ArticleNature ecology & evolution2023
Symbioses shape feeding niches and diversification across insects.
Article in Nature ecology & evolution, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 62 papers.
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Who cites it
62 citing papers in PubMed.
- The bacterial march toward symbiosis: on-ramps and off-ramps.Trends in microbiology · 2026Review
- Symbiont evolutionary history underpins quality to an insect host.Journal of insect science (Online) · 2026Article
- Multi-Omics Profiling of the Scaphoideus titanus Yeast-Like Symbiont Guides the Bioinformatic Discovery of Related Fungal Symbioses in Insects.Environmental microbiology · 2026Article
- Article
- Comparative genomics reveal signatures of ecological specialization in the striped ambrosia beetle Trypodendron lineatum.BMC genomics · 2026Article
- Spiroplasma Are Protective Heritable Symbionts With Low Physiological Impact in the Drosophilid Fly Zaprionus kolodkinae.Environmental microbiology reports · 2026Article
- Stable nutritional endosymbiosis across cryptic diversity of a leafhopper species complex.BMC genomics · 2026Article
- Article
- Phage toxin variants are linked to protection specificity in a defensive symbiont.Molecular biology and evolution · 2026Article
- The Evolutionary and Ecological Consequences of Cooperation.The American naturalist · 2026Review
- Experimental Sodalis infection eliminates ancient insect symbiont.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Article
- Intricate chemosymbiosis in a widespread shallow-water thyasirid clam.Science advances · 2026Article
- Convergent extreme reductive evolution in ancient planthopper symbioses.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Molecular Phylogeny of "Chemosensory Proteins" in Bacteria and Arthropods: CSP as an Extremely Ancient Gene.Journal of molecular evolution · 2026Article
- Cockroach bacteriocytes migrate into the ovaries for vertical transmission of the bacterial endosymbiont Blattabacterium.Zoological letters · 2026Article
- Gut microbiome convergence and functional adaptation underlie the evolution of predation in stink bugs (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae).Microbiome · 2026Article
- Insect Lipid Metabolism in the Presence of Symbiotic and Pathogenic Viruses and Bacteria.Advances in experimental medicine and biology · 2026Review
- Comparative metagenomic analysis of bacterial communities associated with two mealybug species, Phenacoccus saccharifolii and Dysmicoccus carens infesting sugarcane in Tamil Nadu, India.World journal of microbiology & biotechnology · 2025Article
- Gut bacteria induce heterologous immune priming in Rhodnius prolixus encompassing both humoral and cellular immune responses.PLoS pathogens · 2025Article
2 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
Abstract
For over 300 million years, insects have relied on symbiotic microbes for nutrition and defence. However, it is unclear whether specific ecological conditions have repeatedly favoured the evolution of symbioses, and how this has influenced insect diversification. Here, using data on 1,850 microbe-insect symbioses across 402 insect families, we found that symbionts have allowed insects to specialize on a range of nutrient-imbalanced diets, including phloem, blood and wood. Across diets, the only limiting nutrient consistently associated with the evolution of obligate symbiosis was B vitamins. The shift to new diets, facilitated by symbionts, had mixed consequences for insect diversification. In some cases, such as herbivory, it resulted in spectacular species proliferation. In other niches, such as strict blood feeding, diversification has been severely constrained. Symbioses therefore appear to solve widespread nutrient deficiencies for insects, but the consequences for insect diversification depend on the feeding niche that is invaded.
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