Spiroplasma Presence in the Microbiota Compared to Wolbachia in C. aeneicollis leaf beetles
Presenter
:
Ruby Kaiser
Presenter Status
:
Undergraduate student
Academic Year
:
20-21
Semester
:
Spring
Faculty Mentor
:
Nathan Rank
Department
:
Biology
Other Funding Source/Program
:
National Science Foundation
Presentation Link
:
Abstract
:
Animal microbiota can play a key role in mediating responses to stressful temperatures or other abiotic factors. They can also influence the adaptive significance of genetic variation in animal populations by altering the relative performance of individuals of different genotypes. The leaf beetle Chrysomela aeneicollis lives at high elevations in the California Sierra Nevada mountains, and populations possess genetic variation at mitochondrial and nuclear genes that influence its response to stress. I looked at the variation in the microbiota, focusing on Wolbachia and Spiroplasma, to determine relationships between the beetle populations and different bacterial strains.