Comparative characterization of microbiota between the sibling species of tea geometrid mothEctropis obliquaProut andE.grisescensWarren

Abstract

AbstractFor a wide range of insect species, the microbiota has potential roles in determining host developmental programme, immunity and reproductive biology. The tea geometrid mothsEctropis obliquaandE. grisescensare two closely related species that mainly feed on tea leaves. Although they can mate, infertile hybrids are produced. Therefore, these species provide a pair of model species for studying the molecular mechanisms of microbiotal involvement in host reproductive biology. In this study, we first identified and compared the compositions of microbiota between these sibling species, revealing higher microbiotal diversity forE. grisescens. The microbiota ofE. obliquamainly comprised the phyla Firmicutes, Proteobacteria and Cyanobacteria, whereas that ofE. grisescenswas dominated by Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria and Firmicutes. At the genus level, the dominant microbiota ofE. grisescensincludedWolbachia,EnterobacterandPseudomonasand that ofE. obliquaincludedMelissococcus,StaphylococcusandEnterobacter. Furthermore, we verified the rate ofWolbachiato infect 80 samples from eight different geographical populations, and the results supported that onlyE. grisescensharbouredWolbachia. Taken together, our findings indicate significantly different microbiotal compositions forE. obliquaandE. grisescens, withWolbachiapossibly being a curial factor influencing the reproductive isolation of these species. This study provides new insight into the mechanisms by which endosymbiotic bacteria, particularlyWolbachia, interact with sibling species.