Skip Navigation


MBE Advance Access originally published online on April 2, 2003
This Article
Right arrow Full Text Freely available
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF) Freely available
Right arrow All Versions of this Article:
20/5/748    most recent
msg082v1
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in ISI Web of Science
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow Search for citing articles in:
ISI Web of Science (23)
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Reuter, M.
Right arrow Articles by Keller, L.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Reuter, M.
Right arrow Articles by Keller, L.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

Mol. Biol. Evol. 20(5):748-753. 2003
DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msg082
© 2003 by the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution. ISSN: 0737-4038

High Levels of Multiple Wolbachia Infection and Recombination in the Ant Formica exsecta

Max Reuter and Laurent Keller

Institute of Ecology, University of Lausanne, Bâtiment de Biologie, Lausanne, Switzerland

Wolbachia bacteria are intracellular symbionts of many arthropod species. Their spread through host populations is promoted by drastic alterations imposed on their hosts' reproductive physiology. In the present study, we analyzed the association between Wolbachia strains and host mitochondrial haplotypes in a Swiss population of the ant Formica exsecta. In this species, female dispersal is extremely limited and the mitochondrial haplotypes are strongly differentiated between and within subpopulations. Our study revealed exceptionally high levels of multiple infection, with all ants harboring four or five distinct Wolbachia strains. Four of these strains were present in all ants analyzed. A fifth strain was associated with only three of the five mitochondrial haplotypes. An analysis of the Wolbachia gene wsp further revealed an unexpected high rate of recombination, with three of the five Wolbachia strains appearing to have arisen by homologous recombination.

Key Words: Wolbachia • social insects • Formica exsecta • population structure • homologous recombination • wsp.


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 GeneticsHome page
M. Mateos, S. J. Castrezana, B. J. Nankivell, A. M. Estes, T. A. Markow, and N. A. Moran
Heritable Endosymbionts of Drosophila
Genetics, September 1, 2006; 174(1): 363 - 376.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Mol Biol EvolHome page
L. Baldo, S. Bordenstein, J. J. Wernegreen, and J. H. Werren
Widespread Recombination Throughout Wolbachia Genomes
Mol. Biol. Evol., February 1, 2006; 23(2): 437 - 449.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J. Bacteriol.Home page
L. Baldo, N. Lo, and J. H. Werren
Mosaic Nature of the Wolbachia Surface Protein
J. Bacteriol., August 1, 2005; 187(15): 5406 - 5418.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Mol Biol EvolHome page
S. R. Bordenstein and J. J. Wernegreen
Bacteriophage Flux in Endosymbionts (Wolbachia): Infection Frequency, Lateral Transfer, and Recombination Rates
Mol. Biol. Evol., October 1, 2004; 21(10): 1981 - 1991.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Appl. Environ. Microbiol.Home page
Y. Kikuchi and T. Fukatsu
Diversity of Wolbachia Endosymbionts in Heteropteran Bugs
Appl. Envir. Microbiol., October 1, 2003; 69(10): 6082 - 6090.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Disclaimer:
Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.