Characterization of the symbiont Rickettsia in the mirid bug Nesidiocoris tenuis (Reuter) (Heteroptera: Miridae). Issue 6 (December 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Caspi-Fluger, A.; Inbar, M.; Steinberg, S.; Friedmann, Y.; Freund, M.; Mozes-Daube, N.; Zchori-Fein, E.
• Is Part Of: Bulletin of entomological research. Volume 104:Issue 6(2014)
• Page Start: 681
• Page End: 688
• Publication Date: 2014-12
• Subjects: Entomology -- Periodicals; 595.7
• DOI: 10.1017/S0007485314000492
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0007-4853

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="normal"> <title>Abstract</title> <p> <italic>Nesidiocoris tenuis</italic> (Reuter) (Heteroptera: Miridae) is an omnivorous insect used for biological control. Augmentative release and conservation of <italic>N. tenuis</italic> have been used for pest control in tomato crops. Intracellular bacterial symbionts of arthropods are common in nature and have diverse effects on their hosts; in some cases they can dramatically affect biological control. Fingerprinting methods showed that the symbiotic complex associated with <italic>N. tenuis</italic> includes <italic>Wolbachia</italic> and <italic>Rickettsia. Rickettsia</italic> of <italic>N. tenuis</italic> was further characterized by sequencing the <italic>16S rRNA</italic> and <italic>gltA</italic> bacterial genes, measuring its amount in different developmental stages of the insect by real-time polymerase chain reaction, and localizing the bacteria in the insect's body by fluorescence <italic>in situ</italic> hybridization. The <italic>Rickettsia</italic> in <italic>N. tenuis</italic> exhibited 99 and 96% similarity of both sequenced genes to <italic>Rickettsia bellii</italic> and <italic>Rickettsia</italic> reported from <italic>Bemisia tabaci</italic>, respectively. The highest amount of <italic>Rickettsia</italic> was measured in the 5th instar and adult, and the symbionts could be detected in the host gut and ovaries. Although the role played by <italic>Rickettsia</italic> in the biology of <italic>N. tenuis</italic> is currently unknown, their high amount in the adults and localization in the gut suggest that they may have a nutritional role in this insect.</p> </abstract>