PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Arnold, Pieter A.
AU  - Levin, Samantha
AU  - Stevanovic, Aleksej L.
AU  - Johnson, Karyn N.
TI  - <em>Wolbachia</em>-infected <em>Drosophila</em> prefer cooler temperatures
AID  - 10.1101/352872
DP  - 2018 Jan 01
TA  - bioRxiv
PG  - 352872
4099  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2018/06/21/352872.short
4100  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2018/06/21/352872.full
AB  - Temperature plays a fundamental role in host-pathogen interactions. Wolbachia is an endosymbiont that infects about 40% of arthropod species, which can affect host behaviour and reproduction. The effect of Wolbachia on host thermoregulatory behaviour is largely unknown. Here, we used a thermal gradient to test whether Drosophila melanogaster infected with Wolbachia exhibit different temperature preferences (Tp) to uninfected flies. We found that Wolbachia-infected flies preferred a cooler mean temperature (Tp = 25.06±0.25°C) than uninfected flies (Tp = 25.78±0.24°C). Our finding suggests that Wolbachia-infected hosts might seek out cooler microclimates to reduce exposure to and lessen the consequences of high temperatures.AbbreviationsTbbody temparatureTppreferred temperature