Venom Function of a New Species of Megalomyrmex Forel, 1885 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Autor: Victoria A Sadowski, Andrew J Mularo, Rachelle M. M. Adams, Lívia Pires do Prado, Kyle Sozanski, Tappey H. Jones
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2020
Předmět:
Zdroj: Toxins
Volume 12
Issue 11
Toxins, Vol 12, Iss 679, p 679 (2020)
ISSN: 2072-6651
DOI: 10.3390/toxins12110679
Popis: Alkaloids are important metabolites found across a variety of organisms with diverse ecological functions. Of particular interest are alkaloids found in ants, organisms well known for dominating the ecosystems they dwell in. Within ants, alkaloids are found in venom and function as potent weapons against heterospecific species. However, research is often limited to pest species or species with parasitic lifestyles and thus fails to address the broader ecological function of ant venom alkaloids. Here we describe a new species of free-living Megalomyrmex ant: Megalomyrmex peetersi sp. n. In addition, we identify its singular venom alkaloid (trans-2-butyl-5-heptylpyrrolidine) and elucidate the antibiotic and insecticidal functions of its venom. Our results show that Megalomyrmex peetersi sp. n. venom is an effective antibiotic and insecticide. These results are comparable to venom alkaloids found in other ant species, such as Solenopsis invicta. This research provides great insight into venom alkaloid function, and it is the first study to explore these ideas in the Megalomyrmex system.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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