10.5061/DRYAD.7HS24
Nakayama, Satoshi
University of Liverpool
Parratt, Steven R.
University of Liverpool
Hutchence, Kate J.
University of Liverpool
Lewis, Zenobia
University of Liverpool
Price, Tom A. R.
University of Liverpool
Hurst, Gregory D. D.
University of Liverpool
Data from: Can maternally inherited endosymbionts adapt to a novel host?
Direct costs of Spiroplasma infection, but not vertical transmission
efficiency, evolve rapidly after horizontal transfer into D. melanogaster
Dryad
dataset
2014
2014-10-30T15:28:52Z
2014-10-30T15:28:52Z
en
https://doi.org/10.1038/hdy.2014.112
16572 bytes
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CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
Maternally inherited symbionts are common in arthropods and many have
important roles in host adaptation. The observation that specific symbiont
lineages infect distantly related host species implies new interactions
are commonly established by lateral transfer events. However, studies have
shown that symbionts often perform poorly in novel hosts. We hypothesized
selection on the symbiont may be sufficiently rapid that poor performance
in a novel host environment is rapidly ameliorated, permitting symbiont
maintenance. Here, we test this prediction for a Spiroplasma strain
transinfected into the novel host Drosophila melanogaster. In the
generations immediately following transinfection, the symbiont had low
transmission efficiency to offspring and imposed severe fitness costs on
its host. We observed that effects on host fitness evolved rapidly, being
undetectable after 17 generations in the novel host, whereas vertical
transmission efficiency was poorly responsive over this period. Our
results suggest that long-term symbiosis may more readily be established
in cases where symbionts perform poorly in just one aspect of symbiosis.
All dataNote: Supplementary data is included in the data on vertical
tranmission