Wolbachia

Wolbachia
Transmission electron micrograph of Wolbachia within an insect cell
Credit:Public Library of Science / Scott O'Neill
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Bacteria
Phylum: Pseudomonadota
Class: Alphaproteobacteria
Order: Rickettsiales
Family: Ehrlichiaceae
Genus: Wolbachia
Hertig 1936 (Approved Lists 1980)
Species
  • "Candidatus Wolbachia bourtzisii" Ramirez-Puebla et al. 2015
  • "Candidatus Wolbachia brugii" Ramirez-Puebla et al. 2015
  • "Candidatus Wolbachia collembolicola" Ramirez-Puebla et al. 2015
  • "Candidatus Wolbachia ivorensis" Ehounoud et al. 2016
  • Wolbachia melophagi (Nöller 1917) Philip 1956 (Approved Lists 1980)
  • "Candidatus Wolbachia multihospitum" Ramirez-Puebla et al. 2015
  • "Candidatus Wolbachia onchocercicola" Ramirez-Puebla et al. 2015
  • Wolbachia pipientis Hertig 1936 (Approved Lists 1980)

Wolbachia is a genus of gram-negative bacteria infecting many species of arthropods and filarial nematodes.[1][2] The symbiotic relationship ranges from parasitism to obligate mutualism. It is one of the most common parasitic microbes of arthropods, and is possibly the most widespread reproductive parasite bacterium in the biosphere.[3] Its interactions with hosts are complex and highly diverse across different host species. Some host species cannot reproduce, or even survive, without Wolbachia colonisation. One study concluded that more than 16% of neotropical insect species carry bacteria of this genus,[4] and as many as 25 to 70% of all insect species are estimated to be potential hosts.[5]

  1. ^ "Genome Sequence of the Intracellular Bacterium Wolbachia". PLOS Biology. 2 (3): e76. March 2004. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.0020076. PMC 368170.
  2. ^ Taylor MJ, Bordenstein SR, Slatko B (November 2018). "Microbe Profile: Wolbachia: a sex selector, a viral protector and a target to treat filarial nematodes". Microbiology. 164 (11): 1345–1347. doi:10.1099/mic.0.000724. PMC 7008210. PMID 30311871.
  3. ^ Duron O, Bouchon D, Boutin S, Bellamy L, Zhou L, Engelstädter J, et al. (June 2008). "The diversity of reproductive parasites among arthropods: Wolbachia do not walk alone". BMC Biology. 6 (1): 27. doi:10.1186/1741-7007-6-27. PMC 2492848. PMID 18577218.
  4. ^ Werren JH, Windsor D, Guo LR (1995). "Distribution of Wolbachia among neotropical arthropods". Proceedings of the Royal Society B. 262 (1364): 197–204. Bibcode:1995RSPSB.262..197W. doi:10.1098/rspb.1995.0196. S2CID 86540721.
  5. ^ Kozek WJ, Rao RU (2007). "The Discovery of Wolbachia in Arthropods and Nematodes – A Historical Perspective". Wolbachia: A Bug's Life in another Bug. Issues in Infectious Diseases. Vol. 5. pp. 1–14. doi:10.1159/000104228. ISBN 978-3-8055-8180-6.