The genus Solenopsis includes more than 100 species in the New World. When introduced, some species cause serious harm to the native wildlife and agriculture. Two forms of social organization are known in the genus, n...The genus Solenopsis includes more than 100 species in the New World. When introduced, some species cause serious harm to the native wildlife and agriculture. Two forms of social organization are known in the genus, namely, monogyne and polygyne. Here, we present the genetic profile of a Solenopsis invicta Buren 1972 colony recorded in the central region of the city of São Paulo, São Paulo state, Brazil (23°33'37.18"S;46°42'48.66"W) to describe allele diversity. Eight microsatellite loci were used for the analysis of 30 worker ants. The results show the presence of seven alleles genotyped at the same microsatellite locus. Because this is an unusual finding, all of the alleles were sequenced, and surprisingly, an eighth allele was identified. These data suggest that the intracolonial genetic profile of fire ants must be investigated more frequently because there may be unexpected, albeit unknown, genetic patterns for S. invicta that can help inform better control and management programs.展开更多
Symbiotic relations are present in the nature and can contribute to the success of the organisms involved. Endophytic fungi live within the leaf tissues without causing any harm to the host plant, and some of them can...Symbiotic relations are present in the nature and can contribute to the success of the organisms involved. Endophytic fungi live within the leaf tissues without causing any harm to the host plant, and some of them can be a defense mechanism against the attack by the leaf-cutting ants. Ants of the genus <em>Atta</em> are known as leaf-cutting ants and have an obligatory association with the fungus <em>Leucoagaricus gongylophorus</em>, cutting pieces of leaves and bringing them back to the colony to the fungus. The present study aimed to find out the endophytic fungi community of an attractive plant (<em>Acalypha wilkesiana</em>) and a less attractive plant (<em>Colocasia esculenta</em>) to the ants <em>Atta sexdens</em>. We found out that the communities are different in quantity and in composition and 73% of the isolated fungi were from <em>A. wilkesiana</em>, which has fungi known as attractive to leaf-cutting ants, such as genus<em> Colletotrichum</em>, <em>Pestalotiopsis</em>, <em>Phomopsis </em>and <em>Xylaria</em>. On the other hand, in <em>C. esculenta</em>, there was found the genus<em> Fusarium</em>, known to be reject by the leaf-cutting ants, and less fungal diversity than in the attractive plant <em>A. wilkesiana</em>. Therefore, our data suggest that attractivity or repelence of a plant to the leaf-cutting ants could be related to presence or ausence of determinated fungi more than the quantity of fungi present in a leaf.展开更多
文摘The genus Solenopsis includes more than 100 species in the New World. When introduced, some species cause serious harm to the native wildlife and agriculture. Two forms of social organization are known in the genus, namely, monogyne and polygyne. Here, we present the genetic profile of a Solenopsis invicta Buren 1972 colony recorded in the central region of the city of São Paulo, São Paulo state, Brazil (23°33'37.18"S;46°42'48.66"W) to describe allele diversity. Eight microsatellite loci were used for the analysis of 30 worker ants. The results show the presence of seven alleles genotyped at the same microsatellite locus. Because this is an unusual finding, all of the alleles were sequenced, and surprisingly, an eighth allele was identified. These data suggest that the intracolonial genetic profile of fire ants must be investigated more frequently because there may be unexpected, albeit unknown, genetic patterns for S. invicta that can help inform better control and management programs.
文摘Symbiotic relations are present in the nature and can contribute to the success of the organisms involved. Endophytic fungi live within the leaf tissues without causing any harm to the host plant, and some of them can be a defense mechanism against the attack by the leaf-cutting ants. Ants of the genus <em>Atta</em> are known as leaf-cutting ants and have an obligatory association with the fungus <em>Leucoagaricus gongylophorus</em>, cutting pieces of leaves and bringing them back to the colony to the fungus. The present study aimed to find out the endophytic fungi community of an attractive plant (<em>Acalypha wilkesiana</em>) and a less attractive plant (<em>Colocasia esculenta</em>) to the ants <em>Atta sexdens</em>. We found out that the communities are different in quantity and in composition and 73% of the isolated fungi were from <em>A. wilkesiana</em>, which has fungi known as attractive to leaf-cutting ants, such as genus<em> Colletotrichum</em>, <em>Pestalotiopsis</em>, <em>Phomopsis </em>and <em>Xylaria</em>. On the other hand, in <em>C. esculenta</em>, there was found the genus<em> Fusarium</em>, known to be reject by the leaf-cutting ants, and less fungal diversity than in the attractive plant <em>A. wilkesiana</em>. Therefore, our data suggest that attractivity or repelence of a plant to the leaf-cutting ants could be related to presence or ausence of determinated fungi more than the quantity of fungi present in a leaf.
