A bacterial filter protects and structures the gut microbiome of an insect

This study investigated the role of the proventriculus, a valve located between the crop and midgut of insects, in structuring the gut microbial community of the Sonoran Desert turtle ant (Cephalotes rohweri). To determine whether the proventriculus plays a role in structuring the gut microbiome, we investigated 1) whether bacterial communities differ upstream (crop) and downstream (midgut) of the proventriculus, and 2) whether the proventricular surface hosts a distinct bacterial community from the crop. Using 454 amplicon pyrosequencing, we sequenced the crop, proventricular surface, midgut, hindgut ileum, and rectum of field-collected workers from seven spatially segregated colonies.