''Blochmannia'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

symbiotic bacteria Symbiotic bacteria are bacteria living in symbiosis with another organism or each other. For example, rhizobia living in root nodules of legumes provide nitrogen fixing activity for these plants. Symbiosis was first defined by Marko de Bary in 186 ...

found in

carpenter ant Carpenter ants (''Camponotus'' spp.) are large () ants indigenous to many forested parts of the world. They build nests inside wood consisting of galleries chewed out with their mandibles or jaws, preferably in dead, damp wood. However, unlik ...

. There are over 1000

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of these ants and, as of 2014, of the over 30 species of carpenter ant that have been investigated, all contain some form of ''Blochmannia''. The bacteria filled cells currently known as members of the genus ''Blochmannia'' were first discovered by zoologist F. Blochmann in the ovaries and midguts of insects in the 1880s. In 2000 ''

Candidatus In prokaryote nomenclature, ''Candidatus'' (Latin for candidate of Roman office) is used to name prokaryotic phyla that are well characterized but yet-uncultured. Contemporary sequencing approaches, such as 16S sequencing or metagenomics, provide m ...

Blochmannia'' was proposed as its own genus.

Endosymbiosis An ''endosymbiont'' or ''endobiont'' is any organism that lives within the body or cells of another organism most often, though not always, in a mutualistic relationship. (The term endosymbiosis is from the Greek: ἔνδον ''endon'' "within" ...

, or when the ''Blochmannia'' bacteria and the ant hosts became bonded, occurred around 30–40 million years ago. In comparing two species of ''Blochmannia'' that diverged evolutionarily around 15-20 million years ago, the extreme similarity between their genes means ''Blochmannia'' bacteria have high levels of genetic conservation. The high amounts of genetic

conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and managem ...

suggest that the ''Blochmannia'' genes lack some recombination mechanisms. ''Blochmannia'' bacteria are found in the midguts of carpenter ants, as well as the ovaries of the female carpenter ants. ''Blochmannia'' is important in synthesizing essential and non essential amino acids, including

tyrosine -Tyrosine or tyrosine (symbol Tyr or Y) or 4-hydroxyphenylalanine is one of the 20 standard amino acids that are used by cells to synthesize proteins. It is a non-essential amino acid with a polar side group. The word "tyrosine" is from the Gr ...

, and it helps the ant to process nitrogen. The ''Blochmannia'' bacteria improves the ants’ nutrition and, in doing this, it is also important to the overall health of the

ant colony An ant colony is a population of a single ant species capable to maintain its complete lifecycle. Ant colonies are eusocial, communal, and efficiently organized and are very much like those found in other social Hymenoptera, though the vario ...

. According to the study by Zientz et al., ''Blochmannia'' improves the health of the colony of ants as a whole because worker ants use a "

trophallaxis Trophallaxis () is the transfer of food or other fluids among members of a community through mouth-to-mouth ( stomodeal) or anus-to-mouth ( proctodeal) feeding. Along with nutrients, trophallaxis can involve the transfer of molecules such as pher ...

and regurgitation" system to provide the colony with food. When control colonies which had ''Blochmannia'' were compared to groups where the worker ants had been given antibiotics to reduce their levels of ''Blochmannia'' , the health of the control colony was superior. Zientz proposes that this superior fitness of the control ant colonies is likely due to ''Blochmannia'' improving the nutritional quality of the food that worker ants supply to the young ants, as the health effects of ''Blochmannia'' appear to decrease with the ant's maturation. ''Blochmannia'' bacteria are sensitive to heat. In one experiment, when exposed to an increased heat of 99.87 °F (37.7 °C) for 4 weeks, over 99% of ''Blochmannia'' disappeared. However, even after 16 weeks exposure of this heat exposure, trace small amounts of ''Blochmannia'' survived. According to researchers Fan and Wernegreen, this experiment suggests that the ''Blochmannia'' in ants could be vulnerable to the

effects of global warming The effects of climate change impact the physical environment, ecosystems and human societies. The environmental effects of climate change are broad and far-reaching. They affect the Effects of climate change on the water cycle, water cycle, ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q12199133 Enterobacteriaceae Candidatus taxa