Diversity of locust gut bacteria protects against pathogen invasion

Dillon, R J and Vennard, C T and Buckling, A and Charnley, A K (2005) Diversity of locust gut bacteria protects against pathogen invasion. Ecology Letters, 8 (12). pp. 1291-1298. ISSN 1461-023X

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Abstract

Diversity-invasibility relationships were explored in the novel context of the colonization resistance provided by gut bacteria of the desert locust Schistocerca gregaria against pathogenic bacteria. Germ-free insects were associated with various combinations of one to three species of locust gut bacteria and then fed an inoculum of the pathogenic bacterium Serratia marcescens. There was a significant negative relationship between the resulting density of Serratia marcescens and the number of symbiotic gut bacterial species present. Likewise there was a significant inverse relationship between community diversity and the proportion of locusts that harboured Serratia. Host mortality was not negatively correlated with resistance to gut-invasion by Serratia marcescens, although there were significantly more deaths among pathogen fed germ-free insects than tri-associated gnotobiotes. The outcome is consistent with the predictions of community ecology theory that species-rich communities are more resistant to invasion than species-poor communities.

Item Type:
Journal Article
Journal or Publication Title:
Ecology Letters
Uncontrolled Keywords:
/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/1100/1105
Subjects:
?? COLONIZATION RESISTANCEDIVERSITYGERM FREELOCUSTSSCHISTOCERCA GREGARIASERRATIA MARCESCENSSALMONELLA-TYPHIMURIUM INFECTIONSCHISTOCERCA-GREGARIADESERT LOCUSTPARASITE VIRULENCEMETARHIZIUM-ANISOPLIAEMULTIPLE INFECTIONLINKING DIVERSITYGNOTOBIOTIC MICECOMMUNITIE ??
ID Code:
50569
Deposited By:
Deposited On:
28 Oct 2011 23:21
Refereed?:
Yes
Published?:
Published
Last Modified:
20 Sep 2023 00:17