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Metagenomics reveals diet-specific specialization in fungus gardens of grass- and dicot-cutter ants

Lily Khadempour, Huan Fan, Ken Keefover-Ring, Camila Carlos, Nilson S. Nagamoto, Miranda A. Dam, Monica T. Pupo, Cameron R. Currie
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/250993
Lily Khadempour
1 Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA, 53706
2 Department of Integrative Biology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA, 53706
3 Department of Energy Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA, 53706
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Huan Fan
1 Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA, 53706
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Ken Keefover-Ring
4 Departments of Botany and Geography, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA, 53706
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Camila Carlos
1 Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA, 53706
3 Department of Energy Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA, 53706
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Nilson S. Nagamoto
5 Department of Plant Protection, UNESP – São Paulo State University, Botucatu, SP, Brazil, CEP: 18603-970
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Miranda A. Dam
6 Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA 53706
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Monica T. Pupo
7 School of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil, CEP: 14040-903
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Cameron R. Currie
1 Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA, 53706
3 Department of Energy Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA, 53706
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Abstract

Leaf-cutter ants are dominant herbivores in the Neotropics. While most leaf-cutter ant species cut dicots to incorporate into their fungus gardens, some species specialize on grasses. Here we examine the bacterial community associated with the fungus gardens of grass- and dicot-cutter ants to elucidate the potential role of bacteria in leaf-cutter ant substrate specialization. We sequenced the metagenomes of 12 Atta fungus gardens, across four species of ants, with a total of 5.316 Gbp of sequence data. We show that community composition was significantly different between dicot- and grass-cutter ants, with grass-cutter ant fungus gardens having significantly lower diversity and a significantly higher abundance of Pantoea, the most abundant genus overall. Reflecting this difference in community composition, the bacterial functional profiles between the fungus gardens are significantly different. Specifically, grass-cutter ant fungus garden metagenomes are particularly enriched for genes responsible for amino acid, siderophore, and terpenoid biosynthesis while dicot-cutter ant fungus gardens metagenomes are enriched in genes involved in membrane transport. Our results suggest that bacteria in leaf-cutter ant fungus gardens aid in nutrient supplementation, a function especially relevant for the fungus gardens of ants that forage grass, a plant source relatively lower in nutrient value.

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Posted January 19, 2018.
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Metagenomics reveals diet-specific specialization in fungus gardens of grass- and dicot-cutter ants
Lily Khadempour, Huan Fan, Ken Keefover-Ring, Camila Carlos, Nilson S. Nagamoto, Miranda A. Dam, Monica T. Pupo, Cameron R. Currie
bioRxiv 250993; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/250993
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Metagenomics reveals diet-specific specialization in fungus gardens of grass- and dicot-cutter ants
Lily Khadempour, Huan Fan, Ken Keefover-Ring, Camila Carlos, Nilson S. Nagamoto, Miranda A. Dam, Monica T. Pupo, Cameron R. Currie
bioRxiv 250993; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/250993

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