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| Social organization and the physical environment shape the microbiome of harvester ant nests |
| Alejandra Gamboa1, Peter Flynn2, Noa Pinter-Wollman1. 1University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States; 2Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, United States |
All animals are associated with and colonized by communities of microorganisms known collectively as the microbiome. New evidence suggests that microbes have wide-ranging influences on animal behavior. Genomic sequencing and high-throughput RNA techniques show significant interactions of animals and plants with symbiotic microorganisms. Delineating the complex relationship between host-microbe interactions and behavior requires an expanded ecological perspective involving the host, the microbiome, and the environment. The role of the social, biotic, and abiotic environment on host-microbe interactions remains poorly understood. I will use harvester ant species as a study system to explore the interplay between host-microbiome composition and social interactions. Specifically, I will use a combination of observational, manipulative, and comparative experimental approaches to answer the question: What is the relationship between the microbiome, social interactions, and the external biotic and abiotic environments? |