Ectosymbionts of aari: a promising solution for mass rearing phytoseiidae?

微生物和节肢动物之间的共生相互作用已知对许多节肢动物宿主是有益的。虽然已知内共生体增强宿主营养或诱导各种生殖表型，但已知外共生体、生活在宿主皮层中/皮层上的细菌或真菌在提供保护或免疫方面的有效性，即保护宿主免受病原微生物的侵害。尽管它们在宿主生存中的重要性，外共生体一直被忽视。在过去的几十年里，大多数对节肢动物的观察都需要使用破坏性技术，这样生活在皮层上的微生物就会被意外地消灭。随着新的显微镜和分子技术的出现，现在可以原位研究外共生体。最近，新的相互作用被记录下来，大多数涉及昆虫。大多数（如果不是所有）自由生活的螨在它们的表皮上运输细菌和真菌;这些协会的身份仍有待研究。植绥螨科是农业上最重要的螨类，因其捕食蔬菜和农作物害虫的能力和可靠性。有几个品种被大量饲养，并被广泛用作生物防治剂。它们在世界范围内的商业用途不断受到新出现的疾病的威胁，阻碍了大规模饲养，削弱了它们的捕食效力。任何试图增加我们对植绥螨科螨与其天然微生物区系之间相互作用的生物学知识的尝试，都将有助于改善和加强其大规模工业生产，并提高其对新环境的快速适应能力。该建议旨在研究外共生体植绥螨科的相互作用，利用显微镜和分子遗传学结合生态学的方法。目标和时间轴：1-测试证明外共生体的有益效果（第1年）2-外共生体的生物多样性和它们的宿主位置。来自野生型和Certis Phytoseiidae的外共生体的分子ID（第1-2年）3-替换：比较竞争性替换与外共生体的强制替换（第2年）4-替换和大规模饲养。比较Phytoseiidae与Certis和野生型外共生体（3年）5-更换和竞争力释放后的健身。比较植绥螨科与Certis和野生型外共生体（3-4年）这一建议是学术界和工业界之间相互作用的真正产物。工业合作伙伴是BCP Certis，一家领先的作物保护和害虫控制公司，并已初步接触阅读的学术合作伙伴。对粮食的需求不断增加，导致农作物生产的广泛扩大。农作物害虫猖獗，对新的控制方法的需求日益增加。在可能的情况下，正在用生物控制取代农药的使用。BCP Certis为欧洲的农作物生产商提供有益的代理。BCP Certis寻求寻找新的螨病治疗方法，以增加其大规模生产，并根据其产品不断增长的需求增强捕食适应性。阅读大学的主管M. Alejandra Perotti是英国少数在捕食螨和共生生物学方面具有独特专长的螨学家之一。该学生将与来自英国，南美和西班牙的野生型植绥螨科合作。将在阅读使用生物中心（分子工作）和高级显微镜中心（电子显微镜）的最先进设施对外共生体进行显微镜检查和分子分析。目标1-2-3将在生物科学学院（SBS）的螨学实验室进行。BCP Certis在大规模饲养商业物种方面有丰富的经验，目前生产3种主要的捕食者;学生将在他们的实验绿色房屋中执行目标4-5。

Symbiotic interactions between microorganisms and arthropods are known to be beneficial for many arthropod hosts. While endosymbionts are known to enhance host nutrition or to induce varies reproductive phenotypes, ectosymbionts, bacteria or fungi living in/upon the tegument of the host, are known for their effectiveness in providing protection or immunity, i.e. protecting the host against pathogenic microbials. Despite their importance in host survival, ectosymbionts have been overlooked. Over the past decades, most observations of arthropods required the use of destructive techniques in such a way that microorganisms living on the tegument were accidentally eliminated. With the advent of new microscopical and molecular techniques it is now possible to study ectosymbionts in situ. Recently, new interactions have been documented, most involving insects. Most if not all free-living mites transport bacteria and fungi on their tegument; the identity of these associations is still awaiting research. The Phytoseiidae are the most important mites in agriculture because of their capability and reliability as predators of pests of vegetables and crops. Several species are mass-reared and extensively applied as biological control agents. Their worldwide commercial use is under constant threat by emerging diseases, impoverishing mass rearing and weakening their predatory effectiveness. Any attempt to increase our knowledge on the biology of interactions between Phytoseiidae mites with their natural microflora will help to improve and strengthen their massive industrial production and enhance their rapid adaptation to new environments. This proposal aims to study the ectosymbiont-phytoseiidae interactions, using microscopy and molecular genetics combined with an ecological approach. Objectives and Timeline: 1-Test to prove beneficial effect of ectosymbionts (Year 1) 2-Ectosymbionts biodiversity and their host location. Molecular IDs of ectosymbionts from wildtypes and Certis Phytoseiidae (Years 1-2) 3-Replacement: Compare competitive replacement with forced replacement of ectosymbionts (Year 2) 4-Replacement and Mass Rearing. Compare Phytoseiidae with Certis and with wildtype ectosymbionts (Year 3) 5-Replacement and Competitiveness for fitness after release. Compare Phytoseiidae with Certis and with wildtype ectosymbionts (Years 3-4) This proposal is the genuine product of the interaction between academy and industry. The industrial partner is BCP Certis, a leading company for crop protection and pest control, and has initially approached the academic partner at Reading. The demand for food is escalating resulting in a wide expansion of crop production. Crop pests are thriving and there is an increasing demand for new controls. When possible the use of pesticides is being replaced by biological control. BCP Certis provides the beneficial agents to satisfy crop producers in Europe. BCP Certis seeks to find new remedies for mite disease to increase their massive production and enhance predatory fitness according to an ever increasing demand of their products. The supervisor at the University of Reading, M. Alejandra Perotti is one of a handful of acarologists in the UK with unique expertise in biology of predatory mites and symbiosis. The student will work with wildtype Phytoseiidae from the UK, South America and Spain. Microscopy and molecular analyses of ectosymbionts will be performed at Reading using state-of-the-art facilities at the BioCenter (for molecular work) and Center of Advance Microscopy (Electron microscopes). Objectives 1-2-3 will be carried out at the Acarology Lab in the School of Biological Sciences (SBS). BCP Certis has ample experience in massive rearing of commercial species currently producing 3 major predators; the student will perform objectives 4-5 at their experimental green houses.