Bacterial communities associated with Monochamus galloprovincialis, the insect-vector of pine wilt disease

Abstract

Bacterial communities associated with the Bursaphelenchus xylophilus (pine wood nematode, PWN) are suggested to play a role in pine wilt disease (PWD) development. However, it’s not clear where the PWN acquires these communities. In this sense, it is possible that bacterial communities colonizing Monochamus spp. may affect the bacterial communities associated with the PWN. In this work, we present the characterization of bacterial communities of the Portuguese insect vector Monochamus galloprovincialis using culture independent methods, and investigate the common bacterial communities between the insect-vector and the pathogenic agent, PWN. Monochamus galloprovincialis is mainly composed by γ-proteobacteria, Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes, sharing common bacterial genera with B. xylophilus (i.e. Serratia, Bacillus, and Pseudomonas). These results can bring new insights into the role of the insect vector in the PWN-bacteria interaction.