Nikoh, Naruo

ABSTRACT A symbiotic bacterium of the macaque louse, Pedicinus obtusus , was characterized. The symbiont constituted a gammaproteobacterial lineage distinct from the symbionts of anthropoid primate lice, localized in the midgut epithelium and the ovaries and exhibiting AT-biased genes and accelerated molecular evolution. The designation “ Candidatus Puchtella pedicinophila” was proposed for it.

ABSTRACT The symbiotic bacteria associated with the stomach disc, a large aggregate of bacteriocytes on the ventral side of the midgut, of human body and head lice were characterized. Molecular phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that the symbionts formed a distinct and well-defined clade in the Gammaproteobacteria . The sequences exhibited AT-biased nucleotide composition and accelerated molecular evolution. In situ hybridization revealed that in nymphs and adult males, the symbiont was localized in the stomach disc, while in adult females, the symbiont was not in the stomach disc but in the lateral oviducts and the posterior pole of the oocytes due to female-specific symbiont migration. We propose the designation “ Candidatus Riesia pediculicola” for the louse symbionts.