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Microbial Community Diversity in the Gut of the South American Termite Cornitermes cumulans (Isoptera: Termitidae)

  • Invertebrate Microbiology
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Abstract

Termites inhabit tropical and subtropical areas where they contribute to structure and composition of soils by efficiently degrading biomass with aid of resident gut microbiota. In this study, culture-independent molecular analysis was performed based on bacterial and archaeal 16S rRNA clone libraries to describe the gut microbial communities within Cornitermes cumulans, a South American litter-feeding termite. Our data reveal extensive bacterial diversity, mainly composed of organisms from the phyla Spirochaetes, Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, Actinobacteria, and Fibrobacteres. In contrast, a low diversity of archaeal 16S rRNA sequences was found, comprising mainly members of the Crenarchaeota phylum. The diversity of archaeal methanogens was further analyzed by sequencing clones from a library for the mcrA gene, which encodes the enzyme methyl coenzyme reductase, responsible for catalyzing the last step in methane production, methane being an important greenhouse gas. The mcrA sequences were diverse and divided phylogenetically into three clades related to uncultured environmental archaea and methanogens found in different termite species. C. cumulans is a litter-feeding, mound-building termite considered a keystone species in natural ecosystems and also a pest in agriculture. Here, we describe the archaeal and bacterial communities within this termite, revealing for the first time its intriguing microbiota.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by Petrobras (CENPES), FAPERJ, and CNPq. The authors are grateful to Dr. Martha Sorenson for the revision of the manuscript. We acknowledge the services of the Johanna Döbereiner Genome Sequencing facilities (IBqM/UFRJ). We thank Joyce Lima, Catia Chaia, and Denise Oliveira for library construction, sequencing, and technical assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Diretoria de Programa - DIPRO, Instituto Nacional de Metrologia, Qualidade e Tecnologia -INMETRO, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Maria Angela B. Grieco, Janaina J. V. Cavalcante, Alexander M. Cardoso, Marcelo N. Medeiros, Eloi S. Garcia & Wanderley de Souza

  2. Instituto de Bioquímica Médica, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Ricardo P. Vieira & Orlando B. Martins

  3. Instituto de Biofísica Carlos Chagas Filho, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Ednildo A. Machado & Wanderley de Souza

  4. Instituto Nacional de Controle de Qualidade em Saúde, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Maysa M. Clementino

  5. Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Eloi S. Garcia

  6. Departamento de Bioquímica, Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Rodolpho M. Albano

  7. Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade de Brasília (UNB), Brasilia, Brazil

    Reginaldo Constantino

  8. Instituto Nacional de Metrologia, Qualidade e Tecnologia, Diretoria de Programa-DIPRO, Av. Nossa Senhora das Graças, 50-prédio 6, Xerém, 25250-020, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Maria Angela B. Grieco

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  1. Maria Angela B. Grieco
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  2. Janaina J. V. Cavalcante
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  3. Alexander M. Cardoso
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Correspondence to Maria Angela B. Grieco.

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Grieco, M.A.B., Cavalcante, J.J.V., Cardoso, A.M. et al. Microbial Community Diversity in the Gut of the South American Termite Cornitermes cumulans (Isoptera: Termitidae). Microb Ecol 65, 197–204 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00248-012-0119-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00248-012-0119-6

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