Bacterial Associates of a Desert Specialist Fungus-Growing Ant Antagonize Competitors with a Nocamycin AnalogClick to copy article linkArticle link copied!
- Katherine A. HansenKatherine A. HansenKeck Science Department of Claremont McKenna, Pitzer, and Scripps Colleges, Claremont, California 91711, United StatesMore by Katherine A. Hansen
- Rose R. KimRose R. KimKeck Science Department of Claremont McKenna, Pitzer, and Scripps Colleges, Claremont, California 91711, United StatesMore by Rose R. Kim
- Elisabeth S. LawtonElisabeth S. LawtonKeck Science Department of Claremont McKenna, Pitzer, and Scripps Colleges, Claremont, California 91711, United StatesMore by Elisabeth S. Lawton
- Janet TranJanet TranKeck Science Department of Claremont McKenna, Pitzer, and Scripps Colleges, Claremont, California 91711, United StatesMore by Janet Tran
- Stephanie K. LewisStephanie K. LewisKeck Science Department of Claremont McKenna, Pitzer, and Scripps Colleges, Claremont, California 91711, United StatesMore by Stephanie K. Lewis
- Arjan S. DeolArjan S. DeolKeck Science Department of Claremont McKenna, Pitzer, and Scripps Colleges, Claremont, California 91711, United StatesMore by Arjan S. Deol
- Ethan B. Van Arnam*Ethan B. Van Arnam*Email: [email protected]Keck Science Department of Claremont McKenna, Pitzer, and Scripps Colleges, Claremont, California 91711, United StatesMore by Ethan B. Van Arnam
Abstract
Fungus-growing ants are defended by antibiotic-producing bacterial symbionts in the genus Pseudonocardia. Nutrients provisioned by the ants support these symbionts but also invite colonization and competition from other bacteria. As an arena for chemically mediated bacterial competition, this niche offers a window into ecological antibiotic function with well-defined competing organisms. From multiple colonies of the desert specialist ant Trachymyrmex smithi, we isolated Amycolatopsis bacteria that inhibit the growth of Pseudonocardia symbionts under laboratory conditions. Using bioassay-guided fractionation, we discovered a novel analog of the antibiotic nocamycin that is responsible for this antagonism. We identified the biosynthetic gene cluster for this antibiotic, which has a suite of oxidative enzymes consistent with this molecule’s more extensive oxidative tailoring relative to similar tetramic acid antibiotics. High genetic similarity to globally distributed soil Amycolatopsis isolates suggest that this ant-derived Amycolatopsis strain may be an opportunistic soil strain whose antibiotic production allows for competition in this specialized niche. This nocamycin analog adds to the catalog of novel bioactive molecules isolated from bacterial associates of fungus-growing ants, and its activity against ant symbionts represents, to our knowledge, the first putative ecological function for the widely distributed enoyl tetramic acid family of antibiotics.
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This article is cited by 7 publications.
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- Ángel Sahid Aguilar-Colorado, José Rivera-Chávez. Ants/Nest-Associated Fungi and Their Specialized Metabolites: Taxonomy, Chemistry, and Bioactivity. Revista Brasileira de Farmacognosia 2023, 33
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- Joyce H. Kim, Georgia Scherer, Dellencia S. Lumpkin, Krithika Rao, Carmen D. Puentes Flores, Ethan B. Van Arnam, . Amycolatopsis
from Desert Specialist Fungus-Growing Ants Suppresses Contaminant Fungi Using the Antibiotic ECO-0501. Applied and Environmental Microbiology 2023, 89
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