Image credit: Various, see the story for details.
From sponges to the human gut, partnerships in nature are everywhere. Ahead of Valentine’s Day, we caught up with Wellcome Sanger Institute scientists who use genomics to study species that love living together.
What could be more romantic than species living together in harmony for mutual benefit? Nature is full of relationships built on sharing, support, and sometimes a bit of drama. In biological terms, we refer to this as symbiosis, derived from the Greek for ‘living together’. In nature, this describes close, long-term interactions between species.
Symbiosis is far from the awkward ‘situationships’ gossiped about on social media. These partnerships in nature are often about simply surviving. Species adapt to and depend on each other to blend in, evolve, and thrive in ways that make breakup impossible.
Unlike living with a housemate that does not clear up their dishes, symbiosis in the natural world can result in well-planned harmony where all involved mutually benefit.
To celebrate Valentine’s Day, learn more about seven partnerships found in nature that Wellcome Sanger Institute scientists explore using genomics.
1. Microsporidia make close friends
Microsporidia are tiny, single-celled organisms that live inside hosts. They are so intertwined in these relationships that they share some of the same energy-harvesting cellular machinery.
Microsporidia love living with invertebrates like insects and arachnids but have been known to use immunocompromised humans as hosts too.
By studying the genomes of invertebrate hosts and their microsporidian partners, Dr Amjad Khalaf, Research Associate, is uncovering how these microscopic parasites have evolved to live so successfully with hosts.
How long have we known about microsporidia?
1838
Microsporidia are either early-diverging fungi, or very closely related to fungi. The earliest report of microsporidia goes back to 1838, where they were first described by biologist Theodor Gluge. He is credited with the first description of Glugea anomala, a microsporidian parasite found in fish.
Glugea anomala infection in a stickleback. Image credit: Archiv für mikroskopische Anatomie (1913). Public domain.
1857
The silk industry was collapsing globally in 1857. The Swiss botanist Carl Wilhelm von Nägeli identified the microsporidian Nosema bombycis as the causative agent of the disease the silkworms were experiencing. The French Government at the time turned to their microbiologist du jour, Louis Pasteur, to solve the silk industry problem. Amazingly, Pasteur found a way to identify infected silkworms and save the industry from ruin.
Left to right: Carl Wilhelm Nägeli, the lifecycle of the silkworm moth (Bombyx mori), and Louis Pasteur. Image credits: Borvan53 / Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0, Daderot / Wikimedia Commons. CC0 1.0, and Paul Nadar Public Domain.
1980s
In the 1980s and microsporidia were found to co-infect people living with AIDs. With little to no immune system due to living with HIV, these people could not fight off these parasites – many of which were emerging as opportunistic.
Left to right: HIV virus and Microsporiodosis in humans. Image credits: BruceBlaus / Wikimedia Commons. CC SA 4.0, and CDC/Alexander J. da Silva, PhD/Melanie Moser. (PHIL #3411), 2002.
1990s
Microsporidia were linked to honeybee colony collapse in the 1990s, devastating industries reliant on these hard-working arthropods. Microsporidia are also well described as pathogens in fisheries, and constitute a growing problem for aquaculture industries worldwide.
Honey bee colony. Image credit: Benlisquare / Wikimedia Commons. CCA-SA4.0.
2020s
In the 2020s, two species of microsporidia that infect Anopheles mosquitos, with limited negative impact to the mosquito, were found to inhibit the spread of malarial parasites. Could this be the good press microsporidia have been waiting for? Using symbionts as a potential biological control is not a new idea and has been deployed with some success using Wolbachia bacteria.
Anopheles arabiensis mosquito. Image credit: James Gathany / CDC. Public Domain.
Cracking the code of microsporidia lifecycles could help scientists follow how these parasites jump between species and learn how they adapt to new hosts along the way. Understanding the ins and outs of the microsporidian lifecycle could ultimately help scientists manage and leverage these parasites for biocontrol purposes.
2. Sponges are a microbial soup
If you think your social life is complicated, just look to the humble sponge. Sponges are hosts to an astonishing range of bacteria, archaea – single-celled organisms that resemble bacteria- and tiny eukaryotes – forming complex microbial communities that can include hundreds of different species.
Each of these microscopic guests contributes something to the partnership, from helping the sponge process nutrients to defending it against disease. As part of the Aquatic Symbiosis Genomics project, scientists at Sanger have generated genomes to help shed light on how sponges and their partners evolved, and how they may hold the key to novel antimicrobials.
Wade into the absorbent world of sponges by reading our sponge blog.
