DOI: 10.5061/dryad.gg6n17s
title: Data from: Dietary specialization in mutualistic acacia-ants affects relative abundance but not identity of host-associated bacteria

description: Acacia-ant mutualists in the genus Pseudomyrmex nest obligately in acacia
 plants and, as we show through stable isotope analysis, feed at a
 remarkably low trophic level. Insects with diets such as these sometimes
 depend on bacterial symbionts for nutritional enrichment. We, therefore,
 examine the bacterial communities associated with acacia-ants in order to
 determine whether they host bacterial partners likely to contribute to
 their nutrition. Despite large differences in trophic position,
 acacia-ants and related species with generalized diets do not host
 distinct bacterial taxa. However, we find that a small number of
 previously undescribed bacterial taxa do differ in relative abundance
 between acacia-ants and generalists, including several Acetobacteraceae
 and Nocardiaceae lineages related to common insect-associates. Comparisons
 with an herbivorous generalist, a parasite that feeds on acacias, and a
 mutualistic species with a generalized diet show that trophic level is
 likely responsible for these small differences in bacterial community
 structure. While we did not experimentally test for a nutritional benefit
 to hosts of these bacterial lineages, metagenomic analysis reveals a
 Bartonella relative with an intact nitrogen-recycling pathway widespread
 across Pseudomyrmex mutualists and generalists. This taxon may be
 contributing to nitrogen enrichment of its ant hosts through urease
 activity and, concordant with an obligately host-associated lifestyle,
 appears to be experiencing genome-wide relaxed selection. The lack of
 distinctiveness in bacterial communities across trophic level in this
 group of ants shows a remarkable ability to adjust to varied diets,
 possibly with assistance from these diverse ant-specific bacterial
 lineages.
description: Tokpelaia Tpnig genome
 assembly and annotationsTpnig genome assembly
 obtained through metagenomic techniques and annotated using the RAST
 server.TPNIG.tar.gzFrischella Fpnig genome assembly and annotationFpnig genome assembly obtained through metagenomic techniques and annotated using the RAST server.FPNIG.tar.gzRepresentative sequences for ZOTUsRepresentative bacterial 16S rRNA gene sequences for zero-radius OTUs identified in this study. These sequences were identified using the UNOISE pipeline.zotu_rep_seqs.fa.gzContaminant-filtered sequencesThese are all sequences that passed filtering using blank samples to identify likely contaminants.contaminant_free.fa.gzPseudomyrmex flavicornis adult metagenome assemblyAssembly of the metagenome obtained from dissected guts of adult Pseudomyrmex flavicornis from colony BER0517. Scaffolds classified as Acetobacteraceae are marked as such.BER0517_assembly.fa.gzPseudomyrmex nigropilosus larval metagenome assemblyAssembly of the metagenome obtained from dissected meconia of Pseudomyrmex nigropilosus larvae from colony BER0554. Scaffolds classified as Alphaproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria are marked as such.BER0554_assembly.fa.gzOTU tableThe full OTU table produced in this study.OTU_table.tsvNitrogen isotope dataNitrogen isotope raw and standardized data for all samples included in this study.nitrogen_isotopes.xlsx