PMID- 23894287
OWN - NLM
STAT- MEDLINE
DCOM- 20140224
LR  - 20211021
IS  - 1932-6203 (Electronic)
IS  - 1932-6203 (Linking)
VI  - 8
IP  - 7
DP  - 2013
TI  - Culture-independent investigation of the microbiome associated with the nematode 
      Acrobeloides maximus.
PG  - e67425
LID - 10.1371/journal.pone.0067425 [doi]
LID - e67425
AB  - BACKGROUND: Symbioses between metazoans and microbes are widespread and vital to 
      many ecosystems. Recent work with several nematode species has suggested that 
      strong associations with microbial symbionts may also be common among members of 
      this phylu. In this work we explore possible symbiosis between bacteria and the 
      free living soil bacteriovorous nematode Acrobeloides maximus. METHODOLOGY: We 
      used a soil microcosm approach to expose A. maximus populations grown 
      monoxenically on RFP labeled Escherichia coli in a soil slurry. Worms were 
      recovered by density gradient separation and examined using both 
      culture-independent and isolation methods. A 16S rRNA gene survey of the 
      worm-associated bacteria was compared to the soil and to a similar analysis using 
      Caenorhabditis elegans N2. Recovered A. maximus populations were maintained on 
      cholesterol agar and sampled to examine the population dynamics of the 
      microbiome. RESULTS: A consistent core microbiome was extracted from A. maximus 
      that differed from those in the bulk soil or the C. elegans associated set. Three 
      genera, Ochrobactrum, Pedobacter, and Chitinophaga, were identified at high 
      levels only in the A. maximus populations, which were less diverse than the 
      assemblage associated with C. elegans. Putative symbiont populations were 
      maintained for at least 4 months post inoculation, although the levels decreased 
      as the culture aged. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) using probes 
      specific for Ochrobactrum and Pedobacter stained bacterial cells in formaldehyde 
      fixed nematode guts. CONCLUSIONS: Three microorganisms were repeatedly observed 
      in association with Acrobeloides maximus when recovered from soil microcosms. We 
      isolated several Ochrobactrum sp. and Pedobacter sp., and demonstrated that they 
      inhabit the nematode gut by FISH. Although their role in A. maximus is not 
      resolved, we propose possible mutualistic roles for these bacteria in protection 
      of the host against pathogens and facilitating enzymatic digestion of other 
      ingested bacteria.
FAU - Baquiran, Jean-Paul
AU  - Baquiran JP
AD  - Department of Environmental Sciences, University of California Riverside, 
      Riverside, California, USA.
FAU - Thater, Brian
AU  - Thater B
FAU - Sedky, Sammy
AU  - Sedky S
FAU - De Ley, Paul
AU  - De Ley P
FAU - Crowley, David
AU  - Crowley D
FAU - Orwin, Paul M
AU  - Orwin PM
LA  - eng
PT  - Journal Article
PT  - Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
DEP - 20130722
PL  - United States
TA  - PLoS One
JT  - PloS one
JID - 101285081
RN  - 0 (DNA, Bacterial)
RN  - 0 (DNA, Ribosomal)
RN  - 0 (Soil)
SB  - IM
MH  - Animals
MH  - Bacteria/classification/genetics/growth & development/isolation & purification
MH  - Coculture Techniques
MH  - DNA, Bacterial/genetics
MH  - DNA, Ribosomal/genetics
MH  - *Microbiota
MH  - Nematoda/growth & development/*microbiology
MH  - Phylogeny
MH  - Soil
MH  - *Symbiosis
PMC - PMC3718782
COIS- Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
EDAT- 2013/07/31 06:00
MHDA- 2014/02/25 06:00
PMCR- 2013/07/22
CRDT- 2013/07/30 06:00
PHST- 2012/11/06 00:00 [received]
PHST- 2013/05/20 00:00 [accepted]
PHST- 2013/07/30 06:00 [entrez]
PHST- 2013/07/31 06:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 2014/02/25 06:00 [medline]
PHST- 2013/07/22 00:00 [pmc-release]
AID - PONE-D-12-34674 [pii]
AID - 10.1371/journal.pone.0067425 [doi]
PST - epublish
SO  - PLoS One. 2013 Jul 22;8(7):e67425. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0067425. Print 2013.