Data to Brinker et al. 2026: " Host-associated bacterial community changes after laboratory introduction vary with Wolbachia presence"

Translocating organisms from their natural habitats to laboratories significantly alters their microbial communities. This approach is widely used in microbial ecology and evolution experiments to investigate natural processes in controlled settings. However, the impact of translocation on microbiomes is often neglected in research. Comprehensive studies are necessary to evaluate how laboratory findings relate to natural field dynamics. Additionally, it's essential to examine whether organisms with symbionts react differently, as these symbionts can either stabilise the microbial community or increase vulnerability to change. This study investigates the effects of laboratory conditions on host-microbiome interactions using a "simple" model system: the parasitic wasp Asobara japonica and its endosymbiont Wolbachia. Our results show that transferring both naturally Wolbachia-infected (asexual) and uninfected (sexual) wasps to a lab setting decreased A. japonica's bacterial diversity. Stochastic processes drive changes in the microbial community, with distinct alterations in bacterial composition between reproductive modes. Over four generations, the asexual wasps' bacterial community became more similar, while sexual wasps exhibited greater diversity. Notably, changes in bacterial communities emerged across generations rather than in the first generation. Moreover, Wolbachia abundance varied following laboratory introduction, impacting bacterial community structure and assembly over time. In conclusion, our research highlights how laboratory conditions can affect host-associated microbial communities in different ways, influenced by specific microbes like Wolbachia. This, in turn, can affect their functions, host interactions, and overall community dynamics. Thus, our findings underscore the importance of connecting laboratory results with real-world implications, presenting a broader challenge for researchers across various fields.See "README.txt" for information on the data files and scripts used for analysing, and "Data.zip" for the Data and scripts.