The role of microbial symbionts in host plant use and spectrum in oligophagous cucurbit feeding fruit flies (Tephritidae).

Herbivorous insects are among the most species-rich groups of animals. Although it is not clear how this large diversity arose, one major factor is thought to be the evolutionary interaction between plants and insects. The wide variety of toxins in plants and of specialized detoxifying mechanisms in insects resulted in co-evolution and insect radiations. Nevertheless, different groups of specialized insects are sometimes observed in novel host plants. This might result in a series of host-plant shifts which might eventually result in speciation. The underlying mechanisms are largely unknown but it has been suggested that microbes could play a major role (the microbial facilitation hypothesis). There is increasing evidence that multicellular organisms are intimately associated with microbes, which can have a big impact on their phenotype. This project aims to investigate the microbial facilitation hypothesis by focusing on specialized frugivorous tephritid flies feeding on Cucurbitaceae plants that were recently observed on unconventional host plants. In a first phase, we will assess whether different cucurbit feeding fruit flies have similar microbiota and metabolic responses to cucurbits. Second, we will explore how the flies own metabolic machinery and their microbiota respond to novel host plants. In the last experiment, we will investigate how disrupting their microbiota affects insect fitness.

Keywords:MICROBIOME, PHENOTYPIC PLASTICITY

Disciplines:Community ecology, Biology of adaptation, Speciation, Microbiomics, Transcriptomics

Project type:Collaboration project