Metabolomics metadata.

The intracellular bacterium Wolbachia is a common symbiont of many arthropods and nematodes, well studied for its impacts on host reproductive biology. However, its broad success as a vertically transmitted infection cannot be attributed to manipulations of host reproduction alone. Using the Drosophila melanogaster model and natively associated Wolbachia strain “wMel”, we show that Wolbachia infection supports fly development and buffers against nutritional stress. Wolbachia infection across two fly genotypes and a range of nutrient conditions resulted in reduced pupal mortality, increased adult emergence, and larger size. In parallel, transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses indicated that Wolbachia impacts a wide range of developmental and metabolic processes. Wolbachia-infected larvae had strong signatures of shifts in glutathione and mitochondrial metabolism, plus significant changes in the expression of key developmental regulators including Notch, the insulin receptor (lnR), and the juvenile hormone receptor Methoprene-tolerant (Met). We propose that Wolbachia can enhance host fitness by supporting fly development, especially during periods of nutrient stress.胞内细菌沃尔巴克氏体（Wolbachia）是众多节肢动物与线虫的常见共生菌，因其对宿主生殖生物学的影响而被广泛研究。然而，作为一种垂直传播的感染物，其广泛的宿主适配性并非仅通过操控宿主生殖过程就能实现。本研究以黑腹果蝇（Drosophila melanogaster）及其天然共生的沃尔巴克氏体菌株"wMel"为模型，证实沃尔巴克氏体感染可促进果蝇发育，并抵御营养胁迫。在两种果蝇基因型与多种营养条件下，沃尔巴克氏体感染均可降低蛹期死亡率、提升成虫羽化率，并增大成虫体型。与此同时，转录组与代谢组分析显示，沃尔巴克氏体可影响广泛的发育与代谢过程。感染沃尔巴克氏体的幼虫表现出谷胱甘肽与线粒体代谢的显著变化特征，同时包括Notch、胰岛素受体（lnR）以及保幼激素受体Methoprene-tolerant（Met）在内的关键发育调控因子的表达也发生了显著改变。本研究提出，沃尔巴克氏体可通过促进果蝇发育来提升宿主适合度，尤其是在营养胁迫时期。