Environment-guided microbial shifts drive rapid stress adaptations in insects

Work done in the lab of Dr. Suresh Nair at the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology

About author

Ayushi Gupta obtained her Bachelor’s degree from Gargi College and her Master’s in Botany from the Department of Botany, University of Delhi. She was awarded the Panchanan Maheshwari Memorial Prize (Gold Medal) for being the best candidate in M.Sc. Botany examinations. Subsequently, she joined Dr. Suresh Nair’s research group at the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, New Delhi for her Ph.D. During her doctorate, she worked on deciphering the molecular mechanisms underlying the rapid adaptive nature of insect pests. In addition, she also studied the role of the gut microbiome in insects’ survival.

Interview

How would you explain your research outcomes to the non-scientific community?

The brown planthopper (BPH) is the second most devastating pest of rice that causes immense yield loss. The rapid build-up of pesticide resistance, combined with the ability of BPH populations to quickly overcome host-plant resistance has rendered conventional control strategies ineffective. We hypothesized that one of the ways in which BPH adapts to novel environments is by undergoing rapid shifts in its microbiome composition. In this regard, to elucidate the contributions of microbiome in facilitating rapid adaptations of BPH to novel environments, we performed Pseudomonas-specific 16S rRNA gut-microbiome profiling of BPH populations. Results revealed variation in the Pseudomonas species composition and abundance across BPH populations, indicative of a remarkably complex interplay between insect physiology and the microbial community, which likely endow BPH with a capacity to respond rapidly to resist/tolerate stress. Collectively, our study highlighted the microbial community dynamics (determined by monitoring shifts in Pseudomonas species composition) within BPH and suggested the likely involvement of gut microbes in facilitating its survival under rapidly changing environmental conditions.

How do these findings contribute to your research area?

The insights obtained from this study provided a new perspective on understanding the role of certain microbes in the life history of BPH. Being a primary symbiont, Pseudomonas can be engineered to effectively manage this pest, thereby offering alternate strategy(ies) for combating BPH outbreaks. In addition, the present study can form the basis for utilizing symbiont-based approaches to monitor different populations of BPH and provide farmers with an early warning as to the choice of pesticides during the different periods of rice cultivation. Taken together, our findings provide new avenues and offer a promising approach for managing BPH populations as part of an effective strategy for integrated pest management (IPM) of this destructive pest of rice.

“Our findings provide new avenues and offer a promising approach for managing BPH populations as part of an effective strategy for integrated pest management (IPM) of this destructive pest of rice.”

What was the exciting moment during your research?

The whole journey was exciting and interesting. It was a great learning experience. We were very excited to observe shifts in microbiome structure and composition of BPH in response to environments and were even more thrilled when we were able to correlate it with BPH survival. Besides, the brainstorming sessions with my supervisor and inputs from my lab mates have always been stimulating.

What do you hope to do next?

I believe a more detailed exploration is necessary to fully understand and determine the extent to which microbial community dynamics regulate BPH’s responses to stress. Besides, the fact that bacterial symbionts act in synergy to influence ecologically important traits of their insect host cannot be overlooked. It is often observed that several bacterial strains or species co-occur within the host, and the presence of multiple species is required for the insect survival. Hence, it is possible that several bacterial symbionts, and not just Pseudomonas, are contributing to pesticide resistance and helping BPH overcome environmental stresses. Therefore, our group is now working on these lines to obtain a complete understanding of multi-species symbiont communities within insects and their possible contributions toward host survival.

Where do you seek scientific inspiration from?

Plant-insect interactions have always fascinated me. Understanding molecular processes underlying insect adaptations, diversification, and evolutionary success; their responses and interactions with the environment is not only interesting but also essential. I enjoy reading articles unravelling various aspects of insect and plant biology. Cutting-edge research by eminent scientists have always inspired and motivated me. Besides, it helps me identify research areas that require further investigation to expand our knowledge on plant-insect interactions. Moreover, research outcomes corroborating my findings excite and push my efforts even further.

How do you intend to help Indian science improve?

While it is well known that gender is one of the fault lines that inhibit the possibility of freedom and fairness in research and innovation, I strongly acknowledge, appreciate, and affirm the significance of an equitable and non-hierarchical context for knowledge creation and dissemination. Hence, in the future, I would, in my limited context, try and determine the way work is divided, credited, shared or outcomes disseminated. I would like to ensure that people from diverse backgrounds and unequal settings with varying degrees of access to resources and skills are respected, valued, and involved in the work that I would have sole autonomy over. Besides, I would, in my capacity, ensure that the work is made easily accessible to the public and the people with limited access to resources.

Reference

Ayushi Gupta, Deepak Kumar Sinha, Suresh Nair (2022). Shifts in Pseudomonas species diversity influence adaptation of brown planthopper to changing climates and geographical locations. iScience 25(7): 104550 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2022.104550

Copy Editor

Ritvi Shah

Postgraduate at Vikram Sarabhai Institute

Ritvi Shah is postgraduate at Vikram Sarabhai Institute of Cell and Molecular Biology, Gujarat. She is a neuroscience enthusiast. Apart from that, she enjoys reading and trying her hand at sciart.

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