Bacteria Contribute to Plant Secondary Compound Degradation in a Generalist Herbivore System

• Published in: mBio Vol. 11; no. 5
• Main Authors: Francoeur, Charlotte B., Khadempour, Lily, Moreira-Soto, Rolando D., Gotting, Kirsten, Book, Adam J., Pinto-Tomás, Adrián A., Keefover-Ring, Ken, Currie, Cameron R., McFall-Ngai, Margaret J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 27-10-2020
• Subjects: Microbiology
• ISSN: 2161-2129; 2150-7511

Leaf-cutter ants are dominant neotropical herbivores capable of deriving energy from a wide range of plant substrates. The success of leaf-cutter ants is largely due to their external gut, composed of key microbial symbionts, specifically, the fungal mutualistL. gongylophorusand a consistent bacterial community. Both symbionts are known to have critical roles in extracting energy from plant material, yet comparatively little is known about their roles in the detoxification of plant secondary compounds. In this study, we assessed if the bacterial communities associated with leaf-cutter ant fungus gardens can degrade harmful plant chemicals. We identify plant secondary compound detoxification in leaf-cutter ant gardens as a process that depends on the degradative potential of both the bacterial community andL. gongylophorus. Our findings suggest that the fungus garden and its associated microbial community influence the generalist foraging abilities of the ants, underscoring the importance of microbial symbionts in plant substrate suitability for herbivores.