TY - JOUR
T1 - Riding the Trojan horse
T2 - Combating pest insects with their own symbionts
AU - Jurkevitch, Edouard
PY - 2011/9
Y1 - 2011/9
N2 - Insects form an extremely large group of animals and bear a consequently large variety of associated microbes. This microbiota includes very specific and obligate symbionts that provide essential functions to the host, and facultative partners that are not necessarily required for survival. The Tephritidae is a large family that includes many fruit pests such as the Mediterranean fruit fly (the medfly, Ceratitis capitata) and the Olive fly (Bactrocera oleae). Community and functional analyses showed that the microbiota of both flies contribute to their diet, and affect host fitness parameters. The analysis of the microbiota's community structure of mass-reared, sterilized medfly males used in the sterile insect technique revealed a strong reduction in Klebsiella spp. compared with non-sterile and wild flies. Inoculation of sterile males with this gut population affected female mating behaviour as they preferentially mated with inoculated versus non-inoculated males. These studies suggest that control can be significantly improved by manipulating symbionts in pest animals.
AB - Insects form an extremely large group of animals and bear a consequently large variety of associated microbes. This microbiota includes very specific and obligate symbionts that provide essential functions to the host, and facultative partners that are not necessarily required for survival. The Tephritidae is a large family that includes many fruit pests such as the Mediterranean fruit fly (the medfly, Ceratitis capitata) and the Olive fly (Bactrocera oleae). Community and functional analyses showed that the microbiota of both flies contribute to their diet, and affect host fitness parameters. The analysis of the microbiota's community structure of mass-reared, sterilized medfly males used in the sterile insect technique revealed a strong reduction in Klebsiella spp. compared with non-sterile and wild flies. Inoculation of sterile males with this gut population affected female mating behaviour as they preferentially mated with inoculated versus non-inoculated males. These studies suggest that control can be significantly improved by manipulating symbionts in pest animals.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84860408273&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/j.1751-7915.2011.00249.x
DO - 10.1111/j.1751-7915.2011.00249.x
M3 - Short survey
C2 - 21338477
AN - SCOPUS:84860408273
SN - 1751-7907
VL - 4
SP - 620
EP - 627
JO - Microbial Biotechnology
JF - Microbial Biotechnology
IS - 5
ER -