| Title: | Microbial community modulates growth of symbiotic fungus required for stingless bee metamorphosis |
| Author(s): | Paludo CR; Pishchany G; Andrade-Dominguez A; Silva-Junior EA; Menezes C; Nascimento FS; Currie CR; Kolter R; Clardy J; Pupo MT; |
| Address: | "School of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, SP, Brazil. Department of Microbiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States of America. Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation, Embrapa Meio Ambiente, Jaguariuna, SP, Brazil. Department of Biology, FFCLRP, University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, SP, Brazil. Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, United States of America. Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States of America" |
| DOI: | 10.1371/journal.pone.0219696 |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1932-6203 (Electronic) 1932-6203 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "The Brazilian stingless bee Scaptotrigona depilis requires the brood cells-associated fungus Zygosaccharomyces sp. as steroid source for metamorphosis. Besides the presence of Zygosaccharomyces sp., other fungi inhabit S. depilis brood cells, but their biological functions are unknown. Here we show that Candida sp. and Monascus ruber, isolated from cerumen of S. depilis brood provisions, interact with Zygosaccharomyces sp. and modulate its growth. Candida sp. produces volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that stimulate Zygosacchromyces sp. development. Monascus ruber inhibits Zygosacchromyces sp. growth by producing lovastatin, which blocks steroid biosynthesis. We also observed that in co-cultures M. ruber inhibits Candida sp. through the production of monascin. The modulation of Zygosaccharomyces sp. growth by brood cell-associated fungi suggests their involvement in S. depilis larval development. This tripartite fungal community opens new perspectives in the research of microbial interactions with bees" |
| Keywords: | "Animals Bees/*growth & development/*microbiology Fungi/*growth & development *Metamorphosis, Biological *Microbiota Secondary Metabolism Symbiosis/*physiology;" |
| Notes: | "MedlinePaludo, Camila Raquel Pishchany, Gleb Andrade-Dominguez, Andres Silva-Junior, Eduardo Afonso Menezes, Cristiano Nascimento, Fabio Santos Currie, Cameron R Kolter, Roberto Clardy, Jon Pupo, Monica Tallarico eng U19 TW009872/TW/FIC NIH HHS/ Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't 2019/07/26 PLoS One. 2019 Jul 25; 14(7):e0219696. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0219696. eCollection 2019" |
