BioProject

Bumblebees are important pollinators of agricultural crops and wild plants in agro-ecological systems across the world. More...

Bumblebees are important pollinators of agricultural crops and wild plants in agro-ecological systems across the world. Like other animals, bumble bees harbor a characteristic microbial community that plays an important role for their health.. However, there is limited information about the composition of the gut microbial community associated with bumblebee queens is the sole reproductive female in a colony. In the present study, we investigated the diversity of gut bacteria in different physiological state bumblebee queens, (Bombus lantschouensis), including Unmated Queens, Mated Queens, and Oviposition Queens. Our results revealed that there were significant shifts in the composition and copy numbers of microbiome members as queens underwent physiological changeschanged their physiological state. Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, Actinobacteria, and Bacteroidetes were four predominant phyla identified in different physiological status queens. The Gilliamella (Orbaceae), Snodgrassella (Neisseriaceae), Lactobacillus (Lactobacillus) and Bifidobacterium (Bifidobacteriaceae) were found to be the core bacterial genera in unmated and oviposition queens while the Bacillus (Bacillaceae), Lactococcus (Streptococcaceae) and Pseudomonas (Pseudomonadaceae) were the dominant genera in Mated queens, clearly demonstrating a relationship between the gut bacteria and queen physiological status. We propose testable hypotheses for why mated queens show a distinctive microbiota prior to their winter diapause, before reverting to a microbiota similar to unmated queens once they begin ovispositing. Our study is the first to explore the gut microbiome of bumblebee queens and provides useful information for future to study the gut bacteria function in queen development and colony’s performance. . Less...