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(Endo)symbiotic Methanogenic Archaea pp 55–79Cite as

Termite Gut Flagellates and Their Methanogenic and Eubacterial Symbionts

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Part of the book series: Microbiology Monographs ((MICROMONO,volume 19))

Abstract

Termites harbor an abundance and diversity of symbiotic microbes in their gut that comprise all the three domains of life: Eucarya, Bacteria, and Archaea. One of the most prominent features of this microbiota is the cellular association of the gut flagellates with eubacteria and/or methanogenic archaea. The eubacterial and methanogenic symbionts are observed both inside and on the surface of the host flagellate cells. Although molecular approaches have gradually revealed the phylogenetic and spatial structures of these as-yet-uncultivable symbiotic complexes, their functions remain largely unknown. Recently, a method to acquire the complete genome sequence of uncultured bacterial species from a small number of cells has been developed; two complete genome sequences of endosymbiotic eubacteria of termite gut flagellates have been decoded. This novel genomic approach is expected to provide a great progress in the studies of this multilayered symbiotic system in termite gut.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, O-okayama 2-12-1-W3-48, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, 152-8550, Japan

    Yuichi Hongoh

  2. Japan Collection of Microorganisms (JCM), RIKEN BioResource Center, Hirosawa 2-1, Wako, Saitama, 351-0198, Japan

    Yuichi Hongoh & Moriya Ohkuma

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Correspondence to Yuichi Hongoh .

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  1. Faculty of Science, University of Nijmegen, POB 9010, Nijmegen, 6500 GL, Netherlands

    Johannes H.P. Hackstein

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Hongoh, Y., Ohkuma, M. (2010). Termite Gut Flagellates and Their Methanogenic and Eubacterial Symbionts. In: Hackstein, J. (eds) (Endo)symbiotic Methanogenic Archaea. Microbiology Monographs, vol 19. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-13615-3_5

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