3. Corals get TLC from tiny algae
Coral reefs are some of the most biodiverse, colourful and beautiful settings in nature, but their good looks depend entirely on a microscopic partnership. Corals host tiny algae – called Symbiodinium – and together they form a biological alliance that is crucial for the coral’s health. The algae use sunlight to make food for its host, while the coral provides a safe home.
Illustration of a coral animal, where the symbionts Zooxantellae are shown to be living in the tissues of the animal. Image credit: OIST (Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 沖縄科学技術大学院大学). Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0)
This delicate relationship is under threat as sea temperatures rise and oceans acidify. Sanger scientists and their collaborators are using genomics to understand how these relationships have evolved and how they might be strengthened to help reefs survive human-induced climate change.
4. Humans and their gut microbiomes are happy couples
Forget candlelit dinners with a loved one; it is time to give your gut bacteria the love they deserve.
The most important relationship in your life might already be happening in your gut. Trillions of microbes live inside us, breaking down food, training our immune systems, and performing other functions that scientists are only beginning to explore and understand.
Sanger researchers are getting to the guts of our relationship with millions of bacteria. Image credit: AdobeStock.
Sanger researchers are exploring how our microbial partners shape health from the very beginning of life. For example, the Baby Biome Project is revealing how microbes are passed from mother to baby. This sharing helps protect against viral infections and could set the stage for lifelong well-being.
5. Wolbachia interfere with mosquito-loving parasites
Some relationships bring out the best in everyone. Others go a step further and make the world a safer place – including Wolbachia, a genus of bacteria that live inside insects and could stop the spread of disease.
From moths to mosquitoes, the Wolbachia bacteria is happy to make its home in many species of insect. Image credit: Scott O'Neill / Wikimedia Commons.
Dr Julien Martinez, Senior Postdoctoral Fellow at the Sanger Institute, studies curious partnerships between microbes and insects. An expert in Wolbachia infection biology, Julien is interested in how bacteria can influence reproduction and even block the transmission of insect transmitted diseases like Dengue and Zika.
Julien is carrying out research to delve into how Wolbachia genomes evolve to better understand the consequences of using these bacteria in disease control. By using genomics to understand this relationship, scientists can better harness Wolbachia as a natural form of biocontrol, potentially saving many lives.
6. Surviving in the deep sea for some species requires a plethora of partnerships
Far below the ocean’s surface, in pitch-black, high-pressure environments, survival depends entirely on cooperation. Many deep-sea animals form symbiotic partnerships with bacteria that convert toxic chemicals into energy – a process known as chemosynthesis.
This Natural History Museum video details how Dr Adrian Glover and Dr Maggie Georgieva explore animal adaptation to survive next to ocean floor hot springs. Video credit: Natural History Museum.
Dr Maggie Georgieva, Postdoctoral Fellow, is investigating these remarkable alliances in species living around hydrothermal vents, where life thrives without sunlight. Maggie also studies how widespread chemosynthesis metabolism is in creatures living in shallow seas.
Sequencing deep-sea animal genomes - and the DNA of their symbionts - helps researchers uncover the diversity of relationships working together to nourish marine life and reveal a largely hidden aspect of how marine ecosystems function. Learn more about Maggie’s expertise into hydrothermal vents in this blog by the Natural History Museum.
A Spinularia genus sponge at the bottom of the ocean. Image credit: Maggie Georgieva/Natural History Museum UK.
A Polynoidae annelid photographed at the bottom of the ocean. Image credit: Maggie Georgieva/Natural History Museum UK.
7. Lichens fall for fungi
Lichens might look simple, but they are brilliant examples of teamwork: they are formed through a partnership with fungus, algae and sometimes bacteria too. The fungus provides structure and shelter, while algae perform photosynthesis to make food.
.
Lichens are a fusion of fungus and algae for life. Image credit: Mathieu Landretti / Wikimedia Commons
Genomic data reveal that lichens contain a wide community of interacting organisms: insects, protists, in addition to the bacteria, algae and fungi forming the lichen symbiosis. DNA sequencing through the Tree of Life genome production pipeline at the Sanger Institute reveals each lichen to be a small, diverse ecosystem.
Dr Mercè Montoliu Nerin, Postdoctoral Fellow, uses Darwin Tree of Life Project sequencing data to disentangle lichen-associated genomes. By reconstructing genomes from multiple interacting partners, she investigates how complex symbiotic ecosystems evolve and adapt.
Could we all learn some lessons from symbiosis partnerships in nature? From deep ocean to gut microbes, partnerships in nature illustrate that collaboration in all forms is key to being happy – and survival.
