Leaf-cutter ants cut and harvest fresh leaves, which they use to farm a fungus in specialized subterranean garden chambers. This fungus, which serves as the primary food source for the entire colony, can support the growth of millions of workers. In this issue of PLoS Genetics, Suen et al. reveal that leaf-cutter ant fungus gardens also contain a diverse community of bacteria with a high capacity for plant biomass degradation. The ability of leaf-cutter ants to maintain an external microbial digestive system capable of converting plant biomass into nutrients likely represents a key step in their establishment as one of the most widespread insect herbivores in the Neotropics.
Image Credit: Jarrod J. Scott (University of Wisconsin-Madison)
Perspective
Mutational Patterns Cannot Explain Genome Composition: Are There Any Neutral Sites in the Genomes of Bacteria?
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001104
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Review
Frail Hypotheses in Evolutionary Biology
PLOS Genetics: published September 16, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001067
Research Articles
Genome-Wide Double-Stranded RNA Sequencing Reveals the Functional Significance of Base-Paired RNAs in Arabidopsis
PLOS Genetics: published September 30, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001141
FliO Regulation of FliP in the Formation of the Salmonella enterica Flagellum
PLOS Genetics: published September 30, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001143
Gene–Environment Interactions at Nucleotide Resolution
PLOS Genetics: published September 30, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001144
The Genome of a Pathogenic Rhodococcus: Cooptive Virulence Underpinned by Key Gene Acquisitions
PLOS Genetics: published September 30, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001145
Genetic Variants and Their Interactions in the Prediction of Increased Pre-Clinical Carotid Atherosclerosis: The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study
PLOS Genetics: published September 30, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001146
Cdc20 Is Critical for Meiosis I and Fertility of Female Mice
PLOS Genetics: published September 30, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001147
Widespread Over-Expression of the X Chromosome in Sterile F1 Hybrid Mice
PLOS Genetics: published September 30, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001148
An Insect Herbivore Microbiome with High Plant Biomass-Degrading Capacity
PLOS Genetics: published September 23, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001129
Dementia Revealed: Novel Chromosome 6 Locus for Late-Onset Alzheimer Disease Provides Genetic Evidence for Folate-Pathway Abnormalities
PLOS Genetics: published September 23, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001130
A Novel Statistic for Genome-Wide Interaction Analysis
PLOS Genetics: published September 23, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001131
DCAF26, an Adaptor Protein of Cul4-Based E3, Is Essential for DNA Methylation in Neurospora crassa
PLOS Genetics: published September 23, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001132
Identification of Early Requirements for Preplacodal Ectoderm and Sensory Organ Development
PLOS Genetics: published September 23, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001133
Orphan CpG Islands Identify Numerous Conserved Promoters in the Mammalian Genome
PLOS Genetics: published September 23, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001134
Analysis of the Basidiomycete Coprinopsis cinerea Reveals Conservation of the Core Meiotic Expression Program over Half a Billion Years of Evolution
PLOS Genetics: published September 23, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001135
Germline Variation Controls the Architecture of Somatic Alterations in Tumors
PLOS Genetics: published September 23, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001136
Loss of Maternal ATRX Results in Centromere Instability and Aneuploidy in the Mammalian Oocyte and Pre-Implantation Embryo
PLOS Genetics: published September 23, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001137
Critical Functions of Rpa3/Ssb3 in S-Phase DNA Damage Responses in Fission Yeast
PLOS Genetics: published September 23, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001138
Genetic Architecture of Complex Traits and Accuracy of Genomic Prediction: Coat Colour, Milk-Fat Percentage, and Type in Holstein Cattle as Contrasting Model Traits
PLOS Genetics: published September 23, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001139
dMyc Functions Downstream of Yorkie to Promote the Supercompetitive Behavior of Hippo Pathway Mutant Cells
PLOS Genetics: published September 23, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001140
SNPs Associated with Cerebrospinal Fluid Phospho-Tau Levels Influence Rate of Decline in Alzheimer's Disease
PLOS Genetics: published September 16, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001101
Analysis of Population Structure: A Unifying Framework and Novel Methods Based on Sparse Factor Analysis
PLOS Genetics: published September 16, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001117
Mice Doubly-Deficient in Lysosomal Hexosaminidase A and Neuraminidase 4 Show Epileptic Crises and Rapid Neuronal Loss
PLOS Genetics: published September 16, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001118
The Metabolic Enzyme ManA Reveals a Link between Cell Wall Integrity and Chromosome Morphology
PLOS Genetics: published September 16, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001119
Genetic Deletion of the Desmosomal Component Desmoplakin Promotes Tumor Microinvasion in a Mouse Model of Pancreatic Neuroendocrine Carcinogenesis
PLOS Genetics: published September 16, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001120
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Comparative Genomic Hybridization (CGH) Reveals a Neo-X Chromosome and Biased Gene Movement in Stalk-Eyed Flies (Genus Teleopsis)
PLOS Genetics: published September 16, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001121
