1st Place: Give and take: Do Burkholderia bacteria benefit from the bug-Burkholderia symbiosis?

< !Eastern leaf footed bugs (Leptoglossus phyllopus) form a symbiotic association with free living Burkholderia bacteria by acquiring them from the environment every generation. This ancient association between Leptoglossus and Burkholderia is obligate for the host but not the symbiont. The benefits conferred to bugs by the symbiont have been well studied and include faster development time to adulthood, higher fecundity, and lower mortality rate. However, there is very little information about how the symbiont benefits. In general, benefits provided to microbial symbionts by their host (i.e., nutrients, protection from predators and freedom from competition) are often assumed but rarely tested. Here, we address this gap in knowledge by measuring whether Burkholderia benefits from its association with Leptoglossus. We are using qPCR to quantify the abundance of Burkholderia in soil microcosms in the presence and absence of the host over multiple generations. So far, we have observed that later generations of the insects develop faster and are larger at adulthood. This suggests that Burkholderia abundance increases in the soil when bugs are present, which would indicate that the relationship is indeed beneficial to the symbiont. It also suggests that Leptoglossus creates a local reservoir of symbiont to enhance acquisition by nymphs.