Journal article
Isolation, Growth Characteristics, and Long-Term Storage of Fungi Cultivated by Attine Ants
Applied and environmental microbiology, Vol.55(6), pp.1346-1350
06/1989
DOI: 10.1128/aem.55.6.1346-1350.1989
PMCID: PMC202869
PMID: 16347927
Abstract
Seven pure-culture strains of fungi cultivated by attine ants (ant-garden fungi) were isolated from locally maintained leaf-cutting ant colonies. An ant-garden fungus strain obtained from an
Atta cephalotes
colony, when offered to ants of the colony from which the fungus was isolated, was accepted as their own. Young fungus cultures were harvested and incorporated into the fungus garden, and cultures of intermediate age were used to begin a new fungus garden; old cultures were simply harvested. To facilitate further research on this fungus, growth characteristics of the different isolates were studied under a variety of conditions. They grew better at 24°C than at 30°C, and growth did not occur at an incubation temperature of 37°C. In a broth culture medium, growth was enhanced by aeration of the culture and by addition of yeast extract, olive oil, sesame oil, peanut oil, soybean oil, corn oil, sunflower oil, cottonseed oil, walnut oil, safflower oil, or mineral oil. Glycerol did not noticeably affect growth, but Tween 80 inhibited growth. These fungi were extremely sensitive to cycloheximide, growth being totally inhibited at cycloheximide concentrations ranging from 0.4 to 4.0 μg/ml. To date, the ant-garden fungus isolates have remained viable in long-term mineral oil-overlay storage cultures for up to 4 years.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Isolation, Growth Characteristics, and Long-Term Storage of Fungi Cultivated by Attine Ants
- Creators
- John Cazin - Departments of Microbiology, Chemistry, and Biology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242David F Wiemer - Departments of Microbiology, Chemistry, and Biology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242Jerome J Howard - Departments of Microbiology, Chemistry, and Biology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Applied and environmental microbiology, Vol.55(6), pp.1346-1350
- DOI
- 10.1128/aem.55.6.1346-1350.1989
- PMID
- 16347927
- PMCID
- PMC202869
- ISSN
- 0099-2240
- eISSN
- 1098-5336
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 06/1989
- Academic Unit
- Neuroscience and Pharmacology; Chemistry
- Record Identifier
- 9984216700402771
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