ArticleGenome biology2013
Obligate mutualism within a host drives the extreme specialization of a fig wasp genome.
Article in Genome biology, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 49 papers.
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Who cites it
49 citing papers in PubMed, 104 citations in OpenAlex.
- Cuticular Hydrocarbons-Revealed Functional Groups and Seasonal Acclimation in Sympatric Fig Wasp Mating Assemblages.Ecology and evolution · 2026Article
- Phylogenetic history shapes the composition of floral scents in a specialized pollination mutualism.The New phytologist · 2026Article
- Genomes of Wiebesia Fig Wasps Reveal the Adaptation and Codiversification in the Fig-Fig Wasp Mutualism.Genome biology and evolution · 2026Article
- A novel, fig-associated microbe promotes reproductive success via variable life history mechanisms inbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Comprehensive Annotation of Olfactory and Gustatory Receptor Genes and Transposable Elements Revealed Their Evolutionary Dynamics in Aphids.Molecular biology and evolution · 2025Article
- Evolutionary Consequences of Unusually Large Pericentric TE-rich Regions in the Genome of a Neotropical Fig Wasp.Genome biology and evolution · 2025Article
- Article
- Ionotropic Receptor Genes in Fig Wasps: Evolutionary Insights from Comparative Studies.Insects · 2025Article
- Ecological Niche Adaptations Influence Transposable Element Dynamics in Pollinating and Non-Pollinating Fig Wasps.Ecology and evolution · 2025Article
- Genomic signatures associated with the evolutionary loss of egg yolk in parasitoid wasps.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025Article
- Article
- Extreme specificity in obligate mutualism-A role for competition?Ecology and evolution · 2024Article
- Odorant-Binding and Chemosensory Proteins in Fig Wasps: Evolutionary Insights From Comparative Studies.Journal of molecular evolution · 2024Article
- Telomere-to-telomere and gap-free genome assembly of a susceptible grapevine species (Thompson Seedless) to facilitate grape functional genomics.Horticulture research · 2024Article
- Evolution of five environmentally responsive gene families in a pine-feeding sawfly,Ecology and evolution · 2023Article
- Genomic Variations in the Tea Leafhopper Reveal the Basis of Its Adaptive Evolution.Genomics, proteomics & bioinformatics · 2022Article
- Current Knowledge on Bee Innate Immunity Based on Genomics and Transcriptomics.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Review
- Spodoptera littoralis genome mining brings insights on the dynamic of expansion of gustatory receptors in polyphagous noctuidae.G3 (Bethesda, Md.) · 2022Article
- The genome of the rice planthopper egg parasitoid wasps Anagrus nilaparvatae casts light on the chemo- and mechanosensation in parasitism.BMC genomics · 2022Article
- Profiles of telomeric repeats in Insecta reveal diverse forms of telomeric motifs in Hymenopterans.Life science alliance · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
52 authors at 13 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundFig pollinating wasps form obligate symbioses with their fig hosts. This mutualism arose approximately 75 million years ago. Unlike many other intimate symbioses, which involve vertical transmission of symbionts to host offspring, female fig wasps fly great distances to transfer horizontally between hosts. In contrast, male wasps are wingless and cannot disperse. Symbionts that keep intimate contact with their hosts often show genome reduction, but it is not clear if the wide dispersal of female fig wasps will counteract this general tendency. We sequenced the genome of the fig wasp Ceratosolen solmsi to address this question.
resultsThe genome size of the fig wasp C. solmsi is typical of insects, but has undergone dramatic reductions of gene families involved in environmental sensing and detoxification. The streamlined chemosensory ability reflects the overwhelming importance of females finding trees of their only host species, Ficus hispida, during their fleeting adult lives. Despite long-distance dispersal, little need exists for detoxification or environmental protection because fig wasps spend nearly all of their lives inside a largely benign host. Analyses of transcriptomes in females and males at four key life stages reveal that the extreme anatomical sexual dimorphism of fig wasps may result from a strong bias in sex-differential gene expression.
conclusionsOur comparison of the C. solmsi genome with other insects provides new insights into the evolution of obligate mutualism. The draft genome of the fig wasp, and transcriptomic comparisons between both sexes at four different life stages, provide insights into the molecular basis for the extreme anatomical sexual dimorphism of this species.
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