Similar Bacterial Communities among Different Populations of a Newly Emerging Invasive Species, Tuta absoluta (Meyrick)

Abstract

Microorganisms in the guts of insects enhance the adaptability of their hosts with different lifestyles, or those that live in different habitats. <i>Tuta absoluta</i> is an invasive pest that is a serious threat to tomato production in China. It has quickly spread and colonized Xinjiang, Yunnan and other provinces and regions. We used Illumina HiSeq next generation sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene to study and analyze the composition and diversity of the gut microbiota of three geographical populations of <i>T. absoluta</i>. At the phylum level, the most common bacteria in <i>T. absoluta</i> across all three geographical populations were Proteobacteria and Firmicutes. An uncultured bacterium in the Enterobacteriaceae was the dominant bacterial genus in the <i>T. absoluta</i> gut microbiotas. There were no significant differences in alpha diversity metrics among the Spanish, Yunnan and Xinjiang populations. The structures of the gut microbiota of the three populations were similar based on PCoA and NMDS results. The results confirmed that the microbial structures of <i>T. absoluta</i> from different regions were similar.