Differentiation of Zebrafish Melanophores Depends on Transcription Factors AP2 Alpha and AP2 Epsilon
PLOS Genetics: published September 16, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001122
Rice Snl6, a Cinnamoyl-CoA Reductase-Like Gene Family Member, Is Required for NH1-Mediated Immunity to Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae
PLOS Genetics: published September 16, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001123
The SR Protein B52/SRp55 Is Required for DNA Topoisomerase I Recruitment to Chromatin, mRNA Release and Transcription Shutdown
PLOS Genetics: published September 16, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001124
ETS-4 Is a Transcriptional Regulator of Life Span in Caenorhabditis elegans
PLOS Genetics: published September 16, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001125
Allelic Variation at the 8q23.3 Colorectal Cancer Risk Locus Functions as a Cis-Acting Regulator of EIF3H
PLOS Genetics: published September 16, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001126
Identification of New Genetic Risk Variants for Type 2 Diabetes
PLOS Genetics: published September 16, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001127
Effect of Correlated tRNA Abundances on Translation Errors and Evolution of Codon Usage Bias
PLOS Genetics: published September 16, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001128
Longitudinal Genome-Wide Association of Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors in the Bogalusa Heart Study
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001094
Perturbation Analysis of Heterochromatin-Mediated Gene Silencing and Somatic Inheritance
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001095
Accurately Assessing the Risk of Schizophrenia Conferred by Rare Copy-Number Variation Affecting Genes with Brain Function
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001097
The APETALA-2-Like Transcription Factor OsAP2-39 Controls Key Interactions between Abscisic Acid and Gibberellin in Rice
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001098
Long- and Short-Term Selective Forces on Malaria Parasite Genomes
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001099
Network Analysis Identifies ELF3 as a QTL for the Shade Avoidance Response in Arabidopsis
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001100
A Central Regulatory System Largely Controls Transcriptional Activation and Repression Responses to Phosphate Starvation in Arabidopsis
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001102
A Single cis Element Maintains Repression of the Key Developmental Regulator Gata2
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001103
Synthesizing and Salvaging NAD+: Lessons Learned from Chlamydomonas reinhardtii
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001105
DNMT3L Modulates Significant and Distinct Flanking Sequence Preference for DNA Methylation by DNMT3A and DNMT3B In Vivo
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001106
Evidence of Selection upon Genomic GC-Content in Bacteria
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001107
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Optimal Strategy for Competence Differentiation in Bacteria
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The Baker's Yeast Diploid Genome Is Remarkably Stable in Vegetative Growth and Meiosis
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Incremental Genetic Perturbations to MCM2-7 Expression and Subcellular Distribution Reveal Exquisite Sensitivity of Mice to DNA Replication Stress
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001110
The Characterization of Twenty Sequenced Human Genomes
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001111
Preferential Re-Replication of Drosophila Heterochromatin in the Absence of Geminin
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001112
An Immune Response Network Associated with Blood Lipid Levels
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001113
Chromatin Landscape Dictates HSF Binding to Target DNA Elements
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001114
Evidence That Mutation Is Universally Biased towards AT in Bacteria
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001115
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Identifying Signatures of Natural Selection in Tibetan and Andean Populations Using Dense Genome Scan Data
PLOS Genetics: published September 9, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001116
Commercially Available Outbred Mice for Genome-Wide Association Studies
PLOS Genetics: published September 2, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001085
Allelic Selection of Amplicons in Glioblastoma Revealed by Combining Somatic and Germline Analysis
PLOS Genetics: published September 2, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001086
Inhibition of GSK-3 Ameliorates Aβ Pathology in an Adult-Onset Drosophila Model of Alzheimer's Disease
PLOS Genetics: published September 2, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001087
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Response to Mechanical Stress Is Mediated by the TRPA Channel Painless in the Drosophila Heart
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Proteomic Changes Resulting from Gene Copy Number Variations in Cancer Cells
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The Histone H3K36 Methyltransferase MES-4 Acts Epigenetically to Transmit the Memory of Germline Gene Expression to Progeny
PLOS Genetics: published September 2, 2010 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1001091
Diversity of Eukaryotic DNA Replication Origins Revealed by Genome-Wide Analysis of Chromatin Structure
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Lactic Acidosis Triggers Starvation Response with Paradoxical Induction of TXNIP through MondoA
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The Potential for Enhancing the Power of Genetic Association Studies in African Americans through the Reuse of Existing Genotype Data
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