Co-evolution between ambrosia fungi and abrosia beetles of the genus Xyleborus

小蠹属Ambrosia甲虫幼虫和成虫生活在木本植物的边材中。它们必须依赖于由甲虫传播和饲养的Ambrosiella属真菌（Ophiostomatoid真菌）获得营养。真菌的孢子被储存并由甲虫在与基本腺细胞（真菌囊）相关的专门器官内转移到新的宿主植物中。本研究将探讨豚草小蠹与豚草属真菌的共生关系，作为昆虫与真菌共同进化的模式。迄今未描述的真菌合作伙伴的豚草甲虫的库存是必不可少的，并进行分离，培养，形态和分子特征。甲虫物种之间的系统发育关系将使用分子技术和共生相互作用，特别是位置和形态的mycangia和mycangial腺分泌物的组成中所涉及的特性的比较进行评估。将通过实验测试土生真菌对宿主和非宿主甲虫分泌物的反应。在综合中，这些方法将用于计算可能的共物种形成事件。

Ambrosia beetles of the genus Xyleborus (Scolytidae) live as larvae and adults in the sapwood of woddy plants. They depend obligatorily on fungi of the genus Ambrosiella (ophiostomatoid fungi) that are disseminated and reared by the beetles for nutrition. The spores of the fungi are stored and tansmitted by the beetles to new host plants within specialized organs associated with essential glandular cells, the mycangia. The symbiotic association between Xyleborus ambrosia beetles and Ambrosiella fungi functioning as a model of co-evolution of insects and fungi will be investigated. An inventory of the hitherto undescribed fungal partners of the ambrosia beetles is essential and to be done by isolation, cultivation, morphological and molecular characterization. Phylogenetic relationships between beetle species will be evaluated using molecular techniques and comparisons of characteristics involved in the symbiotic interaction, especially position and morphology of the mycangia and the composition of secretions produced by the mycangial glands. The response of the ambroisa fungi to the presence of the secretions of host and non-host beetles will be tested experimentally. In a synthesis, these approaches will be used for calculating possible cospeciation events.