Use of Hybridization Chain Reaction-Fluorescent In Situ Hybridization To Track Gene Expression by Both Partners during Initiation of Symbiosis

The establishment of a productive symbiosis between Euprymna scolopes, the Hawaiian bobtail squid, and its luminous bacterial symbiont, Vibrio fischeri, is mediated by transcriptional changes in both partners. A key challenge to unraveling the steps required to successfully initiate this and many ot...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Applied and Environmental Microbiology 2015-07, Vol.81 (14), p.4728-4735
Main Authors: Nikolakakis, K, Lehnert, E, McFall-Ngai, M J, Ruby, E G
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aliivibrio fischeri - genetics
Aliivibrio fischeri - growth & development
Aliivibrio fischeri - physiology
Animals
Bacterial Proteins - genetics
Bacterial Proteins - metabolism
Decapodiformes - genetics
Decapodiformes - microbiology
Decapodiformes - physiology
Euprymna scolopes
Fluorescence in situ hybridization
Gene expression
Genetics
Habitats
In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence - methods
Invertebrate Microbiology
Mollusks
Scolopes
Symbiosis
Vibrio fischeri
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Summary:The establishment of a productive symbiosis between Euprymna scolopes, the Hawaiian bobtail squid, and its luminous bacterial symbiont, Vibrio fischeri, is mediated by transcriptional changes in both partners. A key challenge to unraveling the steps required to successfully initiate this and many other symbiotic associations is characterization of the timing and location of these changes. We report on the adaptation of hybridization chain reaction-fluorescent in situ hybridization (HCR-FISH) to simultaneously probe the spatiotemporal regulation of targeted genes in both E. scolopes and V. fischeri. This method revealed localized, transcriptionally coregulated epithelial cells within the light organ that responded directly to the presence of bacterial cells while, at the same time, provided a sensitive means to directly show regulated gene expression within the symbiont population. Thus, HCR-FISH provides a new approach for characterizing habitat transition in bacteria and for discovering host tissue responses to colonization.
ISSN:0099-2240
1098-5336
1098-6596
DOI:10.1128/AEM.00890-15