Insect-symbiont systems: from complex relationships to biotechnological applications.
Microbial symbiosis is a ubiquitous aspect of life and was a major element in the ability of insects to explore several adverse environments. To date, the study of symbiosis in insects has been impaired by the unculturability of most symbionts. However, some molecular methods represent powerful tools to help understand insect-microorganism associations and to disclose new symbiont-host systems. Beyond playing an essential role in nutrition and development of the insects, symbionts can produce bioactive compounds that protect the host against adverse environmental conditions, predators and/or direct competitors. Since the search for natural bioactive products and new enzymes is a developing area, understanding the diversity and nature of symbiont-host relationships paves the way for the exploitation of new resources in biotechnology. Furthermore, genetic transformation of the symbionts with genes that code for compounds that are toxic for pathogenic and phytopathogenic agents is also a promising area of application of the insect-symbiont relationships. The search for new bioactive compounds, the use of symbionts for pest and disease control and the molecular strategies applied for these purposes are issues of particular interest for innovative biotechnological applications and are addressed in the present review.
Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Ciências, Centro de Biodiversidade, Genómica Integrativa e Funcional (BioFIG), Edifício ICAT, Lisboa, Portugal.
Sandra
S
Chaves
Marta
M
Neto
Rogério
R
Tenreiro
D000818:Animals; D001419:Bacteria / Q000472:pathogenicity; D018407:Bacterial Physiological Phenomena; D001709:Biotechnology / Q000379:methods*; D015870:Gene Expression; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D016680:Genome, Bacterial; D054884:Host-Pathogen Interactions / Q000502:physiology*; D007313:Insecta / Q000382:microbiology / Q000502:physiology; D010572:Pest Control, Biological; D013559:Symbiosis / Q000502:physiology*