ArticleBMC genomics2026
Genomic and metabolic divergence of the primary symbiont Candidatus Portiera between Bemisia tabaci and other whitefly species.
Article in BMC genomics, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundThe primary symbiont Candidatus Portiera is essential for nutrient provisioning in whiteflies. Genomic instability is a hallmark of Bemisia tabaci-associated Portiera, but the specific molecular evolutions and their metabolic consequences compared to Portiera from other whiteflies remain unclear.
resultsTo overcome the limited sampling of previous studies, we assembled novel Portiera genomes from seven additional B. tabaci cryptic species. Comparative genomic, phylogenetic, and species delimitation analyses were conducted with other publicly available Portiera genomes. Branch-model selection analysis identified differentially evolved genes in the B. tabaci-associated Portiera, which were significantly enriched in amino acid biosynthetic pathways. The composition of essential amino acids biosynthetic pathways was systematically analyzed across Portiera, host nuclear, and secondary symbiont genomes. B. tabaci-associated Portiera formed a monophyletic lineage with larger genomes, lower coding density, and accelerated evolutionary rates, classified as a single species distinct from Portiera in other whiteflies. Twenty-two genes showed significantly different evolutionary rates with enrichment in amino acid biosynthetic pathways. Key genes for lysine and arginine biosynthesis were lost or pseudogenized in B. tabaci-associated Portiera but remained intact in other whiteflies like Trialeurodes vaporariorum. The synthesis of most other essential amino acids was similarly incomplete across all Portiera, relying on host or secondary symbiont genes for pathway completion.
conclusionsThe B. tabaci-associated Portiera represents a unique symbiotic metabolic architecture where host horizontally transferred genes may potentially compensate for Portiera's genomic erosion, contrasting with the more autonomous Portiera in other whiteflies. This study reveals divergent evolutionary trajectories and metabolic integration strategies in whitefly symbiotic systems.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.