and incisitermes schwarzi, where it occurred at concentrations of 57.9 to 80.6 mm and accounted for 94 to 98 mol% of all vfas. small amounts of c(3) to c(5) vfas were also observed. acetate was also the major vfa in hindgut homogenates of schedorhinotermes lamanianus, prorhinotermes simplex, coptotermes formosanus, and nasutitermes corniger. estimat ... | 1983 | 16346296 |
| acetate synthesis from h(2) plus co(2) by termite gut microbes. | gut microbiota from reticulitermes flavipes termites catalyzed an h(2)-dependent total synthesis of acetate from co(2). rates of h(2)-co(2) acetogenesis in vitro were 1.11 +/- 0.37 mumol of acetate g (fresh weight) h (equivalent to 4.44 +/- 1.47 nmol termite h) and could account for approximately 1/3 of all the acetate produced during the hindgut fermentation. formate was also produced from h(2) + co(2), as were small amounts of propionate, butyrate, and lactate-succinate. however, h(2)-co(2) fo ... | 1986 | 16347157 |
| inducible immune proteins in the dampwood termite zootermopsis angusticollis. | dampwood termites, zootermopsis angusticollis (isoptera: termopsidae), mount an immune response to resist microbial infection. here we report on results of a novel analysis that allowed us to electrophoretically assess changes in hemolymph proteins in the same individual before and after exposure to a pathogen. we demonstrate that contact with a sublethal concentration of the entomopathogenic fungus metarhizium anisopliae (deuteromycotina:hypomycetes) induces the production of protective protein ... | 2007 | 16953417 |
| lignin degradation in wood-feeding insects. | the aromatic polymer lignin protects plants from most forms of microbial attack. despite the fact that a significant fraction of all lignocellulose degraded passes through arthropod guts, the fate of lignin in these systems is not known. using tetramethylammonium hydroxide thermochemolysis, we show lignin degradation by two insect species, the asian longhorned beetle (anoplophora glabripennis) and the pacific dampwood termite (zootermopsis angusticollis). in both the beetle and termite, signific ... | 2008 | 18725643 |
| disease resistance in the drywood termite, incisitermes schwarzi: does nesting ecology affect immunocompetence? | termites live in nests that can differ in microbial load and thus vary in degree of disease risk. it was hypothesized that termite investment in immune response would differ in species living in nest environments that vary in the richness and abundance of microbes. using the drywood termite, incisitermes schwarzi banks (isoptera: kalotermitidae), as a model for species having low nest and cuticular microbial loads, the susceptibility of individuals and groups to conidia of the entomopathogenic f ... | 2010 | 20572790 |
| losing the battle against fungal infection: suppression of termite immune defenses during mycosis. | the dampwood termite, zootermopsis angusticollis is known to generate humoral immune responses to the entomopathogenic fungus metarhizium anisopliae. however, little is known about how the termite's cellular immune system reacts to fungal infection. to test the effect of conidia exposure on cellular immunity, we quantified the number and types of hemocytes in the hemolymph of naïve nymphs and compared their circulating counts with those of nestmates exposed to 0, 2×10(3), 2×10(6) or 2×10(8) coni ... | 2011 | 21530532 |
| disruption of termite gut-microbiota and its prolonged fitness consequences. | the disruption of host-symbiont interactions through the use of antibiotics can help elucidate microbial functions that go beyond short-term nutritional value. termite gut symbionts have been studied extensively, but little is known about their impact on the termite's reproductive output. here we describe the effect that the antibiotic rifampin has not only on the gut microbial diversity, but also on the longevity, fecundity, and weight of two termite species - zootermopsis angusticollis and ret ... | 2011 | 21571887 |
| mate preference and disease risk in zootermopsis angusticollis (isoptera: termopsidae). | termites face significant and chronic intranidal selection pressures from parasites and pathogens that colonize their nests. they also encounter microbes outside their nest while foraging and during dispersal of winged primary reproductives to establish new colonies. the latter run the additional risk of becoming infected by a mating partner. indeed, death of reproductives because of disease is a major cause of incipient colony failure and may favor prescreening prospective mates for signs of il ... | 2011 | 22217773 |
| single-cell dna barcoding using sequences from the small subunit rrna and internal transcribed spacer region identifies new species of trichonympha and trichomitopsis from the hindgut of the termite zootermopsis angusticollis. | to aid in their digestion of wood, lower termites are known to harbour a diverse community of prokaryotes as well as parabasalid and oxymonad protist symbionts. one of the best-studied lower termite gut communities is that of zootermopsis angusticollis which has been known for almost 100 years to possess 3 species of trichonympha (t. campanula, t. collaris, and t. sphaerica), 1 species of trichomitopsis (t. termopsidis), as well as smaller flagellates. we have re-assessed this community by seque ... | 2013 | 23536818 |
| inbreeding and disease resistance in a social insect: effects of heterozygosity on immunocompetence in the termite zootermopsis angusticollis. | recent research has shown that low genetic variation in individuals can increase susceptibility to infection and group living may exacerbate pathogen transmission. in the eusocial diploid termites, cycles of outbreeding and inbreeding characterizing basal species can reduce genetic variation within nestmates during the life of a colony, but the relationship of genetic heterogeneity to disease resistance is poorly understood. here we show that, one generation of inbreeding differentially affects ... | 0 | 17002949 |