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Simple Summary: Beetles, among which weevils are the most diverse group, are very successful on land. The thick and hard cuticle of weevils plays an important role in their environmental adaptability. Many weevils carry the bacterial endosymbiont Nardonella, which is specialized to produce tyrosine, the key precursor for cuticle formation. The Nardonella-encoded tyrosine synthesis pathway is incomplete, lacking the last-step aminotransferase gene. The underlying mechanism of the metabolic integration between Nardonella and eukaryotic host cells remains elusive. We identified five aminotransferase genes in the red palm weevil genome, of which only RfGOT1 and RfGOT2A were upregulated in the bacteriocyte. RNA interference of the RfGOT1 or RfGOT2A gene led to a decrease in tyrosine levels in the bacteriome, confirming that these two host-encoded transaminase genes are involved in the final step of the tyrosine synthesis pathway. Notably, trafficking of RfGOT1 and RfGOT2A into the Nardonella cytoplasm was observed through immunoelectron microscopy and immunofluorescence experiments. These results indicate that the transaminases encoded by the red palm weevil can be transported to the endosymbiont to complement the tyrosine metabolic pathways of Nardonella. Our findings highlight the close relationship and intricate metabolic integration between hosts and endosymbionts. Symbiotic systems are intimately integrated at multiple levels. Host–endosymbiont metabolic complementarity in amino acid biosynthesis is especially important for sap-feeding insects and their symbionts. In weevil–Nardonella endosymbiosis, the final step reaction of the endosymbiont tyrosine synthesis pathway is complemented by host-encoded aminotransferases. Based on previous results from other insects, we suspected that these aminotransferases were likely transported into the Nardonella cytoplasm to produce tyrosine. Here, we identified five aminotransferase genes in the genome of the red palm weevil. Using quantitative real-time RT-PCR, we confirmed that RfGOT1 and RfGOT2A were specifically expressed in the bacteriome. RNA interference targeting these two aminotransferase genes reduced the tyrosine level in the bacteriome. The immunofluorescence-FISH double labeling localization analysis revealed that RfGOT1 and RfGOT2A were present within the bacteriocyte, where they colocalized with Nardonella cells. Immunogold transmission electron microscopy demonstrated the localization of RfGOT1 and RfGOT2A in the cytosol of Nardonella and the bacteriocyte. Our data revealed that RfGOT1 and RfGOT2A are transported into the Nardonella cytoplasm to collaborate with genes retained in the Nardonella genome in order to synthesize tyrosine. The results of our study will enhance the understanding of the integration of host and endosymbiont metabolism in amino acid biosynthesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Endosymbionts live symbiotically with insect hosts and play important roles in the evolution, growth, development, reproduction, and environmental fitness of hosts. Weevils are one of the most abundant insect groups that can be infected by various endosymbionts, such as Sodalis , Nardonella , and Wolbachia. The sweet potato weevil, Cylas formicarius (Coleoptera: Brentidae), is a notorious pest in sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) cultivation. Currently, little is known about the presence of endosymbionts in C. formicarius. Herein, we assessed the endosymbiont load of a single geographic population of C. formicarius. The results showed that Nardonella and Rickettsia could infect C. formicarius at different rates, which also varied according to the developmental stages of C. formicarius. The relative titer of Nardonella was significantly related to C. formicarius developmental stages. The Nardonella -infecting sweet potato weevils were most closely related to the Nardonella in Sphenophorus levis (Coleoptera, Curculionidae). The Rickettsia be identified in bellii group. These results preliminarily revealed the endosymbionts in C. formicarius and helped to explore the diversity of endosymbionts in weevils and uncover the physiological roles of endosymbionts in weevils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Virtually all animals associate with beneficial symbiotic bacteria. Whether and how these associations are modulated across a host’s lifecycle is an important question in disentangling animal-bacteria interactions. We recently reported a case of complete morphological reorganization of symbiosis during metamorphosis of the cereal weevil, Sitophilus oryzae. In this model, the bacteriome, a specialized organ that houses the intracellular bacterium Sodalis pierantonius, undergoes a two-phase remodeling program synchronously driven by host and endosymbiont, resulting in a localization shift and the formation of multiple new bacteriomes. Here, we provide comparative data in a closely-related coleopteran, the red palm weevil Rhynchophorus ferrugineus, which is associated with the ancestral endosymbiont Nardonella. Using cell imaging experiments, we show that the red pal weevil bacteriome remains unchanged during metamorphosis, hence contrasting with what we reported in the cereal weevil S. oryzae. These findings highlight the complexity and divergence of host-symbiont interactions and their intertwining with host development, even in closely-related species. Abbreviations: DAPI: 4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole; FISH: Fluorescence in situ hybridization; T3SS: Type III secretion system.

Virtually all animals associate with beneficial symbiotic bacteria. Whether and how these associations are modulated across a host's lifecycle is an important question in disentangling animal-bacteria interactions. We recently reported a case of complete morphological reorganization of symbiosis during metamorphosis of the cereal weevil, Sitophilus oryzae. In this model, the bacteriome, a specialized organ that houses the intracellular bacterium Sodalis pierantonius, undergoes a two-phase remodeling program synchronously driven by host and endosymbiont, resulting in a localization shift and the formation of multiple new bacteriomes. Here, we provide comparative data in a closely-related coleopteran, the red palm weevil Rhynchophorus ferrugineus, which is associated with the ancestral endosymbiont Nardonella. Using cell imaging experiments, we show that the red pal weevil bacteriome remains unchanged during metamorphosis, hence contrasting with what we reported in the cereal weevil S. oryzae. These findings highlight the complexity and divergence of host-symbiont interactions and their intertwining with host development, even in closely-related species. Abbreviations: DAPI: 4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole; FISH: Fluorescence in situ hybridization; T3SS: Type III secretion system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Beetles, representing the majority of the insect species diversity, are characterized by thick and hard cuticle, which plays important roles for their environmental adaptation and underpins their inordinate diversity and prosperity. Here, we report a bacterial endosymbiont extremely specialized for sustaining beetle's cuticle formation. Many weevils are associated with a γ-proteobacterial endosymbiont lineage Nardonella, whose evolutionary origin is estimated as older than 100 million years, but its functional aspect has been elusive. Sequencing of Nardonella genomes from diverse weevils unveiled drastic size reduction to 0.2 Mb, in which minimal complete gene sets for bacterial replication, transcription, and translation were present but almost all of the other metabolic pathway genes were missing. Notably, the only metabolic pathway retained in the Nardonella genomes was the tyrosine synthesis pathway, identifying tyrosine provisioning as Nardonella's sole biological role. Weevils are armored with hard cuticle, tyrosine is the principal precursor for cuticle formation, and experimental suppression of Nardonella resulted in emergence of reddish and soft weevils with low tyrosine titer, confirming the importance of Nardonella-mediated tyrosine production for host's cuticle formation and hardening. Notably, Nardonella's tyrosine synthesis pathway was incomplete, lacking the final step transaminase gene. RNA sequencing identified host's aminotransferase genes up-regulated in the bacteriome. RNA interference targeting the aminotransferase genes induced reddish and soft weevils with low tyrosine titer, verifying host's final step regulation of the tyrosine synthesis pathway. Our finding highlights an impressively intimate and focused aspect of the host-symbiont metabolic integrity via streamlined evolution for a single biological function of ecological relevance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nardonella (gamma-proteobacteria) are a group of ancient endosymbiotic bacteria that occur only in weevils (superfamily Curculionoidea). Despite the extensive surveys of their existence and phylogeny done in a number of weevil subfamilies, little is known about their strain diversity, quantitative dynamics, and biological roles in the ontogeny of hosts. Here, based on the cloning and analyses of bacterial 16S RNA gene sequences from nine geographic populations of rice water weevil, Lissorhoptrus oryzophilus Kuschel (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), we identified two distinct Nardonella lineages. One lineage was widespread, occurring in each of the L. oryzophilus populations investigated, whereas the other was much geographically limited and found in only one population. These bacteria had a low density in both larval and pupal stages of the weevil; however, they increased substantially as adults emerged. In female adults, they were harbored dominantly in ovary; guts were also infected, but the density was very low. By treating adult females with various antibiotics (rifampicin, tetracycline, and gentamycin) and observing their fecundity, egg viability, as well as the density of Nardonella and the other two bacteria (Wolbachia and Rickettsia) present in the ovary, we found females did not produce viable eggs despite the presence of abundant Nardonella. This suggests that Nardonella might be not playing critical roles in the reproduction of L. oryzophilus. The results are expected to extend our knowledge of the biology of Nardonella and their associations with weevils' reproduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many weevils are known as notorious devastating agricultural pests and generally associated with symbiotic bacteria. Here, we investigated the following pest and non-pest weevils collected in Japan for their bacterial associates: the banana stem weevil Odoiporus longicollis (Olivier); the Asiatic palm weevil Rhabdoscelus lineaticollis (Heller); the red palm weevil Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier); the Japanese giant weevil Sipalinus gigas (Fabricius); the olive weevil Pimelocerus perforatus (Roelofs); the black hard weevil Pachyrhynchus infernalis Fairmaire; and the Yonaguni hard weevil Metapocyrtus yonagunianus Chujo. Bacterial 16S rRNA gene was amplified by a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) from all the weevils, and genotyping and sequencing of the PCR products revealed that Nardonella, an ancient weevil-associated endosymbiont lineage, is the dominant bacterial associate for them. Molecular phylogenetic analyses based on bacterial 16S rRNA and groEL gene sequences showed that the weevil endosymbionts are placed within the Nardonella clade in the γ-Proteobacteria. The phylogenetic relationship of the Nardonella endosymbionts was concordant with the systematics of the weevil hosts, favoring the hypothesis of weevil- Nardonella co-speciation over evolutionary time. In situ hybridization visualized localization of the Nardonella endosymbionts in the larval bacteriome at the foregut-midgut junction in R. ferrugineus and S. gigas, and in the ovarial tips of adult females in O. longicollis. Our results highlight the general relevance of the Nardonella endosymbionts to the biology, control and management of these and other pest weevils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]