Search results for "Tetrahymena"

Data from: Conjugation is necessary for a bacterial plasmid to survive under protozoan predation

2016

Horizontal gene transfer by conjugative plasmids plays a critical role in the evolution of antibiotic resistance. Interactions between bacteria and other organisms can affect the persistence and spread of conjugative plasmids. Here we show that protozoan predation increased the persistence and spread of the antibiotic resistance plasmid RP4 in populations of the opportunist bacterial pathogen Serratia marcescens. A conjugation-defective mutant plasmid was unable to survive under predation, suggesting that conjugative transfer is required for plasmid persistence under the realistic condition of predation. These results indicate that multi-trophic interactions can affect the maintenance of co…

Predation on Multiple Trophic Levels Shapes the Evolution of Pathogen Virulence

2009

The pathogen virulence is traditionally thought to co-evolve as a result of reciprocal selection with its host organism. In natural communities, pathogens and hosts are typically embedded within a web of interactions with other species, which could affect indirectly the pathogen virulence and host immunity through trade-offs. Here we show that selection by predation can affect both pathogen virulence and host immune defence. Exposing opportunistic bacterial pathogen Serratia marcescens to predation by protozoan Tetrahymena thermophila decreased its virulence when measured as host moth Parasemia plantaginis survival. This was probably because the bacterial anti-predatory traits were traded o…

The effect of prey resources on evolutionary and ecological dynamics of prey (Serratia marcescens) and predator (Tetrahymena thermophila)

2006

Ravintoresurssin ajallisen vaihtelun vaikutus saaliin (Serratia marcescens -bakteeri) ja pedon (Tetrahymena thermophila -alkueläin) evolutiiviseen ja…

2010

Resurssit ovat yksi tärkeimmistä eliöiden evoluutioon vaikuttavista ympäristötekijöistä. Esimerkiksi eliöiden kyky kilpailla ja puolustautua voivat kehittyä erilailla ravintoympäristöstä ja sen muutoksista riippuen: hyvä resurssisaatavuus voi mahdollistaa kalliisiin puolustusominaisuuksiin allokoimisen, kun taas resurssien puute voi estää saaliin puolustusominaisuuksien evoluution. Tutkin saalistuksen ja ympäristön vaihtelun vaikutusta faktoriaalisessa mikrokosmos kokeessa, jossa saalisbakteereita (Serratia marcescens) kasvatettiin joko yksin (kontrollit) tai yhdessä alkueläinpedon (Tetrahymena thermophila) kanssa vakaassa tai vaihtelevassa ravintoresurssiympäristössä 8 viikon ajan. Petojen…