Defensive Mutualism in Microbial Symbiosis

ISBN-13: 9781420069310 / Angielski / Twarda / 2009 / 430 str.

James F. White; Monica S. Torres

Opis

Anemones and fish, ants and acacia trees, fungus and trees, buffaloes and oxpeckers--each of these unlikely duos is an inimitable partnership in which the species coexistence is mutually beneficial. More specifically, they represent examples of defensive mutualism, when one species receives protection against predators or parasites in exchange for offering shelter or food to its partner species. Explores the Diverse Range of Defensive Mutualisms Involving Microbial Symbionts The past 20 years, since this phenomenon first began receiving attention, have been marked by a deluge of research in a variety of organism kingdoms and much has been discovered about this intriguing behavior. Defensive Mutualism in Microbial Symbiosis includes basic ecological and biological information on defensive mutualisms, explores how they function, and evaluates how they have evolved. It also looks at the implications of symbiosis defensive compounds as a new frontier in bioexploration for drug and natural product discovery--the first book to explore this possibility. Chapters Written by Field Authorities The book expands the concept of defensive mutualisms to evaluate defense against environmental abiotic and biotic stresses. Addressing the topic of defensive mutualisms in microbial symbiosis across this wide spectrum, it includes chapters on defensive mutualistic associations involving multiple kingdoms of organisms in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems--plant, animal, fungi, bacteria, and protozoans. Defensive Mutualism in Microbial Symbiosis unifies scattered findings into a single compendium, providing a valuable reference for field researchers and those in academia to assimilate and acquire a knowledgeable perspective on defensive mutualism, particularly those involving microbial partners."

Spis treści

OVERVIEW OF MUTUALISTIC ASSOCIATIONS AND DEFENSE. Introduction: Symbiosis, Defensive Mutualism, and Variations on the Theme. Defensive Mutualism and Grass Endophytes: Still Valid after All These Years? Overview of Defensive Mutualism in the Marine Environment. PROKARYOTIC DEFENSIVE SYMBIONTS. Microbial Symbionts for Defense and Competition among Ciliate Hosts. Bacterial Chemical Defenses of Marine Animal Hosts. Is the Vibrio fi scheri–Euprymna scolopes Symbiosis a Defensive Mutualism? Entomopathogenic Nematode and Bacteria Mutualism. Interspecies Competition in a Bacteria–Nematode Mutualism. Defensive Symbionts in Aphids and Other Insects. Fungus-Growing Ant–Microbe Symbiosis: Using Microbes to Defend Beneficial Associations within Symbiotic Communities. EUKARYOTIC DEFENSIVE SYMBIONTS. Chemical Defense in Lichen Symbioses. Arbuscular Mycorrhizae as Defense against Pathogens. Evaluation of Mycorrhizal Symbioses as Defense in Extreme Environments. Effect of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Symbiosis on Enhancement of Tolerance to Abiotic Stresses. Conifer Endophytes. Diversity and Ecological Roles of Clavicipitaceous Endophytes of Grasses. Contributions of Pharmaceutical Antibiotic and Secondary Metabolite Discovery to the Understanding of Microbial Defense and Antagonism. FUNGAL ENDOPHYTES AS MODEL SYSTEMS TO UNDERSTAND DEFENSIVE MUTUALISM. Extensions to and Modulation of Defensive Mutualism in Grass Endophytes. Conceptual Model for the Analysis of Plant–Endophyte Symbiosis in Relation to Abiotic Stress. Habitat-Adapted Symbiosis as a Defense against Abiotic and Biotic Stresses. Insect Herbivory and Defensive Mutualisms between Plants and Fungi. Fungal Endophytes: Defensive Characteristics and Implications for Agricultural Applications. Endophytic Niche and Grass Defense. Index.