Start Date
2021
Description
Nitrogen is an essential element for living organisms. For herbivorous ants like Cephalotes (Turtle ants), obtaining sufficient nitrogen is difficult. Previous studies have shown that the diet of turtle ants is nitrogen-limited. Hence they rely on bacterial gut symbionts to provision nitrogen through uric acid recycling. Metagenomic studies suggest the nitrogen recycling process involves multiple symbionts that together can degrade uric acid and produce amino acids. Of the symbionts in the ant gut, the recently cultured Ischyrobacter davidsoniae st. CV33 is an abundant member of the gut community that can degrade uric acid. What is not known is if this symbiont can use the resulting ammonia to synthesize and secrete amino acids.
Recommended Citation
Su, Yangzhou and Wertz, John T., "Physiology of Ischyrobacter in Cephalotes Guts" (2021). Summer Research. 49.
https://digitalcommons.calvin.edu/summer_research/2021/Posters/49
Included in
Physiology of Ischyrobacter in Cephalotes Guts
Nitrogen is an essential element for living organisms. For herbivorous ants like Cephalotes (Turtle ants), obtaining sufficient nitrogen is difficult. Previous studies have shown that the diet of turtle ants is nitrogen-limited. Hence they rely on bacterial gut symbionts to provision nitrogen through uric acid recycling. Metagenomic studies suggest the nitrogen recycling process involves multiple symbionts that together can degrade uric acid and produce amino acids. Of the symbionts in the ant gut, the recently cultured Ischyrobacter davidsoniae st. CV33 is an abundant member of the gut community that can degrade uric acid. What is not known is if this symbiont can use the resulting ammonia to synthesize and secrete amino acids.