Diversity of bacterial communities in the midgut of Bactrocera cucurbitae (Diptera: Tephritidae) populations and their potential use as attractants.

Background: The microbiota plays an important role in insect development and fitness. Understanding the gut microbiota composition is essential for the development of pest management strategies. Midgut bacteria were isolated from nine wild B. cucurbitae populations collected from different agroecological zones of India. These isolates were further studied for attractant potential of fruit fly adults, and the chemical constituents in the supernatants of gut bacteria were analysed.

Results: Twenty-six bacterial isolates belonging to the families Enterobacteriaceae, Bacillaceae, Micrococcaceae and Staphylococcaceae were isolated and identified on the basis of 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis. The dominant species in the midgut of melon fly were from the genera Enterobacter (34.6%), Klebsiella (19.2%), Citrobacter (7.7%), Bacillus (15.4%) and Providencia (7.7%), and 3.8% each of Micrococcus, Staphylococcus, Leclercia and Exiguobacterium. Bactrocera cucurbitae and B. dorsalis adults were significantly attracted to bacterial whole cell cultures and their supernatants in the fruit fly attraction bioassays. Bacillus cereus, Enterobacter, Klebsiella, Citrobacter and Providencia species attracted both male and females of Bactrocera species. The supernatants of Klebsiella, Citrobacter and Providencia species attracted a significantly greater number of females than males. The most abundant chemical constituents in supernatants of K. oxytoca and C. freundii were 3-methyl-1-butanol, 2-phenylethanol, butyl isocyanatoacetate, 2-methyl-1-propanol and 3-hydroxy-2-butanone, as identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

Conclusions: The bacterial endosymbionts associated with melon fly exhibited attractant potential which could facilitate eco-friendly insect control strategies. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry.