Diversity of gut bacteria of Reticulitermes flavipes as examined by 16S rRNA gene sequencing and amplified rDNA restriction analysis.
The phylogenetic species richness of the bacteria in the gut of the termite Reticulitermes flavipes was examined using near full-length 16S rRNA gene sequencing and amplified rDNA restriction analysis (ARDRA). We amplified the genes by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) directly from a mixed population of termite gut bacteria and isolated them using cloning techniques. Sequence analysis of 42 clones identified a broad taxonomic range of ribotypes from six phyla within the domain Bacteria: Proteobacteria, Spirochaetes, Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, Actinobacteria, and the recently proposed "Endomicrobia." Analysis of the sequence data suggested the presence of a termite specific bacterial lineage within Bacteroidetes. The ARDRA data included 261 different ARDRA profiles of 512 clones analyzed. These data suggest the gut flora in R. flavipes is extremely diverse.
Dow AgroSciences, 1115 Arrington Road, Blacksburg, VA 24060, USA. mlfisher@dow.com
Marc
M
Fisher
Dini
D
Miller
Carlyle
C
Brewster
Claudia
C
Husseneder
Allan
A
Dickerman
D000818:Animals; D001419:Bacteria / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal / Q000235:genetics; D041981:Gastrointestinal Tract / Q000382:microbiology; D020049:Isoptera / Q000382:microbiology*; D021141:Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques; D010802:Phylogeny; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000235:genetics
D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S