Nutritional upgrading for omnivorous carpenter ants by the endosymbiont Blochmannia

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Carpenter ants (genus <it>Camponotus</it>) are considered to be omnivores. Nonetheless, the genome sequence of <it>Blochmannia floridanus</it>, the obligate intracellular endosymbiont of <it>Camponotus floridanus</it>, suggests a function in nutritional upgrading of host resources by the bacterium. Thus, the strongly reduced genome of the endosymbiont retains genes for all subunits of a functional urease, as well as those for biosynthetic pathways for all but one (arginine) of the amino acids essential to the host.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Nutritional upgrading by <it>Blochmannia </it>was tested in 90-day feeding experiments with brood-raising in worker-groups on chemically defined diets with and without essential amino acids and treated or not with antibiotics. Control groups were fed with cockroaches, honey water and Bhatkar agar. Worker-groups were provided with brood collected from the queenright mother-colonies (45 eggs and 45 first instar larvae each). Brood production did not differ significantly between groups of symbiotic workers on diets with and without essential amino acids. However, aposymbiotic worker groups raised significantly less brood on a diet lacking essential amino acids. Reduced brood production by aposymbiotic workers was compensated when those groups were provided with essential amino acids in their diet. Decrease of endosymbionts due to treatment with antibiotic was monitored by qRT-PCR and FISH after the 90-day experimental period. Urease function was confirmed by feeding experiments using ¹⁵N-labelled urea. GC-MS analysis of ¹⁵N-enrichment of free amino acids in workers revealed significant labelling of the non-essential amino acids alanine, glycine, aspartic acid, and glutamic acid, as well as of the essential amino acids methionine and phenylalanine.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our results show that endosymbiotic <it>Blochmannia </it>nutritionally upgrade the diet of <it>C. floridanus </it>hosts to provide essential amino acids, and that it may also play a role in nitrogen recycling via its functional urease. <it>Blochmannia </it>may confer a significant fitness advantage via nutritional upgrading by enhancing competitive ability of <it>Camponotus </it>with other ant species lacking such an endosymbiont. Domestication of the endosymbiont may have facilitated the evolutionary success of the genus <it>Camponotus</it>.</p

Single Part Tracking Enabled by Fluorescent Polysecure Tracing Particles in Am Parts

Traceability is widely recognized as a core enabler of many industry 4.0 technologies. The necessary identification of products is often realized through label-based systems, but tracing products with particular geometric constraints that prohibit the use of such systems remains an issue. A promising alternative of label based identification is the pattern based identification. This contribution portrays a novel method to utilize fluorescent particles integrated in polymer-based products and optical pattern recognition to facilitate the identification of products with specific geometric constraints. The particles are integrated into the polymer and the unique random distribution of fluorescent particles triggered by an LED flash is used to recognize individual products. To demonstrate the approach, polymer-based gear wheels were printed using ARBURG plastic freeforming and an automatic identification system was designed. The presented approach could be a reliable alternative to other surface-structure-based approaches for product identification and enable comprehensive tracing of components throughout value-chains.Mechanical Engineerin

Perturbations in plant energy homeostasis prime lateral root initiation via SnRK1-bZIP63-ARF19 signaling

Plant architecture is highly plastic and known to respond sensitively to nutritional changes. Although of great agronomic importance, the underlying molecular mechanisms that sense and transduce these cues into plant development and growth are poorly understood. Applying diverse genetic, biochemical, and microscopic approaches, we disclosed that signaling via the central, evolutionarily conserved fuel-sensor kinase Snf1-RELATED KINASE1 (SnRK1) initiates lateral root (LR) primordia formation in response to transient metabolic perturbations. This is accomplished by SnRK1-mediated activation of a signaling cascade involving the pivotal LR regulator AUXIN RESPONSE FACTOR19 (ARF19). We propose that this developmental priming strategy represents a cost-efficient approach to ensure rapid growth recovery after stress release, providing in competitive ecosystems a clear advantage in terms of Darwinian fitness.Plants adjust their energy metabolism to continuous environmental fluctuations, resulting in a tremendous plasticity in their architecture. The regulatory circuits involved, however, remain largely unresolved. In Arabidopsis, moderate perturbations in photosynthetic activity, administered by short-term low light exposure or unexpected darkness, lead to increased lateral root (LR) initiation. Consistent with expression of low-energy markers, these treatments alter energy homeostasis and reduce sugar availability in roots. Here, we demonstrate that the LR response requires the metabolic stress sensor kinase Snf1-RELATED-KINASE1 (SnRK1), which phosphorylates the transcription factor BASIC LEUCINE ZIPPER63 (bZIP63) that directly binds and activates the promoter of AUXIN RESPONSE FACTOR19 (ARF19), a key regulator of LR initiation. Consistently, starvation-induced ARF19 transcription is impaired in bzip63 mutants. This study highlights a positive developmental function of SnRK1. During energy limitation, LRs are initiated and primed for outgrowth upon recovery. Hence, this study provides mechanistic insights into how energy shapes the agronomically important root system.All study data are included in the article and/or supporting information