|
|
||||||||
1 Department of Biological Sciences, 101 Rouse Life Sciences Building, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama 36849
2 Department of Animal Sciences, Cellular & Molecular Biosciences Program, 234 Upchurch Hall, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama 36849
3 Departments of Animal Sciences and Anatomy, Physiology & Pharmacology, Cellular & Molecular Biosciences Program, 236 Upchurch Hall, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama 36849
4 Department of Marine Science, 340 Chapman Hall CB#3300, University of North Carolina—Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: thornhill.dan{at}gmail.com or ken{at}auburn.edu
Siboglinid worms are a group of gutless marine annelids that are nutritionally dependent upon endosymbiotic bacteria. Four major groups of siboglinids are known—vestimentiferans, moniliferans, Osedax spp. and frenulates. Although endosymbionts of vestimentiferans and Osedax spp. have been previously characterized, little is currently known about endosymbiotic bacteria associated with frenulate and moniliferan siboglinids. This is particularly surprising given that frenulates are the most diverse and widely distributed group of siboglinids. Here, we molecularly characterize endosymbiotic bacteria associated with the frenulate siboglinid Siboglinum fiordicum by using 16S rDNA ribotyping in concert with laser-capture microdissection (LCM). Phylogenetic analysis indicates that at least three major clades of endosymbiotic
-proteobacteria associate with siboglinid annelids, with each clade corresponding to a major siboglinid group. S. fiordicum endosymbionts are a group of
–proteobacteria that are divergent from bacteria associated with vestimentiferan or Osedax hosts. Interestingly, symbionts of S. fiordicum, from Norway, are most closely related to symbionts of the frenulate Oligobrachia mashikoi from Japan, suggesting that symbionts of frenulates may share common evolutionary history or metabolic features.
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |