[SCAN] Microbial symbiosis and interactions in the honey bee gut
Waldan Kwong
| When |
05 Jun, 2024
from
12:00 pm to 01:00 pm |
|---|---|
| Where | ITQB NOVA Auditorium |
| Contact Name | Sandra Viegas |
| Contact Email | sviegas@itqb.unl.pt |
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Title: Microbial symbiosis and interactions in the honey bee gut
Speaker: Waldan Kwong
From: Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência
Abstract: Social bees, including honey bees and bumble bees, harbour a highly specialized and conserved gut microbial community. This microbiota has been implicated in beneficial roles in nutrient digestion and pathogen resistance. We are studying mechanisms such as secretion systems and OMVs, by which microbial cells in this community interact with each other. However, the microbiome can also cause changes to host physiology as the bee responds to the presence of these gut microbes. Using single-cell RNAseq methods, we examine how the gut microbiome changes gene expression in two hindgut compartments where the microbiome is most abundant: the ileum and the rectum. We identify previously uncharacterized cell types in the hindgut, and localize these cell types using in-situ hybridization. In doing so, we lay the foundation for further investigation of the mechanistic basis of the symbiosis between bees and their beneficial gut microbiota.
Social bees, including honey bees and bumble bees, harbour a highly specialized and conserved gut microbial community. This microbiota has been implicated in beneficial roles in nutrient digestion and pathogen resistance. We are studying mechanisms such as secretion systems and OMVs, by which microbial cells in this community interact with each other. However, the microbiome can also cause changes to host physiology as the bee responds to the presence of these gut microbes. Using single-cell RNAseq methods, we examine how the gut microbiome changes gene expression in two hindgut compartments where the microbiome is most abundant: the ileum and the rectum. We identify previously uncharacterized cell types in the hindgut, and localize these cell types using in-situ hybridization. In doing so, we lay the foundation for further investigation of the mechanistic basis of the symbiosis between bees and their beneficial gut microbiota.
