Spiroplasma-like organisms closely associated with the gut in five leafhopper species (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae)
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ORIGINAL PAPER
Spiroplasma-like organisms closely associated with the gut in five leafhopper species (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) El-Desouky Ammar • Gail E. Gasparich David G. Hall • Saskia A. Hogenhout
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Received: 19 April 2010 / Revised: 17 September 2010 / Accepted: 29 September 2010 / Published online: 27 October 2010 Ó Springer-Verlag (outside the USA) 2010
Abstract Spiroplasmas are bacteria in the Class Mollicutes that are frequently associated with insects and/or plants. Here, we describe the ultrastructure, localization, and occurrence of apparent commensal/symbiotic spiroplasma-like organisms (SLOs) in the midgut and hindgut of five leafhopper species from laboratory-reared colonies. Those found in Dalbulus elimatus, Endria inimica, and Macrosteles quadrilineatus were long and tubular shaped, whereas those in Dalbulus maidis and Graminella nigrifrons were shorter and mostly rod-shaped in their host organisms. These SLOs were found in great numbers in the gut lumen frequently associated with the gut microvilli, but unlike the plant-pathogenic mollicutes, they did not seem to invade the gut epithelium or other tissues in any of these five leafhopper species. Large accumulations of these gutassociated organisms were more commonly found by confocal laser scanning microscopy in males than in
Communicated by Andreas Brune. E.-D. Ammar S. A. Hogenhout Department of Entomology, The Ohio State University, OARDC, Wooster, OH 44691, USA E.-D. Ammar (&) D. G. Hall Subtropical Insects Research Unit, U. S. Horticultural Research Laboratory, ARS-USDA, 2001 South Rock Road, Fort Pierce, FL 34945, USA e-mail: [email protected] G. E. Gasparich Department of Biological Sciences, Towson University, Towson, MD 21252, USA Present Address: S. A. Hogenhout Department of Disease and Stress Biology, The John Innes Centre, Norwich NR4 7UH, UK
females and in crowded than in singly reared leafhoppers. Ultrastructural evidence suggests that these SLOs may be horizontally transmitted between leafhoppers by contamination of the mouth parts with leafhopper excretions. Keywords Spiroplasma Insect gut Mollicutes Leafhoppers Symbionts
Introduction Members of the genus Spiroplasma (Bacteria: Mollicutes: Spiroplasmataceae) have been isolated from a wide range of hosts including insects, plants, crustaceans, and ticks (Gasparich 2002; Ammar and Hogenhout 2006). Although a large majority of the spiroplasmas thus far characterized appear to be commensal in their relationship with their hosts, there are several that are highly invasive and pathogenic to their host organisms. Insect pathogenic spiroplasmas include S. melliferum and S. apis that cause serious diseases in honey bees. Some spiroplasmas can infect both insect and plant hosts. These include the leafhopper-transmitted S. citri and S. kunkelii that are the causative agents of citrus stubborn and corn stunt diseases, respectively (Bove´ et al. 2003; Fletcher et al. 2006). Several Spiroplasma species and their non-helical relatives, such as Entomoplasma spp., are apparently
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