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Microbial community structure in the gut of the New Zealand insect Auckland tree weta (Hemideina thoracica)

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Abstract

The endemic New Zealand weta is an enigmatic insect. Although the insect is well known by its distinctive name, considerable size, and morphology, many basic aspects of weta biology remain unknown. Here, we employed cultivation-independent enumeration techniques and rRNA gene sequencing to investigate the gut microbiota of the Auckland tree weta (Hemideina thoracica). Fluorescence in situ hybridisation performed on different sections of the gut revealed a bacterial community of fluctuating density, while rRNA gene-targeted amplicon pyrosequencing revealed the presence of a microbial community containing high bacterial diversity, but an apparent absence of archaea. Bacteria were further studied using full-length 16S rRNA gene sequences, with statistical testing of bacterial community membership against publicly available termite- and cockroach-derived sequences, revealing that the weta gut microbiota is similar to that of cockroaches. These data represent the first analysis of the weta microbiota and provide initial insights into the potential function of these microorganisms.

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Acknowledgments

The work conducted by the U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute is supported by the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy under Contract No. DE-AC02-05CH11231. We thank S. Tringe, S. Malfatti, and T. Glavina del Rio (JGI) for their helpful advice, M. Dhami for providing the 18S rRNA gene primers, and R. Kleinpaste and G. Holwell for supplying weta. DWW and MD were supported by University of Auckland Doctoral Scholarships.

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Author notes

  1. Peter Deines

    Present address: Institute of Natural and Mathematical Sciences, Massey University, Private Bag 102904, Auckland, 0745, New Zealand

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Microbial Innovation, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, 1142, New Zealand

    David W. Waite, Melissa Dsouza, Kristi Biswas, Peter Deines & Michael W. Taylor

  2. Landcare Research, Private Bag 92170, Auckland Mail Centre, Auckland, 1142, New Zealand

    Darren F. Ward

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Correspondence to Michael W. Taylor.

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Communicated by Andreas Brune.

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Waite, D.W., Dsouza, M., Biswas, K. et al. Microbial community structure in the gut of the New Zealand insect Auckland tree weta (Hemideina thoracica). Arch Microbiol 197, 603–612 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00203-015-1094-3

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