Bacterial diversity in the intestinal tract of the funguscultivating termite Macrotermes michaelseni (Sjöstedt)

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dc.contributor.author Mackenzie, Lucy Mwende
dc.contributor.author Muigai, Anne Thairu
dc.contributor.author Osir, Ellie Onyango
dc.contributor.author Lwande, Wilber
dc.contributor.author Keller, Martin
dc.contributor.author Toledo, Gerardo
dc.contributor.author Boga, Hamadi Iddi
dc.date.accessioned 2012-09-27T10:18:40Z
dc.date.accessioned 2013-07-19T07:46:36Z
dc.date.available 2012-09-27T10:18:40Z
dc.date.available 2013-07-19T07:46:36Z
dc.date.issued 2007-03-19
dc.identifier.issn 1684–5315
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/1596
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/849
dc.description full research paper en_US
dc.description.abstract Microorganisms in the intestinal tracts of termites play a crucial role in the nutritional physiology of termites. The bacterial diversity in the fungus-cultivating Macrotermes michaelseni was examined using both molecular and culture dependent methods. Total DNA was extracted from the gut of the termite and 16S rRNA genes were amplified using bacterial specific primers. Representatives from forty-one (41) RFLP patterns from a total of one hundred and two (102) clones were sequenced. Most of the clones were affiliated with 3 main groups of the domain Bacteria: Cytophaga-Flexibacter-Bacteriodes (73), Proteobacteria (13), and the low G+C content Gram-positive bacteria (9). Two RFLPs related to planctomycetes, but deeper branching than known members of the phylum, were detected. In addition, 1 and 2 RFLPs represented the spirochetes and TM7-OP11 groups, respectively. In studies using culture dependent techniques, most of the isolates obtained belonged to the Gram-positive bacteria with a high G+C content. However, only one of the clones represented Gram-positive bacteria with High G+C content. These results show a high bacterial diversity in the intestinal microbiota of M. michaelseni, which continues to escape cultivation. As is the case in other termites many of the clones represent previously uncultured bacteria. The fact that most of the clones clustered with clones from Macrotermes gilvus provides further support for the hypothesis that microorganisms in intestinal tracts of termites have co-evolved with their hosts. en_US
dc.description.sponsorship 1Botany Department, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT),2International Center of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE),3Diversa Corporation, 4955 Directors Place, San Diego en_US
dc.language.iso en en_US
dc.publisher Academic Journals en_US
dc.relation.ispartofseries African Journal of Biotechnology;Vol. 6 (6)
dc.subject Fungus-cultivating termites en_US
dc.subject bacterial diversity en_US
dc.subject intestinal tract en_US
dc.subject 16S rRNA gene en_US
dc.subject RFLP en_US
dc.title Bacterial diversity in the intestinal tract of the funguscultivating termite Macrotermes michaelseni (Sjöstedt) en_US
dc.type Article en_US


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