Enrichment and Broad Representation of Plant Biomass-Degrading Enzymes in the Specialized Hyphal Swellings of Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, the Fungal Symbiont of Leaf-Cutter Ants

PloS One
Frank O AylwardC R Currie

Abstract

Leaf-cutter ants are prolific and conspicuous constituents of Neotropical ecosystems that derive energy from specialized fungus gardens they cultivate using prodigious amounts of foliar biomass. The basidiomycetous cultivar of the ants, Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, produces specialized hyphal swellings called gongylidia that serve as the primary food source of ant colonies. Gongylidia also contain plant biomass-degrading enzymes that become concentrated in ant digestive tracts and are deposited within fecal droplets onto fresh foliar material as ants incorporate it into the fungus garden. Although the enzymes concentrated by L. gongylophorus within gongylidia are thought to be critical to the initial degradation of plant biomass, only a few enzymes present in these hyphal swellings have been identified. Here we use proteomic methods to identify proteins present in the gongylidia of three Atta cephalotes colonies. Our results demonstrate that a diverse but consistent set of enzymes is present in gongylidia, including numerous plant biomass-degrading enzymes likely involved in the degradation of polysaccharides, plant toxins, and proteins. Overall, gongylidia contained over three quarters of all biomass-degrading enzymes identifi...Continue Reading

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Citations

Jul 22, 2016·Critical Reviews in Biotechnology·Joshua J RosnowAaron T Wright
Feb 15, 2017·Journal of Insect Physiology·Alexandria M DeMiltoJon N Seal
Feb 2, 2019·Environmental Science and Pollution Research International·Priscila Tomie Leme IkeDulce Helena Ferreira Souza
Aug 19, 2017·Microbiology Spectrum·Jason E Stajich
Aug 4, 2021·MSystems·Andrés Mauricio Caraballo-RodríguezPieter C Dorrestein

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