Experimental Hologenomic Evolution: Heritable effects of acute-pesticide poisoning on the microbiome and adaptation across host generations

Using an experimental evolution approach, we exposed successive generations of Nasonia vitripennis to sub-toxic levels of the herbicide Atrazine and monitored changes in the structure and function of the microbiome. We determined that both acute and long-term exposure directly impacted the microbiome community, and in turn host physiology. Continuous low-dose exposure to the herbicide resulted in microbial community changes that allowed the exposed population to survive under higher dosages of Atrazine than the control population. This tolerance was directly linked to the gut microbiome shift. By comparing microbiomes as well as host population genetics over successive generations, we observed a stable and heritable adaptation of the microbiome in response to Atrazine exposure that drove population differences at a genome wide level. To our knowledge, this work marks the first observation of transgenerational exposure risk affecting the microbiome.

本研究采用实验进化研究方法，将多代丽蝇蛹集金小蜂（Nasonia vitripennis）暴露于除草剂莠去津（Atrazine）的亚致死剂量环境中，并监测其微生物组（microbiome）的结构与功能变化。研究发现，急性与长期暴露均会直接影响微生物群落结构，进而作用于宿主生理。持续低剂量的除草剂暴露引发了微生物群落的改变，使得暴露种群相比对照组种群，能够在更高剂量的莠去津环境下存活。这种耐受性与肠道微生物组的变化直接相关。通过对多代微生物组及宿主种群遗传学特征进行比较分析，我们观测到微生物组针对莠去津暴露产生了稳定且可遗传的适应性，该适应性在全基因组层面引发了种群差异。据我们所知，本研究首次观测到跨代暴露风险对微生物组的影响。