EXPLORATION FOR FACULTATIVE ENDOSYMBIONTS OF SHARPSHOOTERS

• Author(s): Purcell, Alexander; Brody, Eoin; Carlton, Chris; Curley, Clytia; Mizell, Russell;
• Abstract: Glassy-winged sharpshooters (GWSS) were collected in California and several states in the southeastern United States in 2002 and 2003 to search for pathogenic or beneficial endosymbiotic bacteria of these insects. Various tissues were examined for the presence of bacteria by PCR: hemolymph, eggs, and bacteriomes. A subset of hemolymph and egg samples were cloned and sequenced based on unique digest patterns of their extracted 16s rDNA, or analyzed by restriction digest patterns of sample compared to known bacterial DNA. Most cloned sequences were identified as Baumannia (one of the primary symbionts of GWSS), and Wolbachia (a common secondary symbiont in a majority of insect taxa investigated). In addition, we isolated bacteria that were most closely related (by 16S rDNA sequence) to the following genera: Acinetobacter, Stenotrophomonas, Pseudomonas, Burkholderia. All are common bacteria that are found in soil, water, or plant surfaces, and also in insect guts or surfaces.
• Publication Date: Dec 2004
• Journal: 2004 Pierce's Disease Research Symposium