The costs and benefits of symbiosis for hosts are not bimodal but span a continuum. Their study highlights the power of exploiting alternative approaches when elucidating the functional impacts of symbiotic associations. Interestingly, the wMelPop strains with more copies also increase host resistance to viruses compared to symbionts with fewer copies. Copy number evolved rapidly when under selection, and wMelPop strains with more copies of the region shortened the lives of their Drosophila hosts more than symbionts with fewer copies. They used directed experimental evolution to select for strains of Wolbachia wMelPop (a bacterial symbiont of fruit flies) that differed in copy number of a region of the genome suspected to underlie virulence. In the current issue of PLOS Biology, Chrostek and Teixeira highlight an elegant approach to studying functional mechanisms of symbiont-conferred traits. Then, determining the mechanism by which symbionts alter these phenotypes can involve genomic, genetic, and evolutionary approaches however, many host-associated symbionts are not amenable to genetic approaches that require cultivation of the microbe outside the host. ![]() Determining the consequences of associating with a microbial symbiont requires experimental comparison of hosts with and without symbionts. The phenotypic effect of symbionts on their hosts may include changes in development, reproduction, longevity, and defense against natural enemies. ![]() Many organisms harbor microbial associates that have profound impacts on host traits.
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