Comments on: Virus and bacteria team up to save aphid from parasitic wasp

By: Biological Warfare | Living With Insects Blog

Biological Warfare | Living With Insects Blog — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 21:49:49 +0000

[...] back against parasitoids by forming “mutual defense pacts” with microorganisms. The pea aphid contains bacteria that can host viruses and produce viral toxins. The viral toxins defend the aphid by killing the parasitoids. The bacteria and virus have complex [...]

By: And so on, ad infinitum | Mystery Rays from Outer Space

And so on, ad infinitum | Mystery Rays from Outer Space — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 10:16:08 +0000

[...] url: "http://www.iayork.com/MysteryRays/2010/08/19/and-so-on-ad-infinitum/" });Ed Yong also covered this story last year.[↩]By the way, you all should be listening to Meet the Scientist. Zimmer is not [...]

By: Nathan Myers

Nathan Myers — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 09:53:18 +0000

Ed, you use the construction “H.defensa‘s” in a way that seems odd to me more than once in the article. Is it just a cut’n'paste anomaly, or am I missing some meaning?
Once again I am led to doubt that the phage should really be treated as an organism independently from the bacterium. You don’t always wear your hat, but it’s still your hat.

By: Stephanie W.

Stephanie W. — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 00:24:35 +0000

Ford-
My impression is that the phage is usually transmitted along with the infected facultative symbiont from parent to offspring, though it can be lost (rendering the Hamiltonella worse than useless). Since this is a phage, there would have to be a susceptible microbe in the wasps for it to infect.

By: Ed Yong

Ed Yong — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 15:43:36 +0000

Oh God – n00b error! You know, I once sent a female scientist a write-up of their work for fact-checking and referred to them as “he” throughout. She sent it back with a couple of technical corrections but didn’t spot the gender-bending one.

By: Ford

Ford — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 15:32:00 +0000

How is the virus transmitted? Seems like there would be selection for protecting the host only if it’s transmitted to host offspring, presumably inside with the bacteria. If it ever evolves the ability to infect and reproduce in the wasps, I’d expect it to suppress rather than strengthen host defenses.

By: G Felis

G Felis — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 15:24:38 +0000

Minor correction, Ed – although Dr. Oliver might not consider it so minor:
“She unleashed the wasp A.ervi upon all of these individuals, and waited.”
Actually, he unleashed the wasp. You linked to his faculty bio page, but apparently never looked at it, because Kerry Oliver is awfully rugged-looking and bearded for a ‘she